No one knows what they want to do when they leave college apart from the very strategic Seminoles. You’ve struggled for months to figure out which campus clubs were right for you, which classes to take and which major best fits you. Now you’re thrust into a new situation of selecting your best job choice. Understandably, instead of strategy, you have stress, dear Seminole. How do you snag the best opportunities as an undergrad or straight out of college? Fortunately, Florida State University has many resources to help you land that awesome dream job.
Skip the job search anxiety. Check out these 10 FSU career resources to help you find the perfect position.
1. Career Center
The name “career center” tells you everything you need to know. What better resource could there be at FSU than its career center personnel? Everyone in the center readily welcomes you. Staff will sit down with you to discuss any questions you have concerning a job. If you don’t know how to write a resume, they’ll teach you. If you struggle with writing an awesome cover letter, go to the career center. You can also participate in mock interviews with career center staff to avoid freezing up every time you think about that big interview coming up. “If a student does not know where to start or are stuck, we can help them,” said FSU Career Center Program Director Erica Stallings. From not knowing what you want to do at all to having that job in your mind but not knowing how to secure it, the career center provides all the assistance you could possibly need.
2. Advising Appointments
Want to know what students in your position usually do? Go talk to your major advisor for opinions on both what to do now and how that will help you in the future. If you heard about someone else in your major scoring a great internship overseas, consult your advisor to see how you can make that your reality. Advisors will teach you how you too can dip your toes into warm beach waters on your days off. They have come across hundreds of students just like you, so they have a good feel for the best jobs to fit you. “Guiding a student through this process provides the students with the opportunity to learn how to find the best fit opportunities for themselves… [Showing them how] to go through the job search and selection process again [in case] their circumstances, interests and skill sets change for any reason,” said Cathy Barrios, the Assistant Director of Experiential Learning and Career Liaison for the College of Arts and Sciences at FSU.
3. Center for Exploratory Students
For those who don’t know what they want to do yet with their lives, visit FSU’s exploratory major advisors to start your search in the Center for Exploratory Students. Undecided and exploratory go hand in hand. Both will help you find exactly what job fits you best. This helps you narrow down not only how you want to live your life, but also what kind of person you are. Best of all, exploratory advisors know exactly what classes you should take to get there. If you find yourself having to decide the type of job that best fits you, come to the exploratory major advising program to start the journey.
4. ProfessioNole Mentors
The word “alumni” sometimes evokes fear in us baby undergraduates. They seem to have their lives truly together. Don’t fear talking to graduates any longer. Take a look at ProfessioNole Mentors, a program specific to FSU that connects you to alumni to start a discussion and build a relationship. The awesome advice they can offer you will blow you away. ProfessioNole mentors know the job they chose fits them really well. They also understand that everyone comes from the same place. Since the mentors are alumni from the great FSU, you already have a connection with them. Also, don’t worry about annoying alumni by reaching out to them. They always help out fellow Seminoles. Check out the FSU Alumni Association to get in contact with graduates for more information on what they do or advice on how to secure your own salary-paid position once you graduate.
5. Career Fair
You know you want to end up as a chemical engineer, but you don’t know how to meet the companies you dream of hiring you. Check out a great way to chat with a large variety of potential bosses through any of FSU’s career fairs. If you want to become a chemical engineer, check out the STEM career fair. Political science more your style? Visit the Government and Social Sciences career fair for more information on the companies interested in students just like you. One awesome aspect of any career fair held at FSU: you can access a list of all the employers coming to the fair before it happens. This gives you the opportunity to do some research beforehand. Nail that first impression by finding out all about the employers you want to impress so you can make them want you, too.
6. Seminolelink
Want more specific information than comes offered by the career center? Visit Seminolelink, a website powered by Handshake. It helps you find specific job offers all over the country. Vying for a summer job on the west coast? Look no further. You can customize the job opportunities list on Seminolelink to see exactly what positions employers offer there over the summer. “Handshake analytics also learn student preferences, similar to shopping on Amazon, ” said Erica Stallings, the Program Director of the Career Center at Florida State. You can apply right on the website as well. “A career advisor in the Career Center can help get your resume upload ready, as well as ready to apply for the opportunities and experiences you find on Handshake,” Stallings added.
7. Nole Central
Rather get advice from people your own age? Look no further than organizations on campus, which you can easily connect with through Nole Central. Whether you find clubs, Greek life or religious organizations through your search, all of them will help you in the long run. Try your hand at networking and finding out what opportunities other students have taken in your position. “Our sisters are always encouraging each other to apply to past paid volunteer experiences or job opportunities that they have had that would benefit us,” Theta Nu Xi member Arielle Vabre said. Greek life offers a great way to figure out what you should do by talking to others. “On top of that, we have great relations with alumni who are always willing to help sisters in the professional aspect and they often encourage us to apply to job openings in the companies that they work for or notify us of great job opportunities as well,” Vabre added. Check out any club on campus for lasting friendships and career opportunities.
8. Professors
We all have that one professor that really stands out from the rest as your favorite. Go talk to them for career advice. Professors know you better than anyone on this list, and they won’t be afraid to tell you what they see. Sometimes we all need that honest advice. Don’t forget about letters of recommendation. If you don’t need them for jobs, you will for grad school. “I see my role as trying to encourage students to develop a mindset that is critical of what it means to have a job or a career and to empower them to pursue a career that helps them get the most out of life,” said FSU English Professor Wayne Reed. Make a stop into your professor’s office hours or make a separate appointment for some valuable life advice.
9. InternFSU
You find yourself stuck in an awkward area between not being qualified enough for an actual job while in undergrad, yet wanting the work experience. You may not know this, but people specifically dedicated to internship advising exist on campus through the program InternFSU. Most undergraduates find themselves in want of an internship without the knowledge of how to secure one. Lucky for you, InternFSU advisors have helped with every internship under the sun and can help you figure out what to say in your application. They’ll even offer pointers on how to dress for the interview and what pieces from your portfolio to present as work samples. An internship does not automatically equal a job, but it definitely helps get one down the line. Check out the internship advising program so you can trade up that lousy position of fetching coffee to one where you can actually learn and contribute.
10. FSUShadow
You think you know what you want to do, but that nagging worry persists that once you actually get there, your reality becomes hating that job you wanted so badly. The shadow program at FSU doesn’t get enough credit for what it does. In this program, you “shadow” someone in the position you think you want to be in. Want to know what working at a large advertising company feels like? Follow an advertising employee through FSUShadow and see how the day-to-day actually looks. Through this program, you see through your own eyes if you suit the position you pursue. No one can judge the situation better than you, so give this program a shot.
