A Walk Across Texas State: Recent Episodes
Texas State Career Services
Produced by Texas State Career Services, A Walk Across Texas State is a podcast that shares authentic stories, relatable career advice and information for your career development and success. Through informational interviews, our hosts Bridget Sarbu and Tori Graham share career and life advice from experts in higher education and the field of career.
In this episode, Zoe Jackson, former graduate assistant in Career Services, shares her experience as a university recruiter and gives helpful tips on how to be successful with traveling for work.
In this special Halloween episode, members of the Career Services staff share their spookiest interview stories. From questions about roadkill, to interviews that lasted hours longer than planned- this episode has scary stories and great advice for students on how to navigate difficult interviewing situations.
Amanda Ritter, Career Educator and liaison to the McCoy College of Business, talks about her journey from a small town in south east Texas to her position here in the Texas State Career Center. Amanda and Zachary also talk about the services the Career Center offers to students to help them find their own path.
Kristy Morgan, Technical Program Manager at Facebook, talks to the podcast team about her experience as a woman in STEM and working at Facebook. She also give great tips for students looking to get into the field of STEM and Facebook.
Cody Taylor, owner of Industry in San Marcos, chats about his career in the restaurant business. He also shares his experience taking risks and gives students tips on how to become an entrepreneur.
Emily Hawarny, Career Counselor in Texas State’s Career Services, chats about her experience as a Peace Corps volunteer serving in the Philippines, how the program operates, and what students can do to become a competitive applicant for the program. She also talks about how Career Counselors differ from Career Educators in Career Services and her new role as host on the podcast.
Ross Wood, Assistant Director for Career Education in Career Services, discusses the job search process for our seniors. He chats about when you should start actively applying for jobs, about how many applications to send out, and how to stay organized during this process. He also talks a little about job searching outside of Texas and how Career Services can support both students and alumni.
Elisa DeFord, Career Educator – Science & Engineering, talks about what juniors should do to build connections during their third year. She chats about internships and the most common timeline for applying and starting internships, how to network on-campus, and what juniors should do if considering graduate school.
Daphne Wolfe, Career Educator – Fine Arts & Communication, shares advice to our sophomore students about what they should take advantage of during their second year. She talks about her own experiences as a sophomore and the importance of getting involved, preparing for internships, and/or securing part-time jobs.
Melissa Yip-Santellana, PACE Career Counselor, chats about the steps freshmen students should take to get their careers on track. She talks about her role as a PACE Career Counselor and how her and her team can help students explore career paths and build confidence about their future. They also help students who are undecided, so don’t worry - you don’t have to have it all figured out to visit with them!
Daphne Wolfe (Fine Arts & Communication), Ross Wood (Career Advisor – Applied Arts & Veteran Liaison), and Laura Jones (Assistant Director – Employer Relations & Outreach) answer some questions from our listeners! They share advice and thoughts on the following topics: benefits of informational interviews, how to use summers (beside internships) to increase your marketability to employers, what is a mock interview and how do those appointments work, and what the future of career fairs look like.
Valerie Gomez, Lecturer and MSW Field Coordinator for the School of Social Work at Texas State University, shares tips and best practices for salary negotiation. At TXST, Valerie co-facilitates a program, Project Know Your WORTH (Woman Offering Resources, Truth + Heart), dedicated to bringing awareness to the gender pay gap and training women and people of color on how to successfully negotiate their salary.
In this episode, the team continues their discussion with Tiffany Taylor, Dell Technologies’ Diversity Campus Manager, about the joys and some challenges of recruiting on campus. She gives advice to students on how to stand out to recruiters and gives her pitch on why students should be interested in working for Dell Technologies.
Tiffany Taylor chats about her role as Dell Technologies’ Diversity Campus Manager and the winding career journey that led her to this position. She talks about how she stumbled upon the field of HR and worked in various positions to help her get the skills needed and required to break into the field.
Tiffany also chats about her college experience and the challenges she faced as both a first-generation student and non-traditional student.
Bridget Sarbu, A Walk Across Texas State co-host and Student Employment Specialist in Career Services, says goodbye in this episode. She recently accepted a new job, Onboarding Specialist, with Comal ISD and will be moving on from Texas State University. Bridget talks about what she was looking for in her next job and how she assessed if this new job and employer met her desired criteria.
