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Your Zag is an Upperclassman: Now what?

Your Zag is now entering into their third year at Gonzaga.  You understand the lingo and language, the ebb and flow of the calendar and getting familiar with the “lay of the land”.  You may be wondering, “What’s next for my Zag?”

Junior year students find themselves entering into higher level course work, specific to field of study or major.  Many find themselves studying abroad, holding internships or leadership roles on campus.   All of these junior year experiences can be translated onto a strong and stellar resume.

With all of this experiential development happening, it’s easy for a detail or two to slip from memory.  Many times when the first draft of a resume is put together, some great accomplishments have been forgotten.  Encourage your student to begin tracking their involvement here at Gonzaga in a simple document.  Just include organization/class/study abroad etc., dates of participation and 2-3 sentences of what that participation meant.  From there, we can help the student but the “list” into a resume polished and reflective of their range of experiences.

One resource we provide our students is a 4 year plan to help coach them along each step of the career development process.  We wanted to share these steps with the parents and families of juniors as a way of having honest conversations about careers without being too frightening or overwhelming.

Junior Year: be Defining

  • Participate in a Interview Preparation workshop and Mock Interviews. To register e-mail careercenter@gonzaga.edu
  • Talk to faculty members about joining major related professional associations.
  • Continue to refine and polish your résumé adding summer employment, internships and on-campus leadership experiences.
  • Concentrate on resume building jobs by using your State Work Study to secure a job off-campus in your field or work on-campus to help pay tuition costs.
  • Collect letters of recommendations from previous/current employers and professors.
  • Attend Career Fairs prepared to interview or network for potential jobs and internships.
  • Take advantage of the Jesuit reciprocity program.  Simply fill out a simple form at the Career Center, to be able to use the services of the 27 Jesuit institutions throughout the country.
  • Plan on attending a career trek (Seattle, Portland, Silicon Valley, San Francisco & New York) sponsored by GAMP.

Fresh/Soph Year Article: Tip Toe into the Career Development Pond

The word career can be a combination of intimidating, scary and downright daunting for many freshmen and sophomore students.   Not really knowing where to start, many students wait until the end of their college experience to get actively engaged in their career development process.  This of course, is not the ideal situation by a long shot.

The Career Center/GAMP offices encourages all years and majors to swing by our office during their freshmen/sophomore years.  When graduation isn’t looming on the horizon, the pressure isn’t on student’s as much to answer the question,”What are you doing next?”

When working with freshmen and sophomores, we encourage students becoming aware and exploring various career options as well as the resources we have right here at Gonzaga!

One resource we provide our students is a 4 year plan to help coach them along each step of the career development process.  We wanted to share these steps with the parents and families of freshmen and sophomores as a way of having honest conversations about careers without being too frightening or overwhelming.

Freshman Year: be Aware

  • Visit the Gonzaga Career Center second floor of Crosby or call ext. 4234 for an appointment.
  • Create a resume or re-vamp your high school resume.   Find yourself getting stuck? Attend a resume workshop, e-mail careercenter@gonzaga.edu for event details or to RSVP.
  • Get involved in campus activities and clubs or volunteer.
    • Contact the Office of Clubs & Organizations at ext. 6123.
    • Contact Center for Community Action & Service Learning (CCASL) at ext. 6824 for volunteer opportunities.
    • Visit the Student Employment Office and talk with staff to get acquainted with what jobs are available on campus and for which you are eligible (either FWS or Institutional). Even freshmen can handle working 10-12 hours per week.
    • Attend a retreat through University Ministry and use time to reflect on values and interests.
    • Meet with Academic Advisor to explore possible academic path, while getting to know other faculty, counselors and administrators.
    • Browse “What Can I Do With this Major” to view options, types of industries and strategies you can use in preparation for career field.
    • If you are unsure of your career path, make an appointment with the Counseling Center at ext. 4054 to begin the self-assessment process.

Sophomore Year: be Explorative

  • Research specific careers, required qualifications and employment outlook (Utilize http://online.onetcenter.org/ or www.collegegrad.com).
  • Continue to be active in extracurricular activities and develop interpersonal and leadership skills.
  • Connect with GU Alum who has been in your shoes through the Gonzaga Alumni Mentor Program (GAMP). For more information go to: www.gonzaga.edu/gamp
  • Attend career planning workshops such as: Job Search in your Major or Internships 101.
  • Register and log in to Zagtrax.net and start exploring companies of interest to you.

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