Next week many of you will be heading home or visiting friends to celebrate Thanksgiving. This late semester break from the routine of classes and work gives you some time to relax and refresh. It can also be a time to evaluate your plans for the semester and chart your progress toward meeting your goals.

Have you joined a professional association in your field? Have you attended a professional conference? If not, you may be missing our on a key resource to help you in your job search.

Most professional fields have one or more organizations that represent their members and their interests through professional development and lobbying on key issues effecting members. Most professional organizations have student memberships. In addition to large national organizations, many associations have regional and local chapters. You can participate via a website or sign up to attend a major annual conference. In this economy, you will set yourself apart if you attend. Most students do not join professional associations and among those that do, even fewer attend conferences. And yet, most practicing professionals would welcome the fresh perspective of new members.

Why join a professional association? It gives you a place to learn about the mega issues facing an industry or field. It also provides you with a chance to attend conferences, meet colleagues and possibly interview for jobs.

Let’s say you are a history major. The American Historical Association, founded in 1884 serves the broad field of history. Their annual meeting is in San Diego on January 7 -12. You can join as a student member, register for the conference and before the spring semester begins, you have gained some serious practical information about your career field. Interested in a career in Human Resources? The Society for Human Resource Management will also hold its national meeting in San Diego on June 27 -30.

Why attend a conference? To learn more about your career field and to make connections. You will attend workshops and listen to keynote speakers. You will get a sense of how many people earn a living in this field. You will learn about the challenges of the profession and hear about best practices. And, you will begin to understand what it takes to be successful. You may even gain some skills in the workshops you attend. But most important, you will talk to the people who sit next to you about what they do.

Take some time over the holiday weekend to do some research and find a professional association that fits your career path. Join as a student member and plan to attend a local or national meeting. And don’t forget to update your resume. You will definitely want to participate in the job center interviews held at most national conventions.

What will you wear to work? It is that time of year when we choose an alternate identity to celebrate Halloween. It reminds us that when we choose a career, we also choose a daily ‘costume’, identifying us as a working member of an organization.

Often we focus on what to wear to the interview. But have you thought about what you will wear everyday? And does that fit with your personality and image?

In preparing for an interview, you want to convey a level of professionalism. For most employers this translates into a suit. As you walk across campus you can easily identify the seniors heading to an interview, riding bikes and skateboards clad in black suits with backpacks. Ask for feedback on your interview outfit and avoid short skirts with high slits, outrageous ties and plunging necklines. And guys, don’t wear your roommate’s shirt unless you are a perfect size match.

Once you have been hired, do your research as you plan your working wardrobe. In most major metropolitan areas you will be more formally dressed at work. In the entertainment industry it will vary. If you are teaching, depending on the school you could be casual or formal. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice. And if you are leaving Southern California, you will probably need a coat, gloves and boots. Why is this important to think about in advance? Because your professional reputation starts to develop with the first impression you make on your work colleagues. And, you need to budget. A new wardrobe can challenge the wallet as you transition from student to full time career.

Use any opportunity to observe professionals in your field. Take your cues from both entry level employees and senior executives. There are some who believe you should dress for your next level. The main thing is to enhance your image, not cause a distraction. You want your managers to value your opinions and ideas, not be distracted by your ‘costume’.

And, if you are uncomfortable in the ‘costume’ of your employer, other things may not be fitting as well. It may be a small signal that it is time to change.

Are you thinking you are the only one who does not know what do after graduation? As you sit in your classes do you overhear conversations of colleagues who seem to have it all figured out?

This may sound like the beginning of a commercial for a ’self help, quick fix’ road to success. It’s not. Here’s the bad news – there are no shortcuts when it comes to your life plan. It takes time, thought and quite a bit of research. But you know how to do research, right? It’s what you do each semester for papers, midterms and finals.

Where do you start? Pick a couple of career fields that appeal to you. Then visit your local or university library to begin your research. Here at USC we have just published a library guide to provide quick links to online career resources. In one place you will find professional organizations, company listings and contacts. In addition, the CPPC web site provides information on relocation and specific job listings using connectSC.

The number one reason someone fails to move on in the interview process is lack of knowledge about a career field or a specific organization. Using these resources to find information will provide you with a broad understanding of the issues and trends, leading employers and organization culture. Reading through job descriptions will help familiarize you with what background and skills an employer generally requires.

Your next step is to join a professional association as a student member. This will give you access to publications, conferences and contacts. Use the Trojan Network as a resource to identify USC alumni who may be working in your field. One on one conversations with professionals in the field will add a touch of reality to what you uncover in print and on the web.

Take some time this week to get started. And by the way, the folks in your class are part of the ‘Trojan Family’ so join the conversation and share your ideas about what you want to do with your life.

This is for the person who believes they are the only one left on earth who is still undecided. Here is the good news – you have company. Now for the bad news – you have a lot of choices and today would be a good day to start eliminating a couple from the list.

Until you figure out what you want to do, here is the response you can use to answer any question about what you are going to do with your life. “I am considering a number of options, do you have some suggestions for me?” You have immediately switched the focus from you to your interrogator. And, you may get some good ideas.

