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Working Internationally...

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Oce of Career Services Harvard UniversityHarvard College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu

Working Internationally... from Home or Abroad

TableofContents

I.InternationalisNotOnlyaLocation...............................2

II. Goals for Working Internationally..................................3

III. International Marketplace Skills...................................6

IV.To Work Internationally: Abroad or at Home?...............9

V. Finding International Work at Home ...........................13

VI. Ive Read the Booklet - Now What? ............................16

2007 President and Fellows of Harvard College

All rights reserved.No part of this publication may be reproduced in any way without the express written permissionVII. Resources..................................................................17 of the Harvard University Harvard College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences Oce of

Career Services. 6/07

Oce of Career Services Harvard UniversityHarvard College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences 54 Dunster St., Cambridge, MA 02138Phone: (617) 495-2595 Fax: (617) 495-3584 www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu

I.InternationalisNotOnlyaLocation

MYTH: In order to work internationally you must live abroad or travel abroad often.

FACT: In todays marketplace, you can work interna-tionally from home.

Living, working, traveling, and learning abroad provide unique and powerful benets. No matter where you are in your career development, seize opportunities to encounter rst-hand global con-texts,culturaldiversity,andprofessionalexperience.Thereisanever-growingneedforprofessionals in all elds to be globally-minded, and there are myriad ways to pursue international experiences. Many take place abroad, but you also can pursue invaluable international experiences at home. II. Goals for Working Internationally

MYTH: There are only a few kinds of real inter-national work, most notably economic development projects, multinational corporations, and diplomatic missions.

FACT: International work is not limited to any set of occupations its everywhere.

While relief work, global policy think tanks, and international business are certainly examples of international work and very attractive ones to some individuals they barely begin to dene the many possibilities for working within a global context.

Consider the following examples of international work:

International is a marketplace reality, no matter where you are.

Every industry or organization is international in some if not all of the major aspects of its work: serving clients from other countries, researching policies of worldwide interest, sharing glob-al technologies, purchasing or marketing products and services, or collaborating with colleagues from around the world. As a result, everyone, no matter where they are or what they do, works internationally.

With few exceptions, we all must think, act, write, or partner with a multitude of multicultural and multinational institutional aims in mind. This is true for rst-year students, recent graduates, and mid-career alums, and applies to volunteer positions, internships, and full-time jobs in both the nonprot and for-prot sectors.

So dont overlook substantive, formative international learning experiences right in your own coun-try! These opportunities can enhance regional or language expertise, provide specialized global training, and enhance professional development. And as the international aspect of work continues to increase, so too does the need to keep your international skills sharp in order to partner with counterparts all over the world. With an expanded denition of global, you can more eectively and creatively access the vast world network of resources and collaborations. Art Museum design educational pro-grams for international visitors in their na-tive language

Consulting Firm analyze stang needs for an overseas company working in your country

Fashion house follow international mer-chandizing trends

Government Agency research specic multinational economic trends

Hospital share expertise with other care providers on new surgical techniques

Hospitality Corporation coordinate conference services for a global hotel group

Law rm research case law on global in-tellectual property

Library advise leaders on acquisition of worldwide electronic resources for users Major League Sports Team assist in in-ternational contract negotiations

Non-Governmental Agency fundraise for a human rights project abroad

Public Policy Center/Think Tank ana-lyze data on global energy consumption

Publishing House track global markets for your companys books and magazines

Research Center collaborate with over-seas partners on a potential public health pandemic

Service Organization liaise between ref-ugee populations in your city and services for children

Theater Company help produce a bi-na-tional production of a new play

University advise international students at a local school on visa and work regula-tions

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In any of these positions you would be connected to the most up-to-date global issues, interact with people from other countries in a range of situations, and have the opportunity to use your interna-tional skills in meaningful and satisfying ways.

Opportunities abound for international careers through wide ranging professional roles (actor to analyst, doctor to designer), using a variety of skills (language, research, technology), and within a spectrum of environments (the list is endless!). How do you choose? The best place to start is by consulting your own goals for a satisfying work life.

