Kayla Romero 1 Sample Writing

A Caring Career Center

As someone who knows what kind of impact a Career Peer Educator (CPE) has on the

students and alumni of UT Dallas, I can say that the Career Center does do an excellent job of

student engagement; however, there is always room for more ideas to reach the student populace,

especially if I were to act as a CPE. While there are many ways that can increase undergraduate

student engagement with the career center, I believe that by creating a Comet Career app and

working with the professional organizations on campus we could better address the issues.

While the Comet Careers website does offer a mobile site for cellular use, I believe that

having an app would ease accessibility, as well as increase student engagement among the

undergraduate population. As CPEs, our role would be to offer input when it comes to the design

and preferences among the younger students with details such as notifications and how often

they occur. This point of view would be essential in the design as well as the maintenance since

CPEs also maintain the website and update it when needed. This app could make it easier for

registration, and for notifying others when jobs are available opposed to the email system that is

set up. The app could also offer fun, interactive quizzes about common mistakes people make

when they are in a career­related situation. After the quiz was complete, it could offer

suggestions to the many seminars that are available to register for the students. To advertize the

app, besides word of mouth, we would set up QR coded posters around the school so that

students would have the opportunity to download the app quickly without searching for it in their

designated app store. Creating a Comet Career app would be both beneficial for the Career

Center as well as the students of UT Dallas with the invaluable help of CPEs.

Kayla Romero 2 Sample Writing

UT Dallas offers a wide variety of organizations for students including

profession­oriented organizations. They are found across campus from engineers to business

majors, and to the arts and humanities. While the Career Center does provide major or college

specific seminars (or workshops) available for all student use, my idea is to have the Career Peer

Educators work with representatives of these organizations who wish to be a part of the program

where CPEs would be able to tailor seminars specific to the organization’s represented

profession. This program would allow students to become involved in career preparation as well

as offer a unique experience to the members of those organizations.

While I am aware that the Career Center already does some of these things to an extent,

my idea is to expand the options and make it so that if I am an engineering student (for example),

a CPE would give a seminar about how to create the best resume for a job in engineering to the

Engineering for Medicine and Biology organization. This would increase student engagement as

well as help the Career Center with outreach to the younger student body when it comes to career

preparation. This would be an active role for a CPE because it allows the CPE creativity as well

as new insight into the variety of careers out there for the many students who will not even attend

a seminar unless they are required to or about to graduate. Being available for the different

organizations as a resource that can be used with the ease of mind that they are guaranteed at

least a seminar for the members of their organizations allows the Career Center as well as CPEs

to reach students on a different level than before.

I am sure that there are many ways that a Career Peer Educator could increase the student

involvement with the Career Center, I believe creating a Comet Careers app and working with

Kayla Romero 3 Sample Writing

professional organizations are two ways to do that. Working as a CPE would be an amazing

opportunity, especially since I want to work in Human Resources in either the

Recruitment­and­Training, or Employee Relations track. A Career Peer Educator has to act as

both a representative of UT Dallas and the Career Center with the utmost respect and highest of

expectations that should be asked of for any employee. I believe I can be that person for you.