by Tobias Chen
Becoming You is an initiative hosted by Jen Barrington, Assoc. Director Career Services, aimed at helping students explore career paths related to their passions and interests. Students met for 5 weeks once a week in the Career Services Discovery Lab to tie together hard skills, like resume building and interview practice, with soft skills, like building networks and finding authenticity.
This Fall the program is specifically designed for Sophomores, many of whom sit at a critical junction; it can be a struggle for students to envision not only what their major at Swarthmore will be, but also what they will do with their Swarthmore degree. A core focus of Becoming You is to provide students the space to discuss these anxieties with someone at Career Services and their fellow peers, a space to share advice and provide encouragement. Importantly, it highlighted ways to think about, answer and act upon big questions about self-presentation, personal values, and overcoming failure. Jen Barrington shares,“We all work together over the weeks to learn how being true to oneself builds personal and professional success. Our end goal is how to find work and life environments in which we thrive.”
In addition to being a space to build skills and connect, Becoming You also served as a platform to highlight other services and programs provided by Career Services, such as SwatLink, resume reviews and mock interviews, emphasizing the network of support students can rely on.
We thank all the participants for being a part of the program and hope they will continue to participate in future programs at Career Services. If you are interested but missed this workshop, there will be other initiatives coming in the Spring semester, so be on the lookout!
