By Lauren Sale

I recently attended the national convention hosted by the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA). The whole convention experience was amazing. It’s a crazy schedule each day, jam packed with marketplaces, performers and educational sessions. I attended several workshops, one of which was how to enhance your job application process through your leadership positions on campus.

I learned so many valuable tips that I will take with me through the years of job searching ahead of me, and I wanted to share them with you!

First, don't burn bridges. It's imperative not to kill connections because you may need that person or group again in the future. Try to always be professional, polite and presentable. Even if you have a problem with someone, try not to have a nasty attitude. It may come back to haunt you.

Take your commitments seriously. No employer wants to hire someone who is involved in lots of activities but can't take any of them seriously. Not actively participating in your commitments reflects poorly on your personality; you come off as a flake that can never do anything seriously.

Communicate your transferable skills in to your cover letter and interview. Employers get sick of seeing "I can manage time well/ I'm very organized/ I'm a great communicator" in cover letters all of the time. They want to know WHY. What makes you well organized? An example would be, "I'm very well organized. My ability to assemble and manage a database for my school's student government displays this well." It is important to support your skills, not just state them.

The final and probably the most important tip was utilize your school's career services. Tuition money goes to a myriad of resources available on your campus and the career services office is one of them. Unfortunately this is an office that typically does not get much traffic. If you're paying for it, why not use it? Career services will provide you with beneficial information about graduate school, examinations, internships and careers. They provide assistance with resumes and cover letters. Many offices will have workshops in interviewing or job etiquette. It is never too early or late to make use of this priceless resource on your campus.

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