Today’s post is from our regular Tuesday contributor, Sally.
Going to a college or university after high school can be a pretty great experience, especially if you feel that you connect with other students, have great professors, and love the campus. How does all of that translate for you after you graduate however?
For some, they are able to apply to several jobs with experience to back them up while others may not have as much of a choice for where – or what – they can send their application in.
While college is often a place where you “live the best years of your life!” it can also be the place that sets you off on the right foot so that every year is the best in your life. Why stop at just four great years when you can quite a few more? When I say that, I’m talking about not only having a job you love, but also feeling pretty fulfilled in your life. Here are some tips on how to achieve a better life by utilizing your undergraduate years at college:
Push Yourself
Nobody really enjoys being out of their comfort zone and college is full of lurking danger in regards to needing to. However, whether it’s stepping up to run for an office on campus or being able to stand up in class and give a presentation, college will allow you to grow in ways you never really thought possible. Allow yourself to take that one class that sounds so interesting, yet so hard and set goals for yourself such as meeting one new person a week. If you don’t try something new, how could you ever discover your new passion?
Join a Club or Organization
Have a special enthusiasm about something? Really enjoy a certain sport? Join the club or team that best corresponds (or is) what you’re interested in. I would also suggest joining more than one or two; college is the best place to learn time management if you haven’t already, so push yourself to be able to understand just how much you can take on. You might be stressed but when you know how to manage your time later on, you’ll be so thankful you learned how to do so before you had kids.
Try Greek Life
Keeping an open mind is crucial when you’re going through college and nothing could be truer for those who are deciding if they want to go through recruitment or not. It’s a great opportunity to immediately be exposed to upperclassmen, organizations on campus, and places to volunteer at. You’ll also find support for academics and being a part of something much larger than yourself.
Meet New People aka Network
Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself to everyone you come across. They could be your new best friend or someone who can hook you up with a sweet job when you graduate. Who knows? Certainly not the person who didn’t take the time to introduce themselves!
Get an Internship
I cannot stress the importance of this one enough. Even if you’re not required to have one for your major, get one anyways. The experience you’ll gain, whether positive or not, will be invaluable for your future. It also opens up networking opportunities which can be extremely beneficial when looking at potential new jobs and needing to update your references. Any time you can show experience in the same or similar area on a resume, the better!
There were a lot of things I decided to take on and try during my undergraduate years and I’m very thankful for the opportunities that I was provided, especially when it came to creating my resume and being able to add all of the work experience I had that could transfer over to the job I was seeking. What experiences did you have at college that you are grateful for?
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My college and an on campus internship program from IBM. I applied and was accepted. I gained real workforce experience in the field I was studying for (computer programming) for three of the four years I went to school. I used that as a springboard to a 9 month internship internship at the IBM facility in Rochester, MN. From there…..you can probably guess….I used that experience to be hired full time at IBM once I graduated. I’ll have been here 18 years in June!
I have always had to work so I never got involved in anything extracurricular.=/
Joining a club was not only a great way to meet people and learn leadership skills but it was also a key reason I got my first job out of school. The fact that I was in a leadership role within my club put me ahead of other applicants.
I was pretty actively involved in several different organizations while on campus and really loved it. It resulted in me getting my first job out of college.
I wasn’t super involved when I was in college and I’d like to blame that on working all the time and being a commute student (I didn’t live too far away though, I rented a house around 3 miles away from campus). I was in a few organizations/clubs in college though, and they were a good way to network!
I worked a ton of jobs in college so I learned that money was hard to earn, and not to be picky with jobs. I also learned that if you are ready to work, there is always a minimum wage job waiting for you. As a result I am not too worried about finances as I know I can always get a job.
I was involved in a TON of clubs, teams and volunteer activities in university, which was awesome and meant I learned a lot!
Personally, I was not involved at all. I kind of regret it, but the reality is that I chose my school because of the large scholarship they offered me, and my goal was to “get in, get out” as fast as possible. Tuition is just so expensive, you know? I worked full-time hours at a restaurant, though, so financially, I definitely took advantage!
I wasn’t much of a joiner in undergrad, but was involved with student societies involving my majors. Their wasn’t a huge pre-professional medical type group, so we all go to know each other pretty well. I did get to know several of my professors pretty well because our labs were sometimes five hours long per week. I don’t think it helped in the job search later on, but it did get some good recommendation letters when applying to optometry school.
I think there are many resources in college that I should have taken advantage of but didn’t. There were networking events, fairs/events where potential employers would be, conferences/seminars from people who are knowledgeable about different topics, the career center can be a great resource. Hey, you’re paying good money on tuition, you should take advantage of the resources provided to you. I do regret not doing that.
I don’t remember what sparked me to do it, but I decided to join the orientation team after spending a year at my college and not really meeting anyone. From that, they asked for volunteers for the planning committee, and I was selected to join. I met the president of one of the larger clubs on campus and also joined that the next semester. Eventually I became an officer. I would second the recommendation to join multiple clubs, as you never know what opportunities you may come across.
I was actually very happy that I had a job during most of my undergraduate years. It not only helped keep me out of debt, but when I applied for jobs, most employers were impressed with my work ethic and academic success despite working the job as I did.
I really didn’t do any of the things you mentioned when I was in college. So I graduated with no job and no good leads. Boy, would I do it differently if I could go back in time!
I did a lot of these things, but I would have tried harder to study abroad if I could do it again. It would have been amazing to come out of school being fluent in Spanish, or having interned for an awesome company overseas.
I went the non traditional route, but did an internship, joined clubs, and started an honors society. Networking and gaining experience are so crucial during school-couldn’t agree more!
All very good tips! I wish I would have reached out more and done more but I’m such an introvert it was really hard! I’d do it a little differently now.
I’m ashamed to admit I did nothing of the like, in undergrad or grad school. Were I to go back, I definitely would do things differently…