Career Development

At the Career Development Centre, we can help you prepare for the job search through the various stages: the beginning of your university career, the focusing on new directions, the completion of university degrees, graduate school and the preparation for the working world beyond.

The resources on the website and in our office can help you translate your learning experience to a successful career path.  Some information has been provided, as seen on the on the following pages, as guidelines on how to think about the different transitions and developments that happen.

Don't forget about building your skills and proving them. How is an employer going to know what skills you have if you have never proved them outside of your classroom?  Volunteering in companies, agencies and even university departments doing the tasks that lead to roles of higher responsibility is the key to ensuring that you graduate both from school and the limited responsibility jobs you may be holding now. 

Check out our volunteer page for an Excel sheet detailing many different organizations acroos HRM and our on site community agency directory. We also have a community directory on site that lists extensively the agencies that operate in HRM and their area of interest.

Hard cover resources at our site (some involve letters of intent, others career information and grad school summaries) are summarised:  Books and Hardcopy resources

The links for these items are in the list on the left.

Career Check: a checklist that lists several common steps along the way.

Career Cruising: a valuable and holistic career planning tool that allows the user to connect to different careers from the occupational grouping or academic interests. You can find out the conditions of work, see some sample career paths that lead to that job, and also have a direct link to Canadian schools that certify and instruct certificate, degree or diploma programs relevant to that area.  Contact us for the username and password issued to Saint Mary's University Career Services.

Choosing a Program

Choosing a Career

Both these pages include some guiding information to start your thinking process.  Specific work is done in the 101 files (see your present or potential program area under the Arts, Commerce and Science pages).  The purpose of having these two separate is to make a distinction between the two approaches.

Career Decision Making Cycle: a synopsis of the common themes experiences by individuals as they prepare their way.  It is meant as an approximation, based on the findings of many of the students who speak with us and helps you see the next step along the way.

Transitions for University Students: As first year students find out quickly, university is not just a harder form of high school.  You are responsible for more of your success or failure than ever before and the pressure is on to make your time here worthwhile.  This list goes through some of the common phases and helps you figure out where you fit.

Transitions for Graduate Students:  Many people who finish their PhD or a Masters degree are very accustomed to the rigors of university life and the standards of the ivory tower.  Many see themselves as continuing as professionals within the university structure; others wonder about leaving academe behind and what is available for them in the private world. This site is dedicated to those who are considering other options and need some tips in how to translate their Masters or PhD to employment: http://www.universityaffairs.ca/career-sense/

This page last modified Friday, 03-Feb-2012 14:12:02 AST