Bridget also reflects on her experience starting and working on the A Walk Across Texas State podcast, how this fun project helped her grow professionally and personally, and even helped her answer a specific interview question.
Angela Bailey, UX Researcher with Indeed and Texas State University alumna, chats about the popular career field of User Experience (UX). As a graduate who double majored in Anthropology and Geography, she shares how she leveraged her liberal arts degrees, project experiences, and networking techniques to break into a somewhat technical field.
Ramces Luna, Coordinator for the Leadership Institute at Texas State University, chats about how his involvement in student organizations affected his future career, the importance of students building their leadership skills, and how the Leadership Institute can help students with their personal/professional development. Ramces also talks about how his Communication Studies degrees prepared him for his current role.
The annual Texas State University Leadership Conference (Virtual) will be Saturday, Feb. 27th, 2021– Sunday, Feb. 28th, 2021.
https://leadership.dos.txstate.edu/conference.html
Our hosts, Bridget Sarbu (Student Employment Specialist) and Tori Graham (Career Advisor – Liberal Arts) tackle questions submitted by our listeners. In this episode, the questions touch on the following topics: the future of video interviewing, what students can do to prepare for their careers while in college, what advice Bridget and Tori would tell their past undergraduate selves, and a few tips on how to negotiate salary.
Season 2 of A Walk Across Texas State closes with a special episode featuring Dr. Sherri Benn, Assistant VP for Institutional Inclusive Excellence for Student Initiatives at Texas State. Dr. Benn’s career has been centered around working for justice and systemic change. She chats about how fighting for justice and equity became crucial to her, the importance of connecting your calling to your career, how she advanced within postsecondary education, and how she recharges with self-care.
Dr. Benn also talks about how Texas State’s department, Institutional Inclusive Excellence, benefits our students and the Texas State community at large.
Qy'Darrius McEachern, Fraternity and Sorority Life Coordinator at Texas State University & graduate student in the Student Affairs in Higher Education (SAHE) program, discusses how involvement in fraternities, sororities, and other student organizations can benefit your career. He also chats about his experience providing workshops to organizations looking to improve their commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and explains how microaggressions can affect the job search.
Qy'Darrius also shares what led him to the field of Student Affairs and how he came to Texas State from North Carolina.
Madison Tabersmith, Director of Assessment & Accreditation for Our Lady of the Lake University, shares how she fuses her personal identity with her career. Madi is a member of the LGBTQIA+ community; she explains some of the ways that she expresses her authentic self when job searching.
She also talks about professionalism and how she challenges the more traditional views of professionalism.
Marcus Everett, Group Talent Acquisition Manager with Enterprise Holdings, talks about how employers use Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) during the hiring process and what hiring has been like during COVID-19.
Marcus also offers tips for how students can stand out from other applicants during the hiring process.
Ross Wood, Career Advisor for the College of Applied Arts and Liaison to Student Veterans, talks about his experience transitioning to vastly different career fields and how he managed those changes.
Ross also offers tips to individuals who are trying to break into new industries and talks about how he can help student veterans at Texas State.
Terence Parker (Associate Director, Student Success) & Dr. Vincent Morton (Associate Vice President for Student Affairs/Dean of Students) chat with our co-hosts about their incredible friendship.
Terence and Dr. Morton also talk about meaningful projects that they’ve worked on together and how important and essential it is to have supportive friends.
Laura Jones, Assistant Director of Employer Relations, shares what it was like to start a new job 100% virtually and explains what working remotely has looked like for her in both the past and present.
Laura also talks about how career fairs have transitioned to virtual career fairs this fall and what that will look like for students. She also shares some general virtual career fair tips.
Tori Graham, Career Advisor for the College of Liberal Arts, joins Bridget Sarbu as the new co-host for A Walk Across Texas State. Tori discusses her career as a Recruiter prior to working at Texas State University.
Tori and Bridget also talk about: events that lead to self-discovery, the different types of recruiting, how recruiters think, and some general career fair tips.
