Advice from co-op employers
Melissa Nodding // February 1, 2013
There’s no doubt that co-op is daunting for new students who are about to begin their first work term. Who knows where you’ll end up working this summer? Thinking about all the fear-inducing possibilities is enough to keep you up at night. There will always be the opportunity to talk to senior students about their experiences and get advice from them. But it’s not every day students get to hear what employers have to say. So why not go directly to the source?
Lynn Coveyduck is the CEO and President of Junior Achievement of Nova Scotia. She is also a former Public Relations graduate from Mount Saint Vincent University. Rolando Inzunza is the former Communications Supervisor at the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Fort McMurrary, AB. I was interested to know what kind of opportunities their organizations have to offer Public Relations co-op students and what advice they have. Here’s what they had to say.
Q: Can you tell me a little about your organization?
Lynn: JA is a not-for-profit organization and we cover the entire province of Nova Scotia. We focus on providing programs for students grades 6-12. The programs are focused on three different areas of learning: entrepreneurship, workforce readiness and financial literacy. We partner with volunteer business people to bring these programs into the schools and help the kids learn about these topics.
Rolando: We’re the communication department at the Municipal Department for the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. We’re doing everything from public affairs and public relations with the media and issues management. We’re also doing graphic and web design in our department and working with social media.
Q: What advice do you have for students about the resume process?
Lynn: I think what worries folks going into their first co-op work term is that they don’t have anything (PR experience) to put forward. Really take a look at a lot of the volunteer work that you’ve done and some of the other jobs that you’ve had. You can pull things out of those types of things that would be appealing to an employer.
Rolando: Make sure you’ve crossed your T’s and dotted your I’s, and make sure everything is perfect. Have two people look over your resume. I’ve always told our students who come here to proofread your own stuff, read it out loud, actually close the door and speak out loud because mistakes become a lot clearer. If you have any mistakes that I can use as a strike against you, I will. And it’s not to be mean, it’s to find the candidate who has that level of attention to detail.
Q: What advice do you have for students about the interview process?
Lynn: Be aware of some of the attributes on your resume and be confident. If you’ve been picked for an interview, obviously there is something about you that the employer really likes and wants to know more about. Make sure that you come with some really good questions, and think about what you want to get out of the experience.
Rolando: It’s an interview, maybe it’s one of your first interviews, and it certainly might be one of your first career-related interviews, so just relax. We’re interviewing you because we’re interested in your resume; it has shown that you’ve got some of the right skills. When we interview, we are looking to see if your personality and who you are could match our team.
Q: What are you looking for in a co-op student?
Lynn: We are a very small organization, so we look for people who can work independently, who can take initiative and demonstrate how they’ve done both of those things. Also, I want someone who is to able to make decisions. If they are all by themselves in the office and they need to make a decision, that they shouldn’t be afraid to make a decision based on the information that they have on hand.
Rolando: Somebody who’s not just strong academically, but also somebody who is managing other aspects of their life. That shows up in volunteerism, perhaps having a part-time job or in the other things you are doing outside of academia.
The biggest thing that we’re looking for is somebody’s writing skills, and that is paramount because you need a good, strong basis of writing. That’s something you’re going to be doing a lot here.
Q: What can a co-op student at your organization expect to do?
Lynn: Each co-op experience with us can be very different because of the cycle of our business. People who work with us in the fall can typically go into high schools, talk to the high school students about what Junior Achievement is and why they should be involved. There is a fair bit of writing as well; I usually get the annual report written by one of the co-op students in the fall. They would be involved in the writing of the content and working with the designer to plan out the layout and proofing. We’ve really amped up our presence on social media such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter and so the co-op student typically leads the charge on that for us. We also have a newsletter that goes out three times a year, so the students work with the newsletter template and they work with the content.
Rolando: When you come here, you’re treated like a full staff member. A co-op student here gets the opportunity to do all sorts of exciting stuff from news releases to writing speaking notes for the Mayor to communication planning. The co-op student implements and executes the communication planning which means budgeting for media buys.
Q: What makes your co-op position work for the student and also for the organization?
Lynn: It’s very much about the fact that we are a small organization which means that a co-op student can come in and lead a project from beginning, middle to end. You’re not going to be put in the corner just writing elements of things. So for me, and for the organization, it’s very much about the ability to own something. We’re intensely busy so I would say that you’re not going to be bored. It’s really about the ability to put forth a recommendation, and then implement it and see the results.
Rolando: It’s really the work. You will get to be considered as a full member [of the team], you won’t be doing menial tasks day in and day out. You’ll have fun… you’ll still be able to do some fun stuff but you will be challenged, you’ll be pushed and will be given some pretty cool tasks to do.
Q: How can students make the most out of their co-op work terms?
Lynn: I would put a lot of thought into your personal learning plan and work collaboratively with your Manager on that learning plan. Don’t be afraid to be a little bit bold with respect to some of the things you want to do. If you want to lead projects, say that. If you want to plan something that’s never been done before, have a reason for why you want to do it and what exactly you want to do. Employers like to be able to see you stretch beyond the traditional.
Rolando: Be willing and open-minded to do the tasks and do the projects you’ve been given. Also, take the initiative to ask for other work, because that shows the ability to try new things.
Q: Do you have any last words of wisdom for students entering their first co-op work term?
Lynn: It’s never a bad thing to ask questions. Confirm what your hours are, confirm what the expectations are of your boss. Some bosses like to see you at your desk all the time, others (like me) are more around the lines of ‘I don’t really mind when you’re in the office but I need you here for these core hours’. Be observant. Do people gather in the lunch room for lunch? If you have a chance to visit the place before you start work, take it. Make sure you ask things about the dress code and whether or not there’s a casual Friday. Be open to things, and at the same time ask questions; if you don’t understand, if you’re curious about something don’t just sit back and let it happen, go forward and ask questions.
Rolando: I think it’s important for a student to realize that this isn’t just a summer job, this is part of your career. So they need to dress and act appropriately. Which means being professional. It’s not something where you can show up ten minutes late for day in and day out; it’s not something you can go for extra lunches. You need to pay attention to the culture of the organization that you’re in and emulate those expectations.
