Career Planning for FYE Students

 

Your approach to the realization of your engineering career goals should begin to manifest as early as your first semester on campus. Take some time now to explore the different careers that are possible with an engineering degree. The Engineering Career Exploration video series is a good place to start. Our Engineering Majors by Industry Sector interactive table also provides insight by showing you what engineering majors work in which industries.

A variety of internship and other employment opportunities are available to First-Year Engineering students. And don't forget to start developing and practicing your self-presentation skills, including résumés, interview practice, and networking. 

Center for Career Opportunities

Purdue's Center for Career Opportunities (CCO) is the definitive place to start. CCO offers a variety of services and resources to help students make plans, develop skills, and find a job. CCO also hosts recruiters, holds job fairs, maintains resume files for all Purdue students, and will make connections between Purdue students and industry recruiters. Things to do in your first semester on campus include:

  • visit the CCO website to learn about their services
  • visit the CCO office to meet with a CCO career counselor to get questions answered, make a plan, or get feedback on resumes or other documents
  • create your resume
  • create an account at myCCO, which will allow you to see job openings and post your resume for employers to see

Additionally, CCO maintains a "Career Closet" of professional attire for students who need interview clothing, or who may have left their professional clothing at home. Details are on the CCO Services webpage, in the seventh item on the left-hand list.

ENGR 10300

First-Year Engineering, in a partnership with PSEF, offers a one-credit seminar course in the Fall semester designed to help you with professional skills and prepare you for your time at Purdue and your career — ENGR 10400. Students will learn resume and presentation skills, learn about job fair opportunities, get feedback on their documents, and get practice presenting themselves to recruiters and employers.

Topics in ENGR 10300 include:

  • The Industrial Roundtable
  • Internships and Co-ops
  • Resume building
  • Getting involved on campus
  • Study habits
  • Deciding your discipline

Additionally, there are three resume templates available from ENGR 10300 that all FYE students may use to help them create their personal resume.

Job Fairs

A complete and up-to-date list of career fairs can be found at CCO.