University Education Opens Doors for Career Success

Obtaining a university education does not guarantee career success, but does open multiple doors that could potentially allow degree holders to achieve it, said a Texas A&M International University career counselor.

Viky Garcia, director of Career Services, said that a university education is crucial to survive in a society in which the workplace has become highly specialized.

"When hiring, employers look for hard-working people who are motivated, have goals in life and have an overall understanding of how society operates," Garcia said, "Those who have a university degree, then, tend to be looked at more favorably by employers because they assume that someone who has a degree will have these qualities in addition to a solid education."

Garcia said that a university education is important not only because of the theories students learn in class, but also because of the life experience it gives them.

"At a university, you grow as a person," she said, "You begin to question yourself, every practice, tradition, and custom. A university education is more than just facts and figures."

Much of what a university education does is to give students a background in numerous fields of study, Garcia said.

"A bachelor's degree is not a technical degree and your major does not necessarily determine your future job or career," she said, "But your major will open doors so that you can choose to follow different options."

While in college, students should make themselves marketable by seeking internship or volunteer experiences that will provide them a taste of the real world, Garcia said.

"Internships help you to confirm whether you are heading towards the right field or not," she said, "They also give you a sense of how you work and how the professional world operates. I even encourage students to volunteer or help in special projects because this will also give them an idea of what a certain workplace is like."

The Office of Career Services provides a number of services for students including on-campus recruitment, résumé referral, personality assessment, career counseling, and Internet-based job bank registration, Garcia said.

Students interested in securing internships can also contact the internship coordinators from their respective Colleges, Garcia said.

For further information, please contact Garcia at 326-2260 or visit offices located in Killam Library 157 or e-mail career_services@tamiu.edu.

Office hours are 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Friday, and 8 a.m. - 7 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at pais@tamiu.edu