RTSWS 2023 Spring Protege Workbook

Headline Here AT A GLANCE

CONTACT

Contact the RTSWS staff at questions@rockthestreetwallstreet.com

ROCK THE STREET, WALL STREET (RTSWS) WEBSITE www.rockthestreetwallstreet.com

RTSWS VOCATIONAL & CAREER PLATFORM

https://rockthestreetwallstreet.com/students-alumnae/

RTSWS INTERNSHIP & JOB PORTAL

https://rockthestreetwallstreet.com/internship-job-portal/

MARKETING MATERIALS

www.rockthestreetwallstreet.com/get-the-word-out/

MOBILE APP

Search “RTSWS” in the Apple Store or Google Play Store or app.rockthestreetwallstreet.com

RTSWS SOCIAL MEDIA (QR codes on the following page)

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/rock-the-street-wall-street/

LinkedIn RTSWS Student and Financial Pro Networking Group: www.linkedin.com/groups/7029520/

Instagram: @instagram.com/rtsws_

Facebook: www.facebook.com/girlsrockwallst

TikTok: tiktok.com/@rockthestreetwallstreet

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCUKCvfew0BGIoA1iaqmjviw

EMAIL PICTURES & SELFIES TO: pictures@rockthestreetwallstreet.com

SCHOOL CHAMPION (TEACHER) CONTACT INFO:

Headline Here SOCIAL MEDIA

Students (16 years of age or older) and financial pros can join our RTSWS LinkedIn Student and Financial Pro Networking Group. As a member, you will learn about scholarships, internships and job opportunities. Connect with your peers and mentors from around the U.S., U.K. and Canada, stay informed on relevant news and more. This is an exclusive, closed group that you will request to join.

Follow us on our RTSWS LinkedIn company page as we expand and diversify the financial workforce. Stay informed of upcoming events, milestones, relevant news and industry articles.

rockthestreetwallstreet.com/internship-job-portal/

The RTSWS Internship & Job Portal is a great resource for students to view and apply for internship and job opportunities from some of the most respected financial companies across the U.S., U.K. and Canada.

Headline Here MISSION

Rock The Street, Wall Street is a financial and investment literacy program designed to bring both gender and racial equity to the financial markets and spark the interest of high school, secondary school or sixth form girls into careers of finance.

“In order to be a mentor, and an effective one, one must care. You must care. You don’t have to know how many square miles are in Idaho; you don’t need to know what is the chemical makeup of chemistry or of blood or water. Know what you know and care about the person, care about what you know and care about the person you’re sharing with.” — Maya Angelou

“Search for role models you can look up to and people who take an interest in your career. But here’s an important warning: you don’t have to have mentors who look like you. Had I been waiting for a black, female Soviet specialist mentor, I would still be waiting. Most of my mentors have been old white men, because they were the ones who dominated my field.” — Condoleezza Rice ● ● ●

The Rock The Street, Wall Street Mentorship Program is designed to encourage racially-diverse high school, secondary school and sixth form girls in the U.S., U.K. and Canada to take a strong interest in their personal finances at an early age and to explore the possibility of a career in the financial services industry. We do this by offering a five-week series of classroom workshops and a Wall Street Experience Field Trip in the fall. In the spring, we pair those students with female financial professionals. Our mentors offer a firsthand (and often, first-time) view into the world of business. The mentor provides guidance to their protege about savings and investments, interview skills, resume/CV preparation, professionalism, confidence-building and career interests. The goal of the mentorship program is to encourage girls to take charge of their financial lives at an early age and to provide a diverse population early access to lucrative internship and job opportunities in the financial sector.

Having a mentor can aid in developing your self-confidence, providing accountability for your goals and discovering your interests and professional aspirations. Get comfortable sharing ideas on life, academic and career goals, and overcoming obstacles. Our larger goal is to have the two of you stay in touch long-term as you graduate from high school, secondary school, sixth form and beyond.

Many of our former RTSWS mentor and protege relationships have lasted for years, attesting to the

Headline Here BACKGROUND

Two out of three women state that they know little to nothing about finance. By reaching girls in high school, secondary school and sixth form, we commission them to take charge of their finances at an early age. We illuminate the relevance of finance in everyday life and encourage girls to study business and seek a profession in the financial industry. Women are vastly underrepresented in the upper ranks of finance and comprise only 2.5% of hedge fund CEOs, 8% of venture capital professionals, 9% of mutual fund managers and 11.7% of private equity executives.

Let’s face it, women, and particularly women of color, are not participating in the capital markets in the numbers they should be. RTSWS is reaching young women in 34 cities across the U.S., U.K. and Canada through local schools, introducing them to financial concepts such as savings, investments, budgets, stocks, bonds, derivatives, private equity and university/financial preparedness. We offer young women a pathway to financial and investment literacy and career preparedness through financial hands-on projects in our workshops, role modeling, mentoring, strengths assessments and real-life Wall Street field trip experiences.

TRAITS OF A GOOD PROTEGE

• Sincere desire to take personal charge of being mentored

• Being a self-starter who wishes to reach their greatest potential

• Ability to bounce back from mistakes and failure

• Enthusiasm to sustain the mentoring relationship over time

• Commitment to holding the mentoring relationship together

• Sincere desire to be involved in the life of a professional woman in business

• Respect for peers and mentor

• Willingness to share

• Ability to accept differences by being open-minded

• Active listening, suspending judgment and asking thoughtful questions

• Patience

Headline Here MENTOR MEETING LOGISTICS

• Over the course of the spring semester, it is expected that the mentor and protege teams will meet five times.

• RTSWS will work with schools and volunteers to select mentoring dates. Note the dates of the subsequent mentoring sessions with your mentor.

• RTSWS will send meeting reminders to students & volunteers the day before each meeting is scheduled.

• If you’re unable to attend a session due to a conflict or unforeseen emergency, please notify your mentor and your School Champion so your mentor does not come to the meeting unnecessarily.

• You will be meeting with your mentor in person in the classroom. Everyone will find a quiet corner or table to work together for the session.

