Nora Scanlon is a career expert specializing in research methods. She is based at the University of Colorado Denver. She is an academic advisor as well as a program coordinator and instructor at the University. For her undergraduate degree she studied criminology from the University of Denver. She then pursued a dual master’s degree in Criminal Justice and Public Administration from the University of Colorado Denver. She likes to teach students and mentor them through their career paths on their way to becoming professionals.
Currently, she is working with about 300 undergraduate students. These students are pursuing a degree in criminal justice. She has taken it upon herself to walk the journey with these students from the time of their studies right up to graduation. She is also the teacher in charge of Criminal Justice Internship course. This particular course aims at developing students professionally and preparing them for entry into the process of job seeking and the workplace. When it comes to matters career development, Scanlon is an expert. She enjoys helping students convert the academic skills learnt in class into a career. Her lessons and mentorship range from getting involved while in campus and spans all the way to career growth and development. Her involvement in career development is not limited to teaching; instead, she goes out of her way to share opportunities with her students. Whenever there are upcoming events or internship opportunities related to her field of expertise, she is sure to share it with her students. One of the ways she prepares her students for their career paths is by helping them write their resumes. Her tip on having an appealing resume is including a section in the middle titled “Special Projects/Research.” Here, the job seeker briefly talks about a project they took part in. this can be done in twi sentences alongside the title, the purpose of, and the skills necessary for the project. To further enhance this, she holds mock interviews for her students. She encourages the students to answer the interview questions based on their research experience. She lists some characteristics that are very important during interviews according to NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers). An examples is ability to make decisions and solve problems. To properly structure interview answers, she encourages her students to employ the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, and Result) approach. This is especially useful for questions that focus on experiences, knowledge, and skills. First, in situation and task, the interviewee ought to describe the situation or task that needed to be accomplished. The explanation must be specific, and not a generalized explanation of the situation. On the action bit, one must explain what they did to handle the situation, with the focus being on themselves. Finally, the interviewee should talk about how the situation ended and if there were any lessons learnt. A combination of the skills stated by NACE as very important and STAR should be able to give an interviewee the right response to any interview questions as well as give them an edge above the rest. Scanlon also recommends that the students be up to date with information while going in for interviews. For example, they should have information on Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) and any information pertaining to jobs. Such information includes the average salaries for any job type. She concludes by telling the students that the research skills they are learning are transferrable and can be used in any other field other than the criminal justice field of study. They should, therefore, take everything they learn seriously as the skills learnt will be useful in any field.
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