This is just a diversionary tactic. You still have to narrow down your possibilities. Begin with a list of all the things you would never do. Next, write down why each of these options would not work. Now consider the opposites. If these don’t work, what will? This exercise will give you some insight into your preferences.

Now start thinking about where you could practice some of the things you enjoy doing. Don’t restrict yourself to a particular organization or industry. Tom Hanks employs a PhD in History at his production company to ensure he gets the facts right in his movies. If you are a history major who loves the movies, would you have even thought this was an option?

What are you doing this summer? If you are just taking time off and hanging at the beach, look around. Are there people working around you? What are they doing? If your work environment is important and you don’t want to be in a cubicle you may have found your place.

It is great to be undecided and enjoy the bounty of a liberal arts education. It is also stressful when your ‘type A’ friends are working 14 hour days in their summer internship. You may feel you are somehow lacking. Remember, there are things you enjoy more than others and places you would rather be. It’s a good place to start.

What are your top three reasons for accepting a job? For the USC Class of 2009 job content ranks number one followed by advancement opportunities, culture/people and then salary. Even in an economic downturn with the burden of significant loans, new graduates view the work itself as more important than compensation.

Why is job content #1 and advancement #2? Because most of us want to do something meaningful and if we do it well, we want to be recognized in some visible way. We want to succeed. And the culture/people selection is #3 because we want to be engaged, challenged and supported in the workplace.

You know what is important to you. You may look at the Class of 2009 list and not find one common element. But your list represents your individual values. When you go through the job search process you continually compare what you see to what you want. It is pretty simple and yet difficult.

It is flattering to be recruited by a potential employer. But it can be hard to get a sense of the culture in the brief time when you visit a location for an interview. An internship gives you an extended period of time to experience the ‘real world’ of the organization and is always the best option when you are trying to learn the work and the culture. When you experience a ‘culture clash’, you need to find another job.

For example, if you were involved in community service throughout your college career and your new job requires 70 hours a week, it may not be a match. If you are breaking out in hives on Sunday evenings in anticipation of Monday, time to move on. If the person who hired you and their boss just quit, observe the signals and revise your resume. And if your company leads the evening news with a federal indictment of the senior officers, you know what to do.

We want to work where we can be successful. When we find that place and contribute in a significant way the money will follow.

What are your plans for summer? Are you staying on campus for classes? Do you have plans to travel? Did you get the internship you wanted or are you working to pay your tuition? Or, are you still trying to figure out what to do with the next three months?

Here are a few of things you can do before the first week of the fall semester to move you closer to your dream job.

Make a list of five people you would like to meet to talk about your career plans. Don’t worry about titles; focus on what they know about the world of work in their field. Who can give you the best information about what you want to do? Sounds like a plan. But this is where most of us stop, so go ahead and contact each of the five and set a time to meet.

Turn off your computer and visit a library, a real one with books. Find the reference librarian and introduce yourself. Of all the resources you bring to your job search, the folks in the library can guide you to a multitude of materials that will help you with your research.

Come up with one skill that you know is important in your career field. Ask yourself what can you do this summer to develop this talent? Think transferable skills. It does not matter what you are doing, but what you acquire in the process. For example, if you are traveling are you progressing from conversational to fluent in a language? If you are taking a summer course, are you gaining a technical skill that will be required in your first job? If you are working part time will you be able to tell a prospective employer how you developed your marketing or customer service skills?

Summer is also a time for rest and relaxation. We all need to recharge. It is also a great time to get outside and exercise. Set a weekly schedule with time for fitness activities. It will be harder to break an exercise routine after three months and staying fit will minimize your stress as the semester begins.

And don’t forget to update your resume with all you accomplish this summer.

How do you summarize the academic year we have just completed? What are the words that capture the essence of our shared experience? Let me offer two: adapt and change.

For those of you who have interviewed for full time positions or internships, what were the words you used to describe your strengths? How many of you spoke of your ability to adjust, to be flexible? In the past, these may have been responses you parroted after reading a self help title like ‘How to Ace the Interview’. This year your ability to adapt to change was ‘real world’.

Last night CNN broadcast President Obama’s commencement speech to the Class of 2009 at Arizona State University. He concluded his remarks with the following:

“I know starting your careers in troubled times is a challenge. But it is also a privilege. Because it’s moments like these that force us to try harder, to dig deeper, and to discover gifts we never knew we had — to find the greatness that lies within each of us. So don’t ever shy away from that endeavor. Don’t stop adding to your body of work. I can promise that you will be the better for that continued effort, as will this nation that we all love.”

A privilege? Has the President snapped? No. We are in a time of change. Our only constant is change and we need to adapt and adjust. Maybe our GPS is not working right now. But, sometimes when we’re lost we find those talents previously hidden. Do we fear rejection and failure? Of course, we’re human. Just don’t use fear of failure as an excuse to avoid engaging with the workplace. You will fail. You will be rejected and the next morning the sun will come up and you will adapt.

Don’t stand on the sidelines observing, waiting for the economy to get better. Don’t postpone this unique opportