My parents have always been my inspiration to succeed in life. They have always supported my goals and encouraged me to pursue my dreams because they were never given the opportunity to experience the “American dream”. Other influential figures in my life, that played a significant role in helping me shape who I am today, are my college professors.
During my freshman year of college, I wasn’t sure which major I wanted to pursue; so I just chose the most general one in business. It wasn’t until my sophomore year that I began taking Accounting courses and began my co-op position at a student loan center. The courses and co-op internship helped me to explore the financial industry and realize that my interest was concentrated in that area. I also began taking Finance courses and it was actually my Finance 401 professor who really sparked my interest in the finance field. It was his mannerism and teaching abilities that drew me into wanting to learn more; and so I declared my Finance major.
After deciding which major I wanted to focus on, I went to visit our Career Center at school to see what co-op opportunities were available. It’s a lot easier to look for a placement knowing what you want to study. I knew I wanted to have my co-op internship in an Accounting/Finance environment, so my co-op advisor narrowed down the different companies for me to look into.
Career Centers at schools are a great resource tool to help students learn more about job opportunities. Counselors at the Career Centers are constantly adding positions for students because they’re there to help us. They are also a great reference for resume building, interview tips, and other suggestions. Career Centers are the networking tools that students should utilize. I highly recommend students to visit their school career center because I received all my co-op internships through Experience, Inc. at my school’s career center.
Companies look for more than just academic grades and degrees when they hire employees; companies look for experience also.
Lian Chen graduated from Suffolk University in 2007 majoring in finance.
