Career Resilience: Supporting your Students through Career Decisions

Spring is an exciting time of year! The academic year is coming to a close, and many students are making plans for what’s next: solidifying decisions on summer plans or internships, or seeking and securing full-time jobs or admission to graduate school. While exciting, the unknown can often be stressful and the process can take time, especially when things don’t go as planned or when plans haven’t yet been confirmed. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) 2018 Recruiting Benchmarks Survey, the average time from job posting to job offer is 62.7 days — a lengthy process requiring patience and grit. As circumstances change and career decisions are made, it’s important for students to demonstrate resilience.

Resilience is the ability to adapt to change, and the ability to bounce back, remaining engaged and professional, when you don’t receive the answer you were hoping for – traits admired by employers! In fact, professionalism/work ethic and career management are two core career competencies identified by NACE. Key components of these skill sets include identifying areas for professional growth, personal accountability, demonstrating integrity, and learning from mistakes.

Parents can play a pivotal role in the career development process; supporting your students as they navigate career transitions and decision-making is essential to their success! This summer, make space to talk with your students about their internship or job search and ask how things are going. Celebrate successes, and help them reframe and refocus if an original plan takes a different turn.

Many factors are out of our control in the job search, and we’ll often hear no more frequently than we hear yes. Help your students focus on what they can control. Encourage them to ask for feedback from trusted family members and friends. Help them identify other times in their lives when they have successfully overcome a challenge, identify strengths they used to do that, and inspire them to lean on those strengths again! Introduce them to your connections for informational conversations with professionals to learn more about various career paths, opportunities, and ideas. Brainstorm with them new and parallel plans and help them develop contacts for information, advice, and assistance in career planning and job searching.

Finally, encourage your students to take advantage of the resources our counselors provide! The Office of Career Planning is available to work with your students throughout the summer in addition to the academic year.

Questions? Reach out to us at career@meredith.edu or (919) 760-8341.