Got Linux? If you’ve ever wanted to try Linux but didn’t know where to start, bring your computer to the Linux Installfest this Friday, October 16 between noon and 5:00pm at the UMBC Commons Mainstreet.  Having Linux on your own computer will give you more control and is a great learning experience.  You can also replicate the environment found on UMBC’s servers (e.g., gl.umbc.edu) which will make doing your homework on them easier.

Members of the UMBC Linux Users Group (LUG)  will help students, staff, and faculty install Linux on their laptops. LUG will mainly be providing the popular Linux flavors Linux Mint, Ubuntu, and Fedora. Whether you want a VirtualBox image, a dual-boot install, a fresh install, or just don’t know what you want, they want to help; drop by on Main Street, Friday, October 16, between noon and 6pm, no appointment necessary!

See the LUG site for more information. You might also want to join UMBC’s LUG — join the LUG mailing list to get news and reminders of their regular meetings

Contact the LUG faculty adviser, Jon Squire (squire at csee.umbc.edu) with burning questions.

Below are featured events and internship/employment opportunities that have recently been posted or have application deadline dates that are quickly approaching!  To see all that the UMBC Career Center has to offer YOU, please visit our myUMBC group page or log into your UMBCworks account!

FEATURED EVENTS….

On the Road: Constellation Energy and Mindgrub, Friday October 16, 2015, 9 am – 1 pm - Join Career Center staff as we take you out to visit Constellation (Trade Floor). Take a tour of the facility and hear about internship and future career opportunities.

2015 Fall Career & Internship Fair, Wednesday, October 14, 2015, 11:130 – 3:30, RAC.  View announcement to see the Fair Directory prior to the event to map out your strategy so you can get the most out of the fair!

NEW! Inside Scoop: Digital Marketing & User Experience
Monday, October 19, 2015, 12 noon – 1 pm

NEW! UMBC Connects: Next Century Corporation
Wednesday, October, 21, 2015, 11 am – 2 pm

NEW! Grad School 101 Conference
Wednesday, October, 21, 2015, 4:30 pm – 8 pm

UMBC Connects: Amazon
Thursday, October, 15, 2015, 11 am – 2 pm STOP IN WHEN YOU ARE ABLE! No need to stay for the entire event!

INFORMATION SESSIONS….

Information Session: FINRA
Tuesday, October 13, 2015, 5 pm – 7:30 pm

Information Session: The Nielsen Company
Wednesday, October, 14, 2015, 6 pm – 8 pm

Information Session: Meso Scale Diagnostics, LLC.
Thursday, October, 15, 2015, 6 pm – 7 pm

NEW! Information Session: Textron Systems
Monday, October, 19, 2015, 6 pm – 7 pm

NEW!  Information Session: Morgan Stanley
Tuesday, October, 20, 2015, 5 pm – 7 pm

NEW!  Information Session: United States General Services Administration
Wednesday, October, 21, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm 

NEW! Information Session: Defense Security Service
Thursday, October, 21, 2015, 5 pm – 6 pm 

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NEW!  On-Campus Interview Deadlines

Enterprise Holdings
Spring/Summer 2016 Management Intern & Entry- Level Sales Management Trainee
Deadline to Apply:  October 13
Interview Date:  October 27

National Security Agency (NSA)
Data Scientist and Software Engineer
Deadline to Apply:  October 15
Interview Date:  October 29

CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
IT Audit Associate
Deadline to Apply:  October 16
Interview Date:  October 30

Deloitte
Federal Business Technology Analyst and Intern
Deadline to Apply:  October 16
Interview Date:  October 26

Harford Mutual
Information Technology Internship
Deadline to Apply:  October 16
Interview Date:  October 30

CliftonLarsonAllen LLP
Deadline to Apply:  October 18
Interview Date:  October 30

Enterprise Holdings
Deadline to Apply:  October 18
Interview Date:  October 27

National Security Agency (NSA)
Deadline to Apply:  October 18
Interview Date:  October 29

Lockheed Martin
Deadline to Apply:  October 19
Interview Date:  November 2

Kohl’s Department Stores
Deadline to Apply:  October 20
Interview Date:  October 28

Morgan Stanley
Deadline to Apply:  October 20
Interview Date:  November 3

Northwestern Mutual Financial Network
Deadline to Apply:  October 21
Interview Date:  November 4

Basy’s Inc.
Deadline to Apply:  October 22
Interview Date:  November 5

FEATURED FULL-TIME & PART-TIME JOBS, INTERNSHIPS, AND RESEARCH POSITIONS

Summer Intern and Full-time Opportunities at Deloitte

Entry Level Opportunities w/ Actuarial Research Corporation

Internship and FT Opportunities with Stanley Black & Decker

Keep an eye on the Career Center website (http://careers.umbc.edu/) for all upcoming events and programs!  Freshmen, Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors….this is an excellent opportunity for you to learn more about career paths…whether you are exploring possibilities or searching for an internship or full-time opportunity!

