Assignment:
As we discussed during our meeting earlier this afternoon, the primary element hat has prevented you from earning credit for the course, and a major purpose of the Marketing Experiential Requirement, pertains to professionalism -- being clear about one¹s professional responsibilities and commitments, doing all required work within timelines and deadlines, and being careful to fully understand what are the requirements, timelines. and deadlines. It appears that you missed a deadline simply because you didn't carefully read the instructions. This is a preventable mistake. I appreciate that you did not make excuses when you came to see me and so I believe you do understand the professionalism requirement.
I do want to see you earn your degree in a timely manner. You have applied to graduate at the end of this semester and I want you to have the opportunity to fulfill that goal. You will not be completing the Marketing Experiential Requirement through MKT 498C, but based on our meeting and as further clarified in these email instructions, I am providing an alternative means to fulfill the Marketing Experiential Requirement, which will require work on your part, presented to me.
As we discussed, most importantly you must continue and complete your hours of internship field work, representing yourself and CSUN in a professional manner. This must be confirmed by Career Education & Professional Development (CEPD) at the end of the Spring 2018 semester. You must satisfy all requirements and due dates of CEPD. (If you don¹t know or are uncertain of the requirements and due dates, please visit CEPD in BB 2236 or call CEPD at 818-677-4697.) If you don¹t satisfy the CEPD requirements there will be nothing more that I can do to accommodate your graduation this semester. You will be required to repeat MKT 498C and postpone your graduation, either in
Summer 2018 or more likely in the Fall 2018 semester.
Second, prepare a reflection paper (minimum 10 pages, double spaced, well-written) that demonstrates what you have learned from your experiences, and submit that paper to mevia email. Please create one paper with separate sections, using section headings. You may use the headings and subheadings below. You are also welcome to create your own headings provided they clearly communicate the purpose of the section.
Section 1 Professionalism: In the first section of the paper (minimum 5 pages), I would like you to thoughtfully reflect on professionalism, and consider what you can and must do in the future to avoid similar situations where you might be in danger of missing an important deadline or commitment, or of misunderstanding requirements and instructions. Please discuss how you will recognize the priority of meeting deadlines or completing time sensitive work, how you will ensure that you fully understand your responsibilities and timelines, and how you will plan for contingencies. Situations where you might misunderstand instructions and/or misunderstand a deadline arise on a regular basis in a professional environment and in life. We always have competing priorities and much communication coming at us, and we must be careful to understand what we are expected to do so that we fulfill expectations and our responsibilities. It is valuable to imagine and consider in advance how you might respond to future situations. To facilitate your reflection, read and summarize at least 5 articles on professionalism in the workplace that address issues such as time management, understanding and following directives, being clear on expectations, prioritizing work to meet deadlines, etc. It is easy to find such articles with just a google search. Condense your thoughtful reflections with respect to this issue. Include a bibliography of the 5 or more articles that you read which have contributed to your reflections. (The bibliography is in addition to your 10 pages.)
Section 2 Marketing in my Internship Company/Organization: In the second section of the paper (minimum 1/2 page) create something similar to the remaining forum post you would have created
Ethics Does your company have an official statement or policy on ethics? Do discussions about ethics ever occur in your company? Don¹t divulge anything confidential. Your discussion should be about your organization's culture and whether ethical concerns are an integral part of that culture. Do you have any recommendations for your company or organization?
Section 3 Skill Development: In the third section of the paper (minimum 2 pages) reflect specifically on your own experience in your internship and how you have developed your professional skills through your internship work. Analyze your internship activities and discuss how you have either learned new skills, strengthened existing skills, or both. These might include both technical skills and so called "soft skills." Think about how your activities on the internship translate into skills that future employers will value. How do you intend to leverage the skills you have acquired into future career opportunities? Is there anything you want to work on more before your internship ends?
Section 4 Your Career: The final section of your paper (minimum 2 pages) should discuss your career plans and goals. Describe in some detail what you think you would like to do upon graduation and for the long-term. For example, where do you want to be one year from now, three years from now, five years from now? Set some goals. Feel free to include goals that today may feel somewhat unrealistic and perhaps more like dreams, but that do inspire you. You may be surprised years from now to find that in articulating such goals, the goals became "more real" and you will have achieved many of them. As you think about your goals, what skills will you need to acquire and/or further improve in order to meet these goals? How will you ensure that your skills will remain relevant and appropriate for the career you want?
We agreed that you will email your paper to me on or before May 1. At the same time, please ask to make a brief appointment with me so that you can share your reflections in person. It will be your responsibility to send me your well-written paper by May 1 and to make an appointment with me.