An undergraduate education should never be mistaken for a job training program. That said, gainful employment is usually the obvious expectation after graduation. Amy and Mike invited educator Bill Coplin for thoughts on how to guarantee career success after college.

What are five things you will learn in this episode?

1. Why is coursework alone not enough to explore and get jobs?

2. Is there academic coursework that would help build skills, experience, and networks?

3. How should students increase their chances of getting internships and/or part-time jobs?

4. Are some colleges better than others to help students gain skills through experience and build networks?

5. What steps are essential for students who don’t know what they want to do after graduation?

MEET OUR GUEST

Based on his experience mentoring 2,000 alumni over the past 50 years, Bill Coplin knows how undergraduates can be ready for the next step after graduating college with or without going to graduate school.  Success is not guaranteed by the brand of the University, the degree program chosen, or the GPA.  Employers want students to demonstrate skills that include taking responsibility, communicating effectively, interacting with people, and developing computer and analytical skills.  To do this, students should see undergraduate programs as a Skills Gymnasium where they practice these skills in the classroom and outside the classroom, while they are building their networks through student activities, jobs, internships, and community service.

Bill can be reached at https://billcoplin.com.

LINKS

Five Steps for Success After Graduating From College

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ABOUT THIS PODCAST

Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our episodes on the show page.

ABOUT YOUR HOSTS

Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros. If you’re interested in working with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, or consulting, feel free to get in touch through our contact page.