Your Four Year Plan

tracking goals for a successful

transition into the workplace
Creating a four year plan, measuring your progress
and achieving your goals are an essential part of
an education transitioning into a successful career
path. The more efort you put into meeting your
four year plan goals, the more on target you’ll be
to enter the career you desire after graduation.
Stay in contact with the CPDC so we can
continually help you make the most out of your
plan. Remember, the CPDC is a free resource
provided by Indiana Tech to help you be as
successful as possible. Take advantage of our
resources at every opportunity.

This belongs to: janco

_____________________________________________________________________ (If found please return to the CPDC.)
freshman year increase self-awareness
During the School Year Notes:
* 1. Attend the Career Planning & Development Center’s (CPDC’s) Fall Open House on the second
________________________________
Wednesday in September to learn all about the services ofered to students—and for a chance
to win great prizes! ________________________________
* 2. Start meeting other students and building a network. Your friends today will be your network
________________________________
and colleagues tomorrow!
* 3. Think about the things you do well and the types of things that challenge you. Think about ________________________________
the types of activities you enjoy and those you dread. Knowing yourself is critical to making
good career decisions and will be time well spent. Complete the Personal Qualities Inventory. ________________________________
Work one-on-one with a Career Advisor for ideas on gaining experience and developing those
________________________________
“soft skills” employers are looking for in new employees. One of the great aspects of Indiana
Tech is the personalized attention you’ll receive. ________________________________
* 4. Earn the best grades possible. Investigate tutoring services.
________________________________
* 5. Ask other people in your life (e.g., family and friends) to help you identify your pertinent
career-related traits you possess. Their insight can be valuable. ________________________________

* 6. Not sure of the right career for you? Take Career Liftof, a career interest test for ideas. ________________________________
* 7. Test your interests through student activities by joining a club or student organization.
________________________________
For a list of clubs go to http://www.indianatech.edu/CurrentStudents/CampusLife/
StudentOrganizations.aspx ________________________________
* 8. Get acquainted with your academic advisor to explore course options including minors tied
to your interests and those that would make you more marketable to employers. If you are ________________________________
undeclared, meet some of the faculty who teach your general education classes and set up an
________________________________
appointment with the Director of the CPDC to discuss your game plan.
* 9. Attend “Major Investigations” and “Minor Matters” to learn more about the opportunities ________________________________
ofered here at Indiana Tech.
________________________________
* 10. Take Pre-Internship Seminar – IIT 2000 in the spring to learn more about and prepare for
internships to help get you of to the perfect start to our collegiate career. ________________________________

* 11. Create and/or update your resume. For a sample and to get started, visit the resources page ________________________________
on the CPDC website at www.indianatech.edu/cpdc .
* 12. Upload your resume on Warrior Jobs, Indiana Tech’s online job posting system once it’s been ________________________________

reviewed by a Career Advisor. Employers routinely go online to view student resumes as a ________________________________
recruiting tool. Don’t miss out, upload your resume.
* 13. Gain exposure to organizations’ work and the skills they require through community ________________________________

involvement. Think about a part-time job or volunteer experience as a way to gain this
________________________________
exposure and experience. These opportunities can also be found on Warrior Jobs at https://
indianatech-csm.symplicity.com/students/index.php?cck=1&au=&ck= ________________________________
* 14. Target a part-time job, campus job or summer job that develops employability skills. For
________________________________
on campus and work study positions, go to http://www.indianatech.edu/CurrentStudents/
StudentJobPostings.aspx. ________________________________
* 15. Become familiar with Indiana Intern, www.indianaintern.net, for information on internships
________________________________
throughout Indiana.
* 16. Learn to manage your time. Even if you’re the type who doesn’t do a bit of studying until 20 ________________________________
minutes before an exam, you need to budget your time at college between classes, activities
and socializing. If you spend all your time at the library, you won’t appreciate college very ________________________________

much; but the same goes for the scenario in which you spend your whole college career
________________________________
hanging out with friends. Contact the Career Center for more information.
* 17. It’s not too early to start planning your professional dress wardrobe. Check sales racks, Good ________________________________
Will and resale shops for discounts—and don’t forget to wear your professional clothing often
________________________________
so you can get comfortable in professional clothing.
* 18. Identify inluential people who can help you. Keep track of contact information; you’ll need a ________________________________
community network in the future.
________________________________

