Suggestions for Advisors working with undeclared students:

Written Exercises
Providing an opportunity to reflect upon their interests, hopes, goals and life expectations is extremely valuable in helping students clarify their decisions. Writing may also help students understand where they are in the decision making process.

Individualized Interpretation of Formal Assessment

• The Strong Interest Inventory. Refer to Office of Academic Advisement, 641-7465
• FOCUS and Exploring U. Refer to: Career Education Services, 641-7490

Career Information
Advisors should be aware of current resources students can access regarding job and career information. Refer to: Career Education Services, 641-7490

• Students get confused between choosing a major and choosing a career. Many of them operate on stereotypical ideas of what work is.
• It is important for the student to understand that a good career decision is based on knowing a lot about oneself and about the world of work.

Modeling Opportunities/Opportunities to Gain Experiences
Includes informational interviews, job shadowing, internships, student activities, and community service. Letting students know where to found these experiences is helpful.

• Summer jobs: you can suggest to the student that summer jobs frequently turn out to have career leads. Refer to Career Education Services, 641-7490
• Internships: refer to Internship Office or department chair.
• Research (such as Undergraduate Research Scholar Program): refer to department chair or Lori H. LaPlante, URSP project director, 641-7163.
• Service learning: check the course schedule for courses that have a service-learning component and refer to the Meelia Center and Dan Forbes, 641-7018
• Community service or civic engagement: involvement in campus activities may expose a student to a particular career, discipline, or people who possess different views. Refer to the Meelia Center and Dan Forbes (community service, service learning), 641-7017; campus ministry, Sue Gabert (community service), 641-7130; or NHIOP, Civic Engagement, 222-4101.

Encourage Co-Curricular Involvement
Involvement in campus activities such as extra-curricular activities, clubs/organizations, and community service, may expose a student to a particular career, discipline or people who possess different views. Refer to student activities and leadership programs, (clubs/organizations), 641-7363; Eric Sabean, Intramural Athletics, 641-7197; Dan Forbes, Meelia Center, 641-7017; Campus Ministry, Sue Gabert (community service), 641-7130.

Co-curricular activities include organizations and clubs, campus publications, student government, intercollegiate or intramural sports. 41 percent of Saint Anselm College students report spending between one and five hours per week in co-curricular activities.

NSEE survey data show that the more time a student spends on co-curricular activities, the more likely he or she is to be participating in numerous other educational activities and outcomes that the college aims to cultivate in its students. Such as:

• Asking questions in class
• Developing a deepened sense of spirituality
• Having a positive view of his/her entire educational experience at the college
• Likelihood of choosing the college over again if given the chance
• Higher quality relationships with faculty members
• Working harder than he or she thought was possible to meet an instructor's standards
• Discussing ideas, grades, and assignments with faculty outside of class
• Including diverse perspectives in class assignments and discussions

Building Support for Choices
Suggest students talk about their choices with other students in a particular major.

The department chair or a faculty advisor as a source of information.

• What internships are available?
• What types of jobs have graduates in this major obtained?
• Where can I learn more about career opportunities in this field?