Co-ordinator of Career Services & Career Fairs (MAP '18)

So Jeon, University of the Fraser Valley

By: Emma Scholtz, Conestoga College Career Development Practitioner Practicum Student   

So attended her undergraduate studies at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in the Bachelor of Arts, International Relations program with a minor in Commerce. As an undergraduate student, So conducted a lot of her own career research to determine her next steps after graduating. She was fortunate to work as a research assistant and student caller on campus, where she learned about an opportunity to work with UBC’s Career Centre as a Peer Educator, providing one-on-one career advising to other students and assisting with campus outreach. This role ultimately shaped her drive to want to help other students with their own career exploration and development.

In So's current role, she works directly with students at the University of Fraser Valley (UFV) by helping them achieve their future career potential by providing career advising, conducting workshops, and helping to develop learning curriculum materials geared towards career planning and employment preparation. So also works with employers and recruiters to determine the best strategy for campus recruitment with the UFV student population. So spends a lot of her time developing her career knowledge and getting up-to-date information on industries, investigating contemporary hiring trends and staying ‘up to speed’ on how to provide the most effective ways to train and teach students about their career trajectories.

So’s role in Career Services allows her the opportunity to meet new people and complete a variety of projects every day. She is constantly learning about other people’s career interests and paths and helps students to start building connections through hosting networking events. So loves this part of her job as it is rewarding to bring students together and encourage them to make connections with individuals in their careers of interest. So’s favourite part of her workday is when students come to her for career guidance and questions and leave with that “ah ha” moment regarding their future.

So believes the most important skill to be successful in post-secondary Career Education is excellent communication skills, as you need to be able to adapt to various student inquiries and needs. She also notes that career advisors need to be excellent listeners in order to acknowledge not only what students are saying, but what students might not be saying, which in some cases could be more important and valuable. Helping students with their career development is a work in progress. However, by helping students gain early insight into what drives and motivates them, as well as what discourages them, can be extremely beneficial in their career decision-making. So also indicated that those interested in career services need to be creative, enjoy and find value in meeting new people, and can adapt to marketing and policy changes.

So indicated that there is no clear-cut educational pathway into post-secondary career consulting. She said her training is certainly one of the ways to get into the field but developing her niche in career coaching was essential. The most interesting thing about this field is that you can work with individuals with so many different backgrounds. While a master's degree was not a requirement to get into So’s role specifically, some post-secondary institutions do look for a graduate degree. So completed the Master of Applied Politics program at Wilfrid Laurier University in 2018 as she felt it would better help her be successful in her current role as she witnessed how hiring practices and career decisions in the labour market were influenced and affected by policy changes.

If you are a student who finds this field of work interesting, there are certainly some elements that So believes are important to think about, research and start implementing right away:

• Start by getting relevant experience. Whether it be academic training, getting a certification, or volunteering. Check out peer programs with your university career centres or local employment related non-profits as well as career practitioner post-diploma programs.
• Investigate the settings career practitioners work in. Career consultants work in public institutions, corporate environments, non-profits and also become entrepreneurial certified coaches.
• Start networking and meeting others in the industry! Making those connections will help you tap into the hidden job market and learn about the diverse roles.
• Start asking yourself whether you would like to be a generalist and work with a variety of people and students, or are you interested in getting into a more specified role (e.g., recruitment, employer relations, career centre operations to name a few).

Look at various publications such as Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers (CACEE), National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) and Canadian Education and Research Institute for Counselling (CERIC) to get a pulse on trends in the field.

If So were to travel back in time as her student self and bestow any advice or wisdom, she would tell herself to enjoy the moment! Everyone must start somewhere, and all you can do is take things day by day and give yourself a pat on the back every once in a while!