University Recruiting Topics Studentzone

My colleague Chris and I had the opportunity to host 30 students from LEAD Engineering last week. "For over 25 years the Leadership, Education, and Development program has provided business education to over 7,500 academically strong high school youths of color. LEAD was founded in 1980 when the landscape in American business dictated the need for programs like LEAD to diversify the management pool within the business sector." LEAD students are high school juniors from all over the country visiting UCBerkeley for a three week boot camp in math and engineering. Partnering with their main sponsor, Google, Sun and Apple hosted these students at each of their locations.
They stopped by Sun for a tour of our Executive Briefing Center (EBC) and to talk to some of us. It was a great opportunity to have a conversation with our CTO / VP of IT - John Dutra. I knew John would be great with students when I started talking with him in our local coffee shop. I was getting out of my car, twisted my ankle, looked up and he said, "Are you alright?" I said, "Yea...I guess I need coffee before I can walk." I said, "You look familiar - do you work at Sun?" He said yes and before you knew it he told me about Nadira A. Hira (Fortune Magazine) who is a GenY authority, how he is fascinated by this Gen and threw in a few facts like this is the biggest generation to enter the workforce since the Baby Boomers. I gave him a few names on who I followed in the blogosphere and realized he would be a good speaker for the LEAD students visiting. These students were impressive, inquisitive and outgoing. They had no problem challenging John, especially when he called Earth a "planetoid." John had no problem joking right back with them. It appeared that the most thought provoking exchange between the students and John was that this Generation would truly be up against some ethical challenges when faced with technology innovation. This group of young people will have the challenge of wrestling with values, be overwhelmed by data and will have to decide how to keep the "rise of the machines" under control. yikes. Nothing like a little pressure. I'm just glad they have programs like LEAD to inspire, challenge and support those students interested in a math or engineering field.

It was a great having lunch with Sun Interns last Friday. I understand that food is the way to their hearts; especially on Sushi Friday in the cafe. More and more interns appeared out of the woodwork and totaled 16 students in all. Most of the interns were from Sun Labs, one from HR and two from our Legal group. As we shared our lunch, we got to know each other a little bit better and we also got to know Raymond Ling a little better. Raymond was our guest engineer and with 17 years of experience at Sun, previous experience at Hewlett-Packard (HP) and a degree from Berkeley and Stanford, he had many stories to share. Ray had us all thinking when he connected a pivotal moment in his life to contrast with current interns' stage of life. He was studying towards his PhD at Stanford, running on the track in a groove when a friend asked him to stop his studies to come to work at HP. This was a difficult decision for Ray to make. So close to his PhD, in his rhythm with studying, racing for the track team with hopes of potentially being in the Olympics and now at a crossroad. Well, he took the job and as they say the rest is history. But the main point Ray was trying to make to students was not to take any job that is offered to you, it was that uncertainty is good. Because of the stage of life he was in is similar to where the interns are in their lives now. Although uncertainty can be difficult one has nothing to loose but one cannot be in this stage forever. Ray also studied famous philosopher, Eric Hoffer, who believed that our different stages in life are not defined by our age. We are social beings not just defined as our physical life but the stage in life we are in. The three stages of our lives, according to Eric Hoffer, is Transformation, Consolidation and Inclusion. Ray explained to the interns that while they are all in the Transformation stage currently, it is a great opportunity to take chances. And although he is also in the Transformation stage too but not by choice he cannot stay in the Transformation stage for long. Ray, along with many other Sun employees are in the Transformation stage but not by choice. We are all waiting to make that inevitable change of either going to Oracle or find another job. While change can be good, it cannot be for too long as many are technically in the Consolidation or Inclusion phases with mortgages to pay and mouths to feed. Ray and the students went on to discuss the fluidity of these stages and how age does not define when people are in them and people sometimes float back and forth between them.
Ray's main point was for them to embrace their time in their lives now but realize that the choices they make today could steer them towards the path for the rest of their future. The interns were intrigued and a conversation erupted. I was really happy to see the interns so engaged with someone I knew had a lot to offer. I also learned more about Raymond Ling, the engineer and the philosopher. Thank you Raymond!!

Last week, Sun interns had the opportunity to sit down with Chief HR Officer and Executive VP of People and Places, Bill MacGowan to discuss career advice for the present and future. It was great to hear Bill address this audience with transparency and directness. His five key points were:
1. Take feedback as a gift - don't take it to heart or get defensive when someone is trying to help you. Acknowledge in a positive way to use to your advantage.
2. Practice your communication skills. In other words, be able to communicate effectively whether in an email, phone or in-person. It helps to be present in meetings with your manager so communications are not misconstrued.
3. Think from the aspect of your boss. In your position, what is right for the whole company not just what is good for you. Think of the bigger picture for the company's benefit.
4. Don't get stale in your job. Lateral moves are ok just mix it up every 3 years or so. This helps you to improve your skills, stay relevant and be the best you can be.
5. Keep external networks going. Network within company but make sure external networks are there as well.
I think this is solid advice and believe I have personally committed to these goals whether I've realized it or not. Bill also complimented this generation on being hard working and have better ideas of where they want to be. Today's new graduates have parents who have guided them differently than when he was in college. Parents today also have more resources and the experience to help their children focus more specifically than just making the grade. Thank you Bill for an inspirational session! I hope the interns enjoyed it as much as I.

