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1 Dear Incoming Evening & Weekend MBA Students, On behalf of the Smith School and our Office of Career Services (OCS), I would like to welcome you to our program and congratulate you on making such a significant investment in your future! We are looking forward to your arrival, to the talents that you will bring, to the personal and professional development that you will attain, and to the contributions that you will make to the overall Smith School community. We are also excited about the potential value that our lates t cohort of MBA Terps will bring to our corporate and public - sector business partners. Our OCS mission is two - fold: (1) to provide students with transformational experiences that launch extraordinary career journeys; and (2) to partner with employers to i nfuse talent pipelines with exceptional Smith Terps. Successfully achieving these goals will require a focus on three key stakeholders: employers, students, and alumni. We view students and alumni as our partners, and employers as our clients or customer s. Our talent management model is one in which we truly serve as collaborators with you during your MBA journey. Although we are here to support and facilitate your professional growth and development, our belief is that our Smith MBA leaders will lead the way by remaining actively engaged in the career development process throughout your journey. Each year some MBA candidates enter our program already laser - focused on the career they want to pursue, while others are less advanced in their career discernme nt. Without exception, students who are most successful in the career process (i.e., gain multiple offers of employment) are those who actively engage the OCS early and participate in the full suite of professional development programming that is offered, develop strong relationships with their Career Coaches, leverage the employer information sessions to validate or discover an employer or industry of choice, balance career search and academic pursuits, and use every interaction as an opportunity to build a professional network. These students also possess a strong learning orientation, openness to feedback, resilience, a willingness to reflect, and a desire to practice and experiment with new behaviors and processes will be requisite for leadership and pro fessional success. The enclosed OCS Career On - Boarding Process is a comprehensive timeline that should guide your strategic career development efforts during your first year at the Smith School. Reference it often over the summer. Know that the entire Sm ith School community has a vested interest in positioning you for the future. We look forward to meeting you and partnering with you during your time at Smith . Dr. Jeff Kudisch Assistant Dean of Corporate Relations Managing Director, Office of Career Ser vices 2 OFFICE OF CAREER SERVICES ON - BOARDING PROCESS T he Office of Career Services (OCS) provides students with a variety of professional development services . Our on - board ing process serves as your roadmap in understanding the essential steps require d to ensure your career success. The Smith School Career Coaches serve the part time MBA student population by: ï‚· Providing high - level coaching to students on a wide range of career - related issues. ï‚· Advising students based upon their specific area of interes t. ï‚· Showing empathy/concern for your professional development and growth as well as addressing your feelings or frustrations. ï‚· Helping you to create a development action plan for achieving your career goals. A successful outcome in reaching your career dev elopment goals hinges upon the amount of effort you invest in the process starting at this very moment. OCS PART - TIME MBA INTAKE FORM: June 2016 Please complete a very short intake form that will enable your OCS coach to le arn more about you. Please complete this intake form prior to moving on to the next step. ORDER SMITH BUSINESS CARD S AND NAME TAGS: June 201 6 Smith business cards and personalized name tags are optional for all students at the Smith School; however, we recommend that you take a few minutes to order these items to top off your professional persona with employers, alumni and fellow students. Links to these sites can be found on the MPO checklist for your reference. ESTABLISH YOUR HIRESMITH PROFILE: July 201 6 We stro ngly encourage you to create your HireSmith profile so you will have access to workshop information, coach schedules, employer postings, and several other resources that will aid you in your career development. To access HireSmith, visit www.HireSmith.net . UPDATE RESUME: August 201 6 We encourage you to create a first draft of your resume according to the Smith MBA Resume Guidelines located on HireSmith in order to be eligible for opportunities that may appear on HireSmith. It often takes a few weeks to revise the resume to get it employer - ready, thus it is important that you do not wait until the last minute to submit these documents for feedback and revisions. 3 SCHEDULE AN INITIAL MEETING WITH YOUR CAREER COACH: September 201 6 Once classes begin, schedule an initial meeting with your career coach to begin the process of strategically managing your career. You may schedule a meeting on a day and time that is convenient to you using www.HireSmith.net. CAREER FAIRS : Fall 201 6 Almost immediately upo n your arrival at the Smith School, career conferen ce season begins. For those who are interested , conferences can be immensely helpful in your job search. They provide a forum for interacting with Fortune 500 companies and a few nonprofits who are looking to hire MBAs for both internships and full - time opportunities. If you attend a conference without being prepared , you run the risk of damaging your personal b r and and the Smith S chool brand s o please have a discussion with your career coach regarding your conference readiness prior to making your decision on whether or not to attend one of the fall conferences. Conferences that you should be aware of and speak with your coach about attending are: ï‚· National Hispanic MBA (NSHMBA): 9/29 - 10/1 (Career Fair on 9/30 & 10/1) (Houston, TX) ï‚· Reaching Out MBA (ROMBA): 10/6 - 10/8 (Dallas, TX) ï‚· MBA Veteran's Conference: 10/6 - 10/8 (Chicago, IL) ï‚· National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA): 10/11 - 10/15 (10/13 - 10/14 Career Fair) (New Orleans, LA) ï‚· National Association of Women M BAs (NAWMBA): 10/20 - 10/22 (Stamford, CT) ï‚· Net Impact Conference: 11/3 - 11/5 (Philadelphia, PA) ï‚· Asian MBA Conference: 11/4 (New York, NY) ï‚· Chinese Finance Association Annual Conference and Career Fair: TBD (NY) Career Coaches will be on hand at several of thes e conferences to provide career advising and mock interview support as you interact with employers in attendance. Your goals for the career fair should be to secure : ï‚· Invitations to interview either ahead of time or at the conference ï‚· Invitations to employ er networking events ï‚· A list of employer contacts both within human resources and your functional area (s) If you know you will be attending a career conference identify your target companies, and submit your resume one month in advance of each conference. Resume submissions are facilitated online via each conference’s job match database. ONGOING CAREER SERVICES The Office of Career Services encourages you to fully partner with your career coach in your efforts to strategically manage your career. ï‚· Sched ule coaching appointments early and often for the best results. ï‚· Login to HireSmith often to keep apprised of relevant career development workshops and events, and employers recruiting at the Smith School. 4 ï‚· Attend career - related programming and networking opportunities to make the most of your Smith experience. ï‚· Keep your eyes open for the weekly MBA Career Terp Talk publication, which will arrive in your Smith inbox every Sunday evening once classes begin. CONTACT US Office of Career Services – Baltimor e Campus Robert H. Smith School of Business University of Maryland, BioPark Two, Suite 100 801 W. Baltimore Street Baltimore, Maryland 21201 410. 706. 0859 TEL Office of Career Services – DC Campus Robert H. Smith School of Business University of Marylan d Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite C6 Washington, DC 20006 202. 898. 0750 TEL Office of Career Services – Shady Grove Campus Robert H. Smith School of Business University of Maryland 9630 Gudelsky Drive Building III, Office 5109 Rockville, MD 20850 301. 738. 6179 TEL