With interviewing, practice makes perfect
Mike McDaniel, an instrumentation engineer at Audubon Institute, interviews Tulane student Katherine Grover during Mock Interview Day on Friday (April 17) on the uptown campus. (Photo by Paula Burch-Celentano)
Students armed with resumes arrived at Yulman Stadium wearing suits and pencil skirts for Mock Interview Day on Friday (April 17). The event was part of a new set of career development courses offered at Tulane University.
The career development courses are relatively new one-credit courses offered for the last three semesters.
“The class is one part lecture, one part practice and one part preparation,” says Amjad Ayoubi, executive director of career services at Tulane.
First offered during spring semester last year with a total of eight sections, there are now 30 sections available each semester with a potential of enrolling 1,200 students annually.
“We have this vision that every Tulane student will have the opportunity to take a career class that can help them figure out what they want to major in and help prepare them for jobs and internships,” says Ayoubi.
The career development classes are separated by class years. The first-year student course is geared toward helping students explore majors and better understand their goals and learning styles. The class for sophomores and juniors focuses on professional development and obtaining internships. Meanwhile, seniors concentrate on the job search.
Ayoubi says the curriculum is still evolving.
“One of the ideas that we have is to actually offer the class as a year-long class,” says Ayoubi. “We"re also thinking about how to offer a public-service component.”
Samah Ahmed is a first-year student at Tulane University majoring in public health and political science.
“This class has helped me feel more comfortable with my major as well as more informed about my major's requirements and employment options once I graduate.”—Michael Morton, first-year student
