How to Get the Most from a College Career Services Department

Practically every college or vocational school has some sort of Career Services department. Free of charge to students, these centers can be terrific resources that shouldn't be ignored. Most of them offer such valuable assistance as resume and interview training, job networking leads, professional contacts, career assessment, and ongoing coaching.

But to get the most out of a school's Career Services department, you should observe these basic but important guidelines.

Treat Them Professionally
You never know who the people working at Career Services communicate with regularly. Many of them keep in close contact with sought-after employers that could easily offer you a terrific job. That in mind, you certainly don't want them to remember you as the person who's always 40-minutes late for meetings, or the girl who pops her gum throughout the discussion. So do yourself a favor. Treat everyone in the career services department as if they're a direct line to your dream employer -- they may very well be.

Consult Them Early
Don't wait until the last semester of your senior year to start getting Career Services in on your efforts. By that time, there's only so much they can do. And if you've done much of the work on your own without consulting them, you could very well have to undo a lot your work or habits if the advisors recommend a different approach. Start talking to career services people as early in your college career as they'll allow. That way they can help shape and guide your career-building plans from the beginning.

Consult Them Often
Again, a Career Services staff doesn't charge you for their work. So don't be timid to make good use of what they're offering. How much is the right amount of time to spend there? Ask them. They're certain to have recommendations. However often you decide to work with an advisor, you should certainly be in there more than once or twice your senior year. In the real world, career coaching generally goes for more than $100 an hour. Through Career Services, you're getting it for nothing. You'd be crazy not to take advantage of that.

Don't Waste Their Time
The other extreme compared to people who never go to Career Services are those who go too much and make a pest of themselves. Career Services departments typically have a very small, dedicated staff that has enormous amounts of work to do. So don't constantly bother them with questions you could answer by doing a quick search on the Web. If nothing else, write down your questions as you go and bring them all to be answered in one session. As I said before, you want them to have a favorable impression of you, in case some great employer is looking for referrals. Being a nuisance is certainly not the way.

Don't Expect Them to Do the Work For You
Remember, they're only there to advise and assist. It's still up to you to do the legwork, make the calls, and show up at the meetings. It's a collaborative effort. Do your part if you want the relationship to work.

Be Willing to Follow Their Advice
Nothing is more frustrating than someone repeatedly asking for advice, and then ignoring it each time. Don't put yourself in such an annoying position. Career Services departments are typically made up of very good people. They have great advice. But it doesn't do any good if you don't put it into practice.