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Alumni Checklist

The purpose of this checklist is to provide a foundation for career development as an Otis alum. Print this out or make a copy in your Google Drive, refer to it, set goals for yourself, and complete a task or two each week, checking items off the list as you complete them. It can be completed at your own pace and provides a framework for career counseling discussions, which continue to be available to you through Career Services.

Career planning, skill improvement, and professional development involves ongoing practice and is always a work in progress. Don’t wait – the most successful people are continually engaging in goal setting, achievement, and lifelong learning! Bring this list with you to career counseling appointments to discuss your progress and next steps. Find more information on the Career Services website.

  • Make Time and Plan
    • Dedicate time each week to your art/design practice, career development, or job/opportunity search. Block this time out on your calendar. It could be 1 hour per week, 1 hour per day, or even as much as 8 hours per day if you’re ambitiously seeking new opportunities.
    • Create or update your 1-5 year career plan - what you want to be doing in the future and what you need to do in order to get there. (Download a career plan template from Career Services website. Schedule an appointment through Handshake to review it with a Career Counselor.)
    • Plan how you will spend your month/year. List out your goals and revisit them monthly. Make an effort to do one thing a day, even if it’s small, to continue moving forward toward your career goals. Track your progress and celebrate your accomplishments.
    • If you’re interested in freelancing write down the skills and services you offer and identify your rates. Identify the next steps to promote your services and find work.
    • If you’re interested in entrepreneurship write down the ideas you have for a business and create a business plan. Talk to someone about it and get feedback on it. Set your goals and next steps and hold yourself accountable. (Schedule an appointment through Handshake.)
  • Get Out There
    • Attend local art/design events, festivals, expos, or associations to network with professionals in your field of interest. There’s power in a good network strategy and benefit to gaining or sharing career insights and information. Fine Artists: start going to galleries and museums during regular hours and for opening receptions - make note of which galleries show the kind of work you appreciate and work you are making. (Refer to career resources as a start in creating your own list of events or conferences of interest, add your own research, and ask/network with others to learn about events they attend.).
      • Participate in things that will increase your exposure to the art and design world or give you more experience (volunteer, freelance, try an opportunity to see if you like it, develop a plan to create and promote your work, etc). Add relevant experiences to your resume.
    • Create a project or promote your work - this could be creating something you’ll add to your portfolio, social media, or attracting an audience such as through a magazine or physical exhibit, exhibition, or residency. (Learn more about exhibitions and residencies or how to “identify and develop your target audience” on the Career Services website.)
  • Network (talk to People)
    • Write an elevator pitch about yourself and your goals as an artist/designer, and practice pitching it to a Career Counselor or other trusted source. (Learn what an “elevator pitch” is on the Career Services website.)
    • Practice speaking to individuals and groups about yourself (projects you’ve worked on past, present, and future) and asking questions of the person you’re speaking with (projects they’re working on and goals they have). This can be informal or through an informational interview. (Learn what an “informational interview” is and find networking tips on the Career Services website.)
    • Join and participate in a professional organization / association / or conference in your field. Often there is a recent graduate rate to get started. Additionally, a great organization to hone your public speaking skills is Toastmasters. If you have expertise in an area, submit a proposal to be a speaker.
    • Get involved with alumnx from your graduating class, stay in touch, and communicate career-related opportunities to each other. Expand beyond your class year to meet other Otis alumnx. See if there are any alums working in your field of interest, and contact them for advice. Resources include: Otis alumnx on LinkedIn, IG: @otisalumnx, and Otis Alumni Association.
    • Track your networking and research new people to meet. (Download a tracking spreadsheet from Career Services website.) Add 5+ people who are in a job you may be interested in or in a position that could potentially hire you (where did you hear about them, are they an alum, do you know how to contact them?) Then decide how you will learn more about them (find contact info on a personal website or social media platform such as LinkedIn or IG, search LinkedIn to find out if you know anyone who knows them. Add to this list regularly during your dedicated time each day or week. (Learn more about networking on the Career Services website.) Fine Artists: the person might be another artist, a gallerist, curator, or collector. Add to this list regularly during your dedicated time each day or week.
    • Reach out to people on your tracking spreadsheet. Let them know who you are and what you’d like to know about them or their company. This is how you develop your network, meet new people, learn about opportunities, and continue interacting with professionals and organizations. (Make a career counseling appointment if you would like feedback on any draft messages you intend to send.)
    • Cultivate your professional network by checking in with former supervisors, past professors, classmates, and people you meet. This means staying in touch on a regular basis to ask how they’re doing, what they’ve been working on, and share what you’ve been doing and what your goals are. Add them on LinkedIn too.
    • Identify a couple people you would consider as a mentor, whether or not they become a formal mentor to you -- someone you look up to, appreciate insight from, or want to emulate in your professional development.
  • Job Search
    • Use the Handshake website and download the mobile app. (Log in with your personal email address and password.) Handshake is Otis’ career platform for:
      • Online job/opportunity board (only art/design positions by companies that want to hire Otis talent)
      • Employer/organization info and recruitment
      • Career counseling
      • Career workshops
    • Research jobs/opportunities and companies/organizations of interest to you and find out more about what they entail or what it’s like to work there. Visit the campus or take the tour if there is one.
