Hi fellow students and job seekers! I just wrapped up my internship at the OECD in Paris, where I helped prepare a report on productivity, sustainability and resilience in the Dutch agricultural sector. It was a memorable experience where I learned a lot, met inspiring people and contributed to a meaningful project. About a year ago, I was in the same position as you are now, trying to develop a vision for my career and finding ways to turn that vision into reality. The career centre has been an incredibly valuable resource for this journey, and I really benefited from their support throughout the process.

My interests have always evolved around economics, policy and the environment. The jobs I considered ranged from think tanks to government and ministries and from NGOs to academia and research. It is a broad field with diverse job descriptions, so getting clarity on where and how I could put my true interests and strengths to work was paramount for developing a strong career trajectory. The SCS career week allowed me to meet people in similar situations, learn from their experiences and sharpen my own thoughts. Events such as finding your career flow helped me gain perspective on what a fulfilling career looks like and which roles might be a good fit.

The events on networking and LinkedIn helped me get started on my plan and turn career ideas into actionable items. The CV check helped to brush up my CV. Besides the bigger events and services the SCS offered, I also benefitted tremendously from having someone knowledgeable to talk to, who is familiar with the challenges that students face in this period of their life, has an open ear and good advice and a strong network to help you get going.

For me, it worked out wonderfully. I developed a career vision that helps me stay focused and motivated, I found an internship that I loved, and I am confident that the next years will bring more exciting opportunities. The SCS was a great help along the way.

Tips from Lukas for job and internship seekers:

Give luck an opportunity to find you out there. That means: Going to events where you could meet people, sending that cold email to a potential employer and always asking the people around you for their ideas and recommendations. Many things will not work out, but eventually, one will. Another thing that I found helpful to keep in mind is that you do not need to have it all figured out from the start; career paths unfold as you walk along them. No need to overly obsess about what might be; instead, go out and take action. Joining some of the events from the career centre was a great start that helped me go from planning to doing. Thank you to the whole team!