Earlier this year, Penn State launched a new system called Nittany Lion Careers that offers useful resources for Penn State World Campus students and alumni. This new centralized system — which combines existing tools, while adding some enhanced capabilities — is available to all Penn State students and graduates, regardless of their campus, college, location, or graduation year. Penn State World Campus students have access to all of the same career fairs and on-campus interviews available to residential students and can browse job postings and internship opportunities nationwide.
Students and alumni can log into the Nittany Lion Careers portal to access tools and resources, have job opportunities pushed to their computers or phones, or schedule appointments with Penn State World Campus career counselors to discuss any career-related questions or concerns they may have.
How Our Career Counselors Can Help You
The Penn State World Campus Career Services team covers a wide range of topics during a typical career counseling appointment. Your counselor can help you choose an academic major, plan for a career change, identify strategic internship opportunities, or explore the career options available to graduates with specific degrees — which could include creative career paths you may not have considered.
Counseling appointments also often focus on the job search and all of the individual components of that process, such as résumés, cover letters, references, and job interviews. You can learn to improve your self-presentation skills, which can be a key element of job interviews and career success/advancement.
Finding Opportunities That Are a Good Fit
You are most likely to have a rewarding and successful career if you pursue a path that supports your professional goals and also aligns with your personal interests and priorities. A job that looks good on paper may not necessarily be the ideal choice for you, or may not fit well with your situation and needs at this time. Career counselors can provide objective input that can help you pinpoint your top career priorities or job requirements, and then show you how to target your jobs search to focus on opportunities that match those criteria as closely as possible.
Many students who reach out to Career Services are contemplating a job change or career shift. If you’re in that situation, you can use career counselors as a valuable resource by drawing on their expertise in identifying the roles that would be the best fit for you based on your education and experience. The career counselor can then offer suggestions on how you can best package your skills, knowledge, and experience to appeal to your target employers.
Career counselors help you learn to present yourself in a way that highlights relevant skills, experiences, and qualities that employers seek in a candidate. This can include tailoring your résumé, cover letters, and LinkedIn profiles to make a positive impression on employers. You can also practice interview skills to increase your confidence, which can be crucial since job interviews are a source of considerable anxiety for many people.
Advancing Within Your Current Organization
If you are happy with your current employer and simply want to explore new opportunities within your organization, career counselors can help with that as well. They can help you identify your long-term professional goals, and how various paths for advancement can help you get there. They can then provide guidance on how to highlight the contributions you’ve made in your current role and the skills you should demonstrate to justify an advancement or an expanded role.
To set up an appointment with a career counselor or explore the new, expanded career resources available to Penn State World Campus students and alumni, log into the Nittany Lion Careers portal. You can also view upcoming career-focused webinars on our event calendar.
