By Terese Corey Blanck and Peter Vogt

There aren't many rules when it comes to college students and their career development. Just about any issue you can think of has nuances and exceptions that are driven by the student and his/her unique situation.

But a few things are non-negotiable. If you want your college son/daughter to have the very best chance of identifying and pursuing a satisfying career after graduation, encourage him/her to take care of all 10 of the following career "must-do's" for college students:

1. Get experience - through co-op programs, internships, part-time jobs, or volunteering. Why? Because today's entry-level employers demand it. They want some proof that your son/daughter is committed to his/her field of choice, and that he/she can handle the diverse tasks he/she will have to tackle in The Real World.
2. Keep your grades up. Employers often use a student's cumulative grade point average (GPA) to decide whether that student should be interviewed for a job ... or not. Many employers won't interview students/grads who have cumulative GPAs below 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale). And a few employers set the bar even higher, to 3.25 or even 3.50.
3. Master the key "soft skills," like learning how to communicate effectively and work effectively with other people. Year after year, employers who respond to a survey on soft skills (conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers) say the most important ones are oral and written communication, working well in teams, self-motivation and initiative, honesty, and polished interpersonal skills.
4. Develop a STRONG resume and cover letter. An average resume just won't do - especially when the entry-level job market is as difficult as it's been the last few years. It's critical for your son/daughter to develop a results-oriented resume that effectively highlights his/her accomplishments.
5. Talk to people to gather career information. If your son/daughter is merely reading books about careers or, worse, gathering all of his/her career information from the Internet, then he/she is missing out on the very best source of career advice: people who work in various careers of interest. After all, who better to describe a particular career than someone who's in that career?
6. Join a professional association as a student. The more your college son/daughter can be around people who work in a field of interest, the better the chance he/she will make the all-important connections that are so essential to landing a job later on. Plus ... if your student joins a professional group as a student, the cost is usually very low.
7. Explore the unknown as well as the known. It will be easy for your college son/daughter to fall into the trap of "exploring" only those majors and careers he/she is already aware of. But what if, in doing so, he/she misses out on the chance to learn about a new major or career field that would be an outstanding fit for him/her? That would be a real tragedy. So encourage your student to read books about new career fields and tap into career exploration resources like the U.S. Bureau of Labor's Occupational Outlook Handbook.
8. Work closely with a career counselor. Practically every college/university in the country has a career center staffed by at least one career development professional. These experts can help your son/daughter with the often complex and lengthy career exploration and decision making process - not to mention the job and/or internship search. Your son/daughter (or perhaps it's you!) pays for these services, through both tuition and student fees, whether he/she uses them or not. So why not use them?
9. Keep evidence of your successes. Tell your son/daughter to save outstanding papers, award certificates, and even photos highlighting his/her achievements during college. These materials can be the display items in a career portfolio that your son/daughter can use to back up any claims he/she makes on resumes or in interviews.
10. Consider YOURSELF - and not just outside factors - in your career decision making. Some college students who entered school as freshmen in 1999 and 2000 - when the American economy was booming - chose to major in information technology-related fields like Computer Science and Computer Engineering, even though they weren't particularly enamored with the world of computers. They figured they'd wind up with instant, high-paying jobs upon graduation. But today, of course, many of these now-graduates are unhappy - for two reasons: 1) The economy went south on them and those instant jobs didn't materialize; and 2) They failed to consider themselves - their interests, skills and abilities, and values - in making their career decisions ... and now they're regretting it big time.

If your college-age son/daughter can check off most or, better yet, all of these items on his/her career "must-do list" by the time graduation rolls around, he/she will be well positioned for a fulfilling, successful start to his/her professional life.

Copyright © 2004, Terese Corey Blanck and Peter Vogt. All rights reserved.