• We recommend that you bring your laptop or personal device to these meetings to access additional resources in the curriculum.

Headline MENTORINGHereINFORMATION AND BEST PRACTICES

• Preparation: Have a conversation with your mentor about expectations, confidentiality and the boundaries of the relationship.

• Communication with Your Mentor: Communicate with your mentor about upcoming meetings. We encourage you to exchange contact information with your mentor to stay in touch regarding sudden changes or unexpected cancellations. Please select the method of communication you feel most comfortable with (email is acceptable).

• Conversations with Your Mentor: Allow conversations to take a natural course as you approach the subject of each session. There may be times when you’re not sure what to talk about. Consider asking your mentor questions that fit the following categories:

Stories

— Was there a time you messed up and felt like you failed? How did you bounce back?

— How did you learn to embrace risk-taking?

— What’s the most important leadership lesson you’ve learned and how has it proven invaluable?

Situations

— Who are the types of people I should look to get to know and align with to achieve success?

— When trying to gain buy-in to implement a new program, what tactics have worked for you?

Self-Awareness

— Where do you see my strengths?

— How could I have communicated my idea more clearly?

Skill-Building

— How can I become a more assertive negotiator?

— What practices can you recommend for dealing with nerves when speaking to groups?

— What is a good methodology or tool for project management and tracking commitments?

• Moving Forward: Each party should reflect on their learning from this experience. What have you learned about yourself as a protege or as a mentor? How will you take what you’ve learned to the next level? The intention of this component of the RTSWS program is for the mentoring relationship to continue beyond this academic year. Stay in touch with your mentor (email, job shadow, internship experience, etc.) so that the relationship can continue to grow.

• Relax and Have FUN!

Headline Here RESPONSIBILITIES OF MENTORS

Typical mentor responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Acting as a resource for information about the financial profession and savings and investment concepts

• Establishing the meeting agenda

• Helping the protege identify and reach specific goals

• Establishing trust with the protege

• Listening actively

• Challenging the protege to think and analyze options

• Sharing unique professional experiences

• Serving as a sounding board for ideas

• Providing college/university and career guidance (however, they are not expected to be a college/ university counselor)

• Encouraging self-confidence and strong self-esteem by serving as a solid role model

• Offering constructive and meaningful feedback and critical analysis

Headline Here RESPONSIBILITIES OF PROTEGES

Each protege is expected to:

• Actively engage in conversation with their mentor, which includes responding to questions and a two-way exchange

• Stay in contact and communicate clearly with their mentor

• Attend the scheduled sessions and notify their mentor 24 hours in advance if they are unable to attend their scheduled session

• Help to establish the meeting agenda

• Be receptive to feedback and coaching

• Assess their own individual needs

• Openly share successes and failures

• Take advantage of opportunities presented by their mentor

• Follow through on commitments and goals set during the mentoring sessions

• Admit mistakes and take responsibility for them

• Be confident to tactfully and respectfully disagree with their mentor

BENEFITS TO PROTEGES

Here are some of the benefits you can expect from having a mentor:

• Assistance in defining college/university goals, career goals, strategies and options

• Build confidence to grow, overcome challenges and reach goals

• Personalized attention geared toward specific needs

• A sounding board for ideas and approaches

• Access to finance industry insiders

• Recommendations for helpful articles and resources

SPRING MENTORSHIP OUTLINE

Track 1: Recommended for students who have never participated in RTSWS Spring Mentorship before.

Track 2: Recommended for students who participated in the Spring Mentorship previously or are under the age of 16.

There are no prerequisites to either mentorship track.

Session 1

• Introduction

• Career Quiz

• Discuss Potential Career Paths

• Challenge: Begin listing clubs, activities and accomplishments for resume/CV building

Session 2

• Introduction to RTSWS Vocational & Career Platform

• Review Resume/CV Building Tips

• Begin Building Protege Resume/CV

• Challenge: Continue working on your resume/CV for review in Session 3

Session 3

Track 1:

• Review Protege Resume/CV

• Share Your Resume/CV

• Article: Dear female job seeker...

• Introduction to LinkedIn

• Challenge: Create your own LinkedIn profile

Session 4

Track 1:

• Continue building LinkedIn Profile

• Write a Cover Letter

• Learn Professional Email Tips

• Challenge: Type up your cover letter

Session 5

Track 1:

• How to Apply for an Internship or Job

• Review Interview Tips

• Mock Interview

• Challenge: RTSWS end of course survey

Session 3

Track 2:

• Review Protege Resume/CV

• Share Your Resume/CV

• Article: Dear female job seeker...

• Write a Cover Letter

• Challenge: Continue creating a cover letter

Session 4

Track 2:

• Finalize Your Cover Letter

• Learn Professional Email Tips

• How to Apply for an Internship or Job

• Challenge: Continue practicing professional emails

Session 5

Track 2:

• Review Interview Tips

• Mock Interview

• Sending a Thank You Email

• Challenge: RTSWS end of course survey

ADDITIONAL TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION

• Academic development and ways to improve the path toward college/university

• College/university applications, internships or job applications

• Scholarship applications

• Student, teacher or professor roles and interactions

• Best practices for studying

• Resource recommendations

• Stock and bond market performance

• Entrepreneurship

• Saving and investing

• Goals and progress toward goals

• Networking

• Job shadowing

• Internship opportunities

• Types of career opportunities available within the finance industry

• Female representation in math and finance

• Building confidence

SESSION 1

Introduction, RTSWS Career Quiz & Potenial Career Paths

Mentor Name & Contact Info:

Introduction

Take time to introduce yourself and meet your mentor. Share your story!

Using the following page, take 5 minutes to fill in the prompts and answer the various questions. Once you have completed the page, share your answers with your mentor.

Take the RTSWS Career Quiz

https://rockthestreetwallstreet.com/career-quiz/

Both you and your mentor will take the RTSWS Career Quiz to learn more about possible careers within the finance industry. Scan the QR code to the right or visit the “resources” tab in your RTSWS app.

