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Digication Scholars Conversations...
Welcome to Digication
Scholars Conversations.
I'm your host, Kelly Driscoll.
In this episode, you'll hear
part two of my conversation with
Kaitlyn Coskun, a recent graduate
of Texas Christian University.
More links and information about today's
conversation can be found on Digication's
Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Full episodes of Digication Scholars
Conversations can be found on
YouTube or your favorite podcast app.
At Digication, we talk a lot about,
um, the, the use of our platform as
a way for students to be able to be
seen, be heard, and be recognized.
And thinking back to when, you know,
you were starting to learn about
Digication and start sharing some
of the things that you were doing.
Did you feel that kind of, um,
or did you feel that kind of
relationship with the platform?
Were, were you interested in being seen
and being heard and being recognized?
And maybe some of the ways that you were
able to, to use the tools to achieve that?
Oh,
certainly.
Yeah.
I, um, I was first introduced to
Digication and this ePortfolio.
Platform, uh, through one of my classes
at TCU, it was in my fashion merchandising
major, and my teacher at the time, Dr.
Fortenberry, um, chose this
platform for us to use in our career
development course, um, really in
an effort to gear us up to graduate.
So, I think this was about my senior year,
um, first semester that I started it,
and it definitely took some time, um, to
create it in full, which is constantly
evolving as well, but, um, to get kind of
an idea of what I wanted to do with it.
Um, the intention, Behind it, ultimately,
was to provide me as a student entering
the workforce soon, uh, with a tool
to really showcase my achievements,
um, kind of what I've been working on,
what I'm able to do, and, um, get this
information out to future employers,
or if I, at the time, I didn't know if
I maybe wanted to pursue, um, further
education, whoever it may be, kind of
like, Compiling all of my achievements
and work thus far into one place and
having that be a centralized location
to share it with others, you know, and,
um, I feel like a good e portfolio.
It's both a product, digital collection,
you know, of my artifacts and what I've
worked on, maybe that be presentations
or papers or research projects, social
media examples, things like that, um,
but it's also a process of, in the
making of it, really reflecting on it.
Thank you.
Those moments and those achievements
that I've had and kind of what
they present in me and how they
can represent me to others.
And I feel like in the past, I'm
sure there was like written examples,
physical portfolios, maybe that you
could bring in to a job interview.
Um, but having the ePortfolio It
kind of made, it made this invisible
learning that was going on in school
visible, but not only that, it made
it mobile, so anyone could, yeah, it
wasn't just I had one copy of it that
I had to manually bring everywhere.
It was so easy having it online where I
could just take that link, um, And share
it forward with even just connections
that I was, um, reaching out to in an
effort to find a job, um, references,
people and careers that I was looking
to for inspiration, mentors, things
like that, um, There's so many different
source or groups of people that it was
geared towards and having it all together
in one place online was so beneficial.
And I feel like LinkedIn, for
example, is a great networking tool.
And it has all of my, like, background
and my previous jobs and experience
and things like that, but it doesn't
even compare to, like, what I'm able
to create on here or on Digication's
ePortfolio, because the ePortfolio allowed
me to use all different sorts of media.
You know, whether that be the written
text of reflections on things, the
projects that I actually worked
on, I could upload PowerPoints or
presentations that I did, um, photographs
that I took in different social
media platforms that I played around
with and feeds, all sorts of things,
video I could upload there as well.
So having all that there was
so invaluable and was like the
ultimate goal from the start.
And it just progressed even further than
what I could imagine, kind of a thing.
And it certainly helped me
post grad, graduating and post
grad, kind of all of the above.
Because now I'm able to even look back
on that, having created it in college
when everything was so fresh and,
um, I was currently going through it.
And over time, I've realized my memory
is not as great as I wish it was.
Yeah, exactly.
And I'm like, so grateful that I was able
to not only just Get all of that in, all
of the actual artifacts into one location,
but also the reflective periods that I
chose, um, or places that I chose to,
uh, write up my lessons that I learned
and key skills that I gained and my
favorite parts of it, um, stuff like that.
Like reading through it makes it
so much easier to recall things.
Moving forward.
So it's certainly been a blessing.
Yeah, absolutely.
And thank you for sharing how, you know,
for you, it's different from something
like LinkedIn, people that are kind of
new to this, Kind of platforms sometimes
have those questions and LinkedIn is, you
know, clearly a valuable tool for so many.
