Preparing Future Leaders Through Professional Development and Internship Opportunities

The College of Architecture and Planning (CAP) emphasizes immersive, project-based learning experiences that build knowledge, practical skills, and innovative thinking. To further prepare students for careers in their field, CAP offers dedicated support facilitated by Director of Professional Development and Internships Jen Skidmore. Professional development and career services extend beyond the academic curriculum, providing career counseling, resume and portfolio workshops, internships, and interview opportunities to help students to develop a strong professional profile and the skills needed to navigate the job market.  

“Professional development serves as a bridge connecting students and employers,” explains Jen Skidmore.  

Professional Development

CAP students develop skills and knowledge that make them highly employable and ready to make an impact in the built environment. The purpose of professional development is to assist students as they transform from scholar to professional. CAP offers support and a variety of opportunities to prepare for a job search and build professional skills. Many of these activities connect students and the practice community, creating avenues for firms to share their work, culture, and expertise. 

Resume and Portfolio Workshops

A variety of workshops are offered throughout the year, coaching students as they draft resumes and cover letters, build portfolios of their creative work, and hone their networking and interviewing skills. 

In addition to portfolio workshops, CAP hosts multiple portfolio review nights, providing an opportunity for members of the practice community to provide valuable critique and recommendations to prepare students as they begin applying for jobs and internships. This is a wonderful opportunity for employers to support emerging professionals while gaining insights into students’ design sensibilities. 

Networking with Professionals

Career chats, employer spotlights, and guest lectures offer opportunities for students to learn from professionals from local, regional, national, and international design and planning firms.  These engagements help to build connections for both students and employers.  

Master of Landscape Architecture student Rachel Thody shares her experience: “I heard about DHM’s internship through three different ways! First, through our monthly firm visit where we toured their office and they told us about their internship, then at their booth at the CAP career fair, and their posting also came up in the platform, Handshake, our school uses for jobs and internships. At the career fair I had a quick interview with a principal I had met at the firm visit, then I applied through the Handshake portal, and had my final interviews over the phone soon after.” 

Mentorship Programs

Mentorship is a transformative experience that can support a student’s academic success and career preparation. CAP’s mentorship programs are designed to align with each academic semester so that goals can correspond with academic work. Mentorship builds confidence and knowledge and is mutually beneficial for both the mentor and mentee, fostering enthusiasm, sharing knowledge, and engendering curiosity. 

Internships

Internships provide students with invaluable applied experience, allowing them to explore their fields of interest, strengthen their skills, and increase their employability before graduation.  

“The hands-on and immersive experience of working in a firm is really beneficial and helps in aiding that transition from academia to the professional field,” explained Thody. “Working at DHM as an intern was a great place to try out the skills that I had learned in school. I felt pretty good about my technical abilities but not so much about my project organization, so working with multiple principals and project managers was great for seeing different ways of navigating a project at different stages. At the end of my internship, I felt way more efficient in my work and had learned a lot about the different types of work that DHM works on.”  

Firms also benefit from these opportunities, using internships to cultivate the future leaders of the profession.  

“Having CAP student interns has been beneficial to our workflow and process supporting our vision and core values at OZ,” attests Jeff Bartosik from OZ Architecture. “Over the past few years, we have hired several students through CAP graduates and through our Summer Intern Program allowing us to work with new exciting talented designers. It’s been a great inspiring experience to work with the next generation of future architects.”  

However, internship opportunities have not kept pace with the growing interest among students, as enrollment in our undergraduate and graduate programs continues to rise. This underscores the need for more employers to offer internships, enabling students to gain real-world experience.  If you would like additional information about developing an internship program, please email Jen Skidmore.

Career Fair

CAP is excited to announce our annual career fair, a premier event designed to connect students with potential employers. This unique fair goes beyond the traditional model, incorporating both employer tabling and opportunities for interviews or individual meet-and-greets. It’s an ideal venue for students to discover diverse career opportunities and for employers to engage with the next generation of talent.  

“By attending the CAP Career Fair, we have had the opportunity to provide coaching and mentoring, share about the design process and practice of OZ, and to share opportunities that we have for students in our summer internship program and upcoming graduates as full-time employees,” shares Chris Vandall from OZ Architecture. “Attending a career fair provides a broader reach to all students than just reviewing applications, which helps our goals of diversity and inclusion.” 

Mark your calendars! This year’s career fair will take place on Friday, March 7, 2025.   

For more information about the career fair or other career-related events and activities, please  email Jen Skidmore. 

About Jen Skidmore

Jen Skidmore (they/them) joined CAP in 2022 with eight years of experience leading career services and internships in higher education. Their career has focused primarily on career coaching, professional development curriculum, fairs, and building programs that advance equity for marginalized students. Skidmore is driven by a passion for equity, access, and student success.  

Skidmore holds a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs from The Ohio State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a minor in biology from the University of Texas at Austin.