Blog Post #11 Internship Readiness

A person who is internship ready demonstrates preparedness, capability, and the ability to pursue projects and assignments to completion. Such a person can work independently or interface with a team effectively. Readiness is reflected in the time to completion of work, communication with team and/or supervisor, and the quality of the final product. In addition, a person must be able to interact with colleagues in a friendly and non-disruptive manner.

In Module 3 I intend to: 

•   Continue to be on time.
•   Complete assignments.
•    Build on my existing skills.
•   Strengthen my growth areas. 
•     Look for new ways to challenge myself.

 I do not have any specific changes that I am planning on making. However, I do plan to objectively assess my own progress using personal judgment and peer feedback and make changes as are necessary.

Blog Post #10 Best/Worst Job

Blog Post:
Prompt:
Compose a blog post 250 to 300 words long addressing either of the following questions. Be specific and respond to each bullet point in your post.

1.      What is the best and the worst job (paid or volunteer) that you have ever had?

• What were some of your primary responsibilities?
• What made the job enjoyable or not?
• What skills did you develop that will serve you well in internship?
• What lessons did you learn about the workplace and yourself?
  

2. If you’ve only had one job or volunteer experience:

• What are some of the responsibilities that you enjoyed and what are the job duties that you did not care for?
• What were some of your primary responsibilities?

• What skills did you develop that will serve you well in internship?
• What lessons did you learn about the workplace and yourself?

The best job I have ever had would most likely be my internship at OTX-West (Oakland Technology Exchange-West). At OTX-West I gained skills and training that helped me develop both personally and on a technical level. My primary responsibilities during my first year were assisting in the mass construction of refurbished PC units for distribution to low income families in Oakland, and setting up computer labs for public schools. During my second and third year at OTX-West my responsibilities changed to teaching a basic computer skills course, helping volunteers, creating a logo and brochure, and some administrative work. I really enjoyed both the technical hands-on work of building PCs and learning image editing software. I even took some satisfaction in teaching the basic skills course. During my time at OTX-West I expanded my knowledge of computers and greatly expanded my skillset through teaching and using software. The lessons that I took away from OTX-West were many, but the one lesson that really stuck with me was the life philosophy of simply allowing events to unfold and adapting to suite the situation wherever possible.

After OTX-West, I interned at an educational social justice organization called OASES. At OASES I assisted and taught younger Oakland children some basic computer skills and helped out around the schoolyard when I was needed. As OASES was located in Oakland Chinatown the children I interacted with were predominantly Asian American. It would be unfair to call this the worst job I ever had, but I would say it was the job I least enjoyed. I learned more about myself and my comfort levels than I had previously, but I had to be uncomfortable to do it. Young children are not my strongpoint, and I think it is safe to say I have no intention of pursuing a career in education. However, at the end of the day I was proud of the work I did and saw the value to myself and others.