By: Alexis M Peters ‘20

It’s my junior year at USC, and I have decided to declare a minor. You can do it too! Sometimes it feels like it’s way too late to change your mind. It feels like it’s way too late to try something new or discover a new passion. I know that feeling. I thought I was too old to wander into new academic territory; after all, I’m a junior, and I’m adding a completely new minor to my academic plan. Maybe there’s a minor you’ve been eyeing or a double major you’re considering, but you wonder if it’s too late, or too much work, or too difficult. First of all, I would recommend that everyone should look into a minor, just because there are so many cool things to study, especially at USC, and your college years are the perfect opportunity to explore your passions and interests. Second, if you are considering adding a minor, there are six things you should take into account:

By: Jordan Bucknor ‘22

For people who are socially anxious, even day-to-day conversations can be a bit taxing, so professional interviews are far from easy. Whether you struggle maintaining eye contact, controlling your fidgeting hands, or stumbling over your words, there are ways to improve your chances of scoring that dream job. From one socially awkward over-thinker to another, here’s how to ace your interview:

By: Natalie Oganesyan ‘22

As we all know, college is expensive. Extremely and unnecessarily so (but that’s a topic for another blog post). If you’re anything like me, the enormous cost of college, basic necessities, and also extra fun expenditures are always on your mind. Stressing out over money, budgeting, and if you can afford certain things is not only detrimental mentally, but it’s also distracting from studies and extracurricular activities. I wanted to provide a conclusive list of ways to make money that are feasible and accessible for college students, regardless of their year or experience. Contrary to popular belief, there are plenty of ways to make money as a college student. You just have to look for them! Hopefully, this post can help ease some worries and give you a look into how simple it can be to get that bread and secure the bag($).

By: Alexis M Peters ‘20

Before this week, I had never been to a career fair, I had never visited the career center, and I wasn’t doing internships that were even remotely related to my major or career interests. Oh. And I’m a first-semester junior. Watching my friends look for internships and jobs to boost their resume made me happy for them, but also a little scared for myself. Was I behind? Did I need to be networking my butt off in the way all my friends were?

By: Fred Akau ‘20

Some career things to know before leaving ‘SC.

By: Awo Jama ‘22

On October 5th, USC students were granted a rare opportunity when they had the chance to not only attend an early screening of the film First Man, but to witness a discussion panel featuring several notable figures in the aerospace field. The event was produced by both the Viterbi School of Engineering and USC’s Arts and Humanities initiative, Visions and Voices.

By: Danielle Collins ‘20

Network! Connect! Search! Getting started on LinkedIn can seem daunting, but once you get the hang of it, it’s very manageable. I recently set up my LinkedIn account and have been slowly adding to it. I’ve met with a career advisor, and gotten advice from friends and people who work in my field about how to best use LinkedIn. I’m by no means an expert, but I thought I’d share some of the helpful tips I’ve learned so far! I’ll walk you through some tricks I’ve learned for how to create your LinkedIn profile, how to make connections, how to best use the “Search” feature, and how posting works. Check out whichever section you want to learn more about, or all of them if you’re new to LinkedIn!

By: Maddie Walsh ‘20

Surrounding yourself with older and wiser mentors as an undergraduate student can lead to important opportunities and connections, but it can be hard to know where to start. Here’s a list of suggestions inspired by people who have helped shape my own USC experience in the last 2 years.

By: Jamie Wu ‘18

College is a crazy 4 years full of new experiences, new friends and new memories. However, it’s definitely not a smooth ride. It’s a roller coaster filled with ups and downs, nights of laughter and nights of crying. Among the important decisions that can make or break your college experience is deciding what you should major in. And although another one of our bloggers Jonathon talks about it in his video, another big decision is deciding whether you should change your major. I’m going to pose 4 questions for you and hopefully that’ll guide you along the way.

By: Joy Ofodu ‘18

Maybe it’s because I’m about to become one, but I can think of no better time than the present to pass on the various ways a current (or prospective) USC student can connect with alumni to inform their own career journeys! Alumni connections aren’t just professional - they can be social, personal, based on membership in a certain community or local to your hometown! Here’s where you can find USC Alumni:

By: Joy Ofodu ‘18

If you’re new to writing effective cover letters, know that you’re not alone! Like a perfect cake, it can be tough to discern what should go inside. If you’ve been wondering about the recipe, wonder no longer! Here’s the structure I’ve used to land 11 professional roles over the last 5 years:

By: Lilly Kate Diaz ‘20

Hi, all! I hope these first three weeks have been going well for you all and I wish you the best throughout the next several weeks! I wanted to write this post about a great experience I had this past weekend with El Centro Chicano. This past Sunday, on January 21st, 2018, I went to El Centro Chicano’s Latinx Student Empowerment Conference. This conference aimed to support the research, academic success, and social justice activism of USC students. Conferences such as these, and the overall organization, are open to current USC students - both undergraduate and graduate - and welcome new spring admits! They welcome & encourage USC Alumni to attend these conferences! And if I’m being completely honest…It was the best thing I have ever attended. The conference started off with a special guest speaker, Cristela Alonzo, comedian, actress, writer, and overall amazing human being.