With students approaching graduation still unsure about the right job for them, Cal Poly alumna Shasta Palmer is offering a career counseling workshop April 9 to help.
The workshop, called a Career Selection and Self Discovery course, aims to help students not only consider the job that would be the most fulfilling, but also offers the most opportunities for where they hope to live.
Palmer, who received a master’s in industrial technology in 2008, said when she got into her current career in aerospace engineering, she did not consider how many jobs would be available to her if she wanted to stay in the San Luis Obispo area.
“I spent six years getting a degree that’s not really necessarily in a field I want to be in,” Palmer said. “You spend thousands of dollars, years, working on your grades to get through school and then when you get out, life hits you with all the reality: if you want to stay in this area, you should have got a degree to stay in this area.”
In addition, Palmer said in her experience at Cal Poly, though she was offered instructive workshops on résumés and interviews, she did not feel she received a specified direction to her field that would allow her to flourish in the area she wanted to live in. Palmer said she hopes the workshop will help students decide what they really want to do.
Sherrie Amido, a Cal Poly English alumna and education management lecturer, will participate in résumé workshops April 9 for English majors. She said when considering a job, it is important to be specific and knowledgeable about the job and prospective employer.
“So many students, young students for sure, go to the job fair and they start chatting with different companies,” Amido said. “And they might be very excited to get an interview and an offer, but it might not be the right fit because they didn’t really do the research, and you’re going to waste summer because you made a hasty decision finding out if that’s the company for you or if they’re giving you the skills that you want, so it’s worth the time.”
Amido also said employers are more impressed by job seekers who are knowledgeable about their company, as well as offer a “functional résumé” that highlights the most important and pertinent experience of the job seeker for that employer. She said students should get a good list of “résumé verbs” to show their full employable potential.
The English department will also have additional career workshops for English majors from 12:30 to 3:45 p.m. in the Cotchett Education building, rooms 203 and 204 on April 9. These include “Interview 101” led by Roger Reedy, the director of business development for BBSI, a nationwide business service, and a 1986 Cal Poly English alumnus.
Reedy said when he was asked to participate in the workshops, which started in January 2010 with a small group of English majors, he “jumped right on” the opportunity.
“Back when I was in school as an English major, we didn’t have any kind of mentoring program,” Reedy said. “I hadn’t met any alumni until I had graduated myself, and I always thought that was the only criticism I would have had of the school back then.”
For Palmer, Cal Poly was lacking in a guidance or mentoring program when she was in school, which propelled her to start the career counseling workshop. Another round of the workshop is scheduled for April 30, and will follow the same format as the first. Palmer said the first round is for the selection process of the right job, while the second is concerned with how to get there.
“When you go to career counseling at Poly, they’re very helpful looking over résumés, but there’s not really anybody there that I found would sit down and say, ‘Where do you want to live? Where’s your skill-set? and what kind of job are you shooting for here?’ because that’s a big deal,” Palmer said. “And just to sit down and think about that earlier in the degree process, I think, would make a huge difference in later career satisfaction.”
Amido agrees with Palmer, but said it is also important for students to contact alumni who are in the fields the student is interested in to get more of a feel for what the job would be like.
“The best researching is not just online: maybe contacting somebody in the industry currently working and asking them for an informative interview,” Amido said. “You cannot believe the wonderful information you can get. Plus, then you get a networking contact.”
Reedy also said it is important to network with alumni, as well as make academic and business connections, especially when still in school. In fact, Reedy said it is never too early to start networking, as well as establish a LinkedIn account, which is the “Facebook for the business world.
“Start with your professors, get to know your professors — you’re going to want recommendations from professors especially in the department you’re majoring in,” Reedy said. “You want to network as far and wide as you can while you’re still a student. I mean, it’s the easiest time right now to build your network.”
Reedy said he felt alumni like himself and even Palmer should help current students find direction for their lives after college.
“I love Cal Poly and I love what the students are doing,” Reedy said. “And if we can give back a little bit and help give you guys a little bit of direction, I think it’s something we should have been doing a long time ago just like something we’re doing now.”
The workshop will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Paso Robles’ Centennial Park. Tickets are $20.