Parents and families can be a wonderful resource for students who are in the process of choosing a major a career.
As the Career Development Staff works with students, alumni and employers, we hear common themes regarding valuable collegiate experiences. We hear about the strong priority of academics, gaining leadership skills and obtaining valuable work experience. Academics are important for obvious reasons—grades are an objective measure of academic achievement. Employers and graduate schools often make decisions based on academic achievement and students should realize its importance.
Obtaining leadership skills (through involvement in student organizations, for example) is also extremely important. Even in this economy, competition for top jobs is strong and having well-developed leadership skills will improve a student’s chances for attaining a good job or getting into a coveted graduate school.
Obtaining valuable work experience through employment or internships can do a multitude of things—it will beef up a resumé and also give a student the opportunity to explore and "test drive" a variety of careers. As we assist students through their college years, we encourage them to achieve all of these goals. We hope you will do the same. It will pay off in the long run!
The Career Development Staff of the Student Resource Center encourages you to explore our website to find out more about us and what we do to help students.
Check out a link to a practical, year-by-year guide for families who want to assist with their students' career development. (A JobWeb resource)
FAQ’s (from parents & families)
When should my student start utilizing the Career Development Office?
The sooner, the better. We can help students with the assessment process so they learn what skills, interests and values are important to them. We can advise them on part-time, summer or internship experiences that will enhance their skills base. We help with resumé development, writing business correspondence, interviewing skills, graduate school decision-making and more. We are here to help students from the first day they arrive on campus.
My student doesn’t know what to major in.
We meet with a great number of students who are unclear on what to major in. We spend time in individual counseling to discuss alternatives and we utilize the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and FOCUS II as assessment tools to look at a student’s options.
My student has a major but isn’t sure what type of job to start looking for after graduation.
Again, we will spend time in individual counseling and may utilize the MBTI and FOCUS II programs. We also encourage students to explore career options through internships, summer jobs, volunteering and part-time work. Taking classes in another major is a great way to learn the basics of another field of interest.
How does the Career Development Office communicate information to students?
We have two different hardcopy publications that go directly to students. The Workshop Calendar, published once each semester, is distributed to first-year students, sophomores and juniors and contains general information of value to all students. The Recruiting Calendar is distributed to seniors three times a semester and has information directly related to senior recruiting activities. In addition, seniors regularly receive email updates to the Recruiting Calendar including calendar changes, new resumé deadlines and job postings. These calendars are also available on our website and posters are prominently placed around campus with current workshop information. We send full-time, part-time, summer and internship postings to students and alumni virtually every day via email.
If students are interested in graduate school, what should they be doing?
Twice each semester we offer workshops on the nuts and bolts of graduate school, including the selection of schools and the application process. We will always meet individually with students to discuss graduate school options and we encourage them to talk to their professors about it.
Are there any special programs for seniors to assist them with the job search process?
The on-campus recruiting program is the most visible option available to seniors. All recruiting information is in the calendar sent to seniors three times each semester. We also encourage students to network with friends, family, neighbors and alumni. We have a wide variety of library resources and websites for students to explore their options for employment. In addition, they regularly receive emails with actual job postings. These frequently come from alumni who are very interested in providing opportunities to current students and recent graduates. While we are always ready to assist, we firmly believe in teaching students how to find a job so they will have a lifetime of skills at their disposal.
The bottom line of the whole process for your student? If they don’t come to see us, we can’t help them…so have them stop by and meet with one of us right away!