During the Summer ________________________________

* 1. Attend summer school, as needed. Talk with your advisor to see if this strategy works for you. ________________________________
* 2. Attend “Live, Learn and Intern” events sponsored by the Graduate Retention Committee for
great summer fun with fellow interns here in Fort Wayne! ________________________________

* 3. What will you do this summer? A summer job, internship or volunteer experience is an ________________________________
excellent way to get a taste of the real world and learn to get along with people in a work
environment. Start planning in late winter or early spring. The CPDC can help! ________________________________
sophomore year explore career alternatives
During the School Year Notes:
* 1. Review your freshman plan to make sure you’re on track and have completed all items.
________________________________
* 2. Learn about your school’s majors by reading the academic bulletin or going online to
http://www.indianatech.edu/ProspectiveStudents/Academics/Main.aspx and talk to faculty ________________________________
in programs that sound interesting. Meet with a career advisor to learn about the types of
________________________________
careers various majors might lead to.
* 3. Earn the best grades possible. Investigate tutoring services. ________________________________

* 4. Identify majors that relate to your abilities and interests and meet with faculty and/or CPDC
________________________________
staf to discuss ways to explore career paths in those areas.
* 5. Talk to people who are working in careers that intrigue you. How did they prepare—both ________________________________
academically and experientially—for their jobs? What advice do they have for you? The CPDC
________________________________
can help with Informational Interviews.
* 6. Get a part-time job or pursue a volunteer experience that somehow relates to a ield that ________________________________
interests you.
________________________________
* 7. Utilize career libraries and occupational websites such as the O’Net, http://online.onetcenter.
org/ and Occupational Outlook Handbook, http://www.bls.gov/OCO/ to obtain information ________________________________
about occupations.
________________________________
* 8. Hone your interview skills by practicing with a Mock Interview. Contact the Career Center for
all your options and opportunities. ________________________________

* 9. Seek leadership positions in clubs, organizations, or student government. ________________________________

* 10. If you are undecided, think about majors that complement your “general” career goals
and attend “Major Investigations” and “Minor Matters” in the fall. Visit the CPDC website at ________________________________
www.indianatech.edu/cpdc for calendar information.
________________________________
* 11. Continue to build a network of colleagues, faculty, and prospective employers. Maintain
relationships with inluential people. Update your contact information as needed. ________________________________

* 12. Update your resume and have it reviewed during Drop-In Hours. See our website for times. ________________________________
* 13. Take advantage of your elective courses. Targeted course electives and/or minors which will
________________________________
enhance your marketability to employers. Even if you know what you want to major in, most
students end up changing their major sometime during their college careers. Learn new ________________________________
things and open yourself up to a whole new future.
* 14. Discover or conirm a career direction by taking the Career Liftof, MBTI or Strong ________________________________

assessments. ________________________________
* 15. Contact professional associations which provide current information about ields that interest
you. Consider joining as a student member. ________________________________

* 16. Meet with the CPDC to discuss relevant employment and portfolio items to begin ________________________________
documenting your achievements and abilities.
________________________________
* 17. Budget, budget, budget—don’t just plan to! Keep track of where your money is going—save
receipts, balance your checkbook. Don’t let poverty or debt sneak up on you! More and more ________________________________
employers are checking credit scores as a normal step in the hiring process.
________________________________
* 18. Check your professional dress wardrobe to make sure everything still its and is in good
condition. Continue shop sales racks, Good Will and resale stores for discounts. Wear your ________________________________
professional clothing often so you can get comfortable in professional clothing.
* 19. Check your online presence and consider strategies for creating a “positive presence on the ________________________________

web” such as blogging, creating a website, etc. Don’t let Facebook derail your career plans. ________________________________

During the Summer ________________________________

* 1. Attend summer school, as needed. ________________________________

* 2. Attend “Live, Learn and Intern” events sponsored by the Graduate Retention Committee ________________________________
for great summer fun with fellow interns here in Fort Wayne!
* 3. Gain career-related experience through a summer internship. Contact the CPDC to learn more. ________________________________

* 4. Start thinking about where you’d like to live and work after college. Use the summer to ________________________________
investigate cities of interest.
________________________________

