Good Afternoon Geographers and Sustainers,

Many of you are in an uncomfortable position right now because the coronavirus has significantly impacted what were supposed to be your summer plans. Many of you have internships that have been cancelled or postponed, others have had job offers put on hold. It’s not fair, you didn’t cause any of this, but you are having to deal with it. What should you do about it?

 

It doesn’t hurt to have a good, old-fashioned stress cry or put your face in your pillow and scream to start. Do what you need to do to get that out of your system, because you have work to do.

 

Salvaging a current internship or job

• With national, state, and local governments lifting social distancing over the next few weeks, you may be able to take advantage of the original opportunity. Communicate with the organization and offer flexible solutions.
• Is there a way to do some or all of the work remotely?
• Is there a way to push the start date back?
• Is it possible to reduce the hours but still get the opportunity?
• Due to the economic impact of the coronavirus, some organizations just won’t have the funding to follow through with opportunities that they had planned on. Then what?

 

Take stock of your current situation

• For those of you about to graduate with a bachelor’s degree, remember that only about 1/3 of Americans have a bachelor’s degree or higher. You have accomplished something that 2/3 of Americans have not yet.
• Only about 13 percent of American adults have an advanced degree. You have accomplished something that 87% of Americans have not yet.
• Remember what your degree represents, that you have proven that you are motivated, coachable, are good at time management, can meet deadlines, are a problem solver, and can communicate. Those are skills that every employer is looking for.
• You will get through this, it may just take longer to get where you want and you may take a more circuitous route to get there.

 

Expand your job search

• By all means look at the jobs posted on websites like Indeed.com or other industry specific platforms. Just remember that if the job is posted online, there are likely to be a lot of applicants for that position.
• Donald Asher talks about something called the hidden job market. These are the opportunities that come about because of your personal and professional contacts. I recently learned about one of our recent alum who was planning on taking a job out of state (he couldn’t find something in his discipline locally) so his family was throwing a party before he left. At the party, a family friend asked why he was moving and offered him a job so that he could stay, in his discipline. These things happen, but you have to have the network. Another student talked herself into an unpaid internship with a family member in local government. I hear that nepotism is in style these days.
• The economy is very regional, just because your desired industry may not be doing great here, doesn’t mean it’s in the same shape everywhere else.

 

Use the time to learn new skills

• GIS Example - As a student, you have access to most online courses in the Esri Training catalog. Complete the ones that interest you, save the resulting certificate from the course, and then update your resume, CV, etc. If there is something tangible you created from the course (a map, a database schema, sample python code, etc), add it to your digital portfolio. You’ll need to sign in using your UTK credentials. If you receive an error that your account isn’t enabled for Esri Access, email me with your net ID and let me know.
• GIS Example - You have access to up to 7 free books from ESRI until May 25, 2020. Find all the details here. The books often include tutorials and lessons.
• There are a lot of organizations that are feeling altruistic right now. See if someone is offering free classes, free webinars, free virtual workshops in something you are interested in.
• As a student, you have access to LinkedIn Learning from UTK. There are so many different things you can learn about on that platform. The Knox County Public Library also offers access to this platform.

 

Use the time to catch up on those tasks that will benefit you long term

• Is your digital portfolio ready? If not, use LinkedIn Learning to learn how to build one.
• Do you have your complete list of activities you’ve worked on while a student? Think of this as a master list that you can use to customize resumes and cover letters.
• Using a cloud platform of your choice, build a document that contains all of your class projects, volunteer projects, work projects, relevant classes, relevant software, relevant skills, presentations you’ve given, research projects you’ve worked on, lab skills you’ve developed, maps/posters you’ve made, etc
• I organize mine by year and month. At the end of the month, I can quickly update what I’ve done.
• I use Google Docs because it is so easy to search and find specific resources.
• Are you taking advantage of all the resources that UTK Career Services offers? They provide services for current students and alum.

 

Maybe grad school isn’t looking too bad right now

• Donald Asher makes the case for why graduate school may be a good option during an economic downturn. And he provides a very high level overview of funding options for graduate school.
• It is likely too late to apply for fall 2020, but you may be able to make it in for the spring 2021 semester.

 

The ideas expressed above are my own and come from my personal experiences when trying to switch careers during the recession in 2008. It all worked out in the end, but it took a lot longer than I was anticipating.

 

Stay strong, you’ve got this.

 

Michael Camponovo

GIS Outreach Coordinator

Geography Department, UT Knoxville

209A Burchfiel Geography Building

1000 Phillip Fulmer Way

Knoxville, TN 37996

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(865) 974-5348

https://gislab.utk.edu