Learning about the existence of the career center was based on an extra credit assignment for one of my classes during the time. Till this day I am thankful toward my professor because I probably would have graduated and never knew it existed. The SJSU career center is a place where students can get help in preparing toward their success of landing a job or internship either before or after graduation. I did a small survey on campus on 100 randomly selected students during a duration of 1 month to see how many of those students knew about the career center. Only 32 percent knew or have visited the career center and a whopping 68 percent had no idea what is was. So, to that 68 percent here’s my top 7 reasons why I urge you to pay the SJSU career center a visit!
Resume Building
If you haven’t started building your professional resume, the career center is here to help. You can either walk-in or schedule an appointment to get feedback and suggestions on building a resume to be proud of. Or if you have a resume already, get it polished! They also offer a workshop event called Resume Studio where groups of students can collaborate on building an effective resume together.
2. Interview Tips
Make all the mistakes you would have now! Get tips on interview etiquette and learn what it takes to deliver a successful interview. The career center offers appointments where students can get one-on-one valuable tips on delivering an interview with confidence.
3. LinkedIn Profile Studio
If you haven’t created a LinkedIn profile, get the help you’ve been waiting for! The career center offers first come, first served for 15-minute drop-in sessions on establishing a competitive profile. Having a LinkedIn profile will help you start building your professional network. Be sure to have a basic account/profile set up before you visit.
4. Career Coaching
Not yet decided on what you want to do? The counselors at the career center offer coaching and mentoring on choosing a major or career, resume and cover letter writing, interviewing tips, and job internship search strategies.
5. First Friday Photo Booth
Haven’t taken your professional headshots yet? The career center offers this event every first Friday of each month. Now you can replace your current LinkedIn profile picture for a more updated and professional one.
6. SJSU Handshake Workshops
Get help on familiarizing yourself with how to register and start using handshake. SJSU handshake is an app managed by the SJSU career center that serves as a platform connecting employers with students for internships or job opportunities. Can finding opportunities get any easier than this?
7. Design Your Career Path
Know your career goals but aren’t sure how to reach them? The career center offers workshops in finding out what strategies and tools you’ll need to get on track with how to execute your plan to success. You can develop the steps you need to keep you headed in the right direction.
Since visiting the career center, I have polished my resume to attract more employers. I got useful tips on boosting my confidence level during interviews. I also got to meet with a counselor on how to find internships. Thanks to the career center I was able to land my first internship last summer. The strength of our success doesn’t only revolve around the grades we are working hard for, it also revolves around our ability to build our professional platform early on. Don’t wait till after graduation in gaining skills and experience. Start now so that you have opportunities waiting for you before and after you get out of college.