Congratulations! You’ve made it through another semester and are looking forward to some much needed rest. While you take some time away from hitting the books, the holiday break is a good time to start working on career goals. Some ideas for the break can include:
Create a functional or chronological resume
If you have never created a resume, this is a good opportunity to do so. A chronological resume is a traditional resume that lists the jobs you’ve worked at in reverse chronological order. Great if you have prior working experience. A functional resume is a great tool that showcases your skills and knowledge over work experience. This is a great resume if you want to showcase information about yourself that may not be represented in your work experience. Visit http://career.unm.edu/common/pdfs/resumehandout.pdf for information on resumes and different resume examples.
Update your current resume
Reflect upon your achievements from the previous semester. For now, don’t worry about the length or format, simply add some additional resumes to your current resume to document new items. This is a great way to reflect on the work you have done! Some ideas for sections include: What courses did you complete and what did you learn from them? Did you get a new job or new responsibilities? Did you start a new volunteer opportunity? What are some skills you used this semester? Did you complete any group projects you can talk about?
Look for work/internships/volunteer opportunities related to your major or chosen career
Searching for relevant experience is difficult while taking classes. Use this time to seek out opportunities that will be beneficial to your career. Are there any jobs on campus that will meet your goals? How about off campus? You can use Lobo Career Connection to search for job and internship opportunities!
Network
Networking is the number one way to find jobs! Use this time to talk to family, friends, professors, and other people you are acquainted with to see if they know of any opportunities you can pursue. This is important because they can introduce you to professionals is your field, or suggest people to talk to. When you meet these people, you can conduct an Informational Interview to find out more about what they do and how to enter their field. Find out more at: http://career.unm.edu/common/pdfs/informationalinterviewhandout.pdf
Explore different careers and jobs
Ever wonder what an actuary actually does? Or how much education you would need to become a veterinary assistant? Or what a nurse practitioner makes in New Mexico? There are great informational websites that can assist with your research. Checkout:
www.onetonline.org and www.bls.gov/ooh. These two websites are job information websites where you can get up to date and accurate information on any job you can think of. You can search by job title or field. Play around and have fun.
Find out what to do with your major
So you are totally stoked to be pursuing an English degree. Your parents, on the other hand, may be questioning what you plan to do with your degree. I know this from experience. That’s why we created these handy PDFs for you to use and explore the different options for your degree. Visit http://career.unm.edu/students-alumni/majors–careers.html for ideas on careers related to your major. Also, visit www.buzzfile.com to search by state and see what local companies hire your major.
Make an appointment with us
We are open after classes end. If you haven’t stopped by our office, we can help out with all of the above information as well as preparing for interviews, choosing a major or career, and any other career related questions you may have. Visit our website at career.unm.edu for more information about majors and jobs and call 277-2531 to set up an appointment. We hope you have a happy holiday!
Marty Apodaca, LMHC, NCC, GCDF
Career Development Facilitator 2
UNM Career Blog 