What is Summer Camp?
A series of 4-5 week virtual working groups to help you level up your career skills!
To join a working group, simply choose from our 5 career-related sessions and enroll. Once enrolled, you’ll meet weekly with a small group of students and a member of CPD to work through various skills and resources. In each session you’ll have the opportunity to leave with something tangible - a professional story to tell, a new resume or cover letter, or a concrete plan for your job search, networking goals, or freelance career.
Scroll down to learn about each working group.
Thanks to great interest, registration for Summer Camp working groups has closed. We are keeping a waitlist for each group and if spots open up, we will contact students in order from that list.
Still have questions? View our Frequently Asked Questions or email careers@artcenter.edu.
Working Groups
Building Your Creative Community
Mondays 12-1:30pm - Weeks 9-12
More than 85% of positions are filled through networking. Building your creative community helps you develop a sense of belonging, allows you to learn from professionals in your field, and can lead to a job opportunity. In this series, we will learn about networking, informational interviews, and much more! You’ll have the opportunity to practice communication skills and build your confidence, preparing you for your next networking event.
Together we’ll
practice small talk and networking with your peers to build confidence.
learn how to use LinkedIn as a resource to develop professional connections.
understand informational interviews and how to conduct them virtually.
Building Your Freelance
Foundation
Thursdays 12-1:30pm, PDT - Weeks 8-12
Successful freelancing requires more than just great work. In this series CPD will help you create a solid foundation of business basics to set you up for success. Together we’ll learn the basics of setting your rate, creating a contract and invoice, finding clients, and pitching your work.
Together we’ll build
a starter toolkit to build your freelance foundation.
a starter contract and invoice template.
your personal rate of pay.
tools to map and organize your network.
a template for email outreach to potential clients.
Telling Your Story
Tuesdays 1:00-2:30pm PDT - Weeks 2-5
Telling your professional story helps people get to know you and what you can do. It’s part of making a great first impression and getting people on your side. In this series, we will work on finding and developing your story, using it to introduce yourself (sometimes called an elevator pitch), and on using your story to answer one of the most important job interview questions. You’ll have a chance to practice talking about yourself with a group of peers in a friendly environment.
Together we’ll create
a developed professional story based on your professional identity.
a template for introducing yourself in person or in writing.
a practiced answer to the common interview question, “Tell me about yourself.”
Navigating Your Job Search
Wednesdays 1:00-2:30pm PDT - Weeks 2-6
Are you feeling lost in your job search? Join Career Advisor Chris Hurley to learn and put into practice the job search lifecycle from searching, to applying, to getting the offer.
Together we’ll
understand and practice each stage of the job search lifecycle.
learn and practice using a variety of job searching tools and techniques.
actively work in session to apply for a position of your choice.
Write With Us
Thursdays 12:00 - 1:30pm PDT - Weeks 2-5
To secure an opportunity, sometimes you only have a few words to stand out to employers. In this writing workshop, CPD will help you craft well-written resumes, cover letters, emails, and project descriptions on your website. Bring examples, and come ready to flex those writing muscles. Our hope is that this working group will ease your writing fears and empower you to write professionally and confidently.
Together we’ll write
a succinct and detailed resume.
a cover letter that shows off your personality.
emails for different professional circumstances.
catchy copy and project descriptions for your website.