11:28 a.m., Dec. 15, 2009----The University of Delaware's Bank of America Career Services Center partnered with the departments of Foreign Languages and Literatures and Chemical Engineering and the Lerner College of Business and Economics last month to host an international career counselor, Claudia Fink of Germany.

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Fink is a career consultant at Christian-Albrechts Universitaet in Kiel, Germany, a large university with approximately 20,000 students.

She came to the University of Delaware by way of an invitation from Joyce Henderson, assistant director of the Bank of America Career Services Center.

The two met two years ago when Henderson traveled to Germany through a Fulbright scholarship. While overseas, Henderson was intrigued by the differences in services offered by U.S. universities and German universities and proposed the idea of an exchange conference scholarship through the Mid-Atlantic Career Counseling Association (MACCA).

A number of German career counseling professionals applied for this exchange scholarship in its first year and Fink was chosen to travel to the U.S., stopping at the University of Delaware and various other universities on the East Coast.

Fink's day on the UD campus started with a visit to the Career Services Center, where she toured the facility and met the staff, including Dawn Thompson, dean of students and associate vice president for student life, who explained the mission of the University and how the various divisions of Student Life are structured and organized.

Her next stop was at the Center for Counseling and Student Development where she met with Susan Rarick, a psychologist who explained the role of career counseling within the center.

Hailey Desser, a student in the Lerner College who is both a Career Ambassador and a Blue Hen Ambassador, provided a walking tour of the campus that was completed with a meeting with Cindy Campanelli, director of alumni relations.

Later in the afternoon, Fink facilitated a workshop on “Career Opportunities in Germany” at the Career Services Center. She presented information on the history of the German labor market, the industries that are presently hiring, starting salaries for post-graduate entry-level positions, how to search for available positions, the process of applying for a job or internship, living arrangements abroad, and more.

Her comprehensive presentation was followed by a question-and-answer session.

Several UD faculty members attended the workshop -- Iris Busch and Richard Zipser of the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures and John Kmetz and Jennifer Gregan-Paxton of the Lerner College -- and offered valuable advice to students.

The program was well received, with Kmetz commenting, “Career Services offered a well-attended session on finding careers in Germany. To the pleasant surprise of many, it is possible for students to find internships and positions related to academic programs in Germany. Some of these may lead to permanent employment there, particularly in technology-based fields. Ms. Fink gave excellent advice on how to search for jobs, how to apply for a position, and what to expect in important personal terms for things like housing, the work week, cost of living, and the like. It was an hour very well spent.”

The workshop attracted about 40 students from a variety of academic programs, including a number of graduate students and post-doctoral researchers. Many students came because they have a special connection to Germany.

Senior marketing major, Benjamin Kim, for example, lived in Germany for 11 years before moving to South Korea. While living in South Korea, he worked for one year in the marketing department of the German automotive company Audi-VW. Following graduation, he said he would like to return to Germany to pursue a career in marketing. Together, both Fink and Kmetz were able to offer valuable suggestions to assist him in realizing this ambition.

The University of Delaware maintains partnerships with a number of German institutes of higher learning, including the Berlin School of Economics. Every year, many German students come to UD through these academic partnerships. One such student is Jakob Stuehler, an undergraduate who is currently studying economics in the Lerner College.

Although he was unable to attend Fink's presentation, Stuehler was able to offer valuable advice to students seeking career opportunities in Germany. He strongly encourages students in all fields to pursue career opportunities abroad so as to improve their foreign language skills and gain a global perspective of their field. Especially for students studying business, opportunities for internships with major financial institutions are available.

While fluency in the German language is preferred, lack thereof does not automatically disqualify a candidate since most Germans speak some English and, oftentimes, the common language of business is English. Stuehler suggested visiting Career Fairs and Web sites such as Connecticum to search for open positions.

Reflecting on her visit to UD, Fink said she was pleasantly surprised by the breadth and depth of services provided to students seeking to achieve their career goals. She added that she was impressed by the comprehensive, student-centered resources offered by the Center for Counseling and Student Development and the Career Services Center.

For those students interested in pursuing career opportunities abroad, Fink offered the following bits of advice: learn the language and customs of your host country, get an early start on all official matters such as applying for a visa and international insurance, and get in touch with local career centers in your host region.

Fink said she intends to continue fostering a relationship between her university and the University and Delaware. She will also attempt to implement some of the programs and services she discovered at UD at her university in Kiel.

Henderson said she hopes to continue fostering a connection between the University of Delaware and the university in Kiel to provide UD students with valuable tools to conduct their international job searches.

Article by Stefanie Busch