As you get your results, please note that the job types are just a sampling of the many rewarding careers available within the finance industry. To explore additional job types, visit the RTSWS Internship & Job Portal: https://rockthestreetwallstreet.com/internship-job-portal/

Discuss Potential Career Paths

Read through the below questions with your mentor and take a few minutes on each question to talk through each of your thoughts:

Were there any jobs that stood out to you from the RTSWS Career Quiz?

What types of jobs are you interested in? If you have had a part-time job, how can the skills you have learned apply to future jobs you are interested in?

RTSWS CAREER QUIZ

What types of education, internships or experiences would you need in order to pursue the jobs you are interested in?

How did your mentor decide she wanted to pursue her current job?

What was your mentor’s major/minor in school?

What was your mentor involved in at school?

Develop

Resume/CV

A document created and used by a person to present their background, skills and accomplishments. Resumes/CVs can be used for a variety of reasons; but most often, they are used to secure new employment.

Over the course of the next few sessions, your mentor will help you update your current resume/CV or build a brand new resume/CV.

Use the resume/CV brainstorming sheet on the following page to develop a list of clubs and activities you are involved in. With this list, also begin to brainstorm your skills, strengths and accomplishments.

During the next session, we will begin to build (or revise) your resume/CV. If you already have a resume, be sure to bring a copy to the next session to update it with your mentor!

Introduction to RTSWS Vocational & Career Platform

As our students and alumnae grow, we are working with them to meet their educational and career goals. We encourage students and alumnae, as well as our corporate sponsors and employers, to utilize our RTSWS Vocational & Career Platform.

The Vocational & Career Platform is a place for students and alumnae to make peer-to-peer connections, foster professional development and browse current internship and job opportunities with global firms.

The RTSWS Vocational & Career Platform contains:

• RTSWS Internship & Job Portal • Student & Alumnae Events

• LinkedIn Student & Financial Pro Networking Group

• Student CEO Program • Bi-Weekly Student & Alumnae Newsletters • RTSWS Career Quiz & Resources

Create a User Account on the Internship & Job Portal

Register as a job seeker on the RTSWS Internship & Job Portal and review the different internship and job opportunities listed.

STEP 1: Register as a job seeker. This will allow you to receive updates on new internship and job listings from RTSWS.

STEP 2: Browse the current listings. Are there any jobs that sound interesting to you? You can click into individual listings to learn more about what the job would entail and learn about qualifications for that job.

Create a list of 3 internship or job opportunities from the portal that spark your interest:

STEP 3: Talk with your mentor about questions you had about the different internships and jobs.

• Ask your mentor if they know of any internships for high school, secondary school or sixth form students to get experience in the finance industry.

• Were there any opportunities you might be interested in looking into after college/university?

From your list on page 5, CIRCLE 1 of the internships or jobs that you are most intrigued by. With that listing, we are going to practice submitting your resume/CV and a mock cover letter through a professional email during a later session.

Note: This does not have to be a job you are ready to apply for right now. We are just going to use one of the actual listings to practice how you would submit a resume/CV and cover letter for a job application.

What Goes on a High School, Secondary or Sixth Form Resume/CV?

High School Resume/CV: A Step-by-Step Guide https://www.cappex.com/articles/applications/high-school-resume-step-by-step

With your mentor, read the article and review the important pieces that should be added to your resume/CV.

Build or Update Your Resume/CV

If you already have a resume/CV, you can work on updating and perfecting it with your mentor! If you do not already have a resume/CV, we are going to begin building one today!

Work with your mentor to begin building or editing your resume/CV. Take the list of clubs, activities, accomplishments and accolades you wrote down on page 4 and begin formatting them into a resume/CV.

The following page has a RTSWS resume/CV template for high school, secondary school or sixth form students.

Scan the QR code to the left or visit www.rockthestreetwallstreet.com/ resume-template/ to download a copy of the template to use for your resume/CV!

London students: There is a UK CV template on this site as well.

Continue to work on your resume/CV. We will open your resume/CV document back up during the next session and make final revisions. During the upcoming sessions, we will practice applying to a job with your resume/CV through an email and writing a professional email.

RTSWS Resume/CV Template

Your Name

Your Name

123 Your Street Your City, State 12345

123 456 7890 no reply@example.com

Skills

● Fill in your strengths here (examples below)

● Strong self-advocacy skills

● Creative problem solver

● Excellent organization abilities

Experience

Rock The Street, Wall Street / Member

AUGUST 2022 - MAY 2022, LOCATION

Participated in my school's cohort of Rock The Street, Wall Street (RTSWS). RTSWS is a financial and investment literacy program for girls across 62 high schools in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom Female financial professionals led financial and investment literacy workshops and served as mentors to students in the cohort

● Engaged in financial and investment literacy workshops in the fall

● Attended the " Wall Street Experience" field trip to a local financial firm

● Developed self-advocacy skills with a mentor from the finance industry

● Refined interview skills and conducted a mock interview

● Engaged in a diverse learning community

Company, Club or Activity Name / Your Title

MONTH 20XX - MONTH 20XX, LOCATION

Fill in additional experience details here

Company, Club or Activity Name / Your Title

MONTH 20XX - MONTH 20XX, LOCATION

Fill in additional experience details here

Education School Name / Year in School

MONTH 20XX - MONTH 20XX, LOCATION

Expected Graduation Date: GPA:

Awards

Fill in your awards and accomplishments Examples: Honor roll, varsity letter, etc

SESSION 3 • TRACK 1

Track 1: Students aged 16+ & 1st time participating in the mentorship. Resume/CV Review, Sharing Your Resume/CV, Career Article and LinkedIn Introduction

Review Resume/CV

Open your resume/CV document and review it with your mentor. Make any final edits and changes. If additional edits still needed, use the Google Document to make comments for you to fix later.

Practice Downloading Your Resume/CV as a PDF

When you submit resumes/CVs for job applications, share while networking or email to employers, you will want to ensure your resume/CV is in PDF format. Using a PDF format allows your resume/CV to be opened properly for viewing and enables it to be easily printed and shared.

