Katelyn Turner

Guest Blogger: Katelyn Turner

Shortly after the excitement and fanfare of graduating college, panic set in with the realization that I had no job prospects and must go back to working for minimum wage as a retail associate, as if the past four and half years of my collegiate career didn’t just happen. If this is you, or if you’re worried this could be you, let me relieve your fears and tell you now that it all worked out and I have a happy and successful career at Auburn University’s College of Agriculture. After observing student life here and reflecting on my own experiences as a student, I can pinpoint a few mistakes and missed opportunities that could have made graduating and landing that first job easier and less stressful.

Start Building Your Portfolio ASAP

Portfolios aren’t just for artists and designers! Many entry level jobs are interested in seeing your skill set in action and being able to provide examples can give you a leg up on other applicants. Save your best work and share neat copies of it to potential employers. Examples of this include research papers, presentations, business plans, reports, successful events/campaigns and much more. While I saved my assignments to my computer, I did not think to arrange it in an easily accessible and digestible format to hand out at job interviews. Start your portfolio sooner rather than later to avoid the stress of scrambling to print and organize your work last minute and be sure to have a trusted mentor look over it for any egregious errors. Take it from me, spell check does not always flag “pubicrelations.”

Get Involved in Your Industry Early

Join campus clubs and organizations related to your field of study. Recreational clubs and social societies are great ways to make friends and enrich your college experience. However, getting involved in networks related to the career you are interested in will allow you to meet peers and mentors already in the industry who can help you get a head start on your future.

For example, many students in Auburn's College of Agriculture participate in one of over 30 agriculture-related campus organizations, such as the Ag Ambassadors honor society, the Agriculture Peer Mentor Program, the Cattlemen and Cattlewomen’s Association, and the Pre-Veterinary and Medical Association. These students commonly encounter opportunities to meet and foster relationships with potential employers and explore a variety of jobs and programs that pique their interest.

It's Possible to Plagiarize Yourself

Senior year was by far my worst and my heart sinks when I see my transcripts, where A’s and B’s give way to C’s and D’s. Laziness and apathy showed up in full force and most of my work was rushed and lackluster. For one class, I had to write a paper on a similar topic I had already written about earlier in my collegiate career. Because I didn’t feel like thinking up new ideas, I simply copied my work from the previous paper and pasted it in the current one. I turned it in, satisfied to apply those saved hours to something more fun. To my shock, I received an F, not just for the paper, but for the entire class, for plagiarizing. It was a serious, unforgivable offence. As it turns out, the software used to submit the papers keeps a record of them. While I knew this software searches for and flags plagiarism, I didn’t think it in the realm of possibility that I could be busted for copying my own work. In hindsight, I get it. I reused another paper, word for word, even though it was my own. Thankfully I wasn’t punished more severely, however, it did bring down my GPA and if I remember correctly, I may have been kicked off my scholarship. “Senioritis” is real, but I encourage you to plan ahead for this and make smart decisions when you feel like half-hearting your assignments. Remind yourself that you didn’t do all this work and come all this way just to end your college experience on a sour note.

There is plenty more advice I could give based on the mistakes I made in college, but I will save those for another time and leave you with this:Overall, college was a good experience and worth it to me. It isn’t for everyone, and you can still have major success and buckets of money without it. However, it’s challenging and expensive, so if you do it, try to do it as best you can. After all, what an amazing gift it is to find yourself surrounded by so many people from all walks of life, whose job it is to help you figure out what to do with yours.