Marching in the Denver Pride parade with GLAF (Gays, Lesbians and Friends) from Sun was a blast! This was my second year marching and we definitely did it bigger and better! We were one of the sponsors this year! We also made t-shirts, handed out a lot of swag and we had an old classic Volvo that drove along with us. We also had a booth this year and many people stopped by to find out more information about Sun. The children seemed to love the Sun tattoos and footballs while the parents enjoyed the other swag like the OpenOffice discs and pens we handed out!

Overall, the event was extremely fun and successful. I would recommend to any intern or new hire to get involved with your employee resources groups. It is a great opportunity to get to know some awesome people and to participate in events like Pride! More information about Sun's employee groups can be found here.

If you're interested, take a look at the pictures below. Enjoy!




More Photos:
Pride 2
Pride 3
Pride 4
Pride 5

How awesome is Sun?!?!

The movie Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs was rendered on Sun systems because of their high performance processing! If you want to read more about it go here: Sun is cool.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who is focusing heavily on the transition from school life to the “real world” and my career. The “real world”… what do they mean by that anyway? Well, I think that means that there is an end to napping in between classes, an end to eating residence hall food, an end to waking up late and wearing sweatpants and hoodies to class because I didn’t have time to shower, and an end to professors guiding me through each step of a problem…

After spending years of one's life with flexible scheduling and late nights in the library with friends, this transition can be difficult. Hopefully we can embrace this change, learn from it and even come to enjoy it! But how can we be most effective at our new jobs considering how different it is from college? Well, I was doing some reading and one article on BNET proposed 4 suggestions: ask questions, observe, have a positive attitude and stay organized (Click here to read the article). I used these suggestions with my internship and the tips definitely helped out. (I mean… it must have - I got a full time offer!) I have actually taken it a step further and I now use all four in my everyday life. It makes things a lot easier and my personal transition from college to the “real world” isn’t as hard as I was envisioning! One week down… the rest of my life to go! Is it nap time yet?

I'm sitting here in the Sun Blog workshop and am pleasantly surprised that some of the Bay Area interns took my advice and are in the room. While the future is evident, the time is now. I've set up a framework to help interns take advantage of the present. With networking lunches, social opportunities, branding, resume and interview workshops I have created I hope to help interns succeed in their summer long "interview." "Interview," you ask. Yes, "interview." Now is the time to take advantage of what is right in front of you. Every person you meet is a either a potential future contact for an opportunity or a future manager. Learn all that you can now, have informational interviews, find a mentor, figure out what you want in the future. I feel like I've become a "Career Center" for Sun interns - I'm here to help you during the summer. If I don't know the answer, I cna help you find someone who knows the answer. Come to my Webinar next Wednesday, July 1 at 1pm PT to continue or begin the process of branding "you" and your resume. If you're on the Intern alias, you will get the details later today. If you need info, leave a comment. To get the most updates, follow me on Twitter - Recruit4SunSK.

Here is a fabulous quote that I've run across in my recent travels. It is by James Michener

"The master in the art of living makes little distinction between his work and his play, his labor and his leisure, his mind and his body, his information and his recreation, his love and his religion. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence at whatever he does, leaving others to decide whether he is working or playing. To him he is always doing both."

For more great Michener quotes visit thinkexist

Summer is here, which means our interns and new grad hires are starting to arrive at work. This time of year always brings new energy to the office, and I know everyone appreciates that. I want to welcome all of our interns and new hires to Sun and specifically the Burlington Campus. We have some fun events planned for this summer, Executive speakers, resume workshops, product demos and some other events still in the planning stages. I'll have more information shortly, I look forward to meeting you all! regards Brendan

Recently I had a truly thought provoking discussion. I was catching up with a friend and we were discussing all of the changes in peoples lives right now. (Translation A: We were commiserating. Translation B: I was whining.)

Seriously, everyone I know right now, myself included - has at least ONE (if not more) circumstance(s) that have them on the road to either a rapid change...or the slow - you have NO control over it- painful, drawn out kind of change.

For me, (a self proclaimed "control freak") at moments it is a bit unnerving. Other times, when I'm well rested and peaceful...I catch the scent of opportunity. Like a pendulum, I find myself swinging back and forth between the two - more often than I'm comfortable admitting (even to myself).

In the middle of our discussion, she posed a question that has been bouncing around in my brain since the moment she said it. Have you ever heard someone say something and the ring of truth makes it echo in your mind - over...and over...and over? Well that is what happened to me last Thursday.

Her simple sentence? "Do you want to survive? Or, do you want to flourish?"

Profound. Challenging. Inspiring.

What does "survival" look like in my current situation? What does "flourish" look like in my current situation? At a moment when control doesn't really seem to be an option in a specific circumstance, this very question empowers me. While there are a number of things I cannot control. There are also many things that I can control. The real question is what do I want to get out of these moments?

It brings me back to some basics that somehow, in all the busYness, I've gotten away from.

Life is like a checkbook with a set amount of money in it. While we don't really know HOW much money (time) we have, we do know that we've got to make the most of each penny (minute) that we use up. Each one should be an investment in others or in myself. Something that at the end of my journey, I can look back on with pride and a smile.

This challenges me to take stock of my journey. Where I am. Where I've been. Where I'm going. Am I prepared for survival? It seems I'm always prepared for that. God's gifted me with a good dose of common sense and it's carried me far. But, am I prepared to flourish? That is the thing that has captivated me since our discussion last week. What does FLOURISH look like in each scenario/opportunity/door that lies before me? What steps or resources do I need to identify and invest in to ENSURE that I'm moving FAR above and beyond survival?

For now, I am busy exploring these things. We all have seasons in our lives that call for some soul searching and an evaluation of our goals and plans. It's healthy. It's necessary to ensure that we do in fact, FLOURISH. It's a Winter of sorts. The good news is that Spring always follows Winter. Where I'm from, "April Showers bring May flowers". I can't wait to see a gorgeous array of blooms.

I welcome your thoughts and comments.

Times are tough. Many students are finding it difficult to land the perfect internship or the post-graduation job that will launch their career. When a student or new graduate is sending out resume after resume, it can be very discouraging when the response rate is low. Even if your resume is excellent by anyone's standard, the competition is still fierce and it's easy to get down on yourself. So here I am with a few tips to make your resume stand out, gain some experience when the job market is slow, and best of all you can feel good about yourself at the end of the day, knowing that you are making a difference in your community.

1) Go paperless.

You might have an uncle or someone else in your network that suggests snail mailing a paper copy of your resume and cover letter to potential employers. Unless a job posting specifically requests applicants to mail their resume, I would strongly discourage this approach. There are several reasons for this. One is the environmental aspect: don't print any more paper than you really need to. If you are asked to an interview, bring hard copies of your resume and references at this point, but don't send hard copies with every application. The other side to not sending hard copy resumes is that even small companies are receiving literally hundreds of unique applications for every job opening. Each application needs to make it into a software application that allows for sorting and tracking the applicants. This is difficult to do with hard copy resumes- no software will scan and import the text quite right, and you may not show up in candidate searches for this reason. In addition, the person who receives a hard copy resume is probably not the recruiter or hiring manager, but rather an assistant or admin. Your best bet to reach the people who have a say in hiring is to follow the posted instructions for applying to a job online. 99.999% of the time, applicants are asked to apply online directly through the company website or to send a soft copy resume and cover letter to an email alias. Follow the directions posted on the job description to ensure that your resume makes it to the right people.

2) Volunteer at local nonprofits.

Having a hard time landing a paying internship or job? These are not the only positive things you can list on your resume. While you search for a job, volunteer at local nonprofits. This is a great way to serve your community and gain some practical skills employers are looking for. Are you studying computer science? See if any thrift stores need help setting up their computer networks. Software development? Offer to write a new database for a food donation charity to keep track of incoming donations. Even if it is difficult to find a volunteer opportunity that matches your career goals, look for aspects of the tasks that are transferable to what you want to do or that give you a chance to practice what you spent so much time studying at school. Be sure to list it in your resume, and rest easy knowing that you are making a difference.

3) Get involved in online communities.

Online communities are an amazing way to learn from people all over the world and to network with people locally and globally. Get involved in some forums and blogs that are dedicated to your area of interest and expertise. Help people with problems, enter contests that require you to demonstrate skills, ask questions when you need help, and share your knowledge. You might be surprised to learn that gremlin32214 lives up the street from you and has an open position for someone with just your knowledge. Also, many forums hire their moderators from frequent and knowledgeable posters, which is another way to beef up your resume and maybe even make a little cash.

4) Network 'till you drop.

I'm sure many students are tired of hearing the word "network". I'm sorry, but I'm going to bring it up again. Perhaps though, I might be viewing networking in a different way than many people. Most people think of networking as showing up to some stuffy event in a suit and wandering around, schmoozing with a bunch of people you don't really care to know except that it is important to you to find a job, so you do it because someone told you it was important. Well, that someone was right- it is important, but if networking events aren't really your thing (and if they aren't your thing, you probably haven't been to Sun's student networking events)then there are a few other ways you can network. Volunteer at the local senior citizen's center to help seniors learn to use computers, teach a children's class at the local library, whatever sounds interesting to you. (Again, you can put these on a resume and you are still helping out the community.)Even just chat with the people in line with you at the grocery store. Be sure you let it drop in conversation that you are looking for work and what you want to do. You might find that a senior citizen has a daughter or grandson looking to hire someone just like you, and dear grandma spoke so highly of you that they are asking you to apply and interview. Or a child's parent from the library is impressed with your interpersonal skills and refers you to a colleague who has been searching for you for months. Think of creative ways to demonstrate your skill while meeting new people who share some similar interests.

5) Pass on your experiences and knowledge to younger siblings or classmates.

This may seem like a silly way to find a job, but think of this both as being an in-the-moment technique as well as "networking into the future". Any kid or younger college classmate that you tutor or help now will eventually be in the position to hire you or refer you to a colleague, so any sort of positive connection you can make with people that are not only hiring today, but that will be hiring in the next 5, 10, or 20 years, will go a long way towards making an impression that will not be forgotten. It is amazing how many people you might meet in 10 years that you thought you would never see again. Make a good impression now and perhaps you can reap some reward from it later.

I've had serious neck pain for a number of years as a result of poor posture while working at my desk. I never realized how important it is to properly set up your workspace, and how badly you can injure yourself simply by sitting the "wrong" way. Fortunately Sun offers ergonomic training and assistance in setting up your work station, I suggest taking advantage of this program: http://sunwebcms.central.sun.com:8001/sunweb/cda/mainAssembly/0,2685,9950_2772,00.html When my problem was first diagnosed (slipped disc), I had months of physical therapy which helped alleviate the pain, and also taught me exercises to help strengthen my muscles, and loosen the tension in my neck. It certainly helped, but I was never close to 100% pain free. Two weeks back I re-injured myself, and decided for an alternative treatment, acupuncture. Almost immediately I felt better, and now after 4 sessions I'm almost pain free....it's amazing! Never again will I dismiss alternative medicine, it's been a godsend. Today I have another therapy session, this time my acupuncturist will be using the "cupping" method, I'm looking forward to that....

Your opinion matters to us!     Tu opinión nos importa!       A sua opinião é importante para nós!

您的意见对我们至关重要！   Na Vašem názoru nám záleží!     Ваше мнение очень важно для нас!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun Microsystems invites you to participate in this brief but important global survey, which should only take 5 minutes to complete. Your responses will provide Sun valuable information about your opinion regarding Sun's technologies and our employment brand. You may access the survey at http://www.sunstudentsurvey.com

Spread the word. Forward this to your friends and colleagues.

If you have any questions or feedback, please send a message to University_Relations@sun.com
Sun greatly appreciates your time and participation. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun Microsystems приглашает Вас принять участие в небольшом но важном всемирном опросе. Ваши ответы позаолят Sun получить ценную информацию о вашем мнении в отношении технологий Sun и образе компании Sun как работодателя Примите участие в опросе http://www.sunstudentsurvey.com

Поделитесь информацией. Перешлите это вашим друзьям и коллегам. Если вы хотите задать вопрос или оставить комментарий, пожлуйста, направляйте ваши сообщения на адрес University_Relations@sun.com
Sun благодарит Вас за ваше время и участие в опросе ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun Microsystems Vás zve k účasti na tomto stručném, avšak důležitém dotazníku. Vaše odpovědi nám poskytnou cenné informace ohledně Vašeho názoru na Sun technologie a Sun jako zaměstnavatele.
Přístup k dotazníku je zde http://www.sunstudentsurvey.com

Rozšiřte po světě. Přepošlete Vašim přátelům a kolegům. Pokud máte jakékoliv dotazy či náměty, prosím zašlete zprávu na University_Relations@sun.com
Dekujeme za vyplnění tohoto dotazníku. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun公司诚邀您参与一项简短而有意义的全球调查问卷。您对Sun公司技术和雇主形象的建议对我们有很重要的参考价值。 您可以访问网站： http://www.sunstudentsurvey.com

请帮我们宣传，转发此消息给您的朋友和同事。 如果您有任何问题或反馈，请发邮件到 University_Relations@sun.com
Sun公司感谢您的积极参与。 _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun Microsystems convida você a participar desta breve porém importante pesquisa mundial. Suas respostas irão fornecer informações valiosas sobre a sua opinião a respeito de nossas tecnologias e a marca de nossa empresa. PARA ACESSAR A PESQUISA, CLIQUE AQUI: http://www.sunstudentsurvey.com

Divulgue para todos. Repasse para seus amigos e colegas. Se você tiver alguma dúvida ou comentário, por favor envie uma mensagem para University_Relations@sun.com
SUN AGRADECE SUA DISPONIBILIDADE E PARTICIPAÇÃO" _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun Microsystems te invita a participar de una breve pero muy importante encuesta global. Tus respuestas le proveerán a Sun información muy valiosa que nos ayudará a entender tu opinión sobre nuestras tecnologías y reputación como empleador. Acceso a la encuesta en: http://www.sunstudentsurvey.com

Difúndelo en el mundo. Re-envialo a tus colegas y amigos. Si tienes alguna consulta o comentario, por favor envia un mensaje a University_Relations@sun.com
Sun aprecia muchísimo tu tiempo y participación. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sun Microsystems, Inc. respects your desire for privacy. Personal information collected from this form will not be shared with organizations external to Sun without your consent, except to process data on Sun's behalf in connection with this transaction. Sun, as a global company, may transfer your personal information to countries which may not provide an adequate level of protection. Sun, however, is committed to providing a suitable & consistent level of protection for your personal information regardless of the country in which it resides. If you agree with the above processing of your personal information, please complete and submit the form. If you have any questions please refer to the Sun Privacy Policy or contact us at privacy@sun.com

Ever wondered what a internationally recongized conference would be like to attend?

Students - you get in for free! What You Get: All the benefits of a FULL conference attendee, which includes: JavaOne general and technical sessions, panel discussions, HOLs (Hands-on-labs), BOFs (Birds-of-a-feather), the Pavilion and the After Dark Bash / Networking Mixer! Not to mention a "hang space" (which includes video games, movies & more!), plus you will be able to check email any time at one of our many hacker stations.

By the Way: When you sign up for the JavaOne conference you can also sign up for CommunityOne West where you will receive free training sessions provided by SLS (Sun Learning Services), plus access to the Pavilion, general sessions, and receptions.

Educators - bring 10 students with you, and you get in for free! Don't worry if you can't: Can't bring students? No problem. As an Educator you still get an amazing deal on a full conference pass – only $895!

Get Registered Now! You can EITHER: Call the Customer Service Center and check in. U.S. and Canada: 1-866-382-7151 International: +1-650-226-0820

OR: Make a .pdf copy of your current Student ID and your current schedule of classes (Educators, you only need copies of your Faculty ID) and either EMAIL it to: javaoneinfo@eventreg.com or FAX to: (650) 226-0840. Your credentials will be evaluated, and you will be sent a confirmation email with the event details.

Be sure to mention that you want access to both the JavaOne conference and CommunityOne West when you send in your information!

I just learned about a cool opportunity for students!

Zembly Blogging Contest – Chance to Win $200!

To celebrate the public availability of Zembly.com – Sun's next generation cloud development platform for web applications - we're holding a Zembly blogging contest!

Whether you're new to Zembly or already building Facebook apps, iPhone apps, mashups, and widgets, we want to hear from you. Simply tell us about your experience with Zembly and you could WIN a $200 gift certificate!

Learn More @ http://zembly.com/ui/competition/blog-contest

Enter in Three Easy Steps!

1. Use Zembly! - Create a Facebook app, mashup, widget or custom application.

2. Blog about it - Tell us about your apps, write a review about your experience, or even embed a widget inside your blog entry.

3. Submit your blog for a chance to win a $200 gift certificate!

Get Started! http://zembly.com/ui/competition/blog-contest

Last weekend Sun was honored to support the National Association of Engineering Student Council Annual Conference at Cal Poly. An outstanding team of Cal Poly students, lead by Joel Hanson (affectionately known as "Precious") hosted 288 students - Engineers of EVERY discipline from 41 Schools (including a Qatar contingent and of course our friends from Canada).

Katy Dickinson hosted two sessions on Mentoring. She kindly slipped in some nuggets on the job hunt - always helpful in the current economy. Phil Bartholo gave our Sun Corporate Presentation with a brief focus on Java and Sunspots. Stephen Armijo of Sun Learning Services and myself rounded out the Sun representation for the main portion of the conference.

I had the unique pleasure of taking 12 AMAZING students, from several of our target schools, out to dinner on Friday night. We had a great time and enjoyed talking about the industry, the current job market, internship opportunities and other things which can not be discussed without an NDA. Sorry folks...but you had to be there! :)

Sun's own Bill Vass, COO of SunFed presented during the closing banquet dinner and gave an awesome talk about Sun and the future of technology. A brilliant man sharing a wealth of information about technology in a way that even a GENETIC Engineer could easily understand. It was great to have someone of his caliber representing Sun to such a broad student population.


Next year the NAESC Annual Conference will be held at UT Austin, another target university for Sun. So, you're likely to see us represented at that event as well. I am looking forward to it.

Until then, we'll sit back and enjoy the memories of awesome networking, learning and innovation, good food and great fun.

To my friends at Cal Poly: A job well done! Let me know if you want help framing this great work on your resumes. :)

A peer forwarded this really interesting link today on the Top Ten International Languages used on the web.

Jason and I are preparing a student survey that will be pushed to a global audience. It has been really fascinating. We weren't aware of this website (and apparently, it didn't occur to us to do a search on the topic) still we match up closely with this list. We differ slightly in that some of our languages that don't mirror the "top ten", align with areas where Sun has large, global engineering sites. Czech Republic for example.

It's just fascinating to realize that 10-15 years ago...these numbers were insignificant. The world is really connecting and you get the sense that we've only just begun. Now that we're connected...we're beginning to collaborate.

Collaboration, is a key focus for Sun Microsystems. This year our teams have been able to accomplish some amazing goals by tackling them together.

Through collaboration, the world will be able to reach talent in countries that haven't "connected" or have been slowed in ability or resources to adopt a technology mindset. The cure for cancer may be hiding in the minds of one of those bright individuals who is still trekking water two miles a day from the nearest water source to their home/farm. It's time to get him/her connected!

Today is Ada Lovelace Day. Today we take a moment to blog about the women in technology that we admire. Ada is known as the "first programmer".

Quickly, Dr. Sheueling Chang-Shantz comes to mind. I had a chance to partner with her once on a university focus meeting that was hosted at our Menlo Park Campus. Dr Chang is brilliant! (Capital letters. Bold. Underline. "BRILLIANT" might more appropriately convey my opinion.) She was a Distinguished Engineer at Sun. This woman has an amazing list of accomplishments to her credit.

