College Experiences That Helped A Director of Development At GridStor Succeed
To achieve career success, Matthew suggests proactively seeking "extracurriculars and internships," and engaging with coursework beyond assignments by "getting to know the professors." This approach, exemplified by their involvement in CalPER, unpaid internships, and a DC work-study program, helped build a strong resume with "three or four different organizations" before graduation, addressing the common challenge of entry-level roles requiring prior experience.
Networking, Extracurricular Involvement, Internship Experience, Academic Excellence, Career Preparation
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Matthew Gilliland
Director of Development
GridStor
UC Santa Barbara
UCLA Anderson MBA
Environmental & Related Sciences
Energy & Utilities
Operations and Project Management
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. Engage in extracurricular activities and internships to gain practical experience.
2. Build relationships with professors to expand your network and learning opportunities.
3. Actively seek out diverse experiences, even unpaid ones, to build a compelling resume and demonstrate initiative.
Transcript
What did you do in college to set you up for success in your career?
I went to UC Santa Barbara, a large school with 20,000 undergraduates. I tried to take initiative by participating in as many extracurriculars and internships as possible. I also engaged with my coursework beyond just assignments and made an effort to get to know my professors.
Academically, I pushed myself to take interesting courses and attend office hours. I met with my professors, and I still stay in touch with some of them to this day.
On the extracurricular side, I was involved in CalPIRG, a public interest advocacy group, for two years. I also secured several internships, some unpaid, including one in a congresswoman's office. I then participated in the UC-DC program, a work-study program in Washington D.C.
Having the CalPIRG role and the unpaid internship on my resume helped me secure a good internship there. This experience, along with others, led to a good internship at PG&E, the utility company, between my junior and senior year.
By the time I graduated, I had experience with three or four different organizations listed on my resume before applying for my first job. The eternal challenge when seeking your first job out of school is the entry-level role requiring one to two years of experience, which seems impossible.
You can try to cobble together this experience in college. Some students work through college and can confidently say they paid their way through school and have work experience. However, if you purely focus on academics in college and nothing else, you'll likely find that in your professional life, people prioritize work experience over academic experience. There are exceptions, such as in law, medicine, and certain other professions.