Pursuing Careers Outside of Montana Tech's Scope
Many students attend Montana Tech because it is a very economical school. However, sometimes you want to pursue a career that isn’t traditionally associated with Montana Tech. The college’s most recent career fair was dominated by engineering, petroleum and construction firms, hospitals, and clinics. Further, Montana Tech’s Career Services office can be downright hostile to students who want to work for organizations they don’t have contacts for. There are several solutions that can help a student who wants to pursue a career outside the scope of Montana Tech.
Montana Tech Career Services provides a very useful, if flawed, service for students. If a student is studying something other than traditional engineering, nursing, or business at Montana Tech, it is very difficult to find employers through career services. When I stopped by Career Services early this semester to see if they had any contacts for intelligence agencies I was interested in, not only did they not have any contacts, but they also were not sensitive to my career goals. The lady I spoke with did not offer any suggestions to help me. This was very frustrating, since I felt that Career Services’ mission was to help students with their career aspirations.
There are several solutions for creative and ambitious students if they cannot start the career they want through Montana Tech Career Services. One solution is to locate contacts in the field you want to work for. This is especially helpful if these contacts know you well. Another solution is to contact organizations you want to work for “cold turkey”. While it is better to have a contact within the organization, sometimes this technique can prove fruitful. The final solution is to continue your education at a different university that is more conducive to your needs. Whether this means transferring while an undergraduate or receiving your current degree from Montana Tech and going elsewhere for a higher degree depends on your unique situation.
Career contacts in the field you want to work for can be very helpful, especially if they know you well. My cousin Sam used to work in counter-intelligence, which is an aspect of the intelligence community that I am interested in. When I called him to ask about career paths that were available to me, he was able to give me many ideas, including organizations to contact, books to read, and websites to view. While he was unable to give me any contacts in cryptanalysis, the conversation was very helpful to me. If you know someone who works for a company you would like to work for, it is possible he/she may be able to help you get hired by his/her company. If not, your contact probably knows other people who would be willing to help you. Most jobs are obtained by “who you know”, and not necessarily “what you know”.
If no career contacts are available, contacting organizations “cold turkey” may prove fruitful. I’ve applied online to several agencies that I would like to work for, including the National Security Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency. While this is not as good as having a contact to help you, there is a possibility that you may be hired. Even if you are not hired initially, usually the rejection letter (or more commonly, e-mail) will have a contact’s name and phone number or address. This information can be useful if you decide to apply to that organization again.
Furthering education at a different university may be best if Montana Tech doesn’t provide the degree program or classes that you want. If this is the case, it is probably best to transfer to a different school after you have obtained your general education credits. However, you may be too far along in your curriculum that it would be counter-productive to transfer schools, or the degree you are currently pursuing may be helpful in your chosen career. In this case, it would be better to obtain your current degree from Montana Tech and pursue a higher degree at a different university.
While Montana Tech is a fine and economical institution of higher education, it can be difficult to pursue a career outside the college’s traditional scope. This frustrating problem has several solutions: find contacts in the career field you want to work for, contact organizations you want to work for “cold turkey”, and pursue your education at a university other than Montana Tech.
Montana Tech Career Services provides a very useful, if flawed, service for students. If a student is studying something other than traditional engineering, nursing, or business at Montana Tech, it is very difficult to find employers through career services. When I stopped by Career Services early this semester to see if they had any contacts for intelligence agencies I was interested in, not only did they not have any contacts, but they also were not sensitive to my career goals. The lady I spoke with did not offer any suggestions to help me. This was very frustrating, since I felt that Career Services’ mission was to help students with their career aspirations.
There are several solutions for creative and ambitious students if they cannot start the career they want through Montana Tech Career Services. One solution is to locate contacts in the field you want to work for. This is especially helpful if these contacts know you well. Another solution is to contact organizations you want to work for “cold turkey”. While it is better to have a contact within the organization, sometimes this technique can prove fruitful. The final solution is to continue your education at a different university that is more conducive to your needs. Whether this means transferring while an undergraduate or receiving your current degree from Montana Tech and going elsewhere for a higher degree depends on your unique situation.
Career contacts in the field you want to work for can be very helpful, especially if they know you well. My cousin Sam used to work in counter-intelligence, which is an aspect of the intelligence community that I am interested in. When I called him to ask about career paths that were available to me, he was able to give me many ideas, including organizations to contact, books to read, and websites to view. While he was unable to give me any contacts in cryptanalysis, the conversation was very helpful to me. If you know someone who works for a company you would like to work for, it is possible he/she may be able to help you get hired by his/her company. If not, your contact probably knows other people who would be willing to help you. Most jobs are obtained by “who you know”, and not necessarily “what you know”.
If no career contacts are available, contacting organizations “cold turkey” may prove fruitful. I’ve applied online to several agencies that I would like to work for, including the National Security Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency. While this is not as good as having a contact to help you, there is a possibility that you may be hired. Even if you are not hired initially, usually the rejection letter (or more commonly, e-mail) will have a contact’s name and phone number or address. This information can be useful if you decide to apply to that organization again.
Furthering education at a different university may be best if Montana Tech doesn’t provide the degree program or classes that you want. If this is the case, it is probably best to transfer to a different school after you have obtained your general education credits. However, you may be too far along in your curriculum that it would be counter-productive to transfer schools, or the degree you are currently pursuing may be helpful in your chosen career. In this case, it would be better to obtain your current degree from Montana Tech and pursue a higher degree at a different university.
While Montana Tech is a fine and economical institution of higher education, it can be difficult to pursue a career outside the college’s traditional scope. This frustrating problem has several solutions: find contacts in the career field you want to work for, contact organizations you want to work for “cold turkey”, and pursue your education at a university other than Montana Tech.
posted by Diane Lowe at 10/13/2005 12:34:00 AM
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