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Action Verbs for your Resume
To assist you in describing your educational and employment experiences, go through this list and see which verbs you can use to give punch to your resume! Click the type of skills you want to describe to reveal a list of powerful verbs.
Advertised
Arbitrated
Argued
Arranged
Articulated
Authored
Briefed
Clarified
Closed
Collaborated
Communicated
Composed
Concluded
Conferred
Consulted
Contracted
Conveyed
Convinced
Corresponded
Created
Debated
Defined
Developed
Directed
Discussed
Dispatched
Drafted
Edited
Elicited
Enlisted
Explained
Expressed
Formulated
Furnished
Helped
Identified
Incorporated
Influenced
Interacted
Interviewed
Involved
Joined
Judged
Led
Lectured
Listened
Manipulated
Marketed
Medicated
Moderated
Motivated
Merged
Observed
Obtained
Outlined
Participated
Persuaded
Presented
Promoted
Proposed
Publicized
Read
Reasoned
Reconciled
Recruited
Rejoined
Reported
Resolved
Responded
Sold
Solicited
Specified
Spoke
Suggested
Summarized
Synthesized
Translated
Wrote
Acted
Adapted
Began
Combined
Conceptualized
Condensed
Customized
Devised
Discriminated
Displayed
Drew
Entertained
Established
Explored
Founded
Generated
Illustrated
Imagined
Imported
Initiated
Innovated
Instituted
Introduced
Invented
Launched
Memorized
Modeled
Modernized
Modified
Originated
Painted
Performed
Photographed
Planned
Published
Remodeled
Revised
Revitalized
Shaped
Set
Solidified
Solved
Visualized
Administered
Advanced
Analyzed
Appointed
Approved
Assigned
Attained
Caused
Chaired
Changed
Considered
Consolidated
Contained
Converted
Coordinated
Cut
Decided
Delegated
Doubled
Eliminated
Emphasized
Employed
Empowered
Enforced
Enhanced
Evaluated
Executed
Expanded
Fine Tuned
Handled
Headed
Hired
Hosted
Implemented
Improved
Inspected
Managed
Navigated
Organized
Overhauled
Oversaw
Presided
Prioritized
Produced
Quadrupled
Recommended
Recovered
Reorganized
Replaced
Restored
Restructured
Reviewed
Salvaged
Saved
Secured
Selected
Streamlined
Strengthened
Supervised
Terminated
Trained
Transformed
Tripled
Troubleshoot
Vended
Adjusted
Allocated
Appraised
Approximated
Assessed
Audited
Balanced
Budgeted
Checked
Compounded
Cornputed
Conserved
Corrected
Counted
Decreased
Detailed
Determined
Dispensed
Dispersed
Estimated
Earned
Extracted
Figured
Financed
Forecasted
Grossed
Increased
Speed
Maintained
Accuracy
Maximized
Measured
Multiplied
Netted
Prepared
Profited
Projected
Purchased
Qualified
Quantified
Reduced
Researched
Retrieved
Totaled
Trimmed
Upgraded
Underwrote
Yielded
Assembled
Bound
Bent
Controlled
Drilled
Drove
Lifted
Moved
Pulled
Retooled
Serviced
Skilled
Tended
Advised
Advocated
Aided
Alleviated
Answered
Assesseed
Assisted
Attended
Augmented
Backed
Boistered
CAred
Coached
Consoled
Contributed
Cooperated
Demonstrated
Sensitivity
Diagnosed
Eased
Educated
Elevated
Encouraged
Endored
Ensured
Facilitated
Familiarized
Fostered
Furthered
Guided
Integrated
Insured
Interceded
Intervened
Mentored
Mobilized
Perceived
Preventive
Protected
Provided
Referred
Rehabilitated
Related
Rendered
Safeguarded
Simplified
Supplied
Supported
Used
Teamwork
Approach
Volunteered
Achieved
Catalogued
Charted
Classified
Coded
Collated
Collected
Compared
Completed
Configured
Distributed
Diversified
Followed through
Logged
Monitored
Operated
Ordered
Processed
Registered
Reserved
Retained
Recorded
Routed
Scheduled
Standardized
Submitted
Systematized
Tablated
Updated
Validated
Verified
Archived
Branded
Compiled
Conducted
Critiqued
Detected
Differentiate
Documented
Examined
Experimented
Extrapolated
Filed
Gathered
Hypothesized
Indoctrinated
Interpreted
Investigated
Linked
Located
Rated
Recognized problems
Searched
Scanned
Surveyed
Tested
Unearthed
Adopted
Benchmarked
Challenged
Counseled
Enabled
Enlightened
Focused
Individualized
Informed
Instilled
Schooled
Simulated
Taught
Transmitted
Tutored
Valued
Acclimated
Activated
Adhered
Applied
Automated
Built
Calculated
Centralized
Channeled
Circulated
Computed
Conceived
Constructed
Debugged
Deferred
Designed
Diagrammed
Engineered
Excelled
Expedited
Fabricated
Formed
Fortified
Installed
Interfaced
Laugned
Mastered
Molded
Networked
Packaged
Printed
Programmed
Rebuilt
Reconstructed
Rectified
Re-designed
Re-engineered
Regulated
Repaired
Revamped
Specialized
Studied
Utilized
The Career Center is available for drop-ins from 10am – 5pm Mondays through Fridays, but our online resources and tools are available 24/7.
