Once upon a time there was an English major who hung out with three accounting majors. A lot. In fact, they may or may not have spent their final spring break together. The accounting majors had their lives figured out. They had a chosen path and it just so happened to be a pretty lucrative path. The English major was…confused. And jealous. Very jealous She had no job lined up, no prospect of a job and no clue of where to begin. So, she ran off and spent the summer working at an ice cream shop on Nantucket Island.
The End
You’re graduating in a few short weeks and have no idea what you want to do. You can’t run off to an island because we’re all supposed to stay at home. Everyone around you is obsessed with their own job search, worried that they will lose the job they were offered pre-Covid, or as confused as you are. What should you do? What can you do?
First, take a deep breath. Now take another one. It’s going to be OK. Really. It will be. It might take longer than expected, but things will be OK. Let’s break this thing down. If you are reading this and don’t know what you want to do after you graduate, there are some resources that the Career Center can provide you with. Here are a few to get you started:
Self-Assessment. This is a crucial first step to job searching. Knowing yourself, your strengths and weaknesses, your interests and values, provides the groundwork for finding a job that will suit you. The CCPD offers these valuable online resources to get you started on this task.
Consider Your Major: I am a huge proponent of not being boxed in by your major. I’m thrilled when an art history major wants to work in a gallery, and I’m equally thrilled when they want to work in finance. Take your degree and do with it what you will! But if you are in that figuring-things-out stage, it can be helpful to see some of the careers and jobs that are most often associated with your major. Take a look at What Can I Do With This Major? I can almost guarantee that you’ll be inspired and challenged by the suggestions on this site.
Talk to a Career Coach: You can Zoom with one of us at regularly scheduled drop-in times or use Handshake to schedule an appointment with a coach. We can help you brainstorm and process your options, even after you graduate!
Hopefully after you spend a little time doing self-assessment, researching career fields/job options and talking it over with a coach, a mentor, or a faculty member you’ll have a little better idea of what you want to do. But give yourself some time to figure it out and don’t forget: lots of deep breaths.
Afterward
The three accounting majors started their jobs in May and worked long hours doing accounting things. Summer ended, and the English major left Nantucket and found a decent job that paid the bills. Eventually she went to grad school, found a better job at UMW and married a UMW grad. The accounting majors eventually found their happily-ever-afters as well; the English major and one of them are good friends to this day.
The End
Mary Becelia, Career Coach
