The Beginning of My Professional Career Path

The last two days have been spent being trained in on all of the "ins and outs" in the Administrative world within a school setting. Although I have quite a bit more training to do, and things to learn along the way, I was really excited yesterday when I began my new office job at my local college. I was even more excited to learn that I have a front cubicle that is all of my own and I can use it, decorate it and set it up the way I would like to. I have in the past used other people's desks/cubicles for completing work tasks and for my internship. This photo below is almost an exact replica of what my cubicle actually looks like and why I was so elated to find out this space was all mine to set up however I would like it to be. My cubicle came with a computer, phone, basic office supplies and anything that I think I would need and do not have, I can order through Office Max if the department does not have it. : )

Over the first two days on the job, I have been training on all of the procedures that all Administrative personnel would need to know and even though it was all a bit overwhelming, I was and still am excited to learn this "new world" that I did not know much about what actually goes on in the daily functions. I was blown away by how many Acronyms there are that just pertain to the programs in which the HR Department of the college uses...I was told that I do not have to memorize these terms right now, but I think I have at least 8 new Acronyms that were spoken and explained to me today...EEK!

The daily jobs that one must do as an Administrative Assistant are far more than I initially thought but I know that I can do it! : ) I have created folder packets for a "PSEO" type of grant foundation for Faculty from local High schools who either come to the college to teach and/or those Faculty's students enrolled in this program, come to the college and take courses that they can get college credit for. It's like PSEO but I found they are by far two separate things....I have also done filing, learned how to maneuver through the college's programs for information I may need, I helped with an Advising Session for incoming students, learned how to operate my cool calendar system and set up appointments with Advisors or Advisory meetings. Completing a lot of clerical work is the bulk of what I will be doing, but I have been given the creative freedom to come up with more efficient ways to do some of the things if I can think of a way to do things more efficiently and accurately than they are now. This one will take time as I learn the systems and learn how to maneuver through them but I am excited to look more into these things...I was told that the best way people learn where things are at is if they have time to "play around in the files" and just open things up, or go into things and learn as I go because you can be told and shown how to do things but until you actually have to do them, it's harder to tell someone how to do something than it is to walk them through how to do something when they are in the midst of doing it.

This is just what I have been trained on thus far, yet I found out I have about 4-5 systems I need to be trained on and how to run them inside and out for daily use in the Advising/Administrative Department.

I do get to meet students daily as we have daily walk-in hours where students can come in for impromptu Advising meetings about career paths and they can also set up a longer meeting time with an advisor if they need more than a few minute meeting. I work in the Academic Advising Center, as one of the H.R.'s Administrative Assistants. It's surely a step in the right direction, I enjoy the school setting, office type set up and would love to obtain my teaching degree even more now. We will see how fast I can make that happen. : )

When you begin a new job, or switch roles in a setting like college where you go from being the student to being a member of the staff at the college you attended; you find out that there's so much more to what all the faculty and staff do on a daily basis that either we didn't know or that we kind of took for granted and didn't really think about. Going into the college yesterday, I felt quite confident that I knew a lot about the campus and the services/programs and I come to find that as a staff member, there were TONS of things that I didn't know existed and things I knew very little about because as student, I didn't learn, or have to learn anything about these things and operation systems. It's like I am a part of a completely different college, yet there's enough familiarity, that I know how to get around, ask questions, and find answers. : )

Once I get my desk all set up and organized, I will gladly take a photo and upload it for a future post. Right now though, my desk sadly looks like this photo with a computer monitor, basic office supplies, and a couple "How To" posters that I have not put up in my space yet. : )

I am anticipating an educational year for me with this position and I really hope that this job leads to a permanent position or that another one will open up when this one is done in the middle of May. For now, I am enjoying the learning experience and doing my best at being an Administrative Assistant! : )

~Melissa