Her most recent patent, a partnership of five inventors was submitted in 2008 for the modular multiplier.

Read more about Dr. Sheueling Chang-Shantz.

"Technology is a only tool to bring about innovation, but not the innovation itself." - Dr. Sheueling Chang

JavaOne is coming up and you can get a free ticket to attend! Check out the latest contest where you can win LOTS of prizes and even a ticket to the infamous JavaOne conference.

Here's the full details to apply:
http://java.sun.com/community/dukeawards/dukesChoice_form_new.html
Eligibility and Selection:
Any innovative, creative, novel implementation of Java technology that benefits customers, the industry, or society as a whole, is eligible for nomination. Selection is at the sole discretion of Sun Microsystems. The Duke's Choice Awards program is a marketing and promotional program and as such, selections are chosen for, among other things, their broad audience appeal, their correlation to, and support of, Sun strategy and objectives, and their timeliness and relevance to the JavaOneSM Conference audience. Preference will be given to "new" products and technologies introduced during calendar year 2008/2009, but prior year introductions will also be considered.

Have fun and get your submission in by March 27, 2009!

One need only scan the headlines and become pessimistic about job prospects for 2009. As bleak as it looks there are still jobs out there and companies like Sun that are doing some hiring even if the numbers were smaller than a year ago. One thing is clear though, students need to have a plan in place as well as pretty strong back up plan. A quick look around the web will quickly provide you some specific strategies that students should use today and a few of these caught my attention. They are listed here in no particular order:

Seek out the career center professionals on your campus. Many of these professionals have been here before when recessions hit and can help with ideas.

Network, network, network.......I am always amazed that students don't realize how many people they know (or are at least connected to indirectly).

Make the most of the opportunities you do have, whether that be an interview, a contact or a class project.

Although it might seem as such there is never a better time to start your own company.

In some case if may make sense to delay your graduation

Grad school anyone? Who knows where the economy will be in 2 years but there is a pretty good chance it will be better in 2 years so think about going back and working on the next degree

Lastly, I think the main is to stay positive, although it may not seem like it at the time things happen for a reason.

A friend sent me some information that had this blog embedded in it. I spent more time than I have available today on this...but I just love it! Lots of great information. Very transparent and real.

I venture to say this blogger is wise beyond her years. http://www.intersectedblog.com

I am REALLY excited about the upcoming MySQL University Speakers Tour that was Dupleepa Wijayawardhana's "brain child". A team of us @ Sun have managed to coordinate quite a spectacular "road show" for the four speakers who have generously offered their time and expertise to speak to students across North America (Eastern Canada, Midwest and Western US).

Read Giuseppe's blog at: http://blogs.sun.com/datacharmer/entry/mysql_tour_of_california_universities An embedded link to Dups blog will also reveal some of the tour stops.

Here are the bios of our four speakers.

For the Southern California University Tour: Giuseppe Maxia and Sheeri K. Cabral

Giuseppe Maxia, Sun/MySQL
Giuseppe Maxia is the MySQL community team lead. A system analyst with 20 years of IT experience, he has worked as a database consultant and designer for several years. He is a frequent speaker at open source events and the author of many articles. He lives in Sardinia (Italy).

Sheeri K. Cabral, The Pythian Group
Sheeri K. Cabral has a master’s degree in computer science specializing in databases from Brandeis University. She has background as a systems administrator; has worked with Oracle, Sybase, DB2, Solaris, RedHat/Fedora, AIX, and HP-UX. Unstoppable as a volunteer and activist since age 14, Cabral founded and organizes the Boston, Massachusetts, USA, MySQL User group, and co-wrote The MySQL Server Administrator’s Bible, to be published in May 2009. Keep up with all this at www.technocation.org

For the Northern California University Tour: Colin Charles and Dups

Colin Charles, Sun/MySQL
http://en.oreilly.com/mysql2008/public/schedule/speaker/147

Duleepa "Dups" Wijayawardhana, Sun/MySQL
Duleepa Wijayawardhana is the Sun/MySQL Community Relations Manager for North America and is an open-source evangelist. Prior to joining the community team, he was one of MySQL Web Team’s Web Developers managing and working on the popular mysql.com. Before joining MySQL, Dups worked for game developer BioWare Corp. in Edmonton, Canada (now Electronic Arts) where he helped develop the BioWare Community Site, BioWare Store, and various other game-related properties as well as being Manager for BioWare’s Application Support Team. He lives in Montreal, Canada. http://blogs.sun.com/dups // http://www.dups.ca

"There is a pressing need for engineers to become more proactive with society – to engage, to communicate, and to lead. We can no longer be content that our laboratory work will be presented and translated to the public as originally envisioned." - Greg Papadopolous and David Douglas have stated the truth, clearly.

I recall the OJ Simpson trials when questions of DNA authenticity were making headlines. A biomedical engineer I was introduced to engaged in a very interesting conversation. She was truly confounded by the issues - should I say, mistruths? - that were being propagated. She stated that in 3-5 years those same statements would be dismissed...the DNA would "speak for itself." In short, the experts engaged in this trial were not able to effectively communicate concrete truths about DNA. Facts are facts and when properly applied can bring clear solutions.