These goals are based on a continual assessment of:

the SKILLS you have that you enjoy using and those you would like to develop, for example: edit-ing, making public presentations, time management, teaching, data analysis, or working in teams;

your intellectual and personal INTERESTS, including academic specialties, professional topics, and avocations; and

the VALUES you hold for the kind of work environments in which you thrive, from personal notions of compensation, free time, location, good colleagues, and available technology, to fame, altruism, creativity, wealth-building, ethics, and many more.

Here are some examples:

Skills: facility in a variety of languages, cross-cultural communication, global web or archival research.

Interests: refugee services; environmental change, cooking/foods, religion in the 21st century, international monetary systems, child advocacy. MINI-WORKSHOP I:

Assess your international career goals

1. What international experience have you acquired so far? Does this experience point you toward a next step in any way?

2. What international elements might you imagine having in the work you do next?

3. How can you acquire related experience at home during the term or summer, or through professional development opportunities, to build your interna-tional career path?

4. What kinds of international jobs at home exist in your eld(s) of interest?

5. What international dream jobs might combine these elements to satisfy your goals?

Values: working with global cutting-edge technology, inter-culturally diverse work environment, justice.

Your assessment is personal and self-dened. It is also likely that some of your aims with respect to the skills, interests, and values in your work life will change over time; your international work will also evolve naturally as your experience grows and priorities shift.

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III. International Marketplace Skills

MYTH: The world is getting smaller and everyone does business in the same way.

FACT: The world is more complex than ever before and requires both a multi-cultural global mindset and a new array of responsive practical skills.

The range and scope of the examples discussed so far signals that everyone has to have a global perspective in todays marketplace. Acquiring international skills will have an enormous impact on professional eectiveness and career success for everybody.

International is not business as usual, its a whole new way of working.

Everything language, expectations, technologies, institutional hierarchies, monetary systems, policies, and even humor are greatly aected by your social, political, economic, and cultural environments. Thats an international challenge for any employee!

The following skills will help you to bridge international dierences and forge dynamic, cross-cultural working relationships:

Language skills: Learn another language or take the non-native language(s) you speak to a new level! Language skills are a key ingredient to working eectively and eciently with international partners. While some of your global partners may speak English and/or a number of European languages,manyofthegreatestinnovatorstodayarewritingarticlesandcollaboratingwithcommu-nities in less widely spoken languages, and developing new global enterprises with local resources. Without language skills you will have to rely on someone else to translate a portion of your profes-sional world for you. Language skills allow you to partner with your colleagues directly!

6 Sensitivity to cultural dierences and connections: Many of our most cherished beliefs, expec-tations, goals, and mannerisms are shaped by our cultural environments. While they seem com-fortable and familiar to us, norms vary widely from country to country and can have a signicant eect in building and maintaining professional relationships. International partners working on a project or issue may have diering perspectives that spring from deeply held cultural values; these dierences can sometimes lead to moments of misunderstanding. Keep an open mind and cultivate a non-judgmental attitude. Recognizing and accepting dierences allows partners to communicate eectively and nd connections.

Flexibility: In addition to language skills and cultural sensitivity, exibility is a key attribute of eective international leaders. It both requires and fosters the ability to recognize, approach, and analyze - often in novel ways - a variety of new and unpredictable situations that may be informed by multiple perspectives or goals.

Technology: At home, you may be used to certain ways in which data are handled and informa-tion is shared. However, countries do not all have similar approaches to conceptualizing and ana-lyzing data or the same technologies to distribute it or incorporate it into their work. Learning the many forms of the tools of your trade around the world will broaden your professional perspec-tive and make you more eective with international partners.

Field knowledge: One of the best ways to enhance your career is to keep yourself informed about new, worldwide developments in your eld. The most cutting edge work may be coming from countries other than your own. Professional journals (every eld has them!) are particularly helpful, especially if you speak another language. In addition, international professional associa-tions bring people together around the most important and newest issues. Their web sites are an invaluable resource to get and share information, make contact with colleagues from other parts of the world, and nd out about employment opportunities. Using networks to which you have ac-cess, including the Harvard alumni/ae network, Crimson Compass (accessed through the Harvard Alumni Association web site) can also be a great way to get a global perspective on your work.