As Season 1 of A Walk Across Texas State wraps up, listen to this special episode featuring the Vice President of Student Affairs, Dr. Joanne Smith. Bridget and Zachary talk with Dr. Smith about her career and philosophy of creating a culture of care that will continue to resound through Texas State after she retires at the end of May 2020.
Dr. Smith also discusses her collaborative style of leadership, the benefits and support of student affairs for all students, and the incredible legacy of care she has developed at Texas State.
Sam Heimbach, Communications Coordinator, Enrollment Management and Student Success with the University of Texas at Austin, shares with us her best-practices for leaving a job successfully.
The AWAT team also talks about: being open to opportunities that align with your skills, navigating a plan to communicate your departure and set co-workers up for success, not burning bridges along the way, and what it’s been like to be part of a successful group project.
Corey Benbow, former Student Body President, shares his experience as a non-traditional student and a student leader at Texas State.
Sam and Bridget also talk with Corey about: the benefits of getting involved in student organizations, his contributions to Texas State, legacy, and his plans for the future.
In this special episode, Bridget and Zachary join Ray Rogers, Director of Career Services, to discuss all the services the office will continue to provide while students are learning remotely, services that will discontinue temporarily, events that have changed, and ways students, alumni, faculty, and staff can continue to engage with the office.
As noted within the episode here are links to help you connect with us!
Meet the Staff: https://www.careerservices.txstate.edu/contact/our-team.html
Jobs4Cats, powered by Handshake: https://txstate.joinhandshake.com/login
48 Hour Resume Review: https://www.careerservices.txstate.edu/students-alumni/resources-services/resume-resources/48hourresumecritique.html
Resume and Cover Letter Resources (and more): https://www.careerservices.txstate.edu/students-alumni/resources-services/career-guides.html
Email us at: careerservices@txstate.edu
Ray Rogers shares about how all his experiences, big and small, led him to his current position as Director of Career Services at Texas State.
Sam and Bridget also talk with Ray about: his experiences with part-time work and student employment in college, harnessing skills gained through experiences to step into future roles, and “opportunity favors the prepared: students can take ownership of their career path right now.
Emily Hawarny, career counselor for Career Services, shares helpful tips and tricks for actively practicing self-care during the job search.
Sam and Bridget also talk with Emily about: dealing with the day-to-day process of applying to jobs, positively coping with rejection, staying organized, Pitbulls & Parolees, and self-care apps that will help sustain you through the journey.
Ralph Leal, associate director of Career Services, shares advice on how to: grow your professional network, utilize your network in your job search, and maintain relationships over time.
Sam and Bridget also talk with Ralph about: the importance of being present, viewing networking as a relationship and not a transaction, getting the most out of an internship, and how networking has impacted his own career.
Jonnie Wilson, PACE career counselor and former Assistant Director for Student Diversity and Inclusion, discusses how to recognize your gifts and lean into them to find career fulfillment and success.
Sam and Bridget also talk with Jonnie about: her passion for serving first generation students, her unique leadership style, the importance of knowing and being true to who you are, and the history of Mama’s Kitchen.
Summer Salazar, Director of Employer Engagement at Texas Career Engagement at The University of Texas at Austin, outlines steps for creating a personal brand and explains how her brand has impacted her career.
Sam and Bridget also talk with Summer about: the importance of perception, how your brand can evolve, professional dress, social media, and becoming a Halloween costume.
Bruce Howard, career advisor for McCoy College of Business, shares his career journey and explores the age-old dilemma – Should I follow my passion or follow the work?
Sam and Bridget also talk with Bruce about: generational differences, the coolest experiences he’s had at work, how your passions and priorities can change over time, and his never-ending love for drums.
A Walk Across Texas State co-hosts – Sam Heimbach, career advisor for College of Fine Arts and Communication; and Bridget Sarbu, career advisor and student employment specialist – talk about how everyone’s career path looks different and their own unique journeys to career services.
Sam and Bridget also talk about: self-discovery, understanding what motivates and fulfills them, exploring interests outside of work, and being open to unexpected opportunities.
Welcome to “A Walk Across Texas State” - a new podcast produced by Texas State University Career Services, with co-hosts Sam Heimbach and Bridget Sarbu, that explores common career topics through the lens of professionals’ real stories and experiences.