Fast Track Your Career While Still in College - CareerAlley

Fast Track Your Career While Still in College - CareerAlley We may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners. When you graduate (in the not too distant future) youwill face the pressures of looking for a job and starting your career (along with every other college grad). There is a delicate balance between launching the career of your dreams and finding a job to pay your bills. All too often, the pressure of making ends meet overrides the passion of starting your career. But why wait until you graduate from college? If you want to get a head start on that career, you can start planning nowfora successful job post graduation. Followingare a few of the many ways to begin pursuing your career while still in college. Research and Join: Become an active member of your industry or field prior to graduation. Look for industry groups (especially on LinkedIn), trade publications, journals and magazines. Become active as soon as possible. Read up on the leaders in your industry and research different trends and themes. Spend free time or breaks between classes catching up on the latest innovations in your field. Reach out to industry leaders to get their advice. The more contacts you make while in college, theeasier it will be tobegin your career once you graduate. Never Stop Networking College is an excellent time to build a core network that will help propel you into the future. Seek out mentors who can teach you and walk you through the process of starting out. Professionals are often more open to current students because they want to encourage their interest and know that students are learning about the industry, not just prowling for a job. Take advantage of the alumni and professors that you come into contact with during your college years. Go to banquets and meetings that can be excellent opportunities for building connections that will profit your later career. Start Working Now: Working while going to college can be challenging, but many people do it. Ideally, you will want to get internships during your Summer (and sometimes Winter) breaks. Internships tend to be focused on your major and will give you industry specific experience. Your college is agreat way to to find an internship, but there are a number of great websites that provide potential opportunities (see Looking For An Internship What To Expect From Employers). Practical experience will raise your resume above the bar when it comes to searching for a job in the current economy. You should also considerfreelance work and volunteering. These are all ways to gain real life experience working in your field or industry allowing you to add relevant to your resume. And you never know if the company you intern at might just want to hire you full-time after graduation. Sign Up for Seminars and AdditionalClasses: You will obviously have relevant coursework as part of your major, but you should also consider extra-curricular courses and seminars. Supplementing your courses with related classes is beneficial as well (such as business classes).Seminars provide an opportunity to meet other people who share the same industry or subject interests. You never know who you may meet. Get ahead of the curve (and your fellow graduates), leverage these tipsand dontwait for graduation to start building your career. There is no time like the present for maneuvering yourself towards the career path you desperately want. Career Tip of the Day:Looking For An Internship What To Expect From Employers Suggested Reading: College Grad Job Hunter: Insider Techniques and Tactics for Finding A Top-Paying Entry-level Job We are always eager to hear from our readers. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or suggestions regarding CareerAlley content. Good luck in your search,Joey Google+ what where job title, keywords or company city, state or zip jobs by What's next? Ready to take action? Choose the right tools to help you build your career. Looking for related topics? Find out how to land your first job. Subscribe and make meaningful progress on your career. It’s about time you focused on your career. Get Educated Contact Us Advertise Copyright 2020 CareerAlley. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy + Disclosure home popular resources subscribe search