CAREER EXPEDITION GUIDE SCHOOL OF ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES CAREER EXPEDITION GUIDE This is your strategy guide to help you explore and pursue meaningful work in the field of environment and natural resources and prepare for the workforce. Your expedition begins right now. Climbing a mountain and reaching the summit is a perfect metaphor for career success. As you start your journey, you need to begin by defining your outcome and exploring where you hope to land after graduation. Preparation is very important. You’ll need the right tools and equipment to help you achieve success and those will come to you as you learn how to prepare a resume, practice interview skills, perfect your communication style and grow your network. Chances are someone has blazed this trail before you. You’ll have the benefit of utilizing mentors that you will meet along the climb, through current students, alumni and industry experts, available to you throughout your SENR experience. Pace yourself. Use the Career Expedition Guide to plan out how you will achieve each step. It’s important that you also have fun along the way. This isn’t a trek full of dangerous crevasses, but an opportunity to stretch yourself and grow into the person you were meant to become. Don’t try to take in every new experience all at once. Savor each one, reflect on it, and keep pursuing your next steps. The final push to the top is always the hardest part. As a senior, you might be fatigued, wore out and ready to move on to the next phase of your life. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and finish strong. Be all in. Commit 100% to your success, no matter how hard. You can do difficult things and completing this career expedition is something you will be successful at as long as you plan your approach and never give up. Our Career Development office in SENR offers one on one individualized career coaching for students to help you explore and personalize your career expedition. We help students explore career paths, cultivate meaningful professional networking relationships, and develop strategies for finding opportunities that will shape your career journey. Connect with us for a one on one appointment by calling our office at 614-292-2265 to schedule. senr.osu.edu CFAES provides research and related educational programs to clientele on a nondiscriminatory basis. For more information, visit cfaesdiversity.osu.edu. For an accessible format of this publication, visit cfaes.osu.edu/accessibility.

EXPLORER – Year 1 CAREER EXPEDITION GUIDE Track your career expedition proficiencies and grow your professional career development skills. CAREER EXPEDITION GUIDE EXPLORER – Year 1 The first year of your college experience at Ohio State should be spent acclimatizing yourself to campus, learning about leadership and other opportunities and making choices about how to spend your time that will help you in your career expedition.. ✔️ Activity Complete profile on handshake.osu.edu. Attend one student organization meeting related to your career interest. Meet with your academic advisor. Meet with a career advisor in CFAES or ENR. Attend one Environmental Professionals Network breakfast event. Track your network connections by journaling about the event and follow-up with connections on LinkedIn. Attend one ENR career development office workshop or event. Visit the Dennis Learning Center, in person and / or online. What services might be useful to you today or in the future? Visit the Wellness Center, in person and / or online. Create a LinkedIn profile. Attend a CFAES / ENR Education Abroad info session. Attend the Environmental and Sustainability Career Expo Attend the ENR Internship Forum (November 7th, 2018)

VOYAGER – Year 2 CAREER EXPEDITION GUIDE The second year of your college experience at Ohio State should be spent in finding your niche and getting involved. You should identify a professional student organization related to your major, join and attend regular meetings. You should start to explore ideas for how to spend the next summer in research, education abroad or an internship. ✔️ Activity Complete / update profile on handshake.osu.edu and LinkedIn. Determine your major, revise and complete your 2 year academic plan with approval from your academic advisor. Conduct an informational interview, formally or informally. Consider attending the ENR Internship Forum to conduct this interview of another student. Attend a mock interview session with CFAES career office. Attend three Environmental Professionals Network breakfast event. Track your network connections by journaling about the event and follow-up with connections on LinkedIn Attend the Grad School Expo held in September to explore continuing education options. Attend the ENR Career Bootcamp sponsored by the ENR Alumni Society. Join a student organization and attend regular meetings. If you are exploring conducting research as an undergraduate, meet with your faculty mentor and academic advisor to devise a plan for completion. Start planning your summer experience. Will you pursue a research opportunity? Apply for internships? Go on an education abroad trip? Create a plan to explore these options and a timeline for deciding and taking action. Meet with a career advisor to review your plans before the end of Autumn semester. Complete an internship, education abroad or research experience. Attend a major-related professional conference. (ie MidWest Fish and Wildlife Conference) Attend the Environmental and Sustainability Career Expo (typically in February) Complete three modules at OnPace.osu.edu.

MOUTAINEER - Level 3 CAREER EXPEDITION GUIDE The last year or two of your experience at Ohio State is the homestretch. Will you be applying to graduate schools? If so, you need to prepare to take the GRE exam and start applying for school a year in advance of your intended enrollment, just like you did for undergrad. Have you completed an internship? You should complete at least two before you graduate. This will make you more marketable and increase your network connections. The internship you pursue the summer before graduation should be sought after as if you were searching for a full time job. This is an opportunity for a summer long “job interview” and a chance to convert your internship to permanent employment. Seek out internships where there is a growth potential. Seek out leadership roles in your organizations you are in and look for ways to show impact on projects you are involved. ✔️ Activity Complete / update profile on handshake.osu.edu and LinkedIn. Apply to and complete an internship (or two or three before graduation) Meet with your academic advisor about completing your degree to make sure you are on track. Meet with a career advisor in CFAES or ENR to talk about how to transition your student resume to professional employment post graduation as well as job search strategies. Attend three Environmental Professionals Network breakfast event. Track your network connections by journaling about the event and follow-up with connections on LinkedIn. Attend one ENR career development office workshop or event. Take a leadership role in a student organization related to your major. Meet with your faculty mentor to talk about your career goals, completing your degree, and / or about applying to graduate schools. Apply for and complete an REU or research opportunity. Submit a plan for your senior year and 1 year post graduation. Include a Plan A and Plan B or more if needed. Meet with a career services professional to review your ideas. Complete the graduating senior survey sent by SENR regarding your post-graduation plans. Join the ENR Alumni Society – attend one meeting before graduation and build connections.