Um, but as you mentioned, you know, it
has a kind of standard format and You
know, just thinking about that compared
to this real kind of personal branding
and customization and, and stories that
went into each of your experiences right
alongside the actual kind of products that
you created is so rich and so different
from You know, this kind of scroll down.
These are the bullet
points of my experience.
And, uh, I do think it gives
people the opportunity to share
so much more about who they, who
they are and how they've grown.
You know, I think LinkedIn's done a
beautiful job in creating this network
and allowing people really to share,
um, You know, kind of a profile slash
resume, and, and we're kind of giving
people that opportunity, you know, with
all of those bullets, what are the real
stories that happen during that time?
Right?
Let, let, you know, if you're really
interested in this individual, You know,
this is where you can really go in and,
and learn more about them, you know,
what their passions are, what drives
and motivates them, where they may have
encountered challenges and grown from
that and really get a sense of the,
the person, um, and you know, your,
your kind of culminating portfolio.
Really exemplifies that.
Um, and you talked a little bit
about this reflective process.
Was that something that, um, you
learned during your time at TCU
or do you feel like reflecting on
your experience is something that
you brought with you into college?
What, what was that?
What was that like?
And had you shared reflections
like that with other people before?
Sometimes that's a totally
new thing for people, too.
No, that's a great point.
Um, I do think my Digication portfolio was
one of the first places where I've put it
out there for just anyone kind of to see.
I've, again, as I've mentioned, I've
always been such a visual person, so
I've never shied away from sharing
a photo or posting on social media.
Or, yeah, that kind of thing I was very
comfortable with, but sharing written
message and my internal, um, feelings
about a certain thing or kind of how
it's guided me through something, um, was
something a little bit new, um, which is
great because I do love pushing myself.
I think it's, it was a great
opportunity to not only share the
academic side of things and the actual
skills that I learned, um, That can
be used for a job, but also kind of
who I am, how I process things, um,
what, how I make meaning of things.
And I've definitely always
been a introspective person.
I love to reflect.
I loved to diary as a kid.
Um, but of course all those things
were very internal, personal,
nothing I particularly shared.
And while the information on my ePortfolio
isn't particularly emotional, um, it
was, it was information of how I chose
to process things and sharing that with
the viewer or whoever is reading it.
does add another layer than just the
simple text on the resume that is
shown on LinkedIn, like you mentioned.
I feel like platforms like that are
extremely valuable, of course, and
the networking part of it is something
I've used a lot, um, but it's more so
how do you get the information across
in the easiest, simplest way possible.
I feel like there's a lot more,
like, condensing things down, um,
just, uh, Have the recruiter know
that you graduated with this and
have this skill like bullet pointed.
Um, whereas my ePortfolio gave me
a platform to really dive deeper
and share with them not only the
skills that I have, but who I am.
Um, and I think that is one of
my favorite things about it.
Um, and then even going back and
looking on it now, uh, It's an
archive of kind of who I was and how
I was feeling at that given time.
Um, and it helps my memories so much.
Like, it takes me just right back.
Like, even just reading the
smallest paragraph of my
reflection on a project that I did.
Software Year, for example, um, it's
helped a lot in the retention of the
information that I, um, got at that
time and using that moving forward.
So, it's been good.
Um, I was very intentional in what
I wanted to use on the platform, um,
like what categories I wanted to share.
And so, on my page, I have a Bar up
at the top with all the main ones
that I thought would be important.
And I wanted to start it off with an about
me, which I think makes sense intuitively.
Um, and I just shared my story there
briefly, of course, but, um, I also
wanted to include additional elements.
So a photo of myself, a quote
that, um, was important to me.
And so, and something I continue to
update over time to help relay the message
that I am continuing to update this.
I'm here.
And like, this is something
that's important to me for
people who are looking at it.
Whereas I feel like sometimes people
will look on things and be like,
from high school or from college.
And, you know, Think that they
just made it then and they've
left it there kind of a thing
and
on my homepage at the very bottom
I updated every year just with
things that I enjoy or maybe like
what I'm doing the most at the time
Yeah, and then a goal that I have,
um, I think is up there right now.
And then I've also included a strengths
quest which I think maybe that's the
specific branded title of the one that
I did, but there's all sorts of, um, you
know, those self assessments, uh, Yeah,
to kind of get to what are your strengths.
