切尔西Burket, ’07, 在一个被灌输欣赏自然世界的家庭中长大, 去野营, 在户外度过无数个小时. She was highly engaged in environmental clubs and activities during her high school years. 所以到了上大学的时候, she shares honestly that 环境研究 is the only major she ever considered.
作为该项目最早的毕业生之一, Chelsea can attest what was true then and still holds true today - the internship experience is one of the greatest assets during and after your academic career. 在十大网投平台信誉排行榜阿尔图纳分校期间, Chelsea was very involved in social justice organizations and even had the opportunity to study abroad in Berlin for a semester. Dr. 布莱恩·布莱克注意到了切尔西对城市的兴趣, social justice and the environment and pointed her in the direction of the Hollidaysburg Borough where she took her first internship with their planning and zoning department. She recalls how she was completely unaware that urban planning “was a thing!,她永远感激布朗博士的鼓励. 黑色的.
That first internship led to several more upon graduation in various positions and organizations. 她相当肯定自己会继续读研究生, 但在她全力以赴之前, she wanted to get a few more experiences under her belt to be absolutely sure. So the summer after graduation she ended up interning with the City of Pittsburgh’s Planning Department, and later worked at North American Communications on corporate social responsibility for the remainder of the year. 到2008年秋季, she was enrolled at The University of Michigan in the Master’s in Urban Planning program. 在那里,她专注于社区和经济发展. 那年夏天晚些时候,她在西南底特律环境愿景公司实习. Her capstone work aided the Southwest Detroit Business Association on a plan to mitigate impacts to businesses from the construction of a new international bridge. 然后, 充实她的整个教育经历, 她在安娜堡市规划部实习. 总共有5个实习机会!
“Upon graduation I thought for sure that I'd either be working for a city planning department or a community development corporation.但2010年秋天,切尔西回到了匹兹堡,没有工作. The Recession had recently hit so the atmosphere of available jobs in the field had changed. 影响是可以感受到的. She just happened to reconnect with someone she had met during her time interning at Hollidaysburg. He had relocated to Pittsburgh and started his own economic development consulting firm, 第四个经济, 需要一些帮助. “This was the last thing I had imagined doing, but it turned out that I really enjoyed the work. I worked on a contract basis for several months until I was offered a full-time position in 2011, 从那以后我就一直在那里!”
Currently, Chelsea is VP of Strategy and Team Development at 第四个经济 Consulting. “[They] blend economic analysis and stakeholder input to help their communities better understand their economies, 并制定可实施的策略来创造伟大的地方, 吸引和留住人才, 创办和发展企业.” View some recent examples of projects that Chelsea has worked on; including a strategy to grow the agriculture economy in West Virginia, 哈特福德的经济发展计划, CT地区, and the creation and management of a new regional economic development initiative for the Newport, 国际扶轮地区.
Chelsea’s role on projects involve project management (working with the client, 将项目控制在预算之内, 执行任务的团队, 等.), 设计和执行涉众参与(进行访谈), 调查及焦点小组, 等.),制定策略并撰写最终报告. Her job relies heavily on professional communication both written and oral. This is a skillset valuable in any industry and one our program seeks to encourage and build upon throughout the entire program. And while she understands her work isn’t explicitly related to environmental issues, she has had the opportunity to work with several environmental non-profits. They are currently strategizing their approach to be able to better help their clients assess and plan for climate change impacts on their economy.
Chelsea would be remiss not to mention that she met her husband on the first day of 环境研究 100 with Dr. 马汉博士. 马歇尔! “那堂课,博士. 布莱克的环境历史课. 马歇尔's environmental literature class all stand out in my memory as truly eye-opening and wonderful experiences. 然而, what stands out most about my time at 十大网投平台信誉排行榜阿尔图纳分校 is honestly the degree to which the faculty supported and cared for the students. Dr. 黑色,博士. Lorensen博士(德国). De Reus (women's studies) in particular gave me opportunities (and confidence!不可否认,正是这些因素造就了今天的我. “
When asked what one piece of advice she would give to students who are currently working through the program, 她说, “There are so many careers out there that it is hard to know about as a student. Be proactive in seeking out people with whom you can do informational interviews and learn more about their job. Get as many different internships as you can to expose yourself to different careers. Find related professional organizations to join (students often get reduced memberships) and attend conferences if possible. 对你从未想过自己会从事的职业持开放态度.”
作者:Erin Nachtman, 2010年,ENVST