Texas State provides a variety of resources and tips to students on the lookout for summer career opportunities.
- Visit career services
Sam Heimbach, career advisor for the College of Fine Arts and Communication, said there are a lot of career development resources available for students.
“We have this great resource called the career closet where if you have an interview or a networking opportunity, you can come to our career closet and you can check out any professional item you like, and check it out for up to five business days,” Heimbach said.
The career closet is available free of charge, but requires students to return the used clothing dry cleaned.
Career Services focuses on preparing students for interviews through running practice appointments to gauge a student’s anxiety level under pressure and offer advice.
“Our office helps you prepare for mock interviews, and it even has a free tool online called Interview Stream where you can practice interviewing on your own from your computer at home,” Heimbach said.
Career advisement and services are free for students and alumni.
- Utilize Jobs4Cats
Jobs4Cats is an online database specifically for Texas State students. Through Jobs4Cats, students can find part-time and full-time work on and off campus. Students can also use the tool to find internships locally and nationally.
“We have hundreds of thousands of jobs in Jobs4Cats, and we’re just waiting on students to apply,” Heimbach said. “Companies have taken the time to go on there. … They are really interested in having Texas State students apply.”
Samantha Schill, accounting senior, said she applied for jobs through Jobs4Cats and attained two paid internships—one sophomore year and one junior year, where she currently works.
“I absolutely love my job and I love Jobs4Cats,” Schill said. “I think Jobs4Cats is a secret that everyone is welcome to, but I feel like a lot of people don’t use it.”
- Update your resume
Career Services provides a resume template online for students to fill in with their own information. Students can send in their completed resume for review.
“For internships, you can definitely use the same template, but we find that for different majors and industries, there may be some things that you need to tweak,” Heimbach said.
Career Services’ 48-hour online resume review system allows students to submit their resumes online. Within two business days, a Career Services professional office will provide feedback.
“You can also send (a resume) to your college’s career advisor where you can talk more and drill into industry-specific concerns or questions,” Heimbach said.
- Be proactive
James Mayhan, advanced practice leadership graduate student, said the social work field office helped him acquire his placement at the Memorial Hermann Children’s Hospital.
“The best way to get a job is to sell yourself well,” Mayhan said. “If you apply, give them a few days, call them and ask if they got your application and start making a relationship with them. You’re more likely to get the interview or job.”
Mayhan recommends students research the company they are applying with before attending an interview to prepare themselves.
“Advocate for yourself. If it’s something you really want, see if you can arrange a meeting with somebody that works there and make yourself stand out from everybody else,” Mayhan said.
- Apply
Schill landed a job at CohnReznick, an Austin-based company specializing in advising services for accounting and taxes.
Schill said she was one of many applicants when applying at CohnReznick. After attaining the position, she asked why the company chose her.
“She told us she liked the fact that we weren’t about to graduate, and we applied for an internship midway though our undergraduate degree,” Schill said. “She liked that we didn’t have any work history in regards to auditing, and they could teach me everything fresh.”
Students can contact Career Services by phone to schedule a career advising appointment.
