| First
and Second Years |
 |
Talk
to your son or daughter about his or her general interests-academic,
professional and personal. Share your own career development
experience and career path. |
|
Encourage your son or daughter to utilize the Rutgers
Online Career Planning Site. This free resource
enables students to identify their interests, skills and
values, which are then linked to appropriate Rutgers majors
and real jobs obtained by Rutgers graduates with those
majors. (You might also want to try it. It's fun and informative!) |
|
Explore
our website for other tips and ideas to share with your
son or daughter. |
|
If
you have specific questions or need assistance, contact
Dr. Richard White, Director of Career Services, at riwhite@rutgers.edu.
|
|
Suggest
that your son or daughter do the following: |
|
|
| 1.
Explore our online
profiles of Rutgers
University majors and related career paths |
|
2. Review the Rutgers Career Services
Guide, which contains detailed information on resumes,
interviews, internships, jobs and graduate school |
| 3.
Attend scheduled seminars on choosing a major, assessing
skills and interests, and finding an internship |
| 4.
Schedule an appointment with a career counselor at any
location to discuss the relationship between interests,
majors, and career opportunities |
| 5.
Join one or more student organizations and become an
active participant |
| 6.
Get to know faculty members and administrators |
|
|
| |
|
|
Help
your son or daughter identify a personal and professional
network, consisting of neighbors, relatives, local merchants,
church or synagogue members, etc. Begin the networking
process as an under-class student. Ask contacts where
they work; what they like and dislike about their jobs;
how they got their jobs; how their careers evolved; and
if they can suggest other professionals to talk to. |
|
Suggest
volunteer opportunities either in the New Brunswick/Piscataway
area or in the home area. They are great resume builders. |
|
Urge
your son or daughter to write his or her first resume
and have it critiqued by a career counselor during "drop-in
hours" at our various locations (no appointment needed).
It's not too soon to write a first resume! It will come
in handy for volunteer positions, internships, interviews
and networking. |
|
| |
| Junior
and Senior Years |
|
IMPORTANT:
Incorporate all the steps listed above into your "game
plan" for your junior or senior. It's never too late
to start or expand the career development process. |
|
Advise
your son or daughter to update and expand his/her resume
and have it critiqued by a career counselor during "drop-in
hours" at our various locations. Your child's resume
will gain in depth and breadth throughout the years at
Rutgers. Nevertheless, it should be limited to one page. |
|
Urge
your son or daughter to begin the search for a summer
internship during the fall of the junior year. It may
seem early, but some companies actually begin interviewing
on campus during the fall semester for internships the
following summer (especially in the accounting and engineering
areas). |
|
Suggest
these resources to your son or daughter-whether looking
for an internship (junior year) or a full-time job (senior
year): |
|
|
| 1.
Register for and participate in CareerKnight, the Rutgers
on-campus interviewing program. This online system enables
students to review company internship and job descriptions,
submit resumes, find out if they have been selected
for an interview, and schedule their interviews from
the convenience of their personal computer. About 300
employers interview for full-time positions and 100
for internships each year. |
| 2.
Check jobs and internships on the Rutgers-New Brunswick
job board, CareerKnight.
|
| 3.
Attend career days from September to May. Rutgers Career
Services sponsors the largest number of career fairs
of any career center in the country. Here is our lineup: |
|
| |
|
|
September
|
Engineering
and Computer Science Career Day |
|
October
|
Math
and Actuarial Career Day |
|
October
|
Business
and Liberal Arts Career Day |
| October |
Graduate
and Professional School Day |
|
January
|
New
Jersey Collegiate Career Day |
|
February
|
Internship
Career Day |
|
February
|
Athletes
Career Night |
|
February
|
New
Jersey Diversity Career Day |
|
February
|
Education
Career Day |
|
April
|
Science
Career Day |
|
April
|
Government
and Non-Profit Career Day |
|
May
|
New
Jersey Collegiate Career Day |
|
|
Steer your son or daughter to the online Alumni
Career Network. This database of nearly 1500 Rutgers
alumni is organized by academic, geographic, and career information.
Everyone is eager to provide career information and advice.
|
|
If your son or daughter is on a graduate or professional school
track, we can also help. Suggest these resources: |
| |
| 1.
Graduate school seminar (includes experts in law, business,
medicine, humanities and social sciences) - October |
| 2.
Graduate and Professional School Day (140 graduate programs
in attendance) - November |
| 3.
Career counseling sessions - year round |
| 4.
Personal statement critiques - year round |
|
| |
|
In addition,
we suggest you visit the JobWeb
site, which provides many interesting articles for parents
related to career development issues. JobWeb®, a web site
of career development and job-search information for college
students and new college graduates, is owned and sponsored
by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).
Best wishes
to your children as they prepare for life and a career beyond
Rutgers. We hope this action plan will provide you with some
ideas and strategies for supporting them at this exciting
and challenging time.
Updated
5/8/08
|
