Be Smart About Career Planning

Choosing a career path is one of the most important decisions you will make!

Choosing a career path is one of the most important decisions you will make. As a Western student, you’ll enjoy access to one of Canada’s most extensive and sophisticated career planning services, available as soon as you arrive on campus. It’s never too soon to begin thinking about your future career prospects, and it’s important to remember that many skills valued by employers can be developed through campus and community involvement, travel, volunteer and leadership experiences.

Here are a few of the ways Western can help you prepare yourself for the future! As early as first year, you can:

• Explore interesting campus activities – volunteer!
• Learn about experiential and service learning opportunities
• Take a career assessment- what are your interests, skills, personality and values?
• Talk with a career counsellor
• Update your resume and prepare for summer jobs
• Attend career events
• Visit our Success Centre at http://www.success.uwo.ca/careers/index.html for job-related information, events and resources.

From internships and co-op programs to experiential learning, community- engaged opportunities and field placements, there are many ways to gain valuable workplace experience.

Internships provide practical experience to students seeking relevant knowledge and skills required to enter a particular career field. Work terms can be local, national or international, depending on the program. Western internships can last anywhere from 12-16 months, benefitting both students and employers. At Western we offer you the flexibility of deciding as a Year 3 student whether you would like to apply for an internship. Internship students are regarded as regular employees taking on responsibilities far beyond the typical duties assigned to 4-month co-op or summer students. In addition to invaluable hands-on work experience many Internships are paid (for example, last year, the average salary for an Engineering student participating in a one-year Internship was well over $40,000). An Employment rate - 2 years after graduation - of 95.1% is one indication of just how well Western can help you develop your career-readiness skills.

http://www.success.uwo.ca/experience/work_integrated_learning/long_term_internship_program/index.html

Finally, our Career Centre would recommend that you use the acronym SMART to think about your career goals:

Specific – state your goals clearly
Measurable – how will you know when you reach your goal?
Attainable – understand the commitment required
Realistic – you must believe your goal can be accomplished
Timely – establish dates and deadlines

Find out more about the unique advantages of becoming a Western student by clicking here!