After six years of offering online education to golf course superintendents and sports turf managers, TurfNet held its first live Webinar from a remote location on Dec. 4, when Michael O'Keeffe of Ohio State University presented How to Land That Perfect Internship.In a presentation sponsored by Syngenta, O'Keeffe, the program manager for Ohio State University's Global Intern Program, addressed a crowd of about 75 turfgrass management students (and a few superintendents) during the Ohio Turfgrass Foundation Conference and Show. The audience included 24 online viewers and a room of 50 that included OSU students, instructors, and other conference attendees.
O'Keeffe, who willingly stepped forward as our first guinea pig, discussed how to identify the right internship, what students can do to set themselves apart from other candidates in what he called a flooded market, how to write a resume and cover letter that will get you an interview, and advice that will help land the job.
A native of Ireland, O'Keeffe places Ohio State students in internships and golf courses around the world.
"Put yourself in a position to be better than the rest," he said. "It's competitive out there. You want the best jobs. And remember we're trying to deal with the best of the best here. You're here for a reason. You have to go out in the world and not be afraid to grab the bull by the horns and try to do this wherever you end up."
The discussion also includes common-sense advice on managing social networking sites, questions to ask during an interview and the kinds of questions that one should be prepared to answer.
If you missed the live event, the recorded archive is available here.