My Top 8 Tips to College Students

It’s been a few months since I’ve graduated from college, and I must say, now that fall is upon us, it’s a little strange to be driving to work instead of rolling out of bed and heading to class.

Now that I’m out of school (for the time being, at least), I realize how great the college environment is. There is so much at your disposal, and so much time to explore. As I look back at all the opportunities I had, I thought I’d impart some advice to anyone who has time left at their soon-to-be alma mater. The following are what I consider to be the most important things I did (or should have done better):

• Continue Studying a Language: The world is only getting smaller. Not only will foreign-language proficiency make you a better candidate to employers, but it will give you travel opportunities in the future.

• Go Abroad: Studying overseas can give those language skills some context and can serve to enhance and solidify them. Throwing yourself into an atmosphere where you have to employ the vocabulary and grammar you studied back on campus will not only help you become fluent, but will teach you about a different culture and also force you to be resourceful. My semesters in Paris and in London were without question the best semesters of my college career.

• Use Your Liberal Arts Credits to Take Interesting Classes: Now that I’m out of school, I envy my friends who can still decide to take classes on subjects like Film Criticism or Soviet Politics. I took a class on Hinduism my junior year, and it opened my eyes to a religion I never would have explored otherwise.

• Incorporate Your Other Interests into Your Coursework: For many people, their majors are their interests. But if you’re like me, your major isn’t necessarily your passion. I chose journalism because I like to write, but I’m even more passionate about architecture. By the time I realized this, I had no time to change majors. So I took classes in architectural history and focused my news and feature stories on local architecture and urban design. That exploratory drive most journalists possess suddenly activated, and I became a better writer because of it.

• Don’t Just Do an Internship To Say You Did It: People want to hear about the tangible results of your internship. It’s pointless to work somewhere if you can’t come away with accomplishments. Underneath the big bold company title on your resume, you’ll want to be able to say “I completed x and y, and was responsible for z.” In interviews, if all you can say was “it was a learning experience,” then really, it probably wasn’t. So when you’re at your internship, make sure you volunteer for assignments, no matter how simple or boring they may be. The more you ask to do, the more you’ll learn and ultimately, the more responsibility you’ll be given.

• Use Internships/Jobs as Networking Opportunities: There is no better time to start networking than while you’re still in school. Talk to everyone at your internship, not just your boss. See what people do. Set up informational interviews with employees from different departments. You might even find a mentor, which is really important, because that person will take an interest in your future, giving you more opportunities on the job and advocating for you down the line. (Side note: People want to help you. If you work hard and prove yourself, your contacts will go out of their way to help you make connections).

• For All You Seniors, Don’t Freak Out: Easier said than done, right? The fact is, you’ll have so many options out of school. Out of all my friends, a lot have jobs, some are in graduate school and a few are traveling and taking some time off. Just don’t think the second you graduate you need to be in your dream job or at point A of an expected career track. Because someday, when you are managing however many people, hopefully you’ll look back at some unconventional experiences and will understand that it was those risky choices that gave you, as Penelope Trunk would say, that braided career.

Clearly, I’m no expert; I’ve been out of school not six months yet. But I’ve already learned a lot about how my college experiences will help me in the future. And speaking from someone who started having anxiety attacks around this time last year, it’s so helpful to be able to look forward with confidence.

Oh, and speaking of looking forward, that brings me to my last point:

• Enjoy yourself; tonight is Friday night!

Here are some more resources for thinking about your career after college:

• “The Benefits of Temping for College Students and Grads”
• “Five Resume Tips for College Students”
• “Grad School or the Real World?"
• “Turn Postgraduation Panic into Action”

For more on this subject, check out our College Students/Recent Grads section. 

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