Experience
Learning HOW to find opportunities for gaining experience is a skill that will help you throughout your life. To develop this skill, you need to be an active learner, seeking opportunities to gain experience through your classes, work opportunities and extracurricular activities and organizations.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Have I gained any relevant experience in the career fields that interest me through part-time jobs, internships, service learning courses or volunteer work?
- Am I able to talk about how my classroom and extracurricular experiences have developed skills that are valued in the workplace?
- Will the extent of my experience give me an "edge" over other students pursuing jobs in my field?
If you need assistance pursuing hands-on opportunities related to your career choice, here are some EXPERIENCE action steps you need to take:
Experience Steps
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- Assess your experiences up to now, identify areas for further exploration and re-establish a plan of action to reach your goals.
- Continue to update your resume and have it critiqued by CCP staff.
- Develop a long range academic plan listing the courses you will tentatively need to graduate, including time slots for internships or other work-related experiences.
- Continue to add to your career development portfolio; begin organizing materials into appropriate categories.
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- Join a student group focused on your career field or field of study.
- Seek out and read publications, journals, and listservs related to your field of interest.
- Seek and secure a career-related internship.
- Join an on-campus pre-professional organization.
- Participate in networking events sponsored by the CCP and alumni office.
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- Register on Cardinal Careers (link to Cardinal Careers) to learn more about job and internship opportunities.
- Identify and research organizations you would like to work for after graduation.
- Participate in a job shadowing experience.
- Attend the OFIC CareerFest job fair to collect information about potential future employers.
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- Research graduate and professional programs of interest.
- Register and prepare for professional exams (GRE, MCAT, LSAT, GMAT).
- Determine application deadlines.
- Develop a timeline for your research and application process.
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- Accept leadership positions in organizations you belong to that show you are willing to take responsibility for the success of the organization and the development of others.
- Ask for/take on greater responsibilities in part-time or summer jobs.
- Volunteer to lead academic group projects.
- Become involved in campus governance.
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- Choose elective courses beyond your major that will help develop needed workplace skills of knowledge. Talk to a CCP career counselor about possible choices.
- Take all opportunities to strengthen your public speaking, writing, and organizational skills in classes.
- Ask for the opportunity to expand skills in part-time or summer jobs.