Building a Resume Starts Before Graduation

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Some time back I heard about a young man who had graduated college with a technical degree and had gone over a year without finding a job. It's a tough market, of course, but I learned he failed to do something very important, which made it even more difficult. While he was in college he did no extracurriculars, like a computer science club, and he never actually worked. As in, he didn't do any work of any sort. He was a true full-time student with nothing else going on. That's a problem. 

When I was in college my plans were very different from where I would up. My heart was set on ministry, and I took every step to prepare myself. I studied, sure, but I also went on a mission internship, did some outreach work with my college class, and supply preached practically every Sunday. I built a background in student ministry that went on my resume. 

I have a friend whose daughter is following a similar path in her student career. She's studying natural sciences and has already worked on a couple of field research projects in the US and has another one coming up next semester somewhere in Africa (the country escapes me). This is all exactly what she should be doing right now.

My own son, a student at a New Jersey university, has worked since high school. He was part of the summer work experience program at his high school for a few summers, working with the IT people. He worked for a good while after at a computer business, doing everything from computer to network setup. Now he's a SOC analyst in a special program at his university. He's doing what's to be expected at this point in his life. Gaining experience and building up a resume of work. 

This young man I mentioned at the beginning of this article sabotaged himself by focusing only on his studies, using his free time for entertainment, and never putting in an hour of work in something related to his field. Now, granted, not everyone can easily find such work for their degree major. I imagine Communications majors are short on options. But a resume that includes flipping burgers is better than none at all, particularly in this job market. 

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