University of Iowa

Food Service Worker

August 2016 - December 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

I really liked helping the regular customers and talking to them about their day.

What I wish was different

I really enjoyed working at the River Room and don't have any complaints!

Advice

It's important to make sure that you make friends with your coworkers. I did this and it made working at the River Room a great experience!

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Lab assistant

May 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

The flexible hours and work experience

What I wish was different

Nothing

Advice

Always go above an beyond when working for a new employeer

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Marketing Representative

November 2017 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Able to make own hours, a lot of client interaction

What I wish was different

Management techniques

Advice

Can get very overwhelming if you do not manage your time

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Wildlife camp instructor

June 2017 - August 2018 • Solon, IA

What I liked

it was outdoors, had evenings and weekends free, got to interact with lots of kids with all abilities, had great coworkers, management was amazing and easy to request time off if needed

What I wish was different

I wish there had been more support for staff with the behavior issue kids, or some training to address how best to handle those situations

Advice

every day is a learning experience, so go in with a fresh and open mind each day

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Maintenance Assistant

May 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Hands-on work. Satisfying to complete day-to-day tasks. Well-paid for a student job. Self-driven work. Teaches great life skills. On-job training.

What I wish was different

Management was wishy-washy at times, with different orders instructing us to do different things. Often times work could be very hot and difficult, and there were few opportunities to stop, cool down, catch your breath, clear your head from chemicals, etc.

Advice

It's a great job - if you're a hard worker. Don't even think about it if you're looking for a job you can breeze through. The interview process might suggest you need a lot of prior experience, but that's not necessarily true - you just need a willingness to learn and get your hands dirty. Convince them to hire you through your work ethic, not your prior training.

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Student

June - July 2017 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

My mentor was extremely down to earth and very helpful on my overall project

What I wish was different

I wish I had more time in Iowa to work on my project and get some results.

Advice

Make the most of this opportunity if you receive it. It can make a huge difference on your resume.

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Information Security Analyst Intern

May 2019 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Learned a wide range of skills from computer forensics, using Splunk, and end-point security.

What I wish was different

It can be difficult bouncing from project to project.

Advice

It can feel like you aren't doing much at the beginning of the job, but as you go on you'll realize that you've picked up a lot of new skills.

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Research Assistant

June - July 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

The friendliness of the people and the resources available to do research in cognitive neuroscience.

What I wish was different

n/a

Advice

Take advantage of every opportunity and aim to stand out in order to increase prospects of getting a return offer.

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Student help

May - July 2019 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Working in a place, that give me a free meal worked well with my summer classes.

What I wish was different

I wish the pay was better, 9.50 is not enough to help with bills or eating.

Advice

I would tell any new students to work here, this is the best place to learn if you want to learn how to mange time.

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Governmental relations intern

May 2017 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

I gained incredible public speaking and writing skills. My supervisors are supportive and encourageing.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Research assistant

May 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

It was a great opportunity to continue my research over the summer.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Trademark and Licensing

May 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Great working environment

What I wish was different

The way that the schedules were set

Advice

The trademark and licensing department is an independent department that handles all licensing artwork of the university, take this opportunity to get real life experience and work like its a full time job

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Stafff Nurse

November 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

The experience

What I wish was different

Advice

It has been great

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Student ETS

March 2019 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Almost everything, the whole experience has been great.

What I wish was different

I wish there was more on the job experience, there have been few of the learning opportunities that were detailed in the post.

Advice

Keep looking until you find the right place for you.

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Administrative Assistant Intern

June 2019 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

The people I work with are amazing! So much fun to be around and always helpful when I have questions about anything.

What I wish was different

That I had started sooner, I can’t believe that I had waited so long to actually get started working with the genomics division

Advice

A big part of what employers look for is good personalities, really be yourself in the interview and try to see if your personality fits as well.

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Lab Assistant

October 2016 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Flexibility of hours. Come in whenever you want as long as you fulfill your duties

What I wish was different

Not very challenging most of the time

Advice

You are the captain of your experience

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Vision Research laboratory assistant

April 2016 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Job autonomy.

What I wish was different

Higher pay.

Advice

Being on call requires a lot of commitment.

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Building Assistant Manager (IMU)

March 2016 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

The flexibility allowed me to pursue my career as a professional musician.

What I wish was different

It's hard to affordably park on campus, which is necessary when you have to move to the edge of town to afford rent.

Advice

Working for the university over break is a great experience and highly recommend it. Make sure you have a reliable way to get there, and understand what kind of hours you can count on having.

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Clinical Research Associate

May 2018 • Iowa City, IA

What I liked

Incredible human interaction at the clinic. I got hands on professional experience day in and day out, and I learned so much for both my career path and professional fields in general. I'm still working the position today and still learning, but the steepest and most rewarding learning curve was when I started that summer.

What I wish was different

I wish the pay had been a bit higher to give a little extra cushion on Iowa City's expensive cost of living (for a college student). However, I know research comes with the territory and I was fortunate to be paid at all.

Advice

I'd highly recommend anybody in science fields to work in a research position. If you can get a position that involves human interaction, fantastic! I loved that. If you land a job where you're working in a lab with rats or bacteria etc., that is still great. Working in research has taught me so many procedural skills amongst a plethora of other skills that don't involve working in a clinic.

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