Career Resources

Fletcher launches remarkable careers in an amazing array of different directions – private, public, non-profit, and international organizations. Sifting through the array of opportunities can be exciting and overwhelming at the same time. Not all students arrive at Fletcher with a well-defined plan for the next step of their career. Some do. No matter where you are in this spectrum, the Office of Career Services (OCS) is here to partner with you to find success.

Fletcher takes your career success as seriously as you do. Please find below a list of resources available to Fletcher students.

Professional Development Program

Professional Development Program (PDP) classes meet every Friday morning during the first semester.  We have built time into the academic calendar with no other course conflicts so that every student is able to dedicate time each week to creating and executing a personalized career search program while here at Fletcher.  The Professional Development Program takes a holistic approach to career management and introduces students to a portfolio of essential professional skills.  The interactive course is taught by a combination of Office of Career Services staff, alumni and outside speakers.

Professional Development Program Syllabus

PDP 1    Introduction to the Office of Career Services & How Preferences Impact Career Choices

PDP 2    Developing Your Career Plan

PDP 3    Marketing Yourself

PDP 4    Strategic Resumes

PDP 5    Professional Communications

PDP 6    Cover Letters

PDP 7    Networking

PDP 8    Interview Skills

PDP 9    Elevator Pitch

Professional Development Guides

The Office of Career Services has developed guides that correspond to each of the PDP sessions to help students with many of the complicated steps in the career search process. These guides offer additional background as well as useful tips and suggestions on the topic of each session to give students critical reference materials beyond the class discussions to which they can refer when the time comes to “exercise” that skill.  For example, the cover letter guide includes several (successful) examples of Fletcher students which include the actual job description, resume and cover letter used to apply for the position so that students can see how the resume and cover letter work together to best highlight the student’s experience and skills for a specific position.

Individual Coaching

The OCS staff is available for all aspects of career coaching from self-assessment to salary negotiation.  Career Coaches stay abreast of trends in the sectors they support through research and frequent employer outreach.  Fletcher Career Coaches support students targeting careers in over 30 specific sectors and fields (e.g. business, energy, human rights, international development, public international law, security, US government).  One-on-one coaching appointments might focus on:

Self-Assessment

Career brainstorming and strategy development

Information on specific fields

Resume and cover letter feedback

Application review

Videotaped mock interviews

Job offer and salary negotiation

Employer Relations

Employers around the world value Fletcher’s unique interdisciplinary program, which produces graduates who know how to navigate the increasingly complex and globally integrated world.  The faculty and staff at Fletcher explore, build, and maintain relationships with employers around the world.  Examples of Employer Relations include:

Information Sessions

Resume Collections

Resume Books

On-Campus Recruiting

Interviews

Employer Outreach

Internship and Job Postings

Career Trips

Skill Building Workshops

In addition to the Professional Development Program, the Office of Career Services offers workshops on special topics such as:

Salary Negotiation

Case Interviews

Networking

Self-Assessment Tools

Self-assessment is often an important first step in planning your career. The Office of Career Services regularly uses the following tools:

Myers Briggs Type Indicator

CareerLeader

Sector Specific Programming

Throughout the course of the year, OCS offers various workshops targeted towards students interested in particular sectors. The sectors are divided in the following way:

  • Private Sector - for-profit industries, such as financial services, consulting, energy, telecommunications, airlines, and health services.
  • Public Sector - government agencies and organizations (US or international) in fields such as immigration, justice, policy, security, Foreign Service, and transportation.
  • Non-Profit Sector - organizations (US or international) with the tax status of not-for-profit, in such fields as humanitarian aid, refugee assistance, education, and human rights.
  • International Organizations (IOs) - intergovernmental organizations are made up of, and financed by, member countries and include the United Nations, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, etc.

Sector Specific Programming includes sessions on:

Recruitment Timelines

Hiring Practices

Industry Specific Panels

Organization Specific Sessions

Summer Internship Panels

Alumni Information Sessions

Career Trips

These trips provide students with the opportunity to attend panels, visit particular organizations, join alumni for small group lunches and an evening information session. Please see the Career Trips page for additional information.

