Below are a few tips on what you can do from day one to make sure you fulfill your dreams of finding a job after your first degree or pursuing graduate studies.
During your first month at university, do your personal SWOT Analysis (Strengths – Weaknesses – Opportunities – Threats), with timely graduation, first job and/or graduate studies in mind. For this, time management skills are very important to master, as you may have to study and work at the same time to develop a set of skills to ensure employability or entrepreneurship after graduation.
Check out the following link for a step-by-step guidance on how to conduct a personal SWOT analysis: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2013/04/15/how-to-conduct-a-personal-s-w-o-t-analysis/#70e35f7728d8
Make a plan to turn your identified weaknesses into strengths and threats into opportunities
For example, if you are studying communication, the ability to speak formally in public is key and if like many people you fear standing in front of the public to speak, you need to have a plan to grab every opportunity you can find to practice speaking in public, starting with your small work group and progressively taking up positions of responsibility with the various students’ associations at university.
Another very common example of a weakness is procrastination. If like many, you continually postpone action to later, you are likely to fall behind your studies and miss many opportunities. One way to avoid procrastination is to have a plan and stick to it and when emergencies arise, we re-adjust the plan. For instance, I used to develop a schedule at the beginning of every semester that included time for my classes, personal study, exercise, entertainment/cooking, etcetera.
Review your progress at the beginning of every semester
Reward yourself for each goal you achieved for the last semester and persevere for those goals that still need to be achieved; add them to your new schedule. Analyse and re-adjust the course of action taken where necessary and keep trying until you achieve your goals: impossible is never part of your vocabulary!
Get to know your professors, apply for internships and develop your employability skills
Being in good standing with your studies, getting good grades and having a good relationship with your professors are key to your academic success, especially if you want to gain access to graduate schools. You will not only need to show excellent grades but you will also need recommendation letters from your professors.
Your professors as also very important sources of information for student job opportunities and valuable academic support. Get to know them beyond the surface level and try have them get to know you as well. Professors usually have office hours where you can discuss with them. Tell them about your academic and professional goals, they may be able to connect you to teaching assistant positions and research projects. Many are helpful and willing to support students, especially those who take their studies seriously.
Similarly, internships and part time jobs are readily available, especially in western countries. At the beginning of the year, list all the companies or individuals you will reach out to for potential internships. Think about it this way: many companies welcome students as interns/volunteers. So, instead of spending the summer hanging out with friends, do something productive with your time. Learn a skill and get valuable work experience that will better prepare you to get a job or start your own business after you graduate.
Lehlé Baldé
Lehlé Baldé graduated from the University of Waterloo in Canada with BA in Speech Communication and from the University of Northampton in the UK with an MSc in International Marketing Strategy. You can reach her by email: baldelehle@gmail.com