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junior year gain professional skills and experience
During the School Year Notes:
* 1. Review your freshman and sophomore plans to make sure you’re on track and have
________________________________
completed all items.
* 2. Update your resume and cover letter with a Career Advisor’s help, and learn how to tailor ________________________________
each document to the speciic needs of each posting and an employer. Don’t forget to update
________________________________
your resume on Warrior Jobs!
* 3. Select electives and/or minors from other academic areas to enhance qualiications and ________________________________
marketability with employers.
________________________________
* 4. Obtain an internship, or other relevent experience, in your ield of study during your junior year.
* 5. Start researching companies or organizations you may like to work for someday. Bookmark ________________________________
sites and visit their career/employment site often.
________________________________
* 6. Attend Indiana Tech’s annual Career Fairs to get a sense of what opportunities are available to
students in your degree program. ________________________________

* 7. Attend Career Fair Prep Sessions sponsored by the CPDC to help you prepare to make a great ________________________________
irst impression with employers and to learn more about what you need to do to get ready.
________________________________
* 8. Attend Networking 101 to learn more about the importance of networking and to practice
those important networking skills. Visit www.indianatech.edu/cpdc for the calendar. ________________________________
* 9. Our Etiquette Dinner is the perfect place to learn and practice those important skills needed
________________________________
when interviewing over a meal. Don’t get caught with the wrong fork! Check the CPDC
website at www.indianatech.edu/cpdc for calendar information and to register. ________________________________
* 10. Complete the “Help Us Help You” junior survey to help with senior programming—this is your
opportunity to tell us what programs and services you’d like to see ofered your senior year. ________________________________

* 11. Seek senior leadership positions in clubs and organizations to show employers your ________________________________
leadership skills. Employers seek out leaders. Evaluate your leadership, communication and
people skills. Talk with a Career Advisor on strategies for improvement. ________________________________

* 12. Establish goals for summer internships that include focusing on areas in your chosen ield. ________________________________
* 13. Secure informational interviews and job shadowing experiences with alumni and area
________________________________
employers. The CPDC can help point you in the right direction.
* 14. Research graduate or professional schools and schedule admissions tests if you’re considering ________________________________
graduate school as an option.
________________________________
* 15. Begin developing a list of references. Don’t forget student organization advisors, faculty
members and other university staf personnel in addition to work references. ________________________________

* 16. Develop and nurture mentor relationships with faculty and business leaders. Contact the CPDC ________________________________
and Alumni oice for a list of local alumni and employers interested in mentoring students.
* 17. Check your professional dress wardrobe to make sure everything still its and is in good ________________________________

condition. Continue shop sales racks, Good Will and resale stores for discounts. Wear your
________________________________
professional clothing often so you can get comfortable in professional clothing.
* 18. Reassess career goals and develop alternative career plans, as needed. Don’t forget to discuss ________________________________
your options with a faculty member or a Career Advisor.
________________________________
* 19. Collect items for your career portfolio including projects from internships and in the classroom.
________________________________
* 20. Continue to build relationships with inluential people to expand your network. Do something
speciic to build credibility with professors and high performing students. Find ways to help ________________________________
them achieve their own goals.
________________________________
* 21. Contact professional associations which provide current information about ields that interest
you. Join as a student member and discover ways you can become involved. ________________________________
* 22. Budget, budget, budget—don’t just plan to! Keep track of where your money is going—save
________________________________
receipts, balance your checkbook. Don’t let poverty or debt sneak up on you! More and more
employers are checking credit scores as a normal step in the hiring process. ________________________________
* 23. Check your online presence and consider strategies for creating a “positive presence on the
web” such as blogging, creating a website, etc. Don’t let Facebook derail your career plans. ________________________________

* 24. Be aware many employers now conduct drug screenings as a part of the employment process. ________________________________

________________________________
During the Summer
* 1. Attend summer school, as needed ________________________________

* 2. Attend “Live, Learn and Intern” events sponsored by the Graduate Retention Committee for ________________________________
great summer fun with fellow interns here in Fort Wayne!
* 3. Gain career-related experience through a summer internship. Contact the CPDC to learn more. ________________________________

* 4. Take graduate school admissions test (GRE, MAT, MCAT, LSAT, PCAT, etc.)
senior year implement your job search
During the School Year Notes:
* 1. Keep your grades up! Don’t let senioritis undermine all your hard work up to now! Work with
________________________________
a Career Advisor for strategies on calculating your GPA to put your best foot forward.
* 2. Meet with your advisor to inalize plans for graduation. Make sure you’ve elected to receive ________________________________
any/all minors and/or endorsements.
________________________________
* 3. Finalize your resume. Your resume should emphasize your accomplishments and clearly
diferentiate you from other candidates. What makes you special? Once you’re done, have ________________________________
your resume and cover letter critiqued by a Career Advisor in the CPDC and upload into
Warrior Jobs for employers to review. ________________________________