To save your resume/CV as a PDF…

1) Click “File”

2) Hover over “Download”

3) Click “PDF Document (.pdf)”

4) You will want to save your resume/CV with a professional title such as “Janella Sims, 2023 Resume” or “Janella Sims, 2023 CV” (dependent on your country of residence)

5) From here, you can save your resume/CV in a folder on your computer or desktop for easy access.

Article: Dear female job seeker: Apply for the job, ignore the

Former Googler Minami Rojas was always passionate about helping women succeed in their tech careers, but now as a leader, she feels a moral obligation to work toward equity in the workforce. Here is her best advice.

Women apply for 20% fewer jobs than men despite similar job search behaviors, according to a LinkedIn Gender Insights Report. In other words, women talk themselves out of jobs before they even apply. This makes sense given the often-cited stat: unlike their male counterparts, female professionals apply to jobs only if they are 100% qualified.

The result of this professional confidence gap is especially stark in the tech world. While women make up almost half (47%) of the total workforce, they only hold 27% of computer and mathematical science jobs.

As a new female exec in the tech industry, and a self-proclaimed data nerd, stats like these both intrigue and terrify me. Championing women’s career growth has always been a passive passion of mine, but now as a leader, I feel the moral obligation to take action in equalizing those numbers.

From landing a dream job at Google to experiencing PagerDuty’s IPO, and to now joining Moogsoft as the VP of Growth, I can attribute much of my career to three things: proactive planning, confidence in myself, and being willing to say yes to new opportunities.

Whether you’re in the tech field or navigating the workforce at large, consider these tips that have helped me advance my career.

CAREER PLAN OFTEN AND OUT LOUD

One of my favorite managers once told me, “Your career path is up to you and you alone. You decide where you want to go and I help get you there.” Nothing has ever rung so true. I am often asked how I ended up as the VP of Growth, and the fact of the matter is I’d known for well over a year prior to taking on the role that building a growth team was what I wanted to do next.

Treat your career as the most important project you need to manage. Once a month, at the very least once a quarter, take 30 minutes to update and reflect on your own career development plan. This includes answering questions like;

• Short-term goals: What projects do you want to accomplish in the next six months that will give you experience in areas of interest?

• Medium-term goal: What skills do you want to learn in the next year that will set you up for the next role?

• Long-term goal: What role, title, or responsibility do you want to grow into in the next two to five years?

(LinkedIn Gender Insights Report)

Once you’ve mapped your path out, you’re halfway there. Now to make that a reality, you need to share it out loud and to anyone who will listen. Schedule out quarterly career conversations with your manager. Don’t wait for them to ask. Share it with women and friends in your network and share it with your mentors or other leaders. Communicating your career plan not only creates a commitment to yourself to move forward but gives you an army of people helping find those next opportunities for you along the way.

APPLY FOR THE JOB, IGNORE THE “QUALIFICATIONS”

Now that you have that next job in mind, it’s much easier to narrow your search. When applying for jobs, focus on three things; the responsibilities of the role, the company or product you’ll be working for, and

the team you’ll be working with. If those three things match what you are looking for, apply for the job.

Oftentimes, we can get caught up in the “qualifications” section of a job description, but did you know that women are actually more likely than men to get hired if they apply for the job? According to the LinkedIn Gender Insights Report, female applicants are 16% more likely than men to get hired after applying for a job and 18% more likely than men to get hired for a stretch job.

As Wayne Gretzky once said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” So take the shot.

SAY YES TO THINGS THAT SCARE YOU

One last thing that I’ve embraced while growing in my career is the feeling of “Can I do this?” that hits your stomach right before you take a big leap into a new project or job. Some may call this “imposter syndrome” or as the feelings of self-doubt and not belonging. But, as Harvard Business Review accurately states, these categorizations incorrectly direct our view toward fixing women at work instead of fixing the places where women work.

Turning it on its head, I like to take that feeling and see it as a sign that I’m pushing myself to grow. Oftentimes, new things are scary. Discomfort is a sign of growth, and the more we push ourselves to be comfortable with the unknown, the more willing we are to take on new challenges.

While there are many things that can factor into your career—timing, inherent privilege (or lack thereof), and a bit of luck—proactively managing your career with intention can only help drive it forward and upwards.

One of my favorite roles I’ve ever had was managing the EMEA SMB Google Cloud sales team which came from a combination of telling my manager I wanted to work abroad as part of my career plan, raising my hand when an opportunity arose for an interim manager role in Dublin, and then saying yes to moving halfway across the world all alone!

So where do you want to invest your time and talent? Pursue this question passionately and reevaluate it often. Believe in your unique value proposition.

You never know what you’ll achieve.

(LinkedIn Gender Insights Report)

LinkedIn Introduction

Check out the article below “What is LinkedIn and How Can I Use It?” with your mentor.

Ask your mentor how they use LinkedIn in their personal life or professional career to network or connect with other professionals.

ARTICLE: What is LinkedIn and How Can I Use It?

https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/a548441/what-is-linkedin-and-how-can-i-use-it-?lang=en

LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network on the internet. You can use LinkedIn to find the right job or internship, connect and strengthen professional relationships, and learn the skills you need to succeed in your career. You can access LinkedIn from a desktop, LinkedIn mobile app, mobile web experience, or the LinkedIn Lite Android mobile app.

A complete LinkedIn profile can help you connect with opportunities by showcasing your unique professional story through experience, skills and education.

You can also use LinkedIn to organize offline events, join groups, write articles, post photos, videos and more.

Who should be joining LinkedIn?

LinkedIn is a platform for anyone who is looking to advance their career. This can include people from various professional backgrounds, such as small business owners, students, and job seekers. LinkedIn members can use LinkedIn to tap into a network of professionals, companies, and groups within and beyond their industry.

How do I get started on LinkedIn?