Our online resources cover comprehensive guides and advice for resumes, cover letters, interviews, finding jobs & internships, building professional competencies, and creating a network.
Start your career journey by clicking on one of the six buttons below!
Whether face-to-face or over the telephone, a real-time exit interview done by a member of the college relations team is an excellent way to gather feedback on the student’s experience and to assess their interest in coming back. Having the students fill out an exit survey and bring it to the interview gives some structure to the conversation.
Students work very hard at completing their work and are generally proud of their accomplishments. Setting up a venue for them to do presentations (formal presentations or in a fair-type setting such as an expo) not only allows them to demonstrate their achievements, but also showcases the internship program to all employees.
Conducting focus groups and feedback surveys with these representatives of your target group is a great way to see your organization as the students see it. Focus groups in particular can yield information about what your competitors are doing that students find appealing.
Providing students with access to in-house training—both in work-skills-related areas, such as a computer language, and in general skills areas, such as time management—is a tangible way to show students you are interested in their development.
You may also want to consider providing interns with information about nearby community colleges: Many students will be interested in attending during their work term to take care of some electives and/or get a little ahead with the hours they need to graduate. If you have the budget, you may also want to consider paying the tuition for courses they take while working for you, but, as is the case with housing, any assistance you can provide—even if it’s just providing them with information about local schools—will earn you points with students.
One of the greatest advantages to students in having internships is the access they get to accomplished professionals in their field. Consequently, speakers from the executive ranks are very popular with students—it’s a great career development and role modeling experience for interns. Having a CEO speak is especially impressive. Best scenario: Your CEO speaker is personable, willing to answer questions, and willing and able to spend a little informal time with the students after speaking—your interns will be quite impressed.
For you, having your executives speak to interns is another way to “sell” your organization to the interns, and get your executives invested in (and supporting) your program.
New-hire panels are one of the best ways to showcase an organization to interns as a great place to work. These are panels of five or six people who were hired as new grads within the last three years. They act as panelists in a meeting of interns, giving a brief summary of their background and then answering questions from the intern audience. Your interns get insight about your organization from your new hires—people who they perceive are like themselves and who they consequently view as credible sources of information.
In these meetings, I’ve found that the interns consistently bring up the same topics: Why did you choose this employer over others? What was your first year like? How is being a full-time employee here different from being an intern? Do you recommend getting a graduate degree? In the same field, or an M.B.A.? Is it better to go straight to graduate school after the bachelor’s or better to work a while?
It’s also fairly consistent that the new hires will offer other types of advice to your interns, such as how to handle finances those first couple of years out of school. (Their typical advice: Don’t run right out and buy a new car, and, Start contributing the maximum to your savings plan as soon as you are allowed.)
College relations staff should attend these sessions, but should remain unobtrusive, staying in the back of the room so as not to stifle the conversation. By being there, you stay aware of what is on the minds of your target group, and you can answer any detailed questions that may come up, such as those related to benefits.
Although some programs—especially those that are very structured on the university side—make visits by career center staff and faculty a regular practice, most do not. In general, career center staff and faculty members have relatively few opportunities to visit employer work sites to see firsthand the types of experiences that their students are getting. By inviting them to your site, you will build a better working relationship with these groups, which can lead to more student referrals, enhanced campus visibility, and increased flexibility on their parts when your business needs dictate it.
Involve your college recruiting teams—whether they are “volunteers” who participate in college recruiting, staff members dedicated to college recruiting, or some combination of both—in your intern program. They can sponsor social or professional development events, and help to orient the interns to your company culture. In my experience, college team members served as cooks at intern picnics, hosts at speaker events, and drivers for social outings such as ball games.
