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Looking to the Future: Campus Reach Career Day

ClaireD
Adventurer C

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Southwest’s Campus Reach program continuously goes above and beyond to ensure its Interns are accepted into Company Culture, have positive work-life balances, and are well-equipped moving forward after the internship. A perfect example of the program’s genuine care for its Interns is Career Day. This event is an all-day opportunity for Campus Reach Interns to learn how to prepare for a full-time career. Attending Career Day for the second time as a returning Intern, I can truly say that Campus Reach not only works diligently to provide Interns with relevant and valuable direction, but also makes an honest effort to adjust Career Day’s curriculum each semester based on the Interns’ unique needs and changing trends in the HR industry.

 

Career Day kicked off with an Interviewing 101 session. Full-time Employees from Southwest’s People Department led the session, offering tips gathered from their personal and professional experiences. One of the session’s major takeaways was the importance of finding a job that you enjoy. Aligning seamlessly with Southwest Culture, the Interns were encouraged to consider who they are and what they love before going into an interview. The speakers advised attendees to closely evaluate their likes, dislikes, successes, and even failures throughout their collegiate—and high school—careers.

 

The self-awareness theme and light-hearted authenticity carried on throughout Career Day. During the interactive portion of the session, Interns engaged with one another in a series of mock interviews. We practiced elaborating on our specific skills and experiences, with an emphasis on detailed support and forward thinking. This activity fostered encouragement, constructive criticism, and honest feedback from our peers and the Campus Reach Team. 

 

My favorite part of Career Day was the career fair. Representatives from Departments throughout the Company attended to interact with the Interns, inform them about their respective Departments, and discuss opportunities to get firsthand experience within the Department. I conversed with some phenomenal Employees who were eager to help me better understand their field of work as well as offer professional direction. Later on, I sat in several round table discussions with Representatives from different Departments who expanded on what they enjoy most about their roles. These Employees answered questions and showed genuine interest in the Interns’ career goals. They also shared their enthusiasm about the Company and discussed why Southwest’s Culture is so special.

 

Career Day gave me a better glimpse into the Company I love and incited zeal for my future career. I have an exceedingly positive outlook moving forward after my internship, and I am so fortunate to have guidance from the Campus Reach Team and support from my fellow Interns. While I am immensely sad to leave behind my incredible internship experience and remarkable Team, I am excited to see where the future leads my well-equipped Cohearts and me.

 

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