This is only a brief overview of the kinds of skills that are valued in international enterprises. In reality, the strategies that help build and maintain eective international working relationships also foster success in any professional enterprise or position.

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IV.To Work Internationally: Abroad or at Home?

MYTH: If I dont work abroad at the beginning of my career or right after graduation, Ill never have an-other chance.

MINI WORKSHOP II: Skill Base FACT: The timing of your international experiences, whether abroad or at home, responds to an array of factors and opportunities that span your entire work life.

1. Have you developed a complete list of your current skills?

2. Which skills are applicable to your career interests and values? How can you acquire the skills you dont already possess?

3. What skills appropriate to international work have you been developing through work, study, and extra-curricular involvement?

4. Which additional skills do you want to acquire or develop further? How might you acquire or enhance these skills? Why do some people choose to work abroad?

Reasons for working abroad often include:

Satisfying cross-cultural interests Learning about and gain experience in the global aspects of their career eld Adding an element of adventure Practicing or acquiring languages Living in a culturally dierent environment

There are also reasons that involve a dierent kind of choice, for example:

Accompanying a family member, friend, spouse, or signicant other abroad Conducting on-site research

Being transferred by your employer

Relocating to the country where you can nd the seminal work in your specic eld being done and/or the best mentors in your area

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Why do some people choose not to work abroad?

Many people derive the exact same professional benets and personal satisfaction as those men-tioned before from international collaboration at home. However, there may be other reasons why individuals pursue international work at home, such as:

Gaining home oce experience in order to support colleagues in the eld oce(s) Developing skills in order to be marketable (overseas or at home) later in the professionalcareer

Responding to obligations and personal circumstances that make overseas work unfeasible, for example, health issues, family or nancial responsibilities, on-going graduate or professional education, or involvement in community aairs Continuing to pursue other opportunities, interests, or hobbies that are not available overseas

The career decisions you make today will expand, not limit, your choices in the future.

When is the right time to work abroad?

No matter what level of work experience you have, career development, in every eld and geo-graphic location, is a process of exploration over time during your entire work life. In your interna-tional career your work may take oe of the following paths:

abroad for the majority of your career abroad initially, then return home at home initially, spend some time abroad, then return home at home but travel abroad periodically onassignment

at home for the majority or whole of your career

10 Your international career path need not be like anyone elses. Experiences build on each other as you take next steps throughout your professional journey. You decide on the opportunities to pursue, as well as their order, duration, and location, whether Boston or Beijing, Cleveland or Cameroon.

How can you start to create a platform right now from which to launch your international dreams? Timing is key! Whether you are at home or abroad, your work over time provides you with:

national or regional expertise

subject-area expertise (modern art, marketing, primary education, currency reform, technology) uency in one or more languages

skill sets (administrative, supervisory, analytical, nancial, technological, etc.)

With each transition (from one undergraduate summer to the next, college to full-time work, or early professional work to mid-career), your accumulated skills and experiences expand your glob-al vision and expertise.

You can gain international experience right away but you dont have to start out abroad! Here are some examples of sequencing your work experience:

Undergraduates:

1. Work at an organization that focuses on an international audience or market in your home coun-try: provide counseling and referral services to refugees from a region of the world youre interested in, do research on a global health problem, intern in the overseas trade section of your local govern-ment or with a news agency.2. Spend some time (a summer or semester) abroad using your domestic experience as a platform to test out what you learned and explore new ideas.

Graduating Seniors:

1. Work in the home oce of a multinational for-prot or nonprot organization to get a solid grounding in the operations and issues faced by the eld oces.2. Take an assignment abroad.

Mid-career Professionals:

Parlay the skill sets youve acquired in domestic arenas into a more international setting or an orga-nization that cares about the international issues in which youve gained expertise.

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V. Finding International Work at Home

Career Objectives

Take the time to evaluate your skills, interests, and values, then match them with marketplace opportunities.