Um, so including that was also an
important element that I don't feel
like recruiters will see elsewhere.
Um, that's not something often, um,
uploaded or shown on your job application
or resume and stuff like that.
And so linking my Digication when I send
out information about myself, um, helps
them just learn a lot more about me on
a professional level, as well as on a
personal level, which I feel like is at
the core of what business is these days.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And you, you know, when you're viewing
the, um, StrengthsQuest results, and
then going through and viewing your work.
It's just like everything lined up.
Yeah,
exactly.
It makes sense, you know.
It all makes perfect sense.
Yeah, my strengths are, I'm a
developer, I have empathy, achiever,
context, which is really just pulling
from past experiences, um, and then
consistency, which I feel like all of
those things, You can see throughout
the way that I designed, um, and what,
what information I put into my profile.
So yeah, certainly translates.
Oh, sorry.
Oh, no, that was it.
That was it.
It
translates.
I was just thinking, so you were
mentioning a little bit about
how, um, you know, you were
thinking about how you wanted to.
Organize all of your work.
And we see students, uh, kind of come
to this with different ideas and also,
um, input from various, uh, instructors
that they might be working with or
thinking about, you know, who the
audience is that may be viewing it.
Could you talk a little bit about
maybe what that was like for you?
You know, you're just logging
in and getting started.
Um, How did you decide, you
know, what you wanted that kind
of top level hierarchy to be?
You know, you've got so many, so
much content that you wanted to share
and, um, I don't know off the top of
my head how many pages are in that.
I don't either, but it
might take time to count.
But it's all really well, uh,
I mean you can tell a lot of
consideration went into that.
You know, the, the pages all have, uh,
titles that would make sense for viewers.
coming from, you know, all different
places, not just internal to TCU.
And, um, I would love to
hear just a little bit about
what your process is like.
Did, did how things were organized
change and shift as you were creating it?
Have they changed or shifted
at all after graduation?
I love that you go back in and, you
know, Keep updating goals and yeah,
references, my resume, yeah,
different things like that.
Um, I always try to update.
Um, but yeah, back thinking back to
when I was first creating it, overall
categories, I had support from my
teacher at the time, Dr, uh, Fortenberry.
Um, she helped us as a class, the biggest
overview topics that she felt The most
valuable, um, and easily understandable.
And then from there we kind of took
the reins and we're able to create the
portfolio that made the most sense for us.
Um, so my top categories were the
about me page that I just mentioned.
Um, Resume, References, Learning
Experiences, which included a deeper
dive subcategories of specific classes
that I took that I felt like would
be really valuable to showcase, um.
And then activities that I was
involved in, honors that I received,
um, and then towards the end, um,
or actually I must have created this
junior year because now that I'm
thinking about it, I added information.
Yeah, maybe, yeah, a lot was going on.
All the years kind of blur
after a certain point.
Um, but I did have another tab for
internships, which, I had one, um, in
between my junior and senior year and
I also had some when I was younger
that I personally just added in as
supplemental information as well.
Um, and so there's a deep dive
into my internships and how that
process looked and what I gained
from that, um, as well as just
exhibits and artifacts from that.
Jobs that I had.
I did a lot of social media work
and influencer relations throughout
college at different companies.
And so some of the social media feeds
and my strategy behind that I included,
um, On the work level tab, um, which
I'm going to go into and update with
my current, uh, work and what I've
done and accomplished because I think
that'll be very beneficial as well, but
those were my overall categories, most
of which had subcategories within them.
Um, and they're pretty self explanatory,
which I'm glad that you mentioned
that it did translate that way, um,
so that it's easy to look through
from an outsider's perspective.
Um, but I think two of the core
categories that I knew that I needed,
um, would be the learning experiences.
That encompassed a handful of classes
that I felt were most important and
that I learned the most hard and soft
skills, um, that would translate into
a work environment, um, so I basically
listed, like, a new page per class, um,
included what we call artifacts, which
is basically just work that's been done.
Um, something like tangible that like
a PowerPoint or a design project or
a poster board, a sketch, whatever
it may be pertaining to that class.
Um, I would include that.
So, I always had a visual, um, as well
as a wri a write up, um, which is the
reflection that I was talking about.
Um, and I included the class
title just for reference.
I figured Other students would maybe
be looking on it and get inspiration
from it and perhaps want to find
that class if they go to TCU.