LinkedIn is an online platform that connects the world’s professionals. Here are a few steps to get started on LinkedIn:

1. Create your profile:

Signing up and creating your profile is the best way to begin using LinkedIn. A complete LinkedIn profile will summarize your professional experience to your connections, current and future employers, and recruiters. Through your profile, you can showcase your professional life, milestones, skills and interests.

2. Build your network: Your network plays a crucial part in unlocking the power of LinkedIn. It’ll help you understand what is happening in your industry and professional circle. You can begin by adding your family, friends, past or current classmates, and coworkers to your network. You can also

follow people, companies or topics by navigating directly to the Follow fresh perspectives page, which displays recommended sources to follow. You can use the LinkedIn Events feature to create and join professional events such as online workshops, seminars, sales and marketing events, networking events and more.

3.

Find a job:

If you’re looking for a new professional opportunity, you can get started on your job search on LinkedIn. You can use LinkedIn to research companies and reach out to the hiring community. You can also apply directly for roles, save job searches, and notify your connections and recruiters that you’re open for job opportunities.

4. Participate in conversations:

You can easily participate in conversations on LinkedIn. Participating in conversations can allow you to share your perspective on relevant issues and topics with others. You can like and comment on posts and articles on LinkedIn. You can create or join LinkedIn Groups (such as the RTSWS Student & Financial Pro Networking Group!) to connect and grow with members who share your interests, experiences, or aspirations. You can also use a set of lightweight expressions called LinkedIn reactions to easily communicate with your network.

5.

Post content:

Millions of members come to LinkedIn every day to connect, learn, and share. You can empower and educate your professional circle with the content you post on LinkedIn. You can also share your thoughts and ideas with LinkedIn members using the share box.

If you are 16 years old or older, you can create a LinkedIn profile.

CHALLENGE!

Go to LinkedIn.com and begin creating your profile.

If you have enough time today, you can start creating your profile using the checklist on pages 14-15.

Before the next session, continue working on adding information and experiences to your LinkedIn profile.

SESSION 3 • TRACK 2

Track 2: Students under the age of 16 or previously participated in Spring. Resume/CV Review, Sharing Your Resume/CV, Career Article and Creating a Cover Letter

Review Resume/CV

Open your resume/CV document and review your resume with your mentor. Make any final edits and changes. If additional edits still needed, use the Google Document to make comments for you to fix later.

Practice Downloading Your Resume/CV as a PDF

When you submit resumes/CV for job applications, share while networking or email to employers, you will want to ensure your resume/CV is in PDF format. Using a PDF format allows your resume to be opened properly for viewing and enables it to be easily printed and shared.

To save your resume/CV as a PDF…

1) Click “File”

2) Hover over “Download”

3) Click “PDF Document (.pdf)”

4) You will want to save your resume/CV with a professional title such as “Janella Sims, 2023 Resume” or “Janella Sims, 2023 CV” (dependent on your country of residence)

5) From here, you can save your resume/CV in a folder on your computer or desktop for easy access.

Article: Dear female job seeker: Apply for

Former Googler Minami Rojas was always passionate about helping women succeed in their tech careers, but now as a leader, she feels a moral obligation to work toward equity in the workforce. Here is her best advice.

Women apply for 20% fewer jobs than men despite similar job search behaviors, according to a LinkedIn Gender Insights Report. In other words, women talk themselves out of jobs before they even apply. This makes sense given the often-cited stat: unlike their male counterparts, female professionals apply to jobs only if they are 100% qualified.

The result of this professional confidence gap is especially stark in the tech world. While women make up almost half (47%) of the total workforce, they only hold 27% of computer and mathematical science jobs.

As a new female exec in the tech industry, and a self-proclaimed data nerd, stats like these both intrigue and terrify me. Championing women’s career growth has always been a passive passion of mine, but now as a leader, I feel the moral obligation to take action in equalizing those numbers.

From landing a dream job at Google to experiencing PagerDuty’s IPO, and to now joining Moogsoft as the VP of Growth, I can attribute much of my career to three things: proactive planning, confidence in myself, and being willing to say yes to new opportunities.

Whether you’re in the tech field or navigating the workforce at large, consider these tips that have helped me advance my career.

CAREER PLAN OFTEN AND OUT LOUD

One of my favorite managers once told me, “Your career path is up to you and you alone. You decide where you want to go and I help get you there.” Nothing has ever rung so true. I am often asked how I ended up as the VP of Growth, and the fact of the matter is I’d known for well over a year prior to taking on the role that building a growth team was what I wanted to do next.

Treat your career as the most important project you need to manage. Once a month, at the very least once a quarter, take 30 minutes to update and reflect on your own career development plan. This includes answering questions like;

• Short-term goals: What projects do you want to accomplish in the next six months that will give you experience in areas of interest?

• Medium-term goal: What skills do you want to learn in the next year that will set you up for the next role?

• Long-term goal: What role, title, or responsibility do you want to grow into in the next two to five years?

(LinkedIn Gender Insights Report)

Once you’ve mapped your path out, you’re halfway there. Now to make that a reality, you need to share it out loud and to anyone who will listen. Schedule out quarterly career conversations with your manager. Don’t wait for them to ask. Share it with women and friends in your network and share it with your mentors or other leaders. Communicating your career plan not only creates a commitment to yourself to move forward but gives you an army of people helping find those next opportunities for you along the way.

APPLY FOR THE JOB, IGNORE THE “QUALIFICATIONS”

Now that you have that next job in mind, it’s much easier to narrow your search. When applying for jobs, focus on three things; the responsibilities of the role, the company or product you’ll be working for, and

the team you’ll be working with. If those three things match what you are looking for, apply for the job.

Oftentimes, we can get caught up in the “qualifications” section of a job description, but did you know that women are actually more likely than men to get hired if they apply for the job? According to the LinkedIn Gender Insights Report, female applicants are 16% more likely than men to get hired after applying for a job and 18% more likely than men to get hired for a stretch job.

As Wayne Gretzky once said, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” So take the shot.