    • Track companies/organizations of interest in your job search. (Download a tracking spreadsheet from Career Services website.) Add 5+ employers/organizations you may be interested in working for or learning more about (where did you hear about them, does an alum work there, do they have a website?) Then decide how you will learn more (look at their website or social media profiles such as LinkedIn or IG, search LinkedIn to find out if you know anyone who works for the organization, look for a careers page (or artists submission page) on the organization’s website). Add to this list regularly during your dedicated time each day or week. (Learn more about job applications or artist submissions on the Career Services website.) Fine Artists: The organization may be a gallery, museum, festival, or other entity where your work may be exhibited or sold
    • Reach out to companies/organizations on your tracking spreadsheet. Let them know who you are and what you’d like to know about them or their company. This is how you develop your network, meet new people, learn about opportunities, and continue interacting with professionals and organizations. (Make a career counseling appointment to review a draft of the messages you intend to send.)
    • Request a job shadowing experience or informational interview so you can learn if a particular career is right for you.
    • Identify other useful job search tools and strategies from websites like Indeed to social media like LinkedIn - and remember that networking (talking to people) is the most important part of opening doors in the job search process.
    • Apply to a position or opportunity, whether for a part-time, freelance, contract, full-time, or call for artists. Add this to your tracking spreadsheet of jobs applied to with contact information, date of responses, and outcomes. (Read the career resource for “How to Identify and Avoid Job Scams.” Make a career counseling appointment if you want to review anything.)
    • Prepare for interviews using career resources. Practice with as many people as possible. (Make a career counseling appointment to practice a mock interview as often as needed to feel confident.)
    • Practice mock job offer negotiation using career resources. Practice with as many people as possible. (Make a career counseling appointment to practice a mock negotiation as often as needed to feel confident.
  • Social Media
    • Create or update your LinkedIn profile using your resume as a foundation for your profile. This is the world’s largest professional network. You can join for free with the option to upgrade.
      • Build out your profile further by:
        • Adding people you’ve met as contacts throughout the year, people in your email or social media contacts, and continue to add as you are introduced to and meet new people
        • Following companies/organizations of interest
        • Making note of and following people who are doing jobs or working at companies/organizations of interest
        • Searching for jobs/opportunities
        • Joining a group
      • Make goals to:
        • Be active on LinkedIn weekly (visit the platform, review your feed, comment on posts, create a post, research people, message with someone new and interesting, connect with or follow recruiters at top companies/organizations, look and apply for jobs/opportunities, ask someone to write a recommendation on your profile)
        • Check out LinkedIn Learning to build skills, such as learning about goal setting, public speaking, software tools, and more.
      • Fine Artists and other designers: you may consider another platform as well that helps you promote your work or connect with others in the art and design community. Behance is the world’s largest creative network for showcasing and discovering creative work, so a profile here may be useful for you as well.
    • Groom and grow your social media to look more professional (LI, IG, Behance, FB, Snapchat, TikTok, etc). Google yourself to see what others’ may find if they search for you and look at your web presence from an objective perspective - what impressions are you giving and are they what you want professional contacts to see?
    • Use social media purposefully. Share professional and educational content or events you participate in on a regular basis. Start and participate in conversations with alumnx and other professionals through your feed or groups. Reach out to people who are doing jobs or working at companies/organizations of interest and request an informational interview with them.
  • Documents and Promotional Materials
    • Create and regularly update your documents such as resumes, cover letters, and portfolio/website to keep them current and relevant to the jobs you’re seeking. (Make a career counseling appointment if you would like a review and feedback.)
    • Ask at least 5 people to be a professional reference for you. (Learn what a “Reference” is on the Career Services website.)
      • Ask at least 5 people to write you a letter of recommendation. (Learn what a “Letter of Recommendation” is on the Career Services website.)
    • Create or update business cards so you can let people you meet know how to stay in touch with you.
  • Life Skills, Career, and Alumnx Resources
    • Project your financial needs and plan a realistic budget to live on. (Download a basic budget template from Career Services website.)
    • If you’re seeking funding sources, research scholarships, fellowships, and grants. Many will have Fall application deadlines so Summer will be a good time to prepare your submissions. (Learn more about scholarships, fellowships, and grants on the Career Services website.)
    • If an additional degree is your goal, research schools and programs, application requirements and deadlines, and prepare to take entrance exams if necessary. Many schools will have Fall application deadlines so Summer will be a good time to develop your submission packages.
    • Schedule a meeting with a Career Counselor (once per month/every two months) to ensure your professional materials are ready for applications, discuss career plans, progress, and next steps. (Schedule an appointment through Handshake.)
    • Use the Career Services website with resources, especially resources by topic and major. Bookmark this page for easy reference.
    • Follow Otis Career Services on social media IG: @otiscareerservices, LI: Otis College Career Services.
    • Connect with Alumnx Relations for resources, discounts/benefits, follow IG: @otisalumnx, and join the Otis Alumni Association to connect with other alumnx.
    • Keep in touch with both Alumnx Relations and Career Services about your job path and projects after graduation.
    • Give back to the Otis community by sharing internship and job opportunities, mentoring a student, or participating in events on campus. You may be able to share valuable career insights for others. Some alumnx give back with their time, expertise, or by making a gift - all ways to support today’s generation of artists and designers.
    • Continue these efforts (actively participating in career-building activities, tracking activities, utilizing resources, and revisiting goals).

You should now have a good foundation for the steps you should be taking as you continue on your career and life journey. Continue to refer to this list as needed for ideas, inspiration, and guidance. Career Services are available to you for life. Let us know how we can help or collaborate in the future!