Explore and Research

Career management is a cyclical and nonlinear process. The resources and services offered by Career Development will help you assess your strengths and skills, explore diverse industries and functions, prepare you for the application and interview processes, and guide you as you apply for positions.

  • Practicing the career exploration steps now will help you develop effective habits that will serve you well in your professional life. Career research shows that professionals in the U.S. (and increasingly in other countries) change jobs 12-15 times during their lifetime for various reasons (new interests and priorities, job market shifts, etc.). 

What Can I Do?

The investigation of functional roles within various industries, awareness of hiring cycles, applicant readiness, market forecasting, and employer needs

  • Edit your career preferences on our website to align with your career goals or interests to receive targeted emails and content.
    • Log in through the top right button with your AU email and password, then on the top right you should see Welcome, NAME. Click there and then ‘Preferences’ to edit your choices.
  • Attend industry treks and conferences and participate in pre-event prep sessions
  • Participate in professional associations related to a function or industry of interest
    • Check out some of these organizations in our Explore Career Paths pages.
  • Research jobs, salaries, and required experience for fields of interest
  • Intern or work in positions related to the job desired post- graduation
    • Find job listings here but also thinking about other ways to gain experiences outside of work…
    • Case competitions, presenting at conferences, data-thons, class projects, research for a faculty member, volunteering, becoming an e-board member for a student club, and more!
  • Create strategy for and conduct targeted networking, outreach, and informational interviewing
  • Use AlumniFire and LinkedIn to connect with alumni
    • Ask for informational interviews, check out our LinkedIn Groups, and more!
  • Review available resources such as Vault, GoinGlobal, CareerShift, and LockIn U
  • Set up Google search alerts and subscribe to other resources to stay on top of industry trends
  • Become an E-Board member for a student club to see different tasks and experiences to gage what you like
  • Stretch yourself by taking on a different role in group projects or assignments that you don’t normally do
  • Attend Industry Engagement info sessions, panels, webinars, and events