Here is a fun way to catch up on all our events for the month.

As we count down to the Critical Social Justice: Baltimore 365 keynote event “Baltimore in Action: Always Rising” on Tuesday, October 20th, we’ll be profiling all of our keynote speakers in our “What You Need to Know” series. This specific post will focus on a Baltimore neighborhood that plays an important role in the activism work of keynote panelist, Marisela B. Gomez. 

Middle East Baltimore 

Middle East Baltimore

Once a healthy working-class community, Middle East Baltimore has suffered from decades of disinvestment resulting in poverty, drugs, and violence. Just north of Johns Hopkins Hospital, the area occupies 20 square blocks within East Baltimore. It is bordered by Madison on the south end, Broadway on the west, the Amtrak railroads in the north, and Patterson Park on the east end. Most of its community members identify as African-American and low-income.

In 2001, the neighborhood was targeted for rebuilding and the expansion of the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution complex and would use the city’s powers of eminent domain to take over the properties to do so. Residents were not consulted about the proposed project and learned of it only through an article in the Baltimore Sun. Marisela B. Gomez and several others in the community organized together and formed the Save Middle East Action Committee to ensure the voices and experiences of residents being forced to move would be heard and considered by key stakeholders moving the project forward.

Quick Facts about Middle East Baltimore in the early 2000s: †

• Between 1990 and 2000 the population in the Middle East Baltimore community decreased by 45%. This was the greatest decline in population compared to any other area in Baltimore.
• In 2001, the reported rate of abandoned houses in East Baltimore was 13% but in Middle East rates were as high as 80%. Only 3 out of 10 houses were occupied in the area.
• Middle East residents had some of the worst health indicators in the United States.
• The local area public schools enrolled more than 70% of children qualifying for federally assisted free and reduced-price school meals.
• In Baltimore City, 25% of its residents had not graduated from high school. In Middle East, 49% of its residents had not graduated.
• The average household income for a Middle East resident was $29,000 compared to the Baltimore average of $55,000.

Depending on who you are or who you ask, you will receive a different story about Middle East Baltimore and its John Hopkins neighbor. Some will call it an investment, revitalization, and urban renewal. Others see it as destructive and unfair gentrification with deep racist and classist roots. To some it provides hope and to others it provides loss of community and a loss of home. It is a story worth unpacking and one that calls for a critical social justice lens.

“They argued that the law was allowing the city to take private property ‘for the pubic good.’ But exactly who is was the ‘public’ who would benefit if its residents were being forced to relocate with no plan for how they could return to benefit from this good?”†

Middle East Baltimore

For more on Middle East Baltimore, check out:

• Race, Class, Power, and Organizing in East Baltimore by Marisela B. Gomez (which is the source for all stats and information for this post) 
• Rebuilding the Middle East – a November 2008 article
• The Great East Baltimore Raze-and-Rebuild – a July 2013 article
• A Baltimore Brew take on Gomez’s book and the history of Middle East’s dislocation
• To learn more about Marisela B. Gomez, visit her #CSJ365 What You Need to Know post

As we count down to the Critical Social Justice: Baltimore 365 keynote event “Baltimore in Action: Always Rising” on Tuesday, October 20th, we’ll be profiling all of our keynote speakers in our “What You Need to Know” series. 

Jacqueline Robarge  

As a feminist, survivor, and activist, Jacqueline Robarge has spent more than two decades working to end gendered violence and oppression. Her work has included trauma healing and justice projects, white anti-racism organizing, action research, and a range of human rights advocacy.

I love the people here [in Baltimore]. I love the history of resistance here. †

Jacqueline is currently the executive director of Power Inside, a Baltimore harm reduction and human rights organization that she founded in 2001. Power Inside serves women and girls impacted by incarceration, street life, and abuse by providing direct client services, advocacy, leadership development, and public education to work toward systemic change.

I keep going back to that vow that I’ve committed my life to service. I think how lucky I am that I know what I’m going to be doing for the rest of my life. †

In her role as an appointed member of the Maryland Statewide Prisoner Reentry Task Force and the Governor’s Commission to Reform Maryland’s Pretrial System, she advocated for reform of policies that give rise to preemptive arrests and mass incarceration of people of color and people with disabilities.

For more on Jacqueline, check out:

• This fantastic activist profile on Unsung Baltimore
• Volunteer opportunities with Power Inside

There are only two days left until the Fall Internship and Career Fair! Join us from 11:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 14th in the RAC to meet 130 employers that want to hire you. Before then, don't forget to take a look at the Career Fair Directory to find out more about who will be attending!

