While we join communities
all the time, we rarely study them. However, this could be a terrible oversight
if this is a professional community we want to join. There are a number of ways
you can study a community and that is what we are going to explore this week.
These activities are going to require a bit more from you than our typical
weekly reflection discussions but I think you will find the effort worthwhile.
First, think about a
national-level professional organization that you will join (or at least be
eligible to join) when you graduate. You might need to do some web searches (for
nurses association, for example) to locate the best group for your purposes.
Now explore that organization’s web site and gather information about the organization
and its members (which will hopefully include you one day). You will
specifically want to look at their mission, goals, and values as well as code
of ethics and best practices. What you want to glean from this information are
the priorities of this organization and what this means for you as a practicing
professional. But you should also look for information about student options
and publications (things that you can use now as well as when you enter the job
market). You should also look for opportunities to network with your peers as
well as those who might someday be in a position to hire you. For example, I
spent my Spring Break in St. Louis at an academic conference – well actually it
was two conferences rolled into one – and came home with a slew of business
cards and contact information for people whose work intersects with mine as
well as people who might need to hire a rhetorician some day. Many professional
organizations also offer some sort of clearing house for jobs or even career
fairs. You don’t always need to travel across state lines to network. I belong
to several professional email lists which allow me to connect with my peers (as
well as possible future employers). Also, many national organizations have state
and/or local chapters that can help you make local connections. In your journal,
note what you have learned about the values and interests of this professional
organization as well as the resources that it offers for you as a professional
in that field. If your semester project involves a slightly different topic
then I would recommend conducting a similar study of a professional
organization related to your topic. You might discover some great resources.
Now, I want you to launch
a similar investigation into a specific professional site – a place where you
want to work, or at least could work, when you graduate from MSU. For example,
let’s say I want to work at MSU (don’t laugh). Some key places I (and this
really is me here so I’m looking specifically in areas that concern my field)
would study on http://www.moreheadstate.edu/
include searching out general information about the organization
(community/institution) as well as specific information that relates to the
exact job I might expect to apply for. So how do I learn more about MSU’s core
values and institutional history? I’ll certainly explore the About MSU
information as well as the Employment links. I will also search around (reading
news feeds as well as institutional documents to get a sense of the problems
the administration and faculty face as well as how they handle those
challenges. As I expect to teach at MSU I want to learn more about the students
so I will look at the links under Future Students, but I will also look
specifically at the English Department. What kinds of classes are available
that I might want to teach? What are the specialties of my potential
colleagues? What kinds of activities are sponsored by the Department, College,
and University that interest me? Remember, even professional designed web sites
rarely have good navigation systems so you will need to do a fair amount of
poking around and simply exploring. Don’t just scan the menu or do a quick site
search. Play and explore.
Finally, I want you to
look for people already working in your intended profession on Twitter using
Twitter hashtags (ie. #accounting). Do
some searches for hashtag variations so you can locate the best choice(s) for
your purpose. Then spend some time studying your chosen Twitter hashtag stream
and gather information related to those same areas. What can you learn from and
about these individuals that confirms or contradicts what you learned from the professional
organization and site? Spend some time checking out (clicking on their names
and links they provide) the individuals who post to the Twitter stream. Do any
of these people have blogs and/or web sites? Perhaps consider “following” some
folks of interest and posting to the stream yourself. These are people you may
network with in the future and some of these people may well prove to be
resources for you when you embark on your professional career. Of course, you
do not want to leap into that relationship right now, but you can plant some
seeds and nurture some relationships now. Once you have established some of
those professional relationships you might be able to talk informally with
people about their own professional experience and/or even shadow them at work,
but first you will need to establish contact with other professionals.
Make notes about what you
learn through these three investigations in your journal but you don’t need to
give us a full report in the class discussion and on Twitter. Those posts can
simply reflect the highlights and key lessons.
FYI, in the future you can
(and should) conduct similar investigations about future employers. Use this
information when crafting your application materials and to prepare for
interviews. The more homework you do the more sure you can be that you are good
fit for the job and the more support you can have to convince the hiring
committee you are too.
