From childhood through the college, artistic, creative students dedicate time to honing their skills and perfecting their craft. These talents can continue to be utilized as Redbirds enter the workforce, in fact there are many ways to weave these interests into many career paths.
On October 17, the Career Center, in collaboration with the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts, is hosting CreativeCon to help creative students discover related career paths, regardless of their major. Held at the Center for the Visual Arts, the program connects students with similarly-skilled alumni and employers. Through conversations, activities, and career-focused workshops, Redbirds explore, reflect, and learn how to act on their creativity in their careers.
CreativeCon includes breakout sessions that provide students the opportunity to network, hear alumni stories of success, and gain information regarding transferable skills and freelancing/gigging.
“We got the inspiration to do this event after seeing a recurring problem with students being unprepared and intimidated by the first step to becoming the professional they aspire to be,” said Career Advisor Mark Fauble. “The main goal of this program is to help students build confidence in themselves.”
During the networking session, Redbirds gain tips and strategies on how to make connections in their industries of interest. Students will draft and practice a 30-second commercial to utilize when introducing themselves to professionals. The alumni stories session will feature advice on how to apply creative identities across a broad spectrum of careers.
“Students will gain a belief in their own abilities as young professionals and what it’s like to survive as a freelance artist in their chosen field,” continued Fauble. “Through this event Redbirds hear the stories of successful alumni and industry professionals as they navigated their careers, and will leave CreativeCon with a lot less anxiety about starting the career search.”
During the transferable skills portion of CreativeCon, Redbirds will learn about skills that employers are seeking from any candidate, regardless of major, include career management, intercultural fluency, critical thinking, oral and written communication, creativity, teamwork and collaboration, information technology application, leadership, and professionalism. They will also discover how to apply those skills to creative careers.
CreativeCon also educates Redbirds on how to leverage creativity in arts related and non-arts related jobs following graduation.
The freelancing and gigging breakout session will encourage students to identify freelance opportunities to include on their resumes. Redbirds will learn how to market their freelance experiences and self-starter skill sets.
Registration for CreativeCon is required to attend.
CreativeCon is another example of how the Career Center implements its mission to assists students with developing, evaluating and/or implementing career, education, and employment decisions. The program also supports Illinois State University’s Educate ● Connect ● Elevate strategic plan.