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Perfect Pitch: How to Nail Your Elevator Speech

You ride the subway, grab a coffee, and get to the office—it’s your typical Monday morning, until,bam! You step in the elevator and find yourself face-to-face with the CEO of your dream company or the client you’ve been dying to land.

She smiles and says, “Hi. What do you do?”

Scary? Absolutely. But it could happen to you—tomorrow—and you’ll want to be prepared.

The aptly named “elevator speech” or “elevator pitch” is a concise, compelling introduction that can be communicated in the amount of time it takes someone to ride the elevator to her floor.

Even if you’re never caught heading up to the 39th with someone important, this is an good skill to master when you’re introducing yourself during an interview, a sales pitch, or a networking event. People are busy, and being able to communicate who you are and what you do quickly and effectively will ensure that you get your most important points across, no matter how short the conversation.

Not quite ready for the elevator ride of your life? Check out our step-by-step guide to crafting—and perfecting—your pitch.

1. Start with a Blank Canvas

Take a blank piece of paper and number it from one to 10. Then, fill in the most important bits of information that you want to convey about yourself, your service or product, or your company. What, exactly, do you do? What have you achieved, and what are your goals? Who does your company serve and why? Focus on the most interesting or memorable facts—the ones that really make you stand out from others.

2. Red Pen It

Using a different color pen, edit what you’ve drafted with a critical eye. Eliminate any redundancies, unnecessary or unclear information, and broad business jargon. More importantly, hone and enhance the good stuff. “I’m great at sales” isn’t likely to pique anyone’s interest, but “I’ve exceeded my sales goals every quarter for the last two years” sure might.

3. Pick a Card

Grab five index cards, and label them “Who I Am,” “What I Do,” “How I Do It,” “Why I Do It,” and “Who I Do It For.” Add each item on the list you've created to the card where it fits best. Ideally, you’ll have two compelling sentences underneath each heading, so fill in any gaps if you need to.

4. Get in Order

Organize the cards in a logical order, making sure the most important information is first. Remember, you often only have a few seconds to communicate with someone. If you get cut off, what would you want her to walk away remembering?

5. Add an Attention-Getter

Add an interesting fact or stat to use at the beginning of your speech. Your goal is to immediately engage someone so that he or she is intrigued and wants to learn more.

6. Practice!

Recite your pitch to close someone who can be objective, and ask for constructive feedback(although we love our friends and families, sometimes they think we can do no wrong!). What may seem clear in your mind might come across as convoluted, long-winded, or fragmented to an outside observer.

7. Record Your Pitch

Once you’ve gotten feedback and honed your pitch even further, record yourself saying it. Listen to your tone—make sure it’s friendly, non-threatening, and that you’re not talking a mile a minute (knowing you only have a few moments to speak may subconsciously increase your pace). Really listen to what you’re saying—make sure you’re not repeating words and that you’re sending the message you really want to convey.  

8. Ride the Elevator

The next time you ride an elevator (alone), practice your speech. First, giveyourself some time by going to the highest floor. Then, try giving your pitch from a middle floor and from the first to the third floor, too. Having to make just a few brief moments count will help you to hone the words you need and scrap the ones you don’t!

This week, set aside some time to craft your elevator pitch (or dust off the one you’ve used before). You just never know who you might face tomorrow morning.

Photo of woman in elevator courtesy of Shutterstock.

Kaizen CTF is this Thursday 10/15/15 in the Commons Skylight Room on Main Campus. The challenges will start at 7:00PM but folks are encouraged to show up as early as 6:30PM to setup your laptop. You will need your laptop and a virtual machine with Kali Linux and don’t forget your power cords because this event will run until 11PM.

If this is the first time you are hearing about this here is a blurb about the event —

“Booz Allen (BAH) is excited to announce Kaizen, a Capture the Flag event designed to build the skills of information security professionals through hands-on, interactive hacking challenges. The challenges represent real world scenarios which cover a wide range of hacking skills, including: web/binary exploitation, forensics, network capture analysis, and ad-hoc scripting. Previously played at Blackhat and ShmooCon, Kaizen was built to challenge participants of all skill levels; so, if you’re experienced and want to sharpen your skills or if you’re new to information security and want a healthy environment to learn then come check out Kaizen. Participants are immersed into an educational and competitive environment where continuous/on-the-fly learning is rewarded.

Kaizen: Japanese word/philosophy for Continuous Learning/Improvement of skills and self, which we feel accurately describes our participants and our mindset.”

To give an accurate head count BAH has asked us to use their website to register — please use your UMBC email to sign up. This website will also be how you view the challenges and submit flags so it is vital to sign up.

If you have any questions at all email Anh Ho (Sorry, you need javascript to view this email address. ) or Julio Valcarcel (Sorry, you need javascript to view this email address. ) with any questions you may have. Also feel free to join us on our Slack (https://umbccd.slack.com).