Entry-Level Positions For Aspiring Construction Project Managers At Los Angeles World Airports
Sebastian, a Construction Project Manager, highlights internships as the most applicable entry-level position for undergraduates, emphasizing the importance of prior work experience, even outside the construction field ("it doesn't matter what work experience you have"). The interviewee stresses the significance of proactive networking, including following up with recruiters after career fairs and demonstrating genuine interest in specific companies, advising that simply submitting a resume is insufficient ("a lot of times it's not the case").
Networking, Internships, Entry-Level Jobs, Career Fair Etiquette, Job Search Strategies
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Sebastian Potes
Construction Project Manager
Los Angeles World Airports
USC
MBA UCLA Anderson
Engineering - Civil
Aerospace, Aviation & Defense, Architecture, Construction & Design
Operations and Project Management
First Generation College Student
Video Highlights
1. Internships are valuable entry-level positions for undergraduate students interested in construction project management.
2. Networking is crucial; attending career info sessions, talking to recruiters, and following up are essential for securing internships or job offers.
3. Prior work experience, even in seemingly unrelated fields, demonstrates work ethic and life experience, which can be beneficial in securing internships or jobs.
Transcript
What entry-level positions are there in this field that an undergraduate college student might consider?
There are many entry-level positions. I think the most applicable for undergraduate students right now would probably be an internship, a summer internship.
However, even before that, when I was coming up, I've been working since I was 15. When I was in undergrad, I had work experience as a server in a restaurant, and I worked at a gas station one summer. It doesn't matter what work experience you have. The fact that you're coming out of college and already have a little bit of work experience, maybe even a work-study job on campus, is really helpful.
That kind of helped me get my internship. It helped me say I had a little bit of life experience at the time.
When you're on campus, go to all the career info sessions and really focus on networking. If you go to an info session and talk to a recruiter and give them your resume, follow up with them the next day and show interest.
When I was going through recruiting, I thought all I had to do was give them my resume and show up to the info session, and they would call me for an interview. A lot of times, that's not the case. Recruiters want to see that the student is really interested, not only in the industry but in that specific company.
You can imagine as a recruiter, they probably get all sorts of students who show up to the career fair just looking for a job, knowing nothing about who they're talking to or what company they're talking to. So, I think it's really important to have an internship or a full-time offer upon graduating.
Take the time to really talk to the recruiters, give them your resume, and tell them what interests you and where you see your career going. Follow up with them and send a thank-you email within 24 hours. The basics are really important, but they often get overlooked for many reasons, myself included when I was going through the process. As you go through one or two career fairs, you quickly learn about etiquette and stuff like that.