I come to you now fresh from finishing my first college paper.
Here's a tip: always have someone read over your writing assignments.
As a writer, I almost decided not to bother, but then I realized how much I cared about acing my Introduction to Childhood Studies class. So, I sent my paper to my father (hi Dad!!!), and he found the mistakes one misses when she spends hours rambling about Childhood being a social construction (I love you dad!)
Since I just finished this 6 page paper, please excuse me if this post isn't my best work. I'm a bit burned out, but that's not what this post is about.
The Rutgers Connection is a term/social construction I made up a few days ago to describe a phenomenon I'm coming to experience as a Rutgers student. Simply put: it seems like everyone I meet has a connection to Rutgers, or at least knows what it is. A Rutgers student can use this to her advantage, as I did, last Saturday.
A few months ago, I visited the doctor with my mom and when we told him I was going to Rutgers he told us he graduated from Rutgers- New Brunswick. We also told him of my aspirations to become a doctor and he told us I should try to shadow one of my doctors, and volunteered himself. So last Saturday, the day finally came!
I arrived bright and early at 8:30 AM, and began my dad of shadowing. Oh, and shadowing means following a doctor around, shaking lots of hands, and observing his or her occupation. When the day started, I was pleased to learn I would be shadowing alongside a medical student who I found out was a Rutgers Camden grad. Through out the day people would ask where I went to school and I would hear "oh, my son just graduated from Rutgers Camden!" or "I went there" or just nods of understanding. New Jerseyeans know about and respect Rutgers. People out of state know about Rutgers too. I didn't have to explain to anyone of my out of state friends what Rutgers was when I told them I would be attending this fall. A Rutgers alum has even said to me, "Out of state, people think Rutgers is an ivy league school. I apply for jobs and they say 'Rutgers, that's ivy league, right?"
Shadowing, by the way, is great. It can really help you decide where you want to go with your medical career. I learned that I want something hands on, where I can at least do something helpful for the patient each visit.
Anyway,
What does the Rutgers Connection mean to you? It's a fantastic asset, you just need to use it.
1. Connect with the Rutgers community of the world, don't try to exploit them, but oftentimes alumni offer people who attend(ed) their school opportunities. Rutgers Alum are everywhere. Last week, a Rutgers Camden graduate, Amy Sciarretto came in and talked about her book, Do the Devil's Work For Him, and how to break into the music business. If no opportunity or alumni exists, Rutgers is a great conversation topic. I bet everyone in New Jersey is connected to Rutgers by no more than 3 degrees (connections).
2. Let the Rutgers career center staff help you nab great jobs and internships. Next year, I'm hoping to intern at the Cooper Hospital Emergency room. Here's the link to the Rutgers Camden Career Center.
3. Use your attendance of Rutgers to your advantage. Put it on your resume (duh!), but also take advantage of the Rutger's unique opportunities (i.e. Study abroad, R-Camden International Studies Program, Research, etc.) The Rutgers name means something and if you're attending Rutgers you deserve to use it. The Rutgers Camden slogan is Prestige. Location. Opportunity. Value. and it describes the school perfectly.
Alright, that's it for now. I think I'm going to post the Winter Break Business School trip information just because I am super jealous of anyone who gets to go and want to show you another opportunity here:
http://int-studies.camden.rutgers.edu/news.php
Also listed there are the upcoming Spring trips. I'm interested in Egypt and Paris!
Location: SinglePost