Hello Economics Majors,

My name is Jennifer Jones and I'm the Director of your Economics Career Office (ECO), which is dedicated to the career planning and preparation of our Economics majors. I'm looking forward to working with you this academic year as we all return to the Grounds. Hundreds of students used the ECO's services over the last year, and we welcome back our new and returning students. If you're just meeting us, please check us out at our career page, then click on "Students" to get to know us better.
It is truly a privilege for me to work in the Department of Economics focusing on career preparation and for you to have your very own career services office in Monroe Hall. The office was founded by your faculty and generous donors, the latter who are recognized on a donor plaque outside of Monroe 120. Check it out sometime!  Many of these alumni are working in jobs and fields that will surely interest you. 

A few items of note as we begin the year together and a couple of action items:

• Connect with me on LinkedIn and join the Economics Alumni Group on LinkedIn. This will quickly connect you to hundreds of other economics alumni. (You need not have a comprehensive profile to connect with others. The basics are fine.) LI is also the place I post jobs for our graduates - entry-level and experienced.
• I'm including here a link to our ECO timeline, which recommends a "syllabus/strategy" for your career planning based on your class year/graduation date. 
• Different industries and sectors recruit at different times. Check out the recruiting timeline in the Hoos Career Guide (page 47) to learn more about who recruits when. Early fall tends to bring in large firms that know their hiring needs in advance.
• You will receive a newsletter from the ECO most weeks when classes are in session. Currently, newsletters are being sent via Mailchimp, but we may move to Salesforce/Marketing Cloud over the next few weeks. We will keep you posted.
• Attend the ECO Orientation on August 23! For those of you looking for internships and full-time jobs for this fall and beyond, please join me and alumnus Kenton Kivestu (Econ 2010 and Founder of RocketBlocks) on Monday, August 23 from 11 am-1 pm. Here you will be oriented to:
  • the dozens of resources available to you as Economics majors
  • a Resume Review session with real resumes from your peers in the department
  • Interviewing Techniques for Management and Strategy Consulting
  • a demonstration of the RocketBlocks platform, which the ECO licenses to help you prepare for consulting, product management, and product marketing
• Update your profile in Handshake. Choose industries that interest you, geographic locations, and consider making your profile viewable to employers. Career Counselors and employers use this information to message you with relevant opportunities.
• ECO appointments are held on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Check out Handshake for appointments. If our schedules don't align, please write to me at jlh7b@virginia.edu.
• Our online resources include:
  • A database of alumni, who want to answer your career-related questions, housed in Collab/ECO Resources
  • A list of pre-doc research opportunities and undergraduate research opportunities on the Grounds
  • Career Guides by Vault, an industry leader in college career development materials 
  • ECO Events, which typically are informal, low-stakes networking events with alumni or professional development workshops facilitated by our director, employers, or alumni
  • Industry Overviews created/curated by the ECO 
  • Lists of Think Tanks and Government Agencies that typically hire our majors
  • Professional Development advice and guides created and curated by the ECO. Examples are resume guides and samples, elevator pitch templates, informational interviewing tips and strategies to organize your materials.
  • Salary, hiring, and graduate school outcomes for the last seven graduating classes
  • Youtube videos highlighting many of our alumni panels
  • and more!

Our wonderful ECO student staff this year includes the students listed below. If you receive emails from them, please open them! We send Job Blasts (from alumni and employers), Event Blasts, and Resource Blasts. 

• Carly Dotson (Economics and English Lanaguage and Literature 2022) Writer
• Ella Fendley (Media Studies, 2024) Marketing Coordinator
• Flora Kim (Economics and Commerce, 2023) Senior Event Coordinator
• Chloe Leo (Psychology, 2022) Senior Event Coordinator
• Luca Pfeiffer (Media Studies, 2022) Media Designer
• Maggie Rutherford (Economics and Media Studies, 2024) Event Coordinator
• Mithra Dhinakaran (Economics and Foreign Affairs, 2023)
• Robbie Eriksson (Economics and Computer Science, 2022) Salesforce Coordinator

Our Student Advisory Board (ECOSAB) meets bi-weekly to discuss career office programming and to plan the annual Economics Undergraduate Career Forum. You may reach out to the Chairperson with questions or comments in addition to writing to me. The Board Members are:

• Brian Buck (Economics, 2024) Board member
• Bryson Webb (Economics, 2022) Board member
• Jenna Short (Economics and Statistics 2022) Board member
• Kaitlyn Ockerman (Economics and Statistics, 2022) Chairperson
• Wendy Tang (Economics and Computer Science, 2022) Board member
• Zach Garfinkel (Economics, Statistics, Commerce, 2023) Board member

Please remember to join us for the August 23 ECO Orientation and on September 3 for our Major to Major Career Coaching Fair.

Until next week when I'll write with more tips and advice, wishing you a wonderful week.

Best regards,

Jen Jones Director, Economics Career Office