Event Recap: Marcia Harding, ILR Office of Career Services

The ILR Sports Business Society was fortunate enough to be visited by Ms. Marcia Harding of the ILR Career Services Office on February 19th, as she spoke to the club about how to initiate an internship and job search in the sports field, as well as how to most effectively use LinkedIn as a professional networking tool.

Read some of her best tips after the jump!

  -Update your resume frequently, and have it critiqued regularly. Additionally, create multiple resumes in order to tailor them to specific opportunities.

 -When writing your cover letter, be sure to avoid being generic. Employers can spot this! Employers generally spend more time reading a cover letter than looking over a resume.

-Many jobs and internships can be procured through referrals, so you must always be ready to network and inform employers who you are and what you are interested in. You always need to be ready to network, whether you’re on the streets, a bus, or at a conference.

-When networking, don’t ask for a job or internship, even though the connection might know that’s your end goal. However, be sure to let them know what you are interested in, what your aspirations are, or ask them if they would be willing to participate in an informational interview to share their experiences with you.

-Use the “Groups” function on LinkedIn to find areas that interest you and connect with professionals who share similar interests.

-Use keywords to search for professionals with similar interests, or find Cornell alumni. Make sure to join the ILR Sports Business Society’s LinkedIn group, too!

Also be on the lookout for an email from Marcia that will include the Internet links she presented during her visit, and some additional resources she referenced. If you do not receive this email, contact Dan DeFlumeri at dad326@cornell.edu to receive the information.

Thank you to all of the ILR Sports Business Society members who were able to come, and we hope all of the members continue to use their school’s Career Services Office as they continue to navigate the professional world of sports.

Event Recap: Marcia Harding, ILR Career Services

On Tuesday, September 27th, the ILR Sports Management Club hosted its first guest speaker of the year: Marcia Harding from ILR Career Services. Marcia gave an informative presentation titled “How to Get a Job in Sports,” where she offered tips and advice on how to obtain a job in the competitive sports industry.

Marcia provided great insight regarding networking, resume building, social networking (specifically LinkedIn), and interviewing within a sports context. She emphasized the resume as being an important aspect in trying to get a job in sports. For example, as with resumes in other career fields, it is important to highlight one’s specific sports-related internships/positions in the past to show the employer your previous experiences and interests in the industry.

Marcia's PowerPoint presentation also highlighted how social networking is increasingly becoming more important, as is getting to know people in the industry and learning how they obtained their jobs, as well. Furthermore, any other possible connection that can be made could prove to be invaluable later down the line. LinkedIn (Editor: check out our members' LinkedIn profiles on the Contributors page!) has become a great resource for communicating and connecting with current employees within the industry.

The resources and help provided by the ILR Career Services team can definitely be applied to any career field. We were lucky to have Marcia (and all those who helped make the presentation) at the latest Sports Management Club meeting as we continue to follow our passion and search for jobs in sports!