MINI WORKSHOP III: How Do You Dene International?

1. How does an international focus t with your

career interests? personal goals? lifestyle? responsibilities, obligations, and/or special considerations?

2. How will international experience, at home or abroad, at your current stage of career progress aid your overall career exploration?

3. How might you envision your own international work unfolding? Can you imagine several possi-bilities for timing a sequence of experiences while at Harvard and after graduation?

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Have patience with your career; expertise develops over time. But dont be complacent! Check in with yourself about your aims and interests periodically. For those starting out: what makes sense to you as a satisfying rst step? For those already working: are your goals still being met in your current position? What do you think should come next?

Be strategic. Keep current in your eld; know the hot topics, varied priorities, and valued skills in your area and look for relevant experiences to explore them with your employer or other organi-zations. What do you want to learn and accomplish next? Seek out progressively complementary opportunities.

Dont march to someone elses drum; sequence your activities to suit you. What do you consider your next professional challenge?

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Career Development Strategies

Document your experience and skills. Maintain an up-to-date record of your work experiences that reect the transferable and eld-specic skills youve acquired.MINI WORKSHOP IV: The Job Search

Keep resumes current and cover letter skills honed. Create multiple versions of your resume; re-tain copies of cover letters for your records as samples for the future.

Join professional associations or visit their web sites regularly. Get acquainted with your profes-sional community and create networks for information and visibility.

Request informational interviews; ask questions of the pros and, if possible, visit the environ-ments where they work.

Ask others about their own career paths. Your choices will be dierent, but hearing a variety of career stories can give you invaluable insights, great ideas, and the condence to forge your own path.

Network with professionals to talk about the eld, share information about job opportunities, discuss career directions, and seek advice about the possible next career steps that eld experts might imagine specically for you.

Create your own career advisory Board of Directors. So much can be learned from individuals whose opinions you trust or whose ideas intrigue you, no matter where you are in your professional career development. Teachers, supervisors, family members, roommates, teammates, alumni/ae, and colleagues, at home and abroad, may become part of your personal Board of Directors. With some you might discuss eld-specic or professional topics only, while with others you may share more general or personal queries; some people become advisers for a lifetime, while connections with others may gradually come to an end. Mentor relationships often provide support, informa-tion, direction, and encouragement. As you and your mentors benet from your relationships, re-member that you, too, may become a mentor to someone seeking out your expertise and advice!

14 1. Where are you in your professional development? Are you a student seeking short-term learning oppor-tunities, a senior or recent graduate pursuing a new skill set through a rst full-time job, an alum with professional experience looking for a new position?

2. What are your job search objectives to explore a eld, to enter the job market, transition to a new eld, or make a vertical move?

3. Is your job search tool kit in tip-top shape? Are you familiar with how to customize your resume for a variety of potential positions and employers? Do you feel condent about writing eective cover letters? Are you familiar with networking and informational interviewing?

4. List your current top ten job search resources (peo-ple, print, and web). Start to add to these resources through informational interviewing, web searches, professional conferences and associations, and refer-ralsfromfriendsandassociates.Keeparecordofallof the resources you consult as your job search develops.

5. Use the information you obtained from assessing your skills, interests, values, and job search resources to identify potential elds and positions. Consider available opportunities that are a good match for you.

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VI. Ive Read the Booklet - Now What?

Get involved. You can start with your school, city, employer, or community group by nding out which organizations oer international opportunities such as internships or volunteer options, partnerships/collaborations, research opportunities, and professional conferences right where you are. Seek out experiences and projects that capitalize on common interests with international col-leagues and institutional connections. Have a special skill? Share it with international organiza-tions that would value your expertise. VII. Resources

WEB RESOURCES:

For a list of web resources, visit www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu/students/global-opportunities.

PRINT RESOURCES:

Learn a language and ne tune your intercultural skills. Language skills and intercultural awareness are critical. They dont just smooth the way in international relations; they are the key to understanding global questions in any eld and formulating a range of creative responses.

Do your homework. Keep connected with the global news in your eld through newspapers, journals, and the internet.

Anticipate that things will change. The marketplace, organizations, world situations, and, most importantly, your interests and goals, will all evolve over time. Flexibility, enthusiasm, curiosity, self-awareness, and continual learning will enhance your professional satisfaction and propel your career to wherever in the world you decide to take it. **NOTE: All of the titles below are available in the OCS Reading Room. The Reading Room is open Monday Friday from 9:00am 4:30pm. Resources are for in-house use only.

Professional Associations

Dynamic, up-to-the-minute global information: member lists, feature articles on individuals and groups in the news, job and conference listings, and tips for young professionals.

Associations Unlimited (An online version is available through HOLLIS.) International Directory of Associations

International Directories by IndustryLocate your global collegial community! Industry- and country-specic listings may be alpha-betical or by key word, country, or specialty.

The Bunting and Lyon Blue Book of Private Independent Schools The Corporate Finance Sourcebook Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries Directory of Foreign Firms Operating in the United States Editor and Publisher International Year Book

Foreign Representatives in the U.S. Yellow Book International Literary Marketplace International Directory of Arts

International Directory of Little Magazines and Small Presses International Research Centers Directory Law and Legal Information Directory Nature Biotechnology Directory Sports Marketplace Directory The World of Learning World Chamber of Commerce Directory

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Work Opportunities Listings

Resources may be comprehensive, regional, or eld specic use all three!

Comprehensive:

Delaying the Real World The Gap Year Book Petersons Internships

City/Country/Region:

Transitions Abroad (magazine)

Field-Specic:

The Human Rights Internship Book

International Career Employment Weekly The International Educator Internships in International Aairs

Job Search Skills Resources

Enhance your job search tool kit with global leadership in mind!

OCS Publications (available in print and/or as PDF les on the web): Informational Interviewing An Introduction to Internships The Job Interview The Senior Job Search Work Abroad Writing Letters

Writing a Resume

OCS Appointments:

Make an appointment with eld experts on the counseling sta. Call (617) 495-2595 to schedule an appointment.

Career Skills Books: 101 Smart Questions to Ask on Your Interview Put Your Science to Work: The Take-Charge Career Guide for Scientists Career Decision-Making Resources

Explore how the global aspects of your eld t into your personal career journey.

OCS Publications (available in print and/or as PDF les on the web): Self-Assessment: Choosing a Career Direction Career Decision-Making

OCS Appointments:

Make an appointment with counseling sta to help assess your global career options.

Field-specic Career Series:

Career Opportunities In series ex.: Television and Cable, Education and Related Services, Travel Industry, The Nonprot Sector Wetfeet Careers In series ex.: Biotech and Pharmaceuticals, Information Technology Real Estate, Brand Management VGM Professional Careers series ex.: Communications, High Tech, Architecture, Social and Rehabilitation Services, Government

Field-specic Career Volumes:

Working with the Environment What Social Workers Do Careers for Foreign Language Acionados and Other Multilingual Types

Career Advice Books:

Do What You Are: Discover the Perfect Career for You through the Secrets of Personality Type Career Renewal: Tools for Scientists and Technical Professionals

Making a Living While Making a Dierence: The Expanded Guide to Careers with a Conscience Finding Your Perfect Work: The New Career Guide to Making a Living, Creating a Life Smart Moves for Liberal Arts Grads: Finding a Path to Your Perfect Career So What Are You Going to Do With That?: A Guide to Career Changing for M.A.s and Ph.D.s

Mentors:Colleagues, teachers, friends, and employers are everywhere in the world the membership of your Career Board of Directors is up to you!

International Resume Advice:

OCS counselors can share tips and resources for building a resume for international work. Daily resume reviews are held during the academic year at OCS. For more information, visit www.ocs. fas.harvard.edu or call (617) 495-2595.

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Oce of Career Services Harvard UniversityHarvard College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences 54 Dunster St., Cambridge, MA 02138 Phone: (617) 495-2595 Fax: (617) 495-3584www.ocs.fas.harvard.edu