Graduation is almost here! While it can be tempting to coast through your final semester, now is not the time to slack off. In addition to maintaining your GPA and keeping up with the extracurriculars that complement or enhance your course of study, you have an additional task this semester – finding a job.
Many students find their first job search to be a challenging experience, and understandably so – it is a new and sometimes overwhelming process. Frequently students underestimate their accomplishments from college, and therefore, struggle when it comes to putting together a resume or answering interview questions.
But I have good news! If you’ve had an internship, participated in a class project, had a part-time job, volunteered or held a role in a student organization, you have relevant experience! For detailed information on how you can translate the skills and knowledge you gained during college into real world experience, I recommend checking out this article from Forbes titled “When an Employer Requires Experience and You Have None.”
For more on how to close out your college career on a high note and propel yourself towards the start of a successful career, check out my tips below:
1. Create Your Resume – If you do not have one already, you need to start building one now. Resumes are necessary regardless of the amount of experience you have. Every professional job you apply to will require one. Here is another helpful article, also from Forbes, on how to turn experience and coursework into a solid resume: How to Write a Resume When You Are Just Out of College.
2. Research Potential Careers and Employers – Some people enter college knowing exactly what they want to do, others get an idea sometime in the middle of college, and some people have no clue up until they graduate. It’s OK to not know exactly what you want to do. Take this time before you have to start paying off student loans to figure this out. There are many careers and companies out there looking for new graduates. Now is the time meet with you career resource center, they have access to tons of information about careers and companies to get you started.
3. Attend Career Fairs – Most schools hold spring career fairs, which provide you access to potentially hundreds of employers looking for new graduates. Check out my tips for making the most of career fairs here!
4. Get More Experience – Some seniors have a lighter class load during their final semester. If this is the case for you, make the most of it and look for opportunities to add more work experience to your resume. There are many on-campus positions, research assistant opportunities, and potentially some internships still available on or around campus.
5. Avoid the Senior Slide – In your last semester of college it can be hard to stay focused on grades and class projects, but the last thing you want to do is tarnish that GPA you spent the last four years working so hard for.
6. Make the Most of a Capstone or Senior Thesis – These large, final projects can provide you with great experience to put on your resume and share with future employers.
7. Have Fun – College is without a doubt the best experience many people will ever have. It is four to five years of growing up, learning and building a lifetime of friendships and memories. Some of the best friends I ever made came from my college career, and these friendships have also turned into an amazing professional network for me. You will never get the chance to relive college. Enjoy it!
If you are interested in a career in business and technology consulting, I encourage you to check out the G10 Associates program. We are hiring college graduates for business analysis, project management, development and other technical roles. Click here to view our current opportunities.
