The start of a new school year can bring about a lot of change. After several months off we’re getting accustomed to new courses, a shift in the weather, and all-things pumpkin spice. It can take some time to regain one’s footing, but when it comes to career advice at DePaul, we can help right off the bat.
Every student has a designated career advisor at DePaul based on your major—including those who are currently undecided and exploring. This allows us to not only answer general career questions, but also offer a deeper dive into your post-graduate career plans.
If you think you might want to visit with a career advisor, but are unsure of how we can help, here are a few ideas based on your current student status.
Freshmen: Career Exploration
One of the most common ways that career advisors help first-year students at DePaul is with career exploration. This can be done in a variety of ways. For students who are still exploring their major and career interests, we offer free career assessments like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and Strong Interest Inventory, which can serve as a helpful guide in finding career paths based on personality preferences and interests. Some students have a clear idea of what type of job they want after graduation, and so we work backwards to determine which types of internship opportunities, majors, and/or minors would help students reach that particular goal. Whatever your concerns might be regarding career paths and opportunities, we can help bring your options into greater focus. It also helps to meet consistently with your academic advisor to make sure you’re on track to graduate, and to see if you can fit in a double major or minor that might aid in reaching your post-grad career goals.
Sophomores and Juniors: Gaining Experience
While every sophomore and junior who comes to the Career Center will have a different set of needs, one common thread tends to be an interest in internships. This is the perfect time to begin pursuing these opportunities, as you will already have a few classes under your belt and can begin exploring a particular career path in a hands-on way. If you take on an internship and love what you’re doing, we can help you identify similar opportunities down the road; if you have the opposite reaction, we can work with you to identify what might be a better fit and help you to pursue those options. For many students, applying to an internship—whether it’s your first, second, or sixth—can be a daunting task; your career advisor can help to lighten the load by offering insight on how to tackle this process with greater confidence.
Seniors: Applying to Jobs
Graduating seniors most often seek out career advising to gain greater clarity around applying to full-time jobs. Given that each industry has a different hiring season—some industries, like accounting, make their full-time hires much earlier in the year than other fields—it’s a good idea to meet with a career advisor early in the year to develop a plan of attack for the application process. This plan may include an internship, identifying networking contacts, or diving right into the full-time search. Ultimately, the process itself will vary from student to student, but meeting with your career advisor sooner rather than later can ensure that you are ahead of the game regardless of your post-grad career goals.
Keep in mind that the above suggestions are just a few ideas for visiting with us. Some of you may have questions about pursuing graduate school, teaching abroad, and/or volunteer opportunities—we can hep with that! Similarly, you might find that you have slightly different needs than those outlined above; maybe you’re a freshman ready to dive into your first internship, or a senior who wants to explore career paths. The good news is that we can help you with every step of the process, and where ever you’re at in the process. Classes and the weather may change, but strong, student-focused support from the Career Center will always be our top priority.