As I read the "Citizen Engineer" article by Greg and David I was challenged.

I am not an engineer...but in my daily work, I focus on sharing information about Sun and connecting dots for future engineers with Sun technology and Sun opportunities. I have always wanted the best students to join Sun. I'm now redefining "best" for myself. Yes, we certainly want the brightest minds. Yet, there is something more that requires our focus. We need to seek out students who understand that engineering is not JUST an interest of theirs...but an opportunity to make the world we live in a better place. By applying yourself, by focusing on your studies/projects/work you can move your community, even society forward in leaps and bounds. You HAVE the POWER TO CHANGE YOUR WORLD!

Understandably, it is a rare individual who KNOWS early on exactly what s/he "wants to be when they grow up". It is likely that you have NO IDEA what you want to do with your life. (Dare I mention that - more often than I care to admit, I have these same conversations with myself?) The point is, that you don't need to KNOW what you are going to be/do/become. You just need to make the most of what you are learning NOW. So that when you "arrive"...or as you are engaged in that process, you are able to truly rely on the knowledge that you were "randomly gathering" while you were in school. Eventually that knowledge will find a place to rest, to be recalled and then...to be applied.

The next question is, will you be able to communicate it? Defend it? Discuss it with someone who doesn't share your engineering or technical background? Can you speak to the facts and help others understand how your (insert subject matter expertise here) can help solve an issue? Can you do it in a manner that conveys confidence and doesn't attack or diminish those you are in a discussion with?

An analogy, if I may. What GPA do I want the heart surgeon working on my father to have demonstrated? How much internship/hands on experience do I NEED that surgeon to have? Further, how well do I need that surgeon to relate to me and my family in explaining all that is about to occur? Yes, I need technical expertise. I also need emotional intelligence. Without it, the user of your product/service is not fully engaged...not fully bought in.

Quite simply, you may not know what you want to do with your life. Still, please trust me on this, you do NOT want to look back and regret the breadth of the opportunity (only afforded in a brief window of life) and realize that you didn't maximize it.

Know that the world, while seemingly large, is really a small place where one person has the ability to impact many. The lightbulb. Alexander Graham Bell. Penicillin. The Internet. Java. OpenSource Technology.

nuResume

Star Student Contests Announced for Top Students Looking for Internships and Recognition

Judging companies include Sun Microsystems, Classmates.com, San Jose Sharks, KLA Tencor, and GradeGuru.

Pleasanton, Calif., -- March 4, 2009 - nuResume, the first free career network for college students to market themselves online and network with recruiters for internships and jobs, announced today its next two Star Student contests. Think American Idol but for top college students competing on their professional profile to win prizes such as guaranteed internship interviews, digital camera, Flip video and more. Students must complete their nuResume profile and enter the contests by 5pm PST on April 30th, 2009 to qualify.

"The Star Student Contest has really helped me build a professional online identity and stand out from the crowd in this tough economy," said David Liang, winner of the 2008 Energy contest. nuResume is the competitive edge for students in this tough economy and helps students network with employers and get targeted internship and job alerts.

Contest Criteria: To qualify, college students must be on the Dean's list or in an Honor society or nominated by faculty. Contests are open nationwide to all enrolled college students in an accredited educational institution. There is no cost to enter the contests. For specific restrictions on a contest please see contest details at

How to Enter: Students can go to www.nuresume.com to create their free online professional profile which is multi-media, personalized, and Google optimized. Students can choose to add a video resume, a portfolio using video, audio or photo album, testimonials, student blog, post position wanted and more. Then go to and select a contest to enter their nuResume page. Students may enter both contests if they are qualified.

Judging Criteria: Judges from top companies will evaluate the contestants on their nuResume profiles for academic excellence, work experience, community impact and presentation skills. Each contest is limited to 25 contestants who stand out by showcasing their strengths, talents and testimonials. Students can see previous winners and their nuResume pages at

Prizes: There will be one winner and two runner-ups selected for each contest. The winner will receive a trophy along with specific prizes offered by each company. To see prizes offered, you can see contest details at

When someone says recruiting event what comes to mind? If you are like most people it is probably one of the following:

Attend a job fair, reply to a job posting, on campus interviews

There is a lot of buzz lately about social networks replacing the way jobs are procured....has not everyone by now heard the story about the young woman that got a job via Twitter. In addition, Every company is looking at Facebook (in the interest of full disclosure we are quite proud of our Facebook Page) and how they might use it to recruit students. These tools do indeed have their place and will only grow in scope as more and more people adopt them.

Sometimes however the answer is not new technology (Twitter) or even the old way of doing things (career fairs) but simple networking. You know meeting someone, telling them about yourself and asking them about themselves. In short making a connection that may benefit both parties.

