Don't Put It Off

Lately a lot of non-Freshman students have been coming into drop ins with high school experience on their resume and this is a problem. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but you are not going to get a job if you only have high school experience. These students look very desperate and scared when I tell them they need to take their high school stuff off and I understand their anxiety but it's my job to give them a reality check. So for any of you out there who are freshman (or beyond) and haven't been doing anything on campus, START NOW. I made the mistake of not doing anything on campus until spring semester of my sophomore year and now I need to get a lot of experience started in a short amount of time. Now, for those of you who are rising Juniors or Seniors, you're going to need to work even harder. First, join some on campus clubs and organizations! It's easy, they usually only meet once a week and it never hurts to make more connections. Second, get some off campus volunteer experience, preferably something related to what you want to do in the future. Third, get an on or off campus job ASAP. Fourth, internships. For internships you're going to need experience and relevant coursework so by following the previous steps you'll have the foundations of experience for an internship, which are key to getting a job after graduation.
A lot of people tell me they don't have time to do these things because of schoolwork and to them I have to say that that is untrue. I know many students who work hard academically and still have a strong activities and experience section on their resume. Your social life may need to become a slightly smaller part of your life but it will be worth it in the long run. I don't want to make anyone panic but for most of you there is still time so get going!