New York in January

Washington, DC in February

Boston

Networking Events

Networking is one of the most important things you will do at Fletcher and for a lifetime. You will have numerous opportunities throughout your time at Fletcher to network with peers, faculty, staff, alumni, employers, speakers, etc.

On-campus

New York, NY

Washington, DC

Boston

Around the world

Summer Internship Funding

Through the generosity of alumni and friends of Fletcher, OCS has some funding available to assist students with unpaid summer internships.  Typically over 100 students receive summer internship funding which enables internships in dozens of different countries spread across Africa, Asia, Middle East, North and South America, and Eastern and Western Europe.

Below is a sample list of recent summer internships supported through this program.

Millennium Challenge Corporation in Burkina Faso

FINCA International in the Democratic Republic of Congo

OECD in France

UNICEF in Haiti

US Department of State in Malta

Accion International in Mexico

UNDP in Myanmar

The Tony Elemulu Foundation in Nigeria

Aghaaz Leadership Labs in Pakistan

World Trade Organization in Switzerland

NYPD Intelligence Division in USA

Innovations for Poverty Action in Zambia

Search for Common Ground in Zanzibar

Fletcher Intranet and Fletcher Career Central

Fletcher maintains an Intranet site exclusively for current students.  Fletcher Career Central is an online tool used to manage your career search process used by students and job searching alumni.  Both of these sites are password protected to ensure access is only available to Fletcher students and alumni.  Fletcher's Intranet and Fletcher Career Central contain the following:

Internship Database

Jobs Database

Employer Contacts

Resume Books

Professional Networking Tool

Calendar of OCS events and workshops

Peer Search (resumes of classmates)

Links to job listservs

Workshop, event and coaching registration

Weekly Communications from OCS

Feedback Surveys

Fellowship Opportunities

Employment Website links

Alumni Database Requests

Business Cards

Career Field Guides

The Career Field Guides provide current students a description of the field, career paths, salary expectations, demand, necessary qualifications and related Fletcher coursework.  Each guide has additional resources and websites with field and sector specific information.

Asian Development Bank

Banking/Financial Services

Business/Entrepreneurship

Capitol Hill

Conflict Resolution

Corporate Social Responsibility

Governance and Civil Society

International Education and Cultural Exchange

Energy

Environmental Policy/Program Management

European Union

Foundations

Government Relations/Public Affairs/Lobbying

Health and Nutrition

Human resources Training and Development

Human Rights

Humanitarian Assistance

International Development

International Law

Journalism/Media

Management/Strategic Consulting

Marketing/Sales

Microfinance

Non-Profit Management

Public Policy Research/Think Tanks

Public Relations

Refugee and Migration Affairs

Risk Management and Analysis

Science/Technology/Telecommunications

Security and Defense

Trade Policy and Promotion

US Federal Government

Career Resource Library

A library with both hard copy and web subscription services to help students learn about careers, industries and employers. Some sample resources include:

Vault Gold (premier website with access to detailed employer profiles and business-specific career guides)

Devex (premier website for international development jobs)

Industry specific guides (e.g. Federal Resumes, Life Inside an Embassy, EU Information Guide)

Subscriptions (Wall Street Journal, Boston Business Journal, Environmental Careers)

Alumni Network

Fletcher’s 8,000 plus living alumni are active players on the global stage who are ready and willing to share their experiences and contacts in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors with current students. Fletcher graduates are innovative problem solvers in business, government, and non-governmental organizations worldwide. Connections made at Fletcher impact your professional life for a lifetime.

Examples of how alumni are involved with OCS:

Panel Speakers

Networking Events

Information Sessions

Career Guidance for OCS and Students

Offering Internships and Jobs

Hosting Site Visits

Alumni Career Services

You will continue to develop your career after you graduate from Fletcher. Many of the career resources available to current students are available to alumni for life, including one-on-one coaching and access to electronic resources.