Lessons from her younger self: Jordan Sims’ inspiring presentation for professional success

College students typically seek advice from people who have already been in their shoes. Jordan Sims, public information coordinator of Clemson’s College of Arts and Humanities, shared her professional journey and career endeavors for the current Pearce Interns. Sims dove into the niche details, according to her own experiences, required to curate a stand-out resume and interview session to successfully obtain a career opportunity.

Designating a meeting for Sims to come into the Pearce Center allowed the interns to strike a pause in their busy schedules and absorb the depth of helpfulness the presentation elicited. 

Sims created a personal connection with the interns by engaging with their ongoing projects and discussing how their experiences at the Pearce Center could translate into meaningful opportunities after graduation. Reflecting on her own time as an intern, Sims recalled the unexpected ways she discovered her professional interests.

“I was on a social media team at the time, and I didn’t know I was interested in it, so I learned from my team members more than I contributed hands-on, and that has been really instrumental. Now, a lot of what I do is manage social media accounts that we have [at the College of Arts and Humanities], and I implement things from the Pearce team that were good practice. I knew I wanted to instill that into what I do now,” Sims said.

Her experience on the Pearce Center’s digital marketing team laid the foundation for her current responsibilities. As a student, she helped develop content strategy, create posting schedules, and think critically about digital narratives—skills that are crucial in her work today.

“I was on the digital marketing team, which is a lot of what I do in my current role, and I think through strategies of how what we put out digitally is going to reach or impact students,” Sims said. “Eventually becoming a team lead for digital marketing at the Pearce Center, I was in charge of creating the schedule and who the post would be seen by. Something I do now that’s pretty similar is thinking through a narrative of what we’re going to post. I feel like that’s the key to social media, especially right now, is everybody wants to be a part of a community, and they want to see a narrative of what’s happening on the page.”

Sims also worked on the Habitat for Humanity team where she gained communication skills to implement in professional interviews. Sims was required to assemble a variety of interview questions as well as answer verbal prompts when reporting back to the other teams within her internship on what she had accomplished that semester. Sims detailed that she had to methodize how to articulate subjects she would otherwise never have been asked to elaborate upon, such as construction.

“I do a ton of student interviews now, so those abilities definitely apply to my position.”

When asked for the biggest piece of advice to guide Pearce Interns in securing a job after college, Sims insisted on the importance of the students finding their specialties. Although the educational background of the interns is similar, it is necessary to adhere to the unique qualities possessed by the students that companies have yet to discover.

“When you’re applying for jobs, you tell them what makes you unique and why you can do that job. The reality is, everybody’s going to have a very similar skill set, but there’s going to be things you have done, or that you can do, that are going to be a little bit different and unique that you can tie back to those other skills to set you apart.”

Sims concluded her visit by underscoring the importance of her time at the Pearce Center in shaping her professional path. The hands-on experience working with clients helped her refine her communication skills and discover her strengths.

“For marketing, I thought I wanted to work in an agency, but the Pearce Center is different from that because you’re working with clients and you do a little bit of everything for them, versus a marketing agency, where it’s a little bit more siloed. The Pearce Center taught me, helped me learn what I like and don’t like, what I’m good at and what I needed to grow in.”

By: Alyssa Dolina, staff writer