Jack Abbot- General Reporter
On March 5, the Innovation Hub and BioPath organized a panel of current students to discuss how to find career and internship opportunities through the university.
“Today’s event is part of a series of engagements with students, all of which lead to students getting confidence, not only while they’re in school but afterwards once they have their degree,” Grant Program Administrator Peter Dimoulas said.
The purpose of this event was to help students understand how to find internship and career opportunities. Many at the event said it can be difficult for students to find internships due to competitiveness and not knowing where to start.
“For some, it’s straightforward. For others, it’s not,” Dimoulas said. “There’s growing pains. There’s uncertainty. They need support.”
Dimoulas also expressed that with internships being competitive, students may lack the confidence to advocate for themselves. He also said that one mistake students make very often is not having their materials ready on time and applying too late.
“They have to be strategic. They have to think in advance of what they want to do,” Dimoulas said. “What are the skills for that, and then work with their councilors and advisors to actually chart their academic pathways so that they are checking all the boxes and getting the skills that they need for the job they want.”
During this event, three student panelists spoke about their experiences with internships and careers. The panelists included computer science major James Petkin and chemistry major Paula-Marie Simpson, juniors, and computer science major Peter Chukwu.
“I wanted to help out because I received so much value from working with the BioPath Office or the Southern Connecticut Innovation Hub in research, in internships and in networking,” Simpson said. “I wanted to be able to give back and tell of some of the things I’ve learned along the way that I think would be of value.”
Simpson is pursuing a career in product formulations to help research and manufacture consumer goods. She believes that the organizations on campus have helped her greatly to pursue her career.
“Through BioPath, I’ve been able to not only just learn more about my industry but also been able to talk to industry professionals as well to be better prepared to pursue the industry and be better equipped for it,” Simpson said.