SAY YES TO THINGS THAT SCARE YOU

One last thing that I’ve embraced while growing in my career is the feeling of “Can I do this?” that hits your stomach right before you take a big leap into a new project or job. Some may call this “imposter syndrome” or as the feelings of self-doubt and not belonging. But, as Harvard Business Review accurately states, these categorizations incorrectly direct our view toward fixing women at work instead of fixing the places where women work.

Turning it on its head, I like to take that feeling and see it as a sign that I’m pushing myself to grow. Oftentimes, new things are scary. Discomfort is a sign of growth, and the more we push ourselves to be comfortable with the unknown, the more willing we are to take on new challenges.

While there are many things that can factor into your career—timing, inherent privilege (or lack thereof), and a bit of luck—proactively managing your career with intention can only help drive it forward and upwards.

One of my favorite roles I’ve ever had was managing the EMEA SMB Google Cloud sales team which came from a combination of telling my manager I wanted to work abroad as part of my career plan, raising my hand when an opportunity arose for an interim manager role in Dublin, and then saying yes to moving halfway across the world all alone!

So where do you want to invest your time and talent? Pursue this question passionately and reevaluate it often. Believe in your unique value proposition.

You never know what you’ll achieve.

(LinkedIn Gender Insights Report)

What is a Cover Letter?

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/resumes-cover-letters/what-is-a-cover-letter

A cover letter, also known as an application letter, is a document you send with your resume that provides additional information about skills and experiences related to the job you’re applying to. It typically includes three to four paragraphs that highlight your skills, experience and achievements in relation to the position you’re applying for.

Why is a cover letter important?

A cover letter is essential because it explains details on your resume in more depth and is the first impression a hiring manager has of you. Employers use cover letters to narrow down the applicant pool and choose the group of candidates they want to interview. While some jobs require a cover letter, others make it optional to see which applicants will put in the extra effort.

What to include in a cover letter

A cover letter should include the most interesting and relative experiences and skills you have for the open position. Here are important details to include in your cover letter:

How your work experience meets the job’s requirements - Give details about your current and past experience and how it directly impacts your ability to succeed in the new position. Pay close attention to the job description and pick out specific aspects of the job that you can compare to your knowledge.

Why you want to work at the company - Employers want to know your motivation for working with them. They want to hire someone who expresses sincere interest in the job’s duties and enthusiasm for the company. Explain how working there will fulfill your career goals, passions or interests.

Other elements of a cover letter can include:

• Meaningful anecdotes: Telling a compelling story that shows your proficiency with the skills required by the job makes your cover letter stand out.

• A call to action: A polite, open-ended call to action such as “I look forward to hearing more about this opportunity,” shows your excitement and suggests a reason for employers to call you.

Using the job from the RTSWS Internship & Job Portal that you chose to focus on during session #2, create a mock cover letter, practicing filling in the template on page 21.

CHALLENGE!

For the purpose of today’s practice, you can make up some of the experiences or accomplishments that you think would be needed for the job you are using.

The template on pages 20-21 will give you a general idea of how to write a cover letter for your next job application.

The first sentence should state your name and which role you're applying for. The next few sentences should provide a short overview of your strengths and greatest accomplishments related to the position. Express your excitement and briefly explain how the role matches your career goals.

In the second paragraph, discuss your most recent professional job role and give an overview of relevant past accomplishments. Explain the impact of your accomplishments and when possible, quantify your successes.

In the third paragraph, detail what makes you uniquely qualified for the position. Use specific examples from previous professional experiences and explain why you want to work there.

In the last paragraph, thank the employer for their time and consideration of your application. Express your interest in moving along in the hiring process.

SESSION 4 • TRACK 1

Track 1: Students aged 16+ & 1st time participating in the mentorship. Continue LinkedIn Profile, Writing a Cover Letter and Professional Email Tips

Finish Building Your LinkedIn Profile

My LinkedIn user name:

Using the checklist from pages 14-15, continue to add to and update your LinkedIn profile.

Add a professional picture and pull components from your resume/CV in to complete your profile.

As you add to LinkedIn, review your profile with your mentor. Ask your mentor if they have any tips or recommendations on improvements for your profile.

To Do:

Join the RTSWS Student and Financial Pro Networking Group

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7029520/

Connect with your mentor on LinkedIn

What is a Cover Letter?

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/resumes-coverletters/what-is-a-cover-letter

A cover letter, also known as an application letter, is a document you send with your resume that provides additional information about skills and experiences related to the job you’re applying to. It typically includes three to four paragraphs that highlight your skills, experience and achievements in relation to the position you’re applying for.

Why is a cover letter important?

A cover letter is essential because it explains details on your resume in more depth and is the first impression a hiring manager has of you. Employers use cover letters to narrow down the applicant pool and choose the group of candidates they want to interview. While some jobs require a cover letter, others make it optional to see which applicants will put in the extra effort.

What to include in a cover letter

A cover letter should include the most interesting and relative experiences and skills you have for the open position. Here are important details to include in your cover letter:

How your work experience meets the job’s requirements

Give details about your current and past experience and how it directly impacts your ability to succeed in the new position. Pay close attention to the job description and pick out specific aspects of the job that you can compare to your knowledge.

For example, if you’re applying to a marketing job that requires a deep knowledge of SEO, you might describe how you worked several successful SEO campaigns in your last position and trained a new marketing associate on SEO best practices.

Why you want to work at the company

Employers want to know your motivation for working with them. They want to hire someone who expresses sincere interest in the job’s duties and enthusiasm for the company. Explain how working there will fulfill your career goals, passions or interests.

Other elements of a cover letter can include:

• Meaningful anecdotes: Telling a compelling story that shows your proficiency with the skills required by the job makes your cover letter stand out.

• A call to action: A polite, open-ended call to action such as “I look forward to hearing more about this opportunity,” shows your excitement and suggests a reason for employers to call you.

Practice Creating a Cover Letter

Using the job from the RTSWS Internship & Job Portal that you chose to focus on during session #2, create a mock cover letter, practicing filling in the template on page 21.

For the purpose of today’s practice, you can make up some of the experiences or accomplishments that you think would be needed for the job you are using.