* 4. Practice interviewing with a campus career counselor to become comfortable answering and ________________________________
asking employment-related questions. Hone your interview skills by practicing with “Perfect
Interview” or during our Mock Interview Day. ________________________________

* 5. Secure informational interviews and job shadowing experiences with alumni and area ________________________________
employers. Talk with these professionals about opportunities and job search techniques
particular to your ield. The CPDC can help point you in the right direction. ________________________________

* 6. Research companies and organizations you’ll be interviewing with. Prepare thoroughly for ________________________________
those interviews! Employers expect you to know about them, their services and the kinds of
candidates that would make a good it. ________________________________

* 7. Meet with the CPDC to design your personal job search strategy, another beneit of the ________________________________
personalized attention you receive at Indiana Tech.
* 8. Complete your career portfolio with examples of projects and work completed in internships ________________________________

and in the classroom.

________________________________
* 9. Research prospective employers to target needs which match your skills and interests to
their employment needs. ________________________________

* 10. Request and schedule interviews with employers conducting on-campus recruiting. ________________________________
* 11. The beginning of your senior year is a good time to invest in your professional dress
________________________________
wardrobe. Make sure you have outits appropriate for the type of career you want—and don’t
forget to wear your professional clothing often so you can get comfortable in professional ________________________________
clothing. Also research particular companies when interviewing and dress accordingly.
* 12. Attend Indiana Tech’s annual Career Fairs to talk with employers about the opportunities they
________________________________

have available to students in your degree program. Let them know you’re close to graduation. ________________________________
* 13. Attend Career Fair Prep Sessions sponsored by the CPDC to help you prepare a great irst
________________________________
impression with employers and to learn more about what you need to get ready.
* 14. Consider printing personal business cards to distribute at Career Fair or at other networking ________________________________
opportunities. The CPDC can help!
________________________________
* 15. Continue getting experience through an internship.
* 16. Check out the Career Center’s calendar of events and for employer announcements. ________________________________

* 17. Use Warrior Jobs, company web sites, newspapers and your network of connections to ind ________________________________
job openings in your area of interest.
________________________________
* 18. Sign up for free e-newsletters on line from folks like Monster, Vault.com, and Quintessential
Careers; they have a wealth of information geared for college students ready to graduate. ________________________________
* 19. Consider attending professional association conventions and/or conferences relevant to your
________________________________
chosen career. Check with faculty for more information.
* 20. Submit an application for graduate and professional schools in the fall of your senior year. ________________________________
Take admissions tests if you have not already done so.
________________________________
* 22. Maintain and strengthen relationships with advisors, faculty and mentors to establish a corps
of references and recommendations. ________________________________

* 23. Interview, interview, interview... and tell the Career Center when you accept a position! ________________________________
* 24. Tap all of your networking sources for useful information and job leads.
________________________________
* 25. Keep organized and detailed records of your contacts utilizing the Job Search Record
available from the Career Center. ________________________________
* 26. Start utilizing appropriate employment web sites.
________________________________
* 27. Seek references and recommendations from the most inluential people in your network.
________________________________
* 28. Conduct a thorough and enthusiastic job search. Plan to contact at least 100 employers.
* 29. Complete your “Graduate Survey” to tell us about your plans after graduation. ________________________________

* 30. Celebrate when you land your dream job; the real work begins now! ________________________________
Contacts:

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The CPDC Mission Services at No Cost

Our oices are located on the second
loor of Andorfer Commons in room 229,
next to the business oice. Parking is free
and available in the lots adjacent to
Andorfer Commons.
The CPDC Mission is to prepare
students and alumni for professional
and personal success by providing
advice, programs and activities
related to self-assessment, career
exploration and job search preparation.
Our focus is purely on the success of
our students, the businesses they
work with, and the communities they
live in. That is why all of our services
for students and employers are
ofered at no cost.

1600 East Washington Blvd.

Fort Wayne, IN 46803 Oice Hours Cindy Verduce
260.422.5561 x2217 Mon-Wed-Thur-Fri Director
260.422.1376 fax 8:30am to 5:00pm CPVerduce@IndianaTech.edu
www.IndianaTech.edu/CPDC Tue 8:30am to 6:00pm 260.422.5561 x2200