Having a dedicated manager for your intern program is the best way to ensure that it runs smoothly and stays focused on your criteria for success. Unfortunately, the size and resources available to most internship programs mean that this isn’t always possible. If your program isn’t big enough to warrant a dedicated full-time staff member, an excellent short-term solution is to hire a graduate student (look for a student working toward an advanced HR degree) to be your intern, and put this college relations intern in charge of the daily operation of the internship program. This gives the interns a “go-to” person, and gives you and your staff a break from the many daily tasks involved in running a program of any size. For this to work, you have to plan the program structure in advance (don’t expect your intern to do it), and be very accessible to your college relations intern
Students mention flex-time as one of their most-desired features in a job. (A flexible time schedule during their internship eases their transition to the workplace.)
If you think about how students spend the day on campus (varied schedule each day, with varied activities such as work, class, social time), you can understand that 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday is a bit of an adjustment for them. A flexible schedule can make them feel less chained in by an unchanging routine.
Other work arrangements that have been found successful with students include keeping them on as part-time, remote employees after they go back to school (depending on the type of work they do for you and whether they have a willing manager), and having them come back and work over school breaks for a couple of weeks. These are excellent ways to keep communications open and build a stronger bond.
Pairing a scholarship with your internship is a great way to recruit for your internship program—and this is especially true if you are having difficulty attracting a particular type of student or student with a specific skill set to your program. Attaching a scholarship can increase your pool of candidates with the desired qualifications.
Few employers can afford to provide fully paid housing for interns, but you’ll find that you get a lot of appreciation if you offer any kind of assistance toward housing expenses. If that’s not possible, provide assistance in locating affordable housing: For those relocating to the job site, the prospect of finding affordable, short-term housing can be daunting. Easy availability of affordable housing will make your opportunity more attractive to students, broadening your pool of candidates.
If you can pay for all or some of your interns’ housing, be sure to design (and stick to) a clear policy detailing who is eligible. This will eliminate any perceptions of unequal treatment. In addition, be aware that employer-paid or employer-subsidized housing is considered a taxable benefit. Check with your internal tax department on exceptions to this.
You will also want to consider the issue of relocation, which is separate although related to housing. Many organizations pay some or all of their interns’ relocation expenses to and/or from the job site.
Whether in paper booklet format, or presented as a special section on your website, a handbook serves as a guide for students, answering frequently asked questions and communicating the “rules” in a warm and welcoming way.
A separate intern website serves many of the purposes of the handbook, but has the advantage of being easy to change. You can use your website as a communication tool, with announcements from the college relations staff or even articles of interest written by the interns themselves.
It’s important that everyone “be on the same page,” so to speak. Make this happen by holding an orientation session for managers and mentors as well as a session for students. Orientations ensure that everyone starts with the same expectations and role definitions. This is time well spent—the effort you put into these sessions will pay off throughout the program.
Providing interns with real work is number one to ensuring your program’s success. Interns should be doing work related to their major, that is challenging, that is recognized by the organization as valuable, and that fills the entire work term.
You can guarantee that hiring managers provide real work assignments by checking job descriptions, emphasizing the importance of real work assignments during a manager/mentor orientation sessions, and communicating with interns frequently throughout the work term to determine who they perceive what they are doing.
Share with us how the Career Success Center has helped you on your career path at careersuccess@wcsu.edu create new emailor in person in our office.
- Change your thought process
- Force yourself to take risks
- Encourage others to be open minded
- Embrace learning
Keep moving forwarding and just do stuff. Turn your ideas into action. The Career Success Center has lots of custom ideas for you.
You live, eat, work, study with others, so they all are a part of your life. They have lots of ideas, experience, and contacts, and should be a part of your life design
Life and the career process is not just one or two things-it is a process.
Turn bumps in the road into learning opportunities.
Ask lots of questions, research your options, be active in class, follow interesting organizations and people
Learn different ways to look at things to get unstuck
Get into some real work, try stuff, reflect on what works for you and refine your next steps to designing a better life
Narrow your testing options, build some ideas, select some ideas, and plan the quick/cheap/easy prototype
Ask a lot of questions
Create some future Life Sketches; do real brainstorming and think up lots and lots and lots of ideas
More = Better
Consider your views on the world
Reflect on what work is and what it means to you
What dysfunctional thoughts can be reframed?
What's the life challenge/opportunity we want to solve and/or learn more about?
Don't try to change what can't be changed...you can REFRAME!
(HINT, you have to work with, not change, gravity)
Take some personal assessments
Evaluate your current work/play/love/health
Open up meaningful discussions with your family and friends