Planning for your career
Getting started thinking about your future career while you are still in college can help you make the most of opportunities at your fingertips at Calvin.
The role of your advisor
Your advisor has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the field of biology. He or she will be your best resource as you plan your future career, connecting you with the right program, research opportunities and professional contacts.
Contact a professor »
Your course schedule
Plan your course schedule at Calvin carefully, making sure to take advanced-level elective courses in areas related to your future graduate school study or career.
Courses in following areas will also help you in your future search for employment:
- writing
- oral rhetoric
- mathematics
- other sciences: physics, biology and chemistry
Expand your knowledge and experience
The GEO department at Calvin provides countless opportunities for you to gain real experience in the field you'd like to enter.
- Take part in research projects your professors are conducting, either in the summer, or throughout the year.
- Find off-campus internships during the year, or in the summer.
- Participate in GEO-related academic programs off-campus.
- Get a part-time job through the GEO department, doing everything from updating the GEO Web site to maintaining the GIS computer lab.
Consider graduate study
Going to graduate school is a great way to deepen your knowledge of a specific area within or related to the geosciences.
Talk with your faculty advisor to learn more about preparing for grad school.
Get to know the right people
Even while you're an undergraduate student, expanding your network of contacts within your target career field will help you make your way after graduation. A few ideas on how to build a professional network:
- Get to know your professors. With their years of experience, they know many people in their fields that may be able to help establish your career.
- Attend extracurricular lectures and seminars and introduce yourself to speakers. Department seminars are a good place to start, but watch for college-wide lectures like those offered in The January Series
- Become involved in student clubs to start developing relationships with your future colleagues.
- Do an off-campus internship with a local organization and keep in contact with those you work with there.
- Work with a professor on a paper or presentation and co-present your findings at a professional conference.
