PRSSA-LB Workshop: Michael Thomas- Ripple Match

By Jason Coronel

​PRSSA held its first-ever senior workshop. The workshop's purpose was to help seniors prepare for the search for internships and how to make themselves presentable. The workshop also provided helpful advice with interviews and elevator pitches. The correct way to prepare for elevator pitches and determine the difference between a lousy elevator pitch and a good one. Advice about elevator pitches was also provided during the workshop, where Thomas also talked about being calm and collected when speaking. It may be terrifying, but the key to a successful elevator pitch is to stay calm. Michael Thomas, the senior campus operations manager for Ripple Match, was the special guest for the workshop. Thomas had provided ways to clean up your resume and essential key factors to include on a resume. He gave insightful advice when hiring managers to look over resumes, "most hiring managers will only take a few minutes, even seconds to judge whether your resume is up to their expectations," he said.

Thomas had also looked at his website, RippleMatch.com. The website was a way to help students discover new internships and have been sponsored by many well-known companies. RippleMatch is a unique website where you are paired with an actual representative who searches for positions that may fit you. Thomas had given a step-by-step process on creating a profile and a walkthrough of finding internships or open jobs available for its users. The website's presentation was a great way to help students find other sources for internships required for JPR students. At the end of the workshop, there was a small Q&A for questions regarding internships and resumes.

"One crucial tip about improving resumes is to have it looked over by a professor or mentor. They truly understand what strengthens a resume," Thomas said.
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