Well, we are already a month into the spring semester, and despite the large amount of snow still on the ground, students are surely looking ahead to warmer weather, the end of classes and the beginning of summer vacation.

For many seniors, the next few months will also be a time to prepare to put your college days behind you while starting to search for your first post-graduation job in the “real world.” While the thought of taking this next step is probably very exciting but a little bit scary, please know that some of your fellow alumni from Shippensburg University are here to help.

Regardless of your major, the Career Mentoring Net- work provides an outlet for alumni to search for others who may be able to provide some much-needed assistance. Simply visit “SHIP CAREER CONNECTION”

(https://shippensburg-csm. symplicity.com/), create a username and password, and within minutes,you will be able to search through a database of volunteers, using criteria such as city, state, employer, job type, degree or activities.

From there, you can click on the profiles of the alumni who you believe may be most helpful to your mis- sion of securing a job. They might offer to answer questions about certain career fields, critique a resume or even allow an opportunity to spend a day with them at their place of employment. Feel free to contact multiple volunteers if you so desire. There’s no telling how that decision may impact the rest of your life.

SHIP CAREER CONNECTION can also be used to search through job openings that are posted by staff members at the university. An extended network of available positions listed by other colleges is also able to be viewed. Users will even have the convenient option of selecting “favorite” employers and contacts, which will then appear as priori- ties on subsequent log-ins.

It is no secret that a resume is usually required to obtain a full-time job, and members of the Alumni Career Services department (part of the university’s alumni office) are able to assist with that as well. Easy to locate after visiting www.ship.edu/alumni, the “Resume Assistance” page spells out the “do’s” and “don’ts” when it comes to creating the oh-so-import- ant document that could
make or break your employment. A series of samples are also available, and resumes can be emailed to alumni@ship.edu before be- ing posted on the site for influential others to see.

More information can be delivered directly to your in- box when you sign up for the SHIP Alumni Career News- letter. Mailed each month, these e-mails also include a listing of upcoming pro- grams, such as resume boot camps, job fairs and professional conferences.

It should not come as a surprise to learn that the job search after graduation is not always easy, but take a little comfort in knowing that there are several people who came before you who are willing to help assist with your transition from successful college student to impressive alum.

_Scott Hershberger graduated from Shippensburg University in May 2007 with a degree in communication/ journalism.

He was a regular contributor to The Slate during his time on campus.

After graduation, Hershberger spent three years as a news reporter at WHAG- TV in Hagerstown, Md., followed by three years as a public relations contractor at the Franklin County Visitors Bureau in Chambersburg.

He and his wife live in Waynesboro, Pa., where
he currently works as the town’s director of economic development.

He joined the Shippensburg University Alumni Association’s Board of Di- rectors in the fall of 2012.
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