I Went to the Career Center for the First Time

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?

Career readiness is something people have been hitting us over the head with pretty much the minute we started applying to college. (And if you had super intense parents like me, probably way before then, too.) We are probably all heavily familiar with the formula of going to college, getting internships, possibly going to grad school, and getting a good enough job to pay off your mountain of student loans. But somewhere in there, you have to figure out how to write a resume; how to get internships with little to no experience; how to make an employer want to hire you; if, and where you might go to grad school; and even before all of that, what you want to major in. Career readiness is a lot. It’s stressful. Joining the adult world of working a full-time job can be daunting, and this is where the career center comes in.

To be honest, USC’s career emails never offered any opportunities that worked for my major. It was always marketing or consulting, or tech, but my major is Narrative Studies. During my first years of college, I didn’t think much about this. I figured one day something would pop up, and I continued picking up side jobs that would lend more to a future in childhood education rather than writing. So, I finally decided to take a trip to the career center for a quick drop-in appointment to see if I was too late. Had my focus on fun jobs not related to my major ruined my chances in the literary market? Was I dreadfully behind in this rat race, since I hadn’t yet visited the career fair or thought seriously about life after graduation?

“Definitely not,” the counselor told me. And I breathed a sigh of relief. During my visit, she encouraged me to join LinkedIn, which I had never bothered to do before because it just seemed like something that only older people with real jobs had. But she told me that LinkedIn was very helpful for networking and reaching out to the network of over 250,000 USC alum also using the site. Networking was truly the missing link to my career preparedness.

I learned that it was alright that my internships and jobs thus far hadn’t been related exactly to my major, but it was good that I had worked, had a good academic standing, and was involved in clubs and activities on campus. However, networking is a very important component of preparing for a career. The counselor even gave me a “networking cheatsheet” with some tips that I’ll share with you.

Do your research!

Look into companies and/or industries that interest you. Look at different positions and job descriptions to determine what options you would most likely want to pursue.

Join Professional Orgs.

This is easier for some majors rather than others and I specifically don’t have many professional organizations available to me as a writer, but this could be very helpful in the long run.

Use connectSC and USC mentorship website.

Did you know that USC had a special site that connects USC alumni with current students to find and create mentorships? Use the amazing Trojan Family to your advantage, and look for a mentor who can help you reach your career goals! (Log on to connectSC, click “Career Network,” under the “Network Advising” tab!)

My visit to the career center was brief, but it helped me realize that there is no single perfect way to get career ready. There isn’t one singular formula to ultimate career preparedness, though we’ve been trained to think so. This was my first time really sitting down to talk about my future career path, and I realize now that I’m not behind at all. I have time to expand into the literary sphere, and gain a mentor, and expand my network, and get my foot in the door. My belief continues to be: follow your heart, and everything will fall into place.

I hope this has helped you determine if USC’s Career Center is a good resource for you. Beyond networking tips, they can help you find jobs and internships, prepare for interviews, and write your cover letter and resume.

I feel good about where I am, and I’m not so concerned about finding the ultimate most perfectest internship. However, I will join LinkedIn, since I guess I’m an adult now?

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