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What can I do to prepare myself for my future career?
I am a public health major with a minor in psychology. This is my junior year of college but I have no volunteer or internship experience and my resume looks pretty shabby. I know that I want to work in mental health field, but I do not have a clear idea on what exactly I want to do after graduating from college. Is there any advice on what I should do? #internships #public-health #health
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Sindhu’s Answer
Cecile, I think you are looking for advice in two areas: a) how to add some good experiences on your resume and b) career advice on what to do after college. You have a lot of time before you graduate, so think of smaller steps to get you there vs. trying to get it all done overnight.
For the resume, identify a few volunteer positions you could do during the school year and an internship for next summer to fill in the gaps in your resume currently. There are so many volunteer positions related to mental health such as crisis text line, 24-hour crisis centers, suicide prevention hotlines, etc. that you could help build your resume. Other things to investigate here are potential opportunities with professors who work in the fields of your interest such a special research paper with them you could include in your resume as well. Lastly, there are internship opportunities for next summer that you should think about now. All of these could help build out your resume.
As for what to do after graduation, there are many careers that you could research - clinical research, consulting, education, social work, health policy, etc. If your interests are aligned to behavioral health, there are aspects of that in any of the jobs above. Think about your other skills and what you enjoy doing (e.g., does working with families as a social worker to provide them information and advocacy what interests you or would you rather do research to better understand behavioral health treatments) and figure out which areas you would want to focus on once you graduate. I find the best way to find out about this is 1) research online (there are so many sources of information) and 2) find your family members, college alums, or professors who can talk to you about the fields of your interest.
Hope this helps.
Conduct online research on behavioral health areas of interest (e.g., clinical research, social work, education)
Figure out a list of people in the areas of your interest to talk to and learn more about behavioral health
Conduct 3-5 informational interviews with the list of people you assemble
For the resume, identify a few volunteer positions you could do during the school year and an internship for next summer to fill in the gaps in your resume currently. There are so many volunteer positions related to mental health such as crisis text line, 24-hour crisis centers, suicide prevention hotlines, etc. that you could help build your resume. Other things to investigate here are potential opportunities with professors who work in the fields of your interest such a special research paper with them you could include in your resume as well. Lastly, there are internship opportunities for next summer that you should think about now. All of these could help build out your resume.
As for what to do after graduation, there are many careers that you could research - clinical research, consulting, education, social work, health policy, etc. If your interests are aligned to behavioral health, there are aspects of that in any of the jobs above. Think about your other skills and what you enjoy doing (e.g., does working with families as a social worker to provide them information and advocacy what interests you or would you rather do research to better understand behavioral health treatments) and figure out which areas you would want to focus on once you graduate. I find the best way to find out about this is 1) research online (there are so many sources of information) and 2) find your family members, college alums, or professors who can talk to you about the fields of your interest.
Hope this helps.
Sindhu recommends the following next steps:
There are indeed a lot of volunteer opportunities in this field.
Margaret Harrelson
Updated
christine’s Answer
Hi Cecile-
I can tell you how I gained experience for my resume when I was in college.
I joined with some other students and started a peer counseling service on campus.
We had some staff from the professional counseling office train us and then we
gained experience in counseling our peers.
After college I volunteered at a crisis hot line. There was a training for this as well
which helped hone my skills.
After these 2 experiences I was sure that I wanted to continue my education to be a
therapist.
I went to grad school for Social Work and the 2 volunteer experiences helped me to
get into grad school.
Look for a volunteer opportunity on campus or in the community
Learn about the field while volunteering (learn by doing)
Talk to supervisors where you volunteer to lean about their work
Enjoy it! You will meet some great people!
I can tell you how I gained experience for my resume when I was in college.
I joined with some other students and started a peer counseling service on campus.
We had some staff from the professional counseling office train us and then we
gained experience in counseling our peers.
After college I volunteered at a crisis hot line. There was a training for this as well
which helped hone my skills.
After these 2 experiences I was sure that I wanted to continue my education to be a
therapist.
I went to grad school for Social Work and the 2 volunteer experiences helped me to
get into grad school.
christine recommends the following next steps:
Updated
Kathryn’s Answer
Hi Cecile! Your interests show that you are passionate about helping people - that is awesome!
I think you just need to have more experiences in your field: this will help you both in filling out your resume and informing your career path.
First piece of advice: go after internships/experiences in the direction you're currently "leaning". You don't have to be sure, sometimes the most valuable experiences are the ones that show you what you don't want to do.
Personally, I spent my first 3 years of college (as a business major) thinking that I wanted to go into retail. I worked as a cashier at a grocery store for a summer (which I enjoyed) and then did an internship between junior and senior year at a major clothing retailer. About halfway through the internship I realized that what I enjoyed was working with people, but retail was not the right fit for me! Senior year I was rather unsure what I wanted to do so I started applying at a bunch of companies and (based purely on recommendation) started pursuing an aerospace company for a job as my top choice. I ended up loving the company and the industry, and am still there 7 years later. So while you're unsure: pursue your whims!
Now the tricky part for you will be getting an internship: often a resume is required to apply and field-related experiences will help your chances. I'd start focusing on that now. Are there opportunities with a student organization or to volunteer that you can start in the next month or so? If you're unsure - reach out to your professors and see if they can provide suggestions. They may also be able to provide some insights into potential career paths to help you narrow your search. As far as resumes go - your school should have helpful resources on resume writing to highlight your experiences. Otherwise, professors or guidance counselors can probably help with that as well.
Hope this helps! Best of luck to you!
-Kathryn
Find field-related experiences to build the resume (student orgs, volunteer, etc)
Pursue your whims! Once you experience a career path, you may decide it's not right or that you love it; diving in is the quickest path to finding out!
Seek the help of on-campus resources or professors to polish your resume
I think you just need to have more experiences in your field: this will help you both in filling out your resume and informing your career path.
First piece of advice: go after internships/experiences in the direction you're currently "leaning". You don't have to be sure, sometimes the most valuable experiences are the ones that show you what you don't want to do.
Personally, I spent my first 3 years of college (as a business major) thinking that I wanted to go into retail. I worked as a cashier at a grocery store for a summer (which I enjoyed) and then did an internship between junior and senior year at a major clothing retailer. About halfway through the internship I realized that what I enjoyed was working with people, but retail was not the right fit for me! Senior year I was rather unsure what I wanted to do so I started applying at a bunch of companies and (based purely on recommendation) started pursuing an aerospace company for a job as my top choice. I ended up loving the company and the industry, and am still there 7 years later. So while you're unsure: pursue your whims!
Now the tricky part for you will be getting an internship: often a resume is required to apply and field-related experiences will help your chances. I'd start focusing on that now. Are there opportunities with a student organization or to volunteer that you can start in the next month or so? If you're unsure - reach out to your professors and see if they can provide suggestions. They may also be able to provide some insights into potential career paths to help you narrow your search. As far as resumes go - your school should have helpful resources on resume writing to highlight your experiences. Otherwise, professors or guidance counselors can probably help with that as well.
Hope this helps! Best of luck to you!
-Kathryn
Kathryn recommends the following next steps: