What do you want to be when you grow up?

Over our spring vacation, I had the opportunity to visit Colgate University and after having dinner with Michael Sciola, the Director of  Career Services, I found myself thinking a great deal about the career choices my students will hopefully have upon graduation from college.

While the news has been full of articles declaring that the STEM disciplines are about the only healthy or lucrative fields to consider, my dinner conversation made me realize my students are overlooking a key part of the college search.

I'm pretty sure most of the girls do not visit the Career Services Department when touring schools, but they should.  With a goal of building professional competencies from day one, Colgate's career services begins contacting students even before they show up on campus.  Freshmen can take an on-line assessment that measures their interests, skills, and passions, and 87% of the current freshmen class has already visited or worked with the office in some way.  Sophomores are invited back to school before spring semester for a three day career program that includes mentoring partnerships, alums, and parents. Students may also participate in a "Day in the Life" shadowing experience, and students can receive funding for summer internships.  There is also the TIA or "Thought Into Action" program, a student incubator that allows students to develop real for-profit or non-profit ventures under the guidance of alumni or parent entrepreneurs.  And those are just some of the programs that are offered.

Colgate is certainly not the only university that has such an involved career services office (Sewanee also comes to mind, and there are many others), but I was very impressed by the scope of their program and the priority the school has placed on the service.  It also doesn't hurt that their alumni base is extraordinarily involved, something that was clear to me at almost every turn.  Even students who major in communications or philosophy or Spanish or anthropology are able to connect with alumni, build professional networks, and find fulfilling jobs once they graduate from college.

So before you give up on that English degree, spend some quality time in the career services office and find out what help they offer.  One thing is certain: don't wait until you are a senior. The sooner you connect with them, the better.