As you kick off your senior year at Whitman, the Career and Community Engagement Center is here to help you make the most of this pivotal time! Come and talk with one of our career coaches about senior-specific programming and resources, post-grad planning, and last mile skills and certifications. Whether you’re connecting with us now or in the future, we remain committed to supporting you in your next steps!
On this page you will find a variety of tips and resources you can put into action during your senior year to help you prepare for the first year of your post-graduation journey.
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Read About Our Staff's Specialties
Senior Kick-Off (co-sponsored by several college offices)
Wednesday, September 4, 2024
4:30-6:00 p.m.
Baker Center Drive
Here you can find a short selection of the tools, guides, and opportunities that may prove useful to you during your senior year and beyond. Please see the fold-out section further below for additional resources.
Use this resource to explore over 100 major profiles with information on common career paths, types of employers that hire in the field, and strategies to maximize opportunities. Scroll to the bottom of each profile for links to professional associations, occupational outlook information, and job search resources.
LinkedIn Learning is a series of short courses on topics of business, technology, and creativity that can help you develop skills through expert-led course videos. While living in Walla Walla, students and young alumni can utilize the platform for free, courtesy of the Walla Walla Public Library. You will need to acquire a public library card (which is free to residents of the City of Walla Walla) before you can sign in. Students can use their Whitman ID card as proof of residency.
Join the Whitman College Community Group on LinkedIn to connect with alumni around the world. Jobs, internships, and other opportunities are posted here regularly.
Attend Whitties Helping Whitties events held in Walla Walla and several PNW cities both before and after you graduate, in order to expand your professional network, stay connected with students, and keep making connections as you start your career.
On the Whitman Connect platform you can find alumni who have specifically expressed an interest in helping students - and each other - via networking and mentoring outreach. You can explore Whitman's extensive alumni network by searches based on location, industry, and more!
The CCEC’s website contains an assortment of helpful information for job seekers, such as advice on creating strong resumes and cover letters, lists of industry-specific job boards, access to job listings on Handshake, and more.
Craft Your Future Professional Development Workshops
Review a wide variety of recorded workshops from the Craft Your Future series, led by Whitman alumni, staff, and student leaders, which can boost your career readiness in topics ranging from workplace communication to budgeting and mastering pivot tables in Microsoft Excel.
Graduate and Professional School
If you are considering graduate school, investigate the CCEC’s collection of advice on the topic, which begins with addressing the decision of whether graduate is a right fit for you and your goals, then goes on to explore how to search for schools and programs, as well as methodology for putting together a strong application.
After graduation, you are still able and invited to utilize the career, job, and fellowship resources provided through our office. Find jobs on Handshake, schedule appointments with our staff to review a resume or prepare for an interview, or just get advice if you're feeling lost. Reserve an appointment with CCEC staff
NOTE: You will lose access to your Whitman email address a year after graduating. Send a message to ccec_info@whitman.edu to update your Handshake account with a permanent email address. Contact WCTS at helpdesk@whitman.edu if you need assistance migrating your email or Google Drive content to a personal account.
The CCEC's Fellowships and Grants team can introduce you to national and global fellowships, scholarships, and awards that are available to alumni, helping you identify those for which you may be a good fit, and assisting with the creation of a competitive application. Connect with them to see the possibilities of research, travel, and global learning!
Lean into your community: as a Whitman alum, you will be joining an incredible network that reaches around the globe. Take advantage of these connections for advice, research, and resources. Continue the cycle by helping students and younger alumni who reach out to you!
As you progress with your post-grad job and career search, it's important to communicate to prospective employers that you're no longer a student. Here are a few quick tips to update your LinkedIn and other public profiles as you begin life as a young professional:
Remember to update your email address on LinkedIn and other public profiles. You will lose access to your Whitman email address a year after graduation.
Here are some books and podcast episodes recommended by the CCEC:
Episode 3 — The Psychology of the 9-5
Episode 18 — The Psychology of Big Life Changes
Episode 40 — When You Feel Directionless
Episode 43 — Hustle Culture and Burnout
Episode 46 — Making Friends in Your 20s
Episode 48 — Identity Crisis!
Episode 49 — Financial Anxiety, Money, and Relationships
Episode 52 — Career Anxiety, Disillusionment and Feeling Stuck
Episode 68 — The Myth of the “Dream Job”
In this book, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans show us how design thinking can help us create a life that is both meaningful and fulfilling, regardless of who or where we are, what we do or have done for a living, or how young or old we are. The same design thinking responsible for amazing technology, products, and spaces can be used to design and build your career and your life, a life of fulfillment and joy, constantly creative and productive, one that always holds the possibility of surprise.
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