Flip back to pages 20-21 to find the cover letter template.

This template will give you a general idea of how to write a cover letter for your next job application.

10 Tips for Writing Professional Emails

https://www.rit.edu/behindthebricks/content/10-tips-writing-professional-emails

With your mentor, review the 10 tips and tricks on the following page for writing a successful and meaningful professional email.

1Start with a meaningful subject line

Remember to keep it short and sweet, but before you write the subject line, think about your intentions. The subject line should summarize why you are contacting them. With a stuffed inbox, the subject line can make or break whether the person sends it straight to trash or gives it a read.

Address them appropriately

Casual language such as ‘Hey’ may be fine to send to a colleague or friend, but for professional inquiries, it is not the best choice. On the other hand, ‘Dear’ is too formal. A simple ‘Hi’ or ‘Hello’ is more appropriate.

Keep the email concise and to the point

Tips for Writing Professional Emails 2 3

Although many professionals are excited about inquiring new, talented students into their company, they are also very busy. For the best chance that they respond, keep the note short.

4Make it easy to read Add indentations or spaces between paragraphs for easy reading and skimming. In addition, keep your most important information at the beginning of each paragraph so they are able to recognize your most important points.

Do not use slang

Professional emails require a certain level of formal language. Don’t use slang or emojis. In addition, pick a simple typeface and don’t add too many colors, if any at all.

Be kind and thankful

6 7 8 9 10

Always remember to be kind and friendly. Remember, they are doing you a big favor. They are typically very busy and taking time out of their day to talk with students at the career fair or even read and answer an email is nice of them.

Be charismatic

Try to stand out. When you write an email, don’t be overly dramatic or silly.

However, a little wit never hurt anyone. Don’t be afraid to display your personality!

Bring up points in your previous conversation

If you had the chance to speak to them, try to mention something you talked about that may have been unique. Chances are, the person has had a lot of other similar conversations. Anything you can say that will help them remember who you is valuable.

Re-read the email

Even when you write quick and short emails, they can easily include mistakes. Small grammatical errors can make or break a professional’s opinion of you. Re-read your email before you send it to avoid any slip-ups.

Use an appropriate signature

Two appropriate closers are ‘Best regards’ and ‘Thank you.’ Better yet, set an automatic signature so it always appears at the bottom of your emails.

Type up your cover letter! Now that you have your cover letter drafted, it is time to type it up so that you can attach it to an email. Use Microsoft Word, Google Docs or another text editing platform to type your cover letter. Once completed, you will want to save your cover letter as a PDF to be able to attach it to an email.

SESSION 4 •TRACK 2

Track 2: Students under the age of 16 or previously participated in Spring. Finalize Cover Letter, Professional Email Tips and How to Apply to an Internship or Job

Finish Your Practice Cover Letter

Return to page 21 and finalize your mock cover letter.

Now that you have your cover letter drafted, it is time to type it up so that you can attach it to an email. Use Microsoft Word, Google Docs or another text editing platform to type your cover letter. Once completed, you will want to save your cover letter as a PDF to be able to attach it to an email.

10 Tips for Writing Professional Emails

https://www.rit.edu/behindthebricks/content/10-tips-writing-professional-emails

With your mentor, review the 10 tips and tricks on page 24 for writing a successful and meaningful professional email.

Practice! How to Apply to an Internship or Job

During session #2, you circled 1 of the internships or jobs from the RTSWS Internship & Job Portal that you are most intrigued by.

With that listing, we are going to practice submitting your resume/CV and a mock cover letter through a professional email.

Using your school or personal email, create a new email draft. Use the steps below to practice writing an email to the hiring manager to apply for that position.

Steps to Emailing Your Application for an Internship or Job:

Write a meaningful subject line

Address the hiring manager

Type up the email! Let the hiring manager know why you are emailing them and what position you are applying for

(Continued on the following page)

Steps to Emailing Your Application for an Internship or Job (Cont):

Let the hiring manager know that you are attaching your resume/CV and cover letter for the position to the email

Close the email with a thank you and your contact information

Re-read the email to ensure there are no mistakes

Attach your resume/CV PDF and cover letter

Practice applying for the job by sending the email to your mentor!

EXAMPLE - Email to a Hiring Manager

hiringmanager@email.com

Application for Data Analyst Position

Good Afternoon,

My name is Janella Sims and I’m writing to you to express my interest in the Data Analyst position available with All About Analytics Company. I heard about the position from the RTSWS Internship and Job Portal and I’m excited about the possibility of joining your organization.

I’ve attached my resume and cover letter for your review. If you have any questions or if there is anything else I may provide, please contact me.

Best Regards, Janella Sims (123) 456-7891

Practice writing professional emails! Write an email to a teacher, classmate, parent or your mentor. Practice using a professional subject line and be sure to re-read your email for any errors. Use capitalization and punctuation appropriately and sign your email.

This could be a thank you email to a teacher for their help on a project or topic that you worked with them on or an email to your mentor letting them know you are looking forward to the next RTSWS session!

SESSION 5 • Track 1

Track 1: Students aged 16+ & 1st time participating in the mentorship. How to Apply to an Internship or Job, Interview Tips and Mock Interview

Practice! How to Apply to an Internship or Job

During session #2, you circled 1 of the internships or jobs from the RTSWS Internship & Job Portal that you are most intrigued by.

With that listing, we are going to practice submitting your resume/CV and a mock cover letter through a professional email.

Using your school or personal email, create a new email draft. Use the steps below to practice writing an email to the hiring manager to apply for that position.

Steps to Emailing Your Application for an Internship or Job:

Write a meaningful subject line

Address the hiring manager

Type up the email! Let the hiring manager know why you are emailing them and what position you are applying for

Let the hiring manager know that you are attaching your resume/CV and cover letter for the position to the email

Close the email with a thank you and your contact information

Re-read the email to ensure there are no mistakes

Attach your resume/CV PDF and cover letter

Practice applying for the job by sending the email to your mentor!

