Interns Flocked to Indianapolis Zoo for Career Building

Indiana INTERNnet partnered with the Indianapolis Zoo to host our second intern engagement event of the summer! This event, much like our previous engagement event at the Children’s Museum in June, was a fantastic success for everyone involved. We were ecstatic to have over 170 interns from various companies all around the state come together to network and learn more about one of the best attractions our city has to offer.

The Indianapolis Zoo, a place known for discovering new wonders of the animal world, is also the perfect place for innovative educational learning for kids and adults of all ages. Their enduring reputation is the product of their outstanding staff members, interns, and volunteers that enhance the guest experience year-round. And our visitors got the chance to learn from 5 of these staff members during a career panel. With backgrounds ranging from public relations and HR, to veterinary hospital management and fundraising, they gave a broad range of career advice, tools, and tips in a Q&A setting. Here is some of the best advice we heard yesterday:

– Take time in college to build your personal “tool box” of skills. These skills, either stumbled upon or fine-tuned, will stay with you for the rest of your career, even if you end up changing your career multiple times. Know what they are and how you use them to your advantage!

– Learn the ins and outs of project management. Whether it’s through personal experience or additional learning from an online course, it’s important to know how to plan, organize, and control resources to achieve specific goals.

– For job interviews, arrive at least 15 minutes early, dress professionally, and bring a pen and paper to write with along with a copy of your resume and cover letter. Every employer and hiring manager wants to see you prepared, not unprepared!

– Learn clear and concise communication between you and the employer/future employer. How to properly e-mail, follow up, and communicate online, as well as public speaking and etiquette.

– Learn the aspects of managing up and across.

– Anticipate your employer’s needs when you are working below someone. Making your manager look good to their boss will make you look good.

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Even if you missed our event, we hope you gained some insight from the staff’s useful advice!