Encourage your Aggie to begin researching possible majors and careers during their Freshman year. There is more flexibility for adjustments in the degree plan and less likelihood of your student taking extra hours and extending time to graduation.

Career Exploration Days (formerly known as the AggiExternship Program) were created to provide students (especially freshmen & sophomores) the oportunity to look inside their future workplace. Students can visit a company related to their major or career interest. They have the opportunity to meet with professionals and ask questions about the field. Career Exploration Days occur in January each year.

Career Center staff are available for individual career advising with students on a walk-in or appointment basis. For assistance in scheduling a meeting with a Career Advisor, students should call the Career Center at (979) 845-5139.

Students have access to career information for all majors at Texas A&M through the My Major feature on our website. Sigi3, an interactive career assessment program, is a great place for student to begin evaluating how their interests align with future career options.

As a parent or family member, you have connections to a network of individuals in a variety of careers and professions. Therefore, you can assist in many ways to acquaint your son or daughter with a particular job or career.

One way is to encourage your student to do some informational interviewing. This provides students with the opportunity to interview a business representative or professional in their field of interest about their profession, field or industry, or particular company.

Discussions with Former Students through the Find An Aggie feature on the Association of Former Student's website can provide students with additional connections to industry professionals.

Internships, cooperative education (co-ops), volunteer experiences, and summer jobs are all types of practical work experience. You will also hear these programs referred to as Experiential Education - work experience directly related to your student's field of interest is invaluable for several reasons:

1. Students get to experience the job first hand, which helps them to decide whether they want to pursue a particular career.

2. Students begin to build a network of contacts within their chosen career field.

3. It shows future employers that students have gained relevant work experience in the real world.

4. In some cases, students can earn a substantial amount of money to help pay college expenses.

Students can access our HireAggies system to find experiential education opportunities. To further discuss their options, we recommend they schedule an appointment with their Career Advisor.

In order to compete in today’s job market, students need more than just a college degree. Employers are seeking students who have gained skills outside of the classroom. Writing and presentation skills, technical knowledge, leadership and teamwork abilities, interpersonal skills and experience in diverse settings are a few of the “soft skills” that employers specifically look for in graduates.

Students can enhance their employability in several ways:

• Gain leadership skills by participating in campus clubs and professional organizations.

• Consider adding a minor or certificate such as business administration, a foreign language or professional event management.

• Obtain relevant practical experience through Experiential Education.

• Participate in academic research.

• Become involved in community outreach.

• Increase global awareness through Study Abroad.

• Expand knowledge of possible career paths associated with the various degree plans.

In today’s job market, we know the first job your Aggie obtains upon graduation will probably not be the job he or she keeps until retirement. The basic job search abilities are life-long skills. The Career Center offers workshops to teach your student about all phases of the job search process including: researching companies and industries, resume-writing, behavioral interviewing, presenting their portfolio of skills and achievements, business etiquette, and negotiation tactics.

For information on these and other programs, we recommend that your student view our Events page or call the Career Center at 979-845-5139.
 

Every semester, Texas A&M University hosts an average of 12-16 Career Fairs that provide a wealth of opportunities for your student. Encourage them to start attending Career Fairs as early as their first year on campus to begin the process of networking, exploring career options, and making professional connections.

Students are welcome to attend any Career Fair on campus - even if it is not one directly related to their major. Your student can view the list of Career Fairs, and all of our scheduled programs, on our Events page.

Just when you thought the tuition bills were coming to an end, your son or daughter informs you that he or she wants to go to graduate or professional school. This is a big decision for a student to make and there are several considerations to take into account during this process.

The first consideration is your student's career goals. Does the field that he or she wants to enter reward or require a graduate education? Graduate school should not be used as a way to postpone finding a job. Decide what terminal degree is necessary (Master, Doctorate). Decide what criteria are most important in choosing a program. Attending graduate or professional school means a huge investment of time and money.

If your student is considering applying to law, medical, dental, or health-related graduate or professional schools, we recommend they visit with our Professional School Advisors. We are all on-hand to assist students with the research and application processes.