Um, and then information on what those
visual artifacts are, kind of when I
took the class, um, and then that write
up summary of, What I experienced,
what I gained from it, the skills that
can be translatable to a career, and
that is probably, looking back on it,
one of the most valuable categories
because otherwise, like I said,
memory kind of goes away over time.
I would have certainly had
somewhere in my computer.
These projects and, like, artifacts,
but actually going and finding them,
like, have you ever gone into a
computer trying to, like, just go
through your documents and stuff?
Like, that's not fun.
Not fun.
No one does that, really.
I feel like it just kind
of gets lost in the cloud.
Um, but having it all on here has been so
helpful looking back on, um, my education.
And then also that internship,
uh, tab was very beneficial.
As I was graduating, looking for a
job, uh, because it really outlined the
practical experience I had, um, what
I learned, the connections I made, um,
projects that I had, uh, so there's
a really good deep dive in there.
Um, and I did partner with the company
that I, uh, Interned with, uh, as well
as guidance from my education at TCU to
also get feedback from my supervisors
at the time, um, like written up.
And that was something I wanted to
include for prospective employers
to be able to access as well.
Yeah.
So, yeah.
I
would love to hear about that.
So we do get, um, sometimes people,
you know, are interested in Digication,
specifically for these kind of
experiential learning experiences, um,
you know, where students are, you know,
doing internships or study abroad or
field experiences, you know, if they're
interested in going into healthcare.
And so they're often, you know,
out in the field doing, you know,
hands on work within the kinds of
organizations that they're hoping to,
to be in potentially after graduation.
And so could you share a little
bit about maybe, um, from those
internships, what, what kinds of
artifacts you were able to include?
Um, Maybe going back and looking at
that what it's like to to read about
your experiences in the internships and
Did you use Digication in order to help
get those internships, or did you share
what you created in Digication to get?
You know, recognize for some
of the, you know, career
opportunities that you have now.
I'd love to hear about that.
Yeah.
So to start off with your first
question of the internships that I
had and the kind of artifacts that I
was able to collect, um, as I said, I
am a visual person, so I certainly am
someone who likes to document what's
going on, um, usually through a photo.
Um, but also.
In all other ways, data collection, um,
project management and things like that.
So exiting or going into and exiting my
summer internship the year before, um,
my senior year, I had the intention of
collecting, the items that I was able to
contribute to because I knew that this
would be beneficial for a portfolio.
Um, seeing as I did create the
portfolio in advance, uh, having
even just that recognition, um,
or knowledge of it going into it.
Yeah, it gave me a place to
need to put those things.
Um, so I, Actively throughout my
internships would collect, write down
things that I accomplished, collect, um,
the artifacts that I discuss or photos of,
um, visiting certain locations on the job,
which my junior summer, junior to senior,
Internship was right when COVID hit.
So that kind of changed a lot of things.
Um, and there was certainly a fear at
one point that it might not work out
and line up, um, after having gotten it.
Right.
Yeah.
And so I was lucky enough that the
company, um, that I worked for,
Arteriors, uh, was able to easily transfer
the internship to be done remotely.
Even though it was based here in Dallas,
um, and I did end up remaining in
Fort Worth on campus that summer for
other classes I was taking as well.
Um, there wasn't much opportunity
to actually go in and take the
photos that I so normally like.
Um, but I did get an opportunity or
two, um, on occasion and so I took
those, um, and Collected photos of
some of the products I was working on.
Um, I visited the showroom and was
able to gather some imagery there.
Uh, I had to go in for a couple projects
of, um, supporting, The Warehouse
kind of just as an intern, you know,
additional tasks that, um, would
support the company and, uh, I helped
with organization and counting parts
and, uh, getting things to where they
needed to be, um, especially during
COVID when things were a bit of a rise.
So, um, Yeah, exactly.
Which, and I, I never hate when someone
asks me to support in another area
because I always see it as an opportunity
to grow and learn something new.
So, even if it wasn't, like, the core of
my job, um, that summer, I was happy to
do so, um, and was able to connect with
other individuals as well, which is great.
But, um, For that internship,
I collected a lot of pictures
when I was able to go in.
Um, I also, at the end of the internship,
compiled different documents that I
supported, um, or created throughout.
Uh, certainly when you're doing this,
a disclaimer to Talk to your supervisor
and make sure that that's information
that you're able to share.
Exactly.
You don't want to be leaking
any privileged information.
