In my years working with students, there have been many times that I felt my interaction with a student should have begun much earlier.  The final months of your senior year are not the time to begin your career planning.  It should begin when you begin college, or possibly before.  Below are a few important actions I believe students should take in order to successfully prepare for their chosen career field.

• Explore

• Conduct career exploration to learn more about what skills are required in your desired field, the job outlook for your potential career, annual salary expectation, and more. You can visit Career Services to help with this or you can do an online search if you are more comfortable with that.

• Practice self-reflection.  This can be helpful especially if you are unsure about your career path.

• Seek out meaningful experiences

• Whether it’s a part-time job or volunteer commitment, look for ways to develop the skills needed in your particular career field.

• Find an internship. Even if one is not required for your degree, it is a great way to gain experience, learn more about your field, and make contacts that can help you in the future.

• Step up into leadership roles within your campus organizations and classes.

• Find a mentor

• Make contact with someone in your desired career field. Conduct informational interviews to learn more about their personal career journey, as well as about the industry they work in.

• Be upfront with them about what you want to get out of the mentor/mentee relationship.

• Ask professors, family members, Career Services, etc. if they know someone you can contact.

• If you aren’t sure where to start, contact the Career Services office for help.  We can facilitate a connection and educate you on professional communication.

• Always be ready

• Create your résumé and continuously add to it.

• You never know when an opportunity may present itself so be sure to have your résumé ready at all times.

• Have Career Services review your résumé before you send it to a potential employer.

• Enjoy the ride

• Realize that you don’t have to have it all figured out.

• Try new and out-of-the-box experiences – part of determining what you love doing is finding out what you don’t love doing.

• Remember there are many people that are willing to help you! You don’t have to go on this journey alone!