It’s Post-Syllabus Week! You know what that means; classes have just begun and will now consist of actual work, instead of activities for getting to know your professors, classmates, TA’s. You are still catching your friends up on your summer activities and learning about theirs, and you’re branching out to make new friends. Most likely, you’re getting ready to join some clubs, or recruit members for ones you’re already in, and you probably are wondering if you’ll ever have free time again!
The beginning of any semester can be jam-packed with so many obligations that sometimes you don’t know what to do with yourself. Any minute of spare time to go hang out with friends or gather yourself is welcomed. However great these moments of freedom can be, there are a few things you need to do now to set yourself up for success later in the semester and with jobs and internships.
Update your resume and Upload it to myCCO. Remember that killer internship or job you had over the summer? Make sure to express the skills you developed over the summer! (The longer you wait to do it, the less fresh it’ll be in your mind.) Recruiters are posting tons of jobs and internship listings on the myCCO! They want Purdue students, so make sure to upload your resume so it’s ready to be sent to potential employers!
Get organized. Combine all your assignments from each class syllabus into one assignment schedule. Flipping through five different syllabi each day to find out what’s due tomorrow is tiring. Grab your planner–or Mortar Board– sit down, and gather all your academic assignments in one place so you don’t miss any! Also, knowing when all your classes’ projects will be due can help you plan out your social activities!
Start thinking about internships you may want next summer. I know you’re thinking, “Summer just ended; I have a WHOLE YEAR before I need to worry about that,” but let me remind you that the “early bird gets the worm”. Think about what you want to do, the companies you’d like to do it for and possibly do some background research on them. Start talking to those companies and trying to get interviews.
Visit the CCO. We promise we don’t bite! Come in and get your resume edited, schedule some time to talk with advisors about possible internships or interview prep, and get advice on your portfolio (or lack thereof). We’re here to help you, so let us!