Um, but I did wait until after, because
I was working on the new collection
that was going to be coming out.
Um, I was, uh, Product
Development and Management Intern.
So, I didn't release that information
online until those items were out.
So, yeah, little disclaimer there, but
still valuable to collect that information
to be able to use down the line, you know,
when you're able to, if you're able to.
Um, but I also had weekly reports,
um, and meetings with my supervisor
on the job, and I was able to share
that, uh, feedback, um, and then
feedback on that feedback of how
I'd improved, which Shares a lot of
information with a prospective employer.
Um, we did book clubs
during the internship.
So I was able to kind of reflect
on what I'd learned there as well
as connections and references.
Um, and then I took the opportunity
to also create an end of internship,
kind of exit presentation.
So, um, That also did, like, a overall
summary of going into it, kind of what
I was expecting, how I learned through
things, and what I got out of it, um,
so that was a great visual to be able
to include on my portfolio as well,
but, um, Also from, apart from that
internship, I did one earlier over in
Europe with my family's company at Moda
Textile, and there was nothing I needed
to do in connection to my schoolwork
with that internship, but I did take the
liberty to honestly just do a similar um,
compilation and Reflection on what was
done, what I learned, um, who I connected
with on a daily basis since that was a
more condensed opportunity, um, and I
was actually going and visiting different
countries and meeting with prospective
vendors, um, And if I wasn't to have
created that file and that compilation
of information, I would, it would be so
hard to remember the ins and outs of what
I really did learn what like eight years
ago or so, like more than eight years ago.
Um, so I do think it's so valuable,
like if, You're a student listening
to this, um, or honestly at any
age in any profession, like keeping
track of what it is that you're
learning and the accomplishments that
you're making as you're, as you're
going through it is so beneficial.
And definitely one of my biggest
pieces of advice is because you're
your best advocate, like you're
the person who's going to have to
get this information out to others.
Um, And having a place to go back
to, to reference little things
here and there, um, it adds up.
And then you're able to use that for
a new job maybe that you're interested
in, or a compensation review, or maybe
you'll discover a new interest that you
have, or habit, or something, um, that'll
create a whole new career path for you.
But yeah, and then sharing it on
a platform like this, um, on an
ePortfolio just makes it so much easier.
Having it all in one place.
Yeah, and I love what you said about,
you know, you're your best advocate.
And that, You know, you can use a tool
like this to have everything that you
need to support advocacy for yourself.
You know, it can, it can speak
for you when you're not there.
Um, but you also have the opportunity
to review and see for yourself.
Um, all that you are and the things that
you value and the skills that you have.
You know, if you're ever having
a Time where you're questioning
if you're on the the right path
or doing what you're capable of.
It's always something that you can refer
back to and then always something that
you can share out with with other people.
So, thank you.
Yes, certainly
and The quote, actually, that I have
on my first page of my About Me on
my portfolio, it kind of goes in line
with that, that there's really only
two things in life that are in it.
your total control, and that's
your attitude and your effort.
And it really goes to show the level of
intention and drive that you have to be
able to take a task or something that
you're working on, use it, reflect on it.
And then be able to have that as something
that can personify you through others
looking on your site, um, whether or
not you're directly giving it to them.
I actually tested it out.
If I type my name into Google,
it's the second thing that pops up.
I'm not sure if that's your
guys SEO killing it or That's
what we want for you!
Exactly!
Which is exactly what I
want as well.
Um, so, yeah.
Totally agree with
you there.
Yes, yes.
Oh, well, Kaitlyn, so much for Joining
me today and sharing your story and
your experience and your insights for
other students that might be listening.
And you're right, we're all lifelong
learners, so this is something
that's of value really to anyone.
We believe that strongly, too.
And um, I'm looking forward to
sharing your stories and thank
you again for joining me on
Digication Scholars Conversations.
Oh, thank you so much for having me!
This was so
fun, and I'm so happy to
stay in touch moving forward.
Yes, yes, please.
Thank you, and take good care.
You too.
Bye.
Coming up next, we'll be chatting
with Bill Torgerson, a lecturer
in rhetoric and composition at
Appalachian State University.
Here's a quick preview.
This would be what I would point
to as a coach and as a professor.
You know, the ability to learn content.
The ability to present the content
in an engaging way that makes it
easily digestible to the audience,
whether it's a player or a student.
Um, those are really important in both
of those spaces and probably strengths of
mind.