Prepare a career preparation portfolio.

To prepare for your job search, conduct research and meet with people who can help you. First, target specific people within companies where you might like to work. You will need to send a few networking emails to ask for assistance. Your goal is to complete the following activities within one or more companies:

• Job shadow someone in the company who holds a job that interests you.

• Observe a meeting or formal presentation.

• Attend a training program.

• Meet with people in your field (informational interviews)
In addition, to understand your field of interest, pursue professional development activities, such as the following:

• Find two professional associations for your field of interest. You may search online for these organizations. Study their websites to understand the purpose, membership, and mission of each organization.

• Attend a local meeting of one of the professional organizations that interests you.

• Find two professional journals within your field of interest, and study one article from each.

• Search for news stories or credible blogs about your field. Study what these sources say about important trends or developments within your field.

Prepare a portfolio of your work, and submit it to your instructor. You might be instructed to include the following:

• A cover memo summarizing what you learned from these activities

• Observations from your job shadowing experience

• Copies of handouts or presentation decks you received during meetings or training programs

• Notes from your informational interviews

• Observations about professional associations in your field

• Notes from the professional association meeting you attended

• Summaries of journal articles you read

• An analysis of trends and developments that might affect your career choice in the future

Organize your portfolio in a way that makes sense to you-not necessarily in the order presented here. Include a table of contents for your materials and a title page.