Check out the example email to a hiring manager on page 26!

Interview Tips

Review the article “5 Interview Tips and Job Interview Questions for Teens” with your Mentor. https://www.snagajob.com/blog/post/job-interview-tips-for-teens

Topics to Discuss with Your Mentor:

• What to expect during a first interview

• How to dress

• Professionalism during the interview

• Preparing to ask questions

• What to bring with you

• What to expect after the interview

• How to advocate for yourself in an interview

Practice! Mock Interview

Interview Tips Article

With your mentor, you are going to practice interviewing! Your mentor will act as the hiring manager and you will practice being the job applicant.

Interview Questions:

• Tell me about yourself

• Why are you interested in working for us?

• What do you consider your strengths to be?

• What are some skills that you consider weaknesses?

• Why should our company hire you?

TIP! Practice advocating for yourself!

Tell the hiring manager why you are awesome and what makes you a good employee.

• What pay range are you looking for? (TIP: Practice advocating for yourself!)

• Do you have any questions for us? (TIP: Always have a few questions prepared!)

Once you complete your mock interview with your mentor, talk with your mentor about the steps to take once you leave an interview. Generally, you will want to send the person who interviewed you a thank you email and let them know you are excited to hear back.

If you have enough time, you can jump to page 30 to practice writing a post-interview, thank you email.

Take the RTSWS Spring End of Course Survey!

Scan the QR code to the right and provide us with your feedback from the RTSWS spring sessions.

SESSION 5 •TRACK 2

Track 2: Students under the age of 16 or previously participated in Spring. Interview Tips, Mock Interview and Sending a Thank You Email

Interview Tips

Review the article “5 Interview Tips and Job Interview Questions for Teens” with your Mentor. https://www.snagajob.com/blog/post/job-interview-tips-for-teens

Topics to Discuss with Your Mentor:

• What to expect during a first interview

• How to dress

• Professionalism during the interview

• Preparing to ask questions

• What to bring with you

• What to expect after the interview

• How to advocate for yourself in an interview

Practice! Mock Interview

Interview Tips Article

With your mentor, you are going to practice interviewing! Your mentor will act as the hiring manager and you will practice being the job applicant.

Interview Questions:

• Tell me about yourself

• Why are you interested in working for us?

• What do you consider your strengths to be?

• What are some skills that you consider weaknesses?

• Why should our company hire you?

TIP! Practice advocating for yourself!

Tell the hiring manager why you are awesome and what makes you a good employee.

• What pay range are you looking for? (TIP: Practice advocating for yourself!)

• Do you have any questions for us? (TIP: Always have a few questions prepared!)

Once you complete your mock interview with your mentor, talk with your mentor about the steps to take once you leave an interview. Generally, you will want to send the person who interviewed you a thank you email and let them know you are excited to hear back.

Writing a Thank You Email

During your interview, you positioned yourself as a strong candidate for the job. After the interview, you will want to be sure to send a thank you email to the person who interviewed you.

Sending a thank you email allows you to continue to make a good impression and helps keep your interview at the top of their mind.

EXAMPLE - Thank You Email

hiringmanager@email.com

Hello __________,

Thank you again for taking the time to meet with me this afternoon. I enjoyed our conversation about the [insert job title] position and appreciated learning more about working with your team.

It sounds like a rewarding role, especially given the opportunities for ___________ and _________. I think my [insert skills or strengths] would make me an excellent candidate for the role.

I look forward to discussing this opportunity with you more. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need additional information.

Thank you, Janella Sims (123) 456-7891

Complete Any Unfinished Tasks

With any remaining time, return to the topics that you did not get to spend enough time on or that you did not finish. If you have special projects or specific questions you want to get your mentor’s help with (internship applications, scholarships, college/university research, etc.), take time to work with them on those now.

Take the RTSWS Spring End of Course Survey! Scan the QR code to the right and provide us with your feedback from the RTSWS spring sessions.

BEFORE YOU GO, WE RECOMMEND...

• Join our LinkedIn Student and Financial Professionals Networking Group www.linkedin.com/groups/7029520/

• Check out the Rock The Street, Wall Street Internship & Job Portal https://rockthestreetwallstreet.com/internship-job-portal/

• Seek out podcasts, books, websites, online courses or videos about finance, savings, investing and the economy.

Here are a few relevant podcasts with hundreds of episodes to explore: NPR’s Planet Money, The Fairer Cents: Women, Money and the Fight to Break Even, So Money with Farnoosh Torabi, The College Investor Audio Show.

• Consider majors in math and careers in quantitative analysis - these majors are good preparation for analyst positions in fixed income, credits, hedge funds, etc.

• Complete a Google search on “college/university majors for financial careers” - there are many useful websites on college/university pages, general articles, etc.

• Share your personal email with us! Stay up to date on RTSWS news, student and alumnae events and new internship/job opportunties. Update your email with vcp@rockthestreetwallstreet.com

• Tell your classmates to join Rock The Street, Wall Street next year! We will be back at your school in the fall with a new curriculum set. Did you know RTSWS has 4 different financial and investment literacy curriculum sets?!

CHECK OUT ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

WEBSITES

RTSWS Vocational & Career Platform • https://rockthestreetwallstreet.com/students-alumnae/

Career Girls • www.careergirls.org

Napkin Finance • www.napkinfinance.com

CNBC and The Wall Street Journal are great places to keep an eye on the financial markets

Investopedia • www.investopedia.com

Yahoo Finance • finance.yahoo.com

The College Investor • www.thecollegeinvestor.com/audio-show

BOOK

Undiversified: The Big Gender Short in Investment Management, by Ellen Carr and Katrina Dudley • www.thebiggendershort.com/

PODCASTS

The Fairer Cents: Women, Money and the Fight to Break Even www.thefairercents.com

NPR’s Planet Money • www.npr.org/sections/money

HERMONEY • www.hermoney.com/t/podcasts

Money Nerds • www.themoneynerds.com

So Money with Farnoosh Torabi • www.podcast.farnoosh.tv