When current students and alumni have career-related questions, they will likely meet Carina Myers, who joined our team several months ago as career management services program manager. Based at our Philadelphia campus, she supports the MBA Program for Executives on both coasts.
“It’s exciting and challenging to see how I can help students leverage their experiences to achieve their career goals. The opportunity to work with exceptionally smart and hard-working people from diverse backgrounds is phenomenal,” she said.
Career Management from East to West
From Resume Review to Alumni Outreach
As program manager, I wear a few different hats. My most visible role involves our career management newsletters. In addition to the alumni newsletter, I send out a customized newsletter to the first- and second-year classes in San Francisco and Philadelphia every week to highlight upcoming events, deadlines, speakers, and programming.
I answer questions from students and alumni about our online career management resources and I review cover letters and resumes. EMBA students can email me to request a review any time. I often provide feedback via email because students aren’t always available to meet in person when they’re on campus, but I meet with students by appointment as well. In particular, I do a lot of reviewing over the summer because resume review is a requirement for students to upload their resume to the Resume Book, which goes directly to employers, if they choose to be included in their second year.
I also support our Philadelphia Career Management Director Dawn Graham and our San Francisco Career Management Director Steve Hernandez with program development and planning. Alumni outreach is another important facet of my position — I coordinate alumni speakers who come to campus and share their experience with students. Our goal is to bring alumni from as many different industries as possible because they provide an important perspective for our EMBA students as well as valuable connections.
My role also gives me the opportunity to work with data. We want to build more customized programming for students, as each class is different, so we are obtaining quantitative feedback from students and alumni to help us make data-driven decisions about program offerings.
Facilitating EMBA Career Events
In the beginning of the EMBA Program, the focus is on academics and getting used to the routine of being back in the classroom. Career management becomes a bigger topic in the middle of the first year when students have the option of attending Career Day. That program gets them thinking more about their future aspirations.
We encourage students to spend time reflecting on their long-term career interests and goals so that we can help them get the most of our services and programs. Each year, we host several important career events. Here are three highlights:
- Career Day — This two-day event spans first and second year. The first part of Career Day takes place in the fall of our students’ first year in the program. It features presentations and workshops on career exploration, networking, and personal branding, and gives students the opportunity to participate in industry chats with alumni and make additional connections at our networking reception.In the beginning of second year, we host a second Career Day that is more focused on actionable practices for students. That event features interview workshops, resume reviews, case preparation, alumni speakers, and networking.
- Career Conversations — Held in March, Career Conversations provides additional opportunities for students to engage with alumni. At last year’s event, 60 alumni worked with students in small teams to share their experiences and provide insights and feedback on various industries.
- Webinar Wednesday — New this year, we feature guest presenters on our Wharton EMBA Webinar Wednesday series to discuss topics ranging from company-specific information sessions to unique career trajectories. Alumni have shared their advice about how to transition into a specific industry and their experience with careers in different geographic markets. Recent alumni presenters include Brian Higgins, WG’15, Amit Desai, WG’11, Claire Gao, WG’12, and Farook Ahmed, WG’16, to name a few.
About Carina
From Retail Management to Career Management
After graduating from Penn State with a BS in Business Management, I was recruited to join Macy’s executive development program. I held various management positions during my time there, most recently working as a merchandise team manager.
When the Career Management Services Program Manager position opened up in Wharton’s EMBA Program, I jumped at the opportunity to come to Wharton. I’ve always been interested in higher education and was excited to work with students who are already successful in their careers and invested in their goals.
My Life Outside of Wharton
I traveled during summers with my collegiate singing group, Essence of Joy. We went to Prague, Taiwan, Tokyo, and South Korea. They were all fantastic experiences, but Prague was my favorite location. The Old Town Square was beautiful with its cobblestones, colorful buildings, and history.
We performed sacred and secular music from the African/African-American traditions, and I would say my favorite was a song called “I Just Want to Say Thanks” by Raymond Wise. It was a core song that we carried in the choir’s repertoire every year and because of its tradition and the message it represented, I always felt very nostalgic and reflective when singing it.