We recently sent an engineer from on e of our offices to attend a poker tournament put on by an Engineering Honor Society at one of the University's we recruit from. While this really was less a recruiting event and more of an opportunity just to network and socialize in a fun setting, connections were still made. Making connections are after all what most people attempt to do when they attend a career fair or answer a job posting is it not? It is too soon to tell whether this simple night of poker may lead to the win- win but I am betting it does........

Recently my Dad asked me "What the heck is Cloud Computing"? Knowing I worked at Sun, he thought I'd have all the answers.... I explained that companies often found themselves in this scenario: they have ever changing needs and often have to quickly scale up for a new project or try to plan for the future. Imagine doing this right on the Web, without having to invest in new infrastructure, train new personnel, or license new software. That's cloud computing in a nutshell. With Sun's open platform it makes it about as easy as possible. And Sun's been doing this for years...we used to call it Grid, and then the rest of the world caught up with us.

Here's a cool little video on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=DE&v=XdBd14rjcs0

And here's more about Sun and cloud computing:
http://www.sun.com/solutions/cloudcomputing/index.jsp

On my way to work this morning I was kind of cranky. It was snowy and cold here in Colorado, someone cut me off pulling onto the freeway, and I forgot to fill up my coffee before leaving. All in a all a hot mess of a morning. When I sat down at my desk things changed. I took a look at my daily quote calendar and flipped the page to today. Well, I didn't like the quote so I peaked at yesterdays. It said, "Live with Intention" by Mary Radmacher-Hershey. Now I don't really know who that person is, but I'm hungry now thinking about Hersheys and I suppose I would rather spend the energy just absorbing those powerful words.

Professionally many of you are deciding what to do and where to intern or endeavor at your first job. Very heavy stuff to consider. As you contemplate these decisions I wanted to share the Hershey quote with you so you can really find a place where you will thrive and be passionate. Know that Sun's recruitment team is here to help and I personally hope that I get to meet some of you. This Spring I will be popping up at CU-Boulder, UT-Austin, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, Arizona State University, University of Denver, and UC-San Diego. Say hi and keep those intentions flowing.

Cheers!

But tough people do, in this case....a tough company. I've been at Sun for a number of years and have seen Sun persevere through some difficult economic times. There has always been one constant in Sun's ability to survive difficult economies, the employees. It would be easy for people to give up when things get difficult, at Sun I've witnessed the opposite, people not only continue their output, but buckle down and work even harder! I see our engineers putting in longer hours and refusing to "settle" by working to make a great product even better. This is great to see because my role is to market Sun and hire talented engineers, and by witnessing first hand what it takes to be successful at Sun, it's easier for me to target and hire the people that will succeed here. We need people that aren't afraid to ask difficult questions and provide input, especially from our recent graduate hires. Our new grad hires are a clean slate and bring a fresh perspective to the company, that view is invaluable and essential for creativity. I'm looking forward to getting out to college campuses this Spring and I'll talk to you again soon.

I am often asked the question how important is my GPA when applying to internships and jobs. I would love tell everyone that is does not matter but the truth is it does matter. However like most of what you find in life, things are not so black and white. In my book there are three levels, High GPA, Average GPA and below average GPA. Ask 10 recruiters to define these buckets and you will get 10 different answers but I think these buckets will make enough sense to discuss here in the abstract.

If you have “High GPA” than it usually means you have mastered the curriculum and excelled academically. The numbers show you are committed to making the most of the current opportunity you have been presented with.

If you have a below average GPA you usually have failed to make the most of the opportunity presented to you. If you can’t get the GPA too manageable level than I have to question how seriously you took your education.

Most people end up somewhere in the middle. Their GPA is good not great or good not bad, in short average.

So what do recruiters look for then? What we look for are well rounded individuals, where the GPA is one of many variables to be considered. There are definitely other ways to demonstrate, intelligence, aptitude, follow through skills, communication, experience in a field (internships) interpersonal skills etc. etc. etc.

Having just a high GPA is like only having a hammer in your bag. It definitely will work in certain situations but you would be better off having a full bag of tools to pull from. So study hard and make the most of the opportunity you have but know you have options.

You are probably wondering how you can get involved with Sun while you are at school. I recommend one of the following:

First, Sun "Rock Stars" (Sun Executives) like Hal Stern, Sang Shin, Simon Ritter, Radia Perlman, and Arun Gupta, are traveling the world to speak to students like you! You can hear about Sun's technologies and how they are changing the world and find out how you can change your world. Check out this link to find out if the Tour is headed to your campus:

http://developers.sun.com/students/university_tour/index.jsp

You can also use the same link to request that a "Rock Star" visit your campus and you can specify what topics you would like them to cover. Some of the more popular topics include: Java EE, Java ME, OpenSolaris, GlassFish, NetBeans and MySQL.

Second, if you are interested in building a Sun community on your campus, you should consider becoming a campus ambassador (if your school doesn't already have one). You will get to bring Sun's technologies to campus and share them with your fellow students.

http://developers.sun.com/students/campus_ambassadors.jsp

Lastly, if you want to show your love for Sun by getting some our "Sun Wear" then check out this website and get a t-shirt or water bottle! (I recommend the stainless steel traveler bottle!) :-D

http://sunwear.sun.com/