Career Acceleration in Community — A Look Inside OPD’s Career Working Groups
OPD aims to put graduate students to work on an actionable and achievable timeline.
Advancing or accelerating one’s career often feels like a job in and of itself. Between the intentional planning this work demands and the time commitment it requires, many graduate students face an ongoing challenge in finding a moment to intentionally reflect and plan for what might be next. The Graduate School Office of Professional Development aims to simplify and structure the process of leveling up one’s career through its ongoing Career Working Group series, offered on a rotating basis for master’s and doctoral students.
Current MBA student Alyssa Can Li recently shared her experience in attending a Career Working Group and noted the progress she made in growing her network in real time. “The team organized a seamless transition from classroom theory to real-world application, requiring students to engage with professionals in real-time... [the Groups] remove the psychological and logistical barriers to entry for our graduate students.”
The ongoing and structured Career Working Groups are offered on a rotating basis for master’s and doctoral students. With its first cohorts meeting in academic year 2022-2023, the working groups were first launched as a scalable solution for providing hands-on career education to students who might otherwise be unexposed to concepts such as successfully building a professional network or how to articulate one’s value as a UMass graduate student advancing within or entering the workforce.
Working group series traditionally start with a session focused on how students introduce themselves, equipping participants with foundational knowledge that increases their confidence and will guide their networking efforts inside and outside of the classroom. This session is followed up with hands-on workshops regarding LinkedIn, informational interviewing, and researching prospective jobs. Students are thus exposed to a developmental, and incremental, series of workshops meant to expand their understanding of current skills, while identifying areas of growth.
“We began with something simple yet powerful: how to introduce yourself with clarity and confidence,” Arnav Gholap, a current Engineering Management student, shared. “From there, we moved into using LinkedIn more intentionally, practicing outreach to professionals and learning how to make those first conversations meaningful. We also spent time breaking down job descriptions to better understand which skills we already bring to the table and which ones we want to build next. By the end, we were reflecting on how to decide if a role is truly the right fit, not just on paper but in alignment with our values and goals.”
The groups equally provide participants with a built-in sense of accountability and community. As another participant shared, “The Career Working Groups provided the motivation and tools I needed to prepare for the first steps of the job process. I appreciated the accountability and sense of community that the group fostered.”
Working groups engage graduate students from all disciplines and backgrounds by focusing on universal concepts or experiences within career development. The groups take place over a series of several weeks, with each week focusing on a particular task within one’s career search, such as professional research and skill development. This holistic approach to professional development empowers students of all backgrounds with actionable steps to take, regardless of wherever they may be in their own career journey.
“[The sessions taught me] how to tell my story, build meaningful connections, and align my skills with the fast-moving world of technology and manufacturing. I can honestly say this experience transformed how I approach career growth and communication,” graduate student Shubham Kanhor, a current Engineering Management student, shared.
Looking ahead, OPD has recently doubled its offerings for Career Working Groups because of increasing demand. Cohorts for the program have steadily grown over the years, starting with just over 10 participants and now blossoming to nearly 25 participants for one cohort. Paired with the exemplary feedback and worth of the mouth the program receives, it is no question why more students would want to get involved with the program.
The team will now offer additional Master’s and Doctoral sessions for the Fall semester, while continuing to provide a Master’s session over Winter and a Doctoral session over Summer. Applications for the Summer cohort will open this semester— stay tuned for more news from our team!