ESU Backup Insider

As East Stroudsburg University students began fall classes, Zhaoyuan Guo M’16 had advice for the seniors and graduate students: Don’t wait until graduation to start your job search.

Guo, who earned her Master of Education in instructional technology from ESU in May, was hired a month later by System One, one of the largest professional staffing firms in the country, to work with a client, The Hershey Company. As a contractor, Guo develops online lessons that teach employees how to perform different tasks for the company.

A native of Shenyang, China, Guo started applying for jobs in March and received valuable help from Daria Wielebinski, director of the career development center at ESU.

“She helped me make my resume look better,” Guo said. “She gave me a lot of useful suggestions about how to do interviews, how to show my resume and how to speak professionally. Without her help, I wouldn’t have been able to find a job so quickly.”

It didn’t hurt that Guo had a 3.9 grade point average from her two-year master’s program. That’s no small feat considering that Guo didn’t major in a technology field as an undergraduate at Shenyang Normal University in the Liaoning Province in China.

She majored in English and was one of several students from Shenyang Normal University who came to ESU in fall 2012 as part of a student and faculty exchange partnership with Shenyang. ESU’s Office of International Programs was able to help Guo obtain the proper visa and assisted with other paperwork.

After her semester at ESU, Guo returned to Shenyang to graduate in 2014 but she knew she wanted to earn her master’s degree in the United States and she chose ESU.

“The people here are really nice,” Guo said.

She decided to pursue instructional technology after talking to Beth Rajan Sockman, Ph.D., associate professor of digital media technologies.

Guo was awarded a graduate assistantship in the digital media technologies department, where she worked closely with Sockman, who became her mentor.

“As a professor, she truly cares about students,” Guo said. “She provides many good opportunities for students to gain experience in the field and to prepare for a career. She is very patient and encouraging.”

Sockman praised Guo as being an enthusiastic student who is willing to take risks to improve her skills.

“Zhaoyuan was always very motivated,” Sockman said. “She took every learning opportunity she possibly could.”

That included partnering with Sockman to give presentations on instructional technology at conferences and other events.

Sockman suggested Guo apply to volunteer with the Pennsylvania Educational Technology Expo and Conference which is held at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center each year. Guo volunteered both this year and last, which gave her an appreciation for the Hershey area.

“That’s how I know about Hershey, the town,” Guo said. “It was really beautiful and peaceful.”

So when it came to applying for jobs, the position with System One, contracting with The Hershey Company, seemed like a great fit.

“I like it very much,” she said. “I’m an eLearning developer in the Supply Chain Learning Academy. I develop learning and training materials for both professionals in the office as well as the manufacturing workers in the plant. I work in a team environment but I also work independently.”

It’s a challenge to take information about a process for an office or manufacturing plant and turn it into online lessons for employees.

“We make it more interactive,” she said. “First you have to grab the learner’s attention.”

A new job is just one of the challenges Guo has tackled this year. She found an apartment near Hershey where she moved this summer with her baby parakeet named Blu. Guo also learned to drive and bought her first car.

All of which makes her glad she took the initiative and started her job search before graduation.

“It’s a really good chance for a recent graduate,” Guo said. “I’m happy with where I ended up.”