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Program Handbook
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BBA MIS Handbook
7 Careers in MISThe MIS Department will try to place every student that has a 3.0 or higher GPA. Employers use a GPA cutoff to screen resumes and if you don’t meet their cutoff then it is highly likely that you will not even get an interview. We promise to try and help but you need to do your part and maintain a good GPA. The best strategy to start a great MIS career is to get an internship relevant to MIS, learn how to network using the resources of the Institute for Business and Information Technology (IBIT), join the Association of Management Information Systems (AMIS), prepare a great resume, and then tell us about your experience so we can help you and other students. An internship provides practical work experience, and helps you connect your classroom learning to the world outside prior to graduation. Students who complete internships find employment more quickly following graduation, were more likely to be employed within their fields of study, and were more satisfied in their jobs. Employers actively seek students with career-related work experience. Your odds of getting a job in today's marketplace are much greater if you have relevant experience. Large employers recruit over 50% of their new full-time employees from “in house” internship programs. 7.2 MIS 3581 (288) Co-operative Experience in Management Information Systems Students integrate their work and internship experience with their classroom experience at Temple University. The results are reported in a 10 to 20 page paper prepared under the supervision of a faculty member. The process to register for the MIS 3581 (288) course is followed the same as the MIS Independent Study. The student should approach a suitable faculty member for supervision. After obtaining consent from the faculty member, the student should fill in the independent study form and the Internship/Employment as Independent Study Details (addendum to independent study form). Independent Study Form After receiving the signature of your faculty supervisor the form(s) should be taken to the Senior Program Specialist; once approved he will register the student for the appropriate course. Each semester, all independent study students may be required to do a public department-wide presentation on their work. This requirement is over and above the specific requirements set by your supervisor. 7.3 Networking and Professional Development Networking is the process of discovering and utilizing connections between people. Genuine networks stem from friendships or business relationships. Everyone knows other people, and thus has a network. However, "networking" implies movement beyond one's immediate network and involves tapping into other people's networks, perhaps far removed from one's own. Networking is a planned process in which you will interact with other individuals through formal and informal settings; to people who can provide information about job openings, leads, personal contacts, employers that are hiring, etc. Networking is about talking with people and obtaining referrals so that every contact you make is a "warm" contact. Networking is a must to uncover job opportunities in the "hidden" job market which constitutes over 50% of jobs (The U.S. Department of Labor reports that 63.4 % of all workers use informal job finding methods). The bottom line is networking is the #1 job search strategy of the 2000's and you will be professionally networking for the rest of your life. A very common saying that is 100% true, “It's not what you know, it's who you know.” Networking increases your chances of knowing more people. You establish contacts with those either who may be a great business contact, or who may know someone who would be a great business contact. You have three great resources to learn and experience networking at Fox MIS:
MIS faculty believe in the importance of your professional development and in most courses you can get extra credit for attending networking events and conducting professional development activities. How Employers Look at Your Resume
Even if you lack specific, relevant experience in your chosen field, employers use your resume to determine if you possess attributes that are transferable to the workplace. For example, a leadership position in a student organization translates into leadership potential in an organization. If your resume provides specific, concrete information describing your activities and accomplishments, it will stand out among the hundreds of resumes employers receive. Although no one format works equally well for everyone, the Fox School recommends the chronological resume format. This format will allow you to describe your achievements and responsibilities in a context of growth and continuity at the Fox School of Business & Management. The MIS Sample Resume was designed for MIS Majors to help your resume stand out among dozens, perhaps hundreds of candidate resumes. As a student in the MIS program in the FSBM, your resume must be in this specific format or we will not be able to forward to potential employers. 7.5 Getting career assistance from the MIS department Through the Institute for Business and Information Technology, the department regularly receives opportunities for internships and permanent positions. These opportunities are with firms who we have a very good relationship with, who are actively looking for Fox MIS students, and who make an effort to look after our students in terms of mentoring and career progression. It turns out that matching students with opportunities is very challenging. We don’t always know which students have already found positions and which students are still in the market for jobs. We don’t always know what your preferences are in terms of kind of jobs or location constraints, and so on. In order to help us do a better job matching students to opportunities, we are asking each student to complete a short survey letting us know if you are in the market for a job (full-time internship, part-time internship, or full-time permanent position) and your interests and constraints. At the end of the survey you will e-mail a copy of your resume in the MIS format to Marlene Bell. The resumes will be used to match you with specific opportunities. Once you have secured a position we ask you to again fill out the survey so that we don’t keep contacting you with opportunities and can help other students. Your individual data is kept confidential. We use aggregate summary data to generate reports on the job market, hiring trends, salary information, career interests, and so on. The reports assist current students doing career research, aid in the University rankings process, and show prospective students the value of the Fox MIS degree. 7.6 One on One Career Counseling All MIS students receive one on one career counseling. This counseling supplements career counseling services already provided by organizations such as CSPD. This program does not attempt to replace these services. While the CSPD organization provides valuable services to students, their knowledge of the IT industry is extremely limited. This program supplements the services offered by CSPD, filling this gap in industry knowledge. The site is intended for current and prospective BBA in MIS majors. The site is informational only – the information in the site does not supersede existing Temple or Fox School procedures and requirements. If there is a discrepancy, then the official Temple or Fox School source for the information takes priority over the information in this site. The information in this site is updated once a year. Updated September 2008
Next Update: August 2009 |
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Copyright 2004, Temple University. Department of Management Information Systems Fox School of Business and Management Temple University 210 Speakman Hall 1810 N 13th Street Philadelphia, PA 19122 |
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