Connect your major to your career goals. Knowing where your academic program will take you after graduation can make your college experiences more meaningful. Use the following timeline as a guide to map out a four-year plan. You’ll feel in control and on the right track when searching for a job or applying to graduate or professional school during your senior year.
When you are a freshman, you should:
- Get help in starting your resume. Visit the Career Success web site to find guides to writing a resume. Once you have a draft, a Career Success staff member will be happy to review your resume and guide you to other services of the office.
- Sit down with your honors academic advisor to explore what interests you the most. Choose General Education courses that will help you develop strong analytic or composition skills. For instance, consider writing, math, computer science, communication, or other courses.
- Think about a Service Learning course to showcase your leadership skills in a service and academic environment.
- Join at least one campus group. Become an active member; take a leadership role.
- Talk to alumni. Network with those who may have majored in a program of interest to you, or someone employed in a field you envision for yourself one day.
- Start identifying ways to strengthen your resume by exploring internship, volunteer, and research programs. A good starting point for researching these opportunities is Handshake.
- Use social media to create a personal brand that is both authentic and professional. Employers will likely research your social media presence when considering you for internships and other positions.
- Before you leave campus for the summer, talk to your advisor and set goals for your second year on campus.
The Arts and Sciences Career Success Office looks forward to working with you. See you in the autumn at 100 Denney Hall!