What am I going to do after college?
Is there really life after college?
Am I really supposed to know what I want to do for the rest of my life?
These are just a few of the questions that many college students ask themselves throughout their college careers, and while there is not always a definitive answer to every question, we at the Career Center are here to help guide you through some of those tough questions and help you to understand your skills, personality, values, strengths and how they can translate to success upon graduation from Notre Dame.
So before we try to delve into what are you going to do with the rest of your life and if life after college really exist (yes, it does), let's just focus on the basics.
What is the Career Center and why should I go there? How can you help me?
There is a common misconception that the Career Center is geared towards a specific major or college or year. But whether you know exactly what you want to do after graduation or have no idea what direction to pursue, the Career Center has valuable resources available to help you. It really is about you and what you need when you come visit us at the Career Center. We want students to feel comfortable coming to us with any of their career concerns. In fact, there are no questions that are too silly or unimportant or irrelevant to ask. Sometimes the questions are as easy as "Will you look at my resume?" At other times the questions aren't quite so black and white and require longer, more in-depth appointments. Sometimes the questions just need to be asked and heard. More times than not, we simply provide some basic guidelines and encouragement. It truly doesn't matter what you major in or if you are a senior and have never been to the Career Center - if you need help, we hope to be there for you.
Where is the Career Center?
That's an easy one - we are located on the first and second floor of Flanner Hall - although you will find us all over campus at different times of the year. For example this week we are hosting our annual Arts and Letters Career Opportunities Week in collaboration with the College of Arts and Letters. Tonight we will be in the Monogram Room at the Joyce Center hosting over 16 employers who are interested in talking to Arts and Letters students about opportunities within their organizations.
Tomorrow night we are back in 114 Flanner Hall with an Investment Management Night in which six firms will discuss the roles of an analyst and trends in investment management.
How can you get involved with the Career Center?
First, you can make an appointment to meet with a counselor. Just call (574) 631-5200, and student workers trained to ask all of the right questions will place you with the right counselor.
Second, if you're more of the impulsive type or need a simple resume review, just walk right into the center on the second floor of Flanner the next afternoon you're on the northeast side of campus. We hold walk-in appointments every Monday through Friday from 1 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.
Third, create an account on Go IRISH. Not only does it provide you access to hundreds of on-campus interviews but it also posts several job, internship, volunteer and fellowship opportunities.
Fourth, read those weekly emails! They contain information about upcoming career workshops, information sessions with employers coming to campus and approaching job and internship deadlines.
Finally, find the Career Center on social media. This is another way to stay in the loop with upcoming events and even find some little-known job-seeking tips in your Facebook newsfeed or Twitter feed.
Final notes on the"tough" questions.
This time in your life is about exploring. Some might know what they want between the ages of 18 and 22, but most don't. Even that first job or service experience or walk into your first class at graduate school is just the beginning of many career decisions you will be making in your life. Rarely is this ever final, and you always learn from each and every experience - both the positive and not-so-positive experiences.
Yet, you have to take that first step, that first proverbial leap. And it will be okay!
Please come in and meet with us to discuss those beginning questions.
Welcome to the @NDCareerCenter Column. Please let us know if you have any questions you would like covered in the column. Email us ndcps@nd.edu.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
