I hope you guys all had a fantastic thanksgiving break! Now that the holiday break is over, there are only ….. THREE AND A HALF WEEKS LEFT IN THE SEMESTER??? When did that happen?! Well, I guess as the semester is closing up, now is a good time to reflect on your experiences this semester. And keeping with the theme of thankfulness, let’s talk about how you can show thanks to the employers and mentors that have helped you this semester.
First of all, why should you be thanking your mentors? The most obvious reason is that when someone does something good for you - like offer you a job/internship/research position - thanking them for it is just the right thing to do. Being thankful makes others feel good, and it makes you feel good! But from a more self-serving perspective, it also helps your chances of working with them again in the future. People always remember those who are kind to them, so if you thank your mentor for their help, they’ll probably want to hire you again! Also, taking the time to think about reasons to thank them will help you reflect on how you’ve developed through this experience. If you’re enrolled in an Intern Success Practicum course with the Career Center, you should be submitting your end-of-semester reflections by December 8th.
Here are some great ways to thank your employers and mentors:
In person is always the best option. Being able to talk face-to-face when thanking your mentor will show them how sincere you are, and will also give them a chance to thank you in return! They appreciate the work you’ve put in as much as you appreciate their guidance.
Sending a thank-you card is a good alternative if you’re shy, or don’t get a chance to do it in person. People don’t usually send physical cards anymore, so it will be a pleasant surprise for them to get a nice card in their mailbox.
If you’re not in a rush, or if you are continuing your work in the spring, be on the lookout for the Career Center’s annual Thanks for Making a Difference Campaign, which is a creative way to thank all and any kind of mentor in your life.
Personally, I’d like to send a thank you to the whole Career Center for welcoming me into the office as a new employee this semester. I have already learned so much about professional development and helping other students, and I look forward to continuing my own development here and working on new projects to give my fellow students all the opportunities they deserve. Feel free to comment on what you’re thankful for this year in the comments section below.
A UMBC faculty member and a UMBC alumnus were recognized by the Maryland Science Center for their outstanding work in engineering and science. Lee Blaney, associate professor of chemical, biochemical and environmental engineering, was one of two people to receive the 2017 Outstanding Young Engineer Award, and Phillip Graff ’08, physics, was awarded one of two 2017 Outstanding Young Scientist Awards. The ceremony, hosted annually by the Maryland Science Center and the Maryland Academy of Sciences, highlights the work being done by young scientists and engineers in Maryland to advance the fields.
In his work, Blaney develops technology used to recover nutrients, such as phosphorus, from poultry litter. The phosphorus found in poultry litter often saturates the soil on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, making the water that runs off into the Chesapeake Bay a hazard for aquatic life. The technology he is testing in his lab could reduce the amount of phosphorus that ends up in the Chesapeake Bay from manure by about 90 percent.
-- UMBC News