EPICS works closely with School of Communication students in order to help them start their career.
Five members of the EPICS staff gave career advice to School of Communication students ranging from freshmen to seniors.
Hash It Out was hosted by EPICS at the Frances Searle building on Wednesday, Jan. 7. "I wanted to get some feedback on my cover letter because it is totally a new process for me," Backer said.
Assistant Director of EPICS, Ryan Smith, helps Communication freshman Anna Backer with her resume and cover letter. 
EPICS Coordinator Mandi Glowen offers advice on job searching and networking to Communication senior Charlie Gingold.
Photos by Alex Furuya / North by Northwestern
Members of the Office of External Programs, Internships, and Career Services (EPICS) helped School of Communication students with resumes and career plans in an event called Hash It Out on January 7.
"It's a chance for extended walk-in hours for any School of Communication students to sit down and talk with us and review career decisions, review their resume or cover letter, talk about how to find a job, answer any questions about interviews, or learn more about what we are and what we do," said EPICS Assistant Director, Ryan Smith.
As students apply for internships and jobs and prepare for interviews, here are some tips from the EPICS staff:
- "For freshmen, come into our office right at the beginning," said EPICS Coordinator Mandi Glowen. "There is a lot of things you can do to launch your career at your time here at Northwestern. The earlier you start the better your plan can be. Even if you don't know where you're going or what you're doing, starting to do some research during your freshman year can help you in the long run."
- Seniors should reach out to alumni or friends they have interned with. "The biggest benefit for a senior would be networking, it's important to get you're name out there, whether you have had internship experience as a senior or not," Glowen said.
- Keep your resume one page. Glowen said she often sees younger students with multiple-page resumes.
- Smith advises having your draft reviewed by a career advising professional, such as someone in EPICS or Northwestern Career Advancement, and to always double check your draft. "A lot of recruiters will especially notice when there is grammatical errors or when the correct information isn't on there," Smith said.
- While writing resumes, Smith advises in "being clear, making it easy to read, having strong action verbs, and really highlighting what your accomplishments are."
- Besides job experience and education, include challenges you have encountered, what accomplishment you have made while you were a student, whether you have traveled abroad and campus involvement.
- Keep resumes relevant. "Make sure the things on your resume are relevant to the experiences and opportunities they are seeking," Glowen said. "My tip would be to have someone review your resume, either somebody from our staff or somebody from NAC. What you see may not be the same thing as what you are trying to put out there."
- Pay attention to career events, which are emailed to students.
- Schedule career advising appointments if you want additional advice.