Tip #4 - Expanding Your Experience: 4 Things Every Undergraduate Should Consider Doing ASAP!

This past weekend was our graduation ceremony, and I love every minute of it, for a lot of reasons.

But, like I've told many people who ask me what the best part of being a college professor is, nothing beats watching these young people transition over the four years (or 3, or 5) that we get to spend with them. It's just a unique time when they're figuring so many things out, finding their passion points, and really starting to fully prepare for their next step.

At our institution, we try to make sure that every student who comes on a visit has a faculty meeting. It's important to us as a teaching institution that what we say we value, "family like relationships with faculty & staff," begins from day 1 when they consider joining our ranks.

Over the past 6 years, I've been blessed to sit with hundreds of our students during these recruiting visits.

They're often shy.

Unsure of what they want to do.

Haven't really discovered, and don't know what their passion points are yet.

And that is to be completely expected (at least in my eyes).

But I always tell them that college is quite possibly the only time in which you get a completely fresh start.

I don't know what kind of student / person you were in high school, and quite frankly, I don't really care. Your transcipts / grades / tests get you into college, but they don't carry over into my class.

You absolutely have a "tabula rasa" (blank slate), and you decide what the experience is going to be for you.

With that being said, as I watched the students walk across the stage Saturday in their caps & gowns, and gave them hugs after our arch ceremony, many of them echoed the sentiment that "they can't believe how fast it went."

Which brings me to the 4th and final tip of this series on things Undergraduates should do asap to expand their experience:

You need to " Show Up & Be Around."

Now some might be thinking, what the heck does that mean. But honestly it's the simplest tip of all, and probably the most impactful.

College is an experience, (like many things in life), where you have the opportunity to do two major things.

Build Relationships & Gain Experience.

In my time watching students move through their college process, the ones who seem to gain more value, build incredibly solid relationships, and open more doors for themselves are the ones that are quite simply, "Always Around."

They stop by faculty members offices.

They study in open areas outside of faculty members offices, or in higher traffic areas.

They're at the on & off campus professional development events.

They stop by after class once a week, or every other week, to catch up, and see if there is anything coming up that provides unique growth opportunities.

They're constantly reworking their resume while working with faculty members, talking about areas of interest.

Honestly - they just engage.... with everything & everyone around them.

Now some might be saying, "well I don't have time to do that."

To which I say, bull.

I have a student right now that is a single mom, has two jobs, and works her tail off, and makes it a point "to be around."

I have a student athlete that has two full time internships, is part of a student consulting group, takes 18 hours, and yet still always seems to "be there." (and is engaged).

And the list goes on.

People will tell you that college offers more things to do than you have time for, and I will completely agree. But, I will also add that your time should be filled with things that put you in a position to add value to others, build relationships with others at all levels, and create opportunities for yourself and those other people.

So, go to the speaker. Ask a question. Stay after. Ask another question. Write a thank you letter to them and the organizer. Follow up.

Stop by your faculty members office once a week. See if there are any opportunities to work with them on a project. Engage them.

Join that club that you thought looked interesting. Give it a semester, and then join another.

Just be around... a lot.

Because let's face it, the mantra of "out of sight, out of mind" when it comes to personal development, job potential, and opportunity creation absolutely holds true as well.

There is a reason why when a potential employer calls asking if I have anyone, my brain automatically goes to specific individuals. It's not rocket science. They've just added more value by being present & engaged.

College is going to go faster than you can even begin to fathom.

Just ask a few who are walking across the stage this spring. They'll probably tell you to do a little more and take advantage of every opportunity while it's still there....because the end is coming soon.

Squeeze the juice out of every opportunity......Every day.

Add Value. Build Relationships. Create Opportunities.

Scott Grant is the President / CEO of Triple Threat Leadership, LLC, (www.triplethreatleadership.com); Mentor of @TheOiler10, (www.oiler10.com) and an Assistant Professor of Business at The University of Findlay. 

Contact Scott at [email protected]; @MrGrant1161, or @3ThreatLeaders.