Online resource provides informationon student success in modern job market
Need help writing your resume, planning your interview or even tying your tie?
You’re in luck because three USC students have made it their jobs to get you a job. Last month, USC students Alan Brylawski and Laura Corder and USC graduate Bradley Callow launched the beta version of ProPowerLINKS.com. The website, which brands itself as “the link between college and corporate,” aims to prepare students for success in today’s job market. It features more than 50 articles and 40 videos as well as blog posts that serve to educate students on everything from networking to conflict resolution.
ProPowerLINKS is sponsored by the USC Columbia Student Technology Incubator and USC’s chapter of the business fraternity Alpha Kappa Psi. Callow, who graduated four years ago, and is a partner in the company, was the first president of USC’s Alpha Kappa Psi chapter. Brylawski, a fourth-year management and marketing student and president of the company, became Callow’s fraternity “little brother” during his freshman year, and they later started a book club that would later become ProPowerLINKS.
As they spoke with students and alumni, the company evolved into a what Brylawski calls a “one-stop shop professional resource.” Brylawski said he, Callow and Corder — a fourth-year visual communications student who became vice president of the company in her sophomore year — applied to the Incubator program last year. After their plan was approved by a panel of professors and Colubmia-area investors, they received $1,000, a free computer and their own office to make it a reality.
Brylawski plans for the company to make money off advertising, charging for seminars and selling products such as resume paper, pens and “success books.” The website already offers simulated phone and lunch interviews for purchase.
While currently the business targets only USC Columbia, its founders hope to expand until they reach all campuses in South Carolina. Then they plan to regroup and work out any problems that have arisen before launching nationally. They plan to market directly to college campuses and teachers, and are already using most major social networking sites to publicize their company.
“This just gives [people] a 24/7 professionalism resource,” Brylawski said.