CAREER CENTER
TIPS FOR PARENTS
Things Every Parent Should Know
About the
Campus Career Center
1.
There is a
difference between a job and a career. And there is a difference between job
hunting and career planning. After four years of college, it is likely you will
want your son or daughter to pursue a career instead of just a job. And it is
likely you will not be pleased if they land a job they could have otherwise
obtained right out of high school.
2.
Your son or
daughter needs to be proactive, plan ahead, and begin early establishing a
relationship with his or her college career center. A career is too important to
be tended to only under desperation circumstances and in a state of panic. It is
not wise to solicit help from the career center on short notice. It is not
advisable that your son or daughter wait until the last minute to address any
component of their career planning or job search process.
3.
Career planning
is a process, not a one-time act. It is multifaceted and progressive. To be
successful in their career pursuit, your son or daughter will need to understand
that important things in life take time and require planning. One visit to the
career center will not solve all their problems, nor will it equip them with
everything they need to be effective in the attainment of their career goals.
4.
A degree alone
will not guarantee a lucrative career upon graduation. In order to be a serious
candidate in today’s competitive job market, your son or daughter will need to
extend their education beyond the classroom and expand their experience beyond
the degree. Encourage your son or daughter to get involved in extracurricular
activities, relevant clubs, and internships that can provide opportunities to
gain experience before graduation.
5.
The more
goal-oriented your son or daughter is, the more likely they are to obtain career
success. Once your son or daughter explores their range of career options,
they should be encouraged to set realistic and attainable career goals. Without
some notion of where they want to go and what they want to do, your son or
daughter will lack the sense of focus and direction necessary for career
success. Choosing their career goal before they choose their academic major is
oftentimes more advisable.
6.
To ensure they
are adequately prepared and fully equipped, your son or daughter will need to
take full advantage of the services offered and actively participate in the
various programs, events and activities sponsored by the career center. Your son
or daughter’s attendance at career workshops, career fairs, information
sessions, and other career-related events provides them the tools necessary to
effectively manage their career.
7.
It is time for
your son or daughter to begin thinking and acting like a professional. If they
intend to pursue a serious career, it will be necessary for them to devote
adequate time and energy to such critical details as professional attire,
professional behavior and attitude, etiquette, employer expectations, workplace
culture, networking techniques, prospecting techniques, negotiation techniques,
job market research methods, job search strategies, interview preparation, and
resume writing skills. Too often, young candidates head out into the job market
with no training in any of these important areas, and it shows.
8.
Your son or
daughter will need to take responsibility for their own career planning and job
search efforts. It is not the role of the campus career center to find a job for
your son or daughter. More often than not, the career center will focus on
teaching job search skills rather than actually placing your son or daughter in
a job. While many job openings will be posted through the career center, and
many interviews will be available through the career center, the majority of
opportunities that await your son or daughter will be the ones they discover
through the comprehensive career planning and job search process taught by the
career center.
Collegiate Parent: Advice and Tips for College Parents
Letting Go: Tips for Parents of College Students
Tips for Parents of College Kids
Advice for Parents of College Freshmen
Advice for College Students:
Encourage and Admonish
Coping With College Transition: Guide for Parents
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Parents as Partners
You can be proud of raising a son
or daughter who is ready to take on new challenges and responsibilities,
whether at a campus across the country or down the street. Here are a few
pieces of advice we would like to share to help this transition:
1. Realize the academic challenges are much different from high
school.
Your student will have to study harder, and more independently. Remind
them of the many resources on campus to help them be successful such as
tutoring and writing centers. Even students who are strong writers will
need help with papers in college.
Remind your student that the syllabus they got on the first day of class
will be their friend. Encourage them to make copies of the syllabus from
each class so they can keep copies at their desk and also make a binder
for their classes with the syllabus as the first page.
2. Understand your student might start college with the goal of
being a doctor… and may end their four years with a degree in
communication.
Many students change their goals as they go through college. Support your
student as they explore opportunities and possibly work through the
process of changing their major.
3. Encourage them to get to know their professors.
The professor can be a vital player in the life of your student and, down
the road, a reference as your student applies for internships, jobs and
perhaps graduate school. They should introduce themselves to the
professor, ask questions and take advantage of the office hours professors
set aside just to talk to students.
4. Set expectations early.
Discuss what information you want your student to share with you. What do
you expect from their grades? Do you want them to have a job during the
school year? Review the Student Code of Conduct (found on the college
website). Will your student share the tuition statement with you? Having
these conversations early can prevent misunderstanding.
5. Talk about communication.
Talking about talking sounds funny, but it’s an important subject to
discuss before your student starts college. Will you set up a certain time
of the week to check in? Will you text rather than phone?
When you do talk, ask open-ended questions that can’t be answered by “yes”
or “no” so they have to share. For example, “What have you enjoyed about
the transition from high school to college?”
Collegiate Parent: Advice and Tips for College Parents
Letting Go: Tips for Parents of College Students
Tips for Parents of College Kids
Advice for Parents of College Freshmen
Advice for College
Students: Encourage and Admonish
Coping With College Transition: Guide for Parents
Parental Reflections
"There is always a moment in
childhood when the door opens and lets the future in."
-Graham Green
"The greatest gifts you can give
your children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of
independence."
-Denis Waitley
"If you would have your children walk honorably through the world, you
must not attempt to clear the stones from their path, but teach them to
walk firmly over them - not insist upon leading them by the hand, but let
them learn to go alone."
-Anne Bronte
"The most important thing that parents can teach their children is how to
get along without them."
-Frank A. Clark
"Children have to be educated, but they have also to be left to educate
themselves."
-Ernest Dimnet
CAREER CENTER
Birmingham-Southern College
Box 549010 | Norton Campus Center,
Suite 214
Office 205-226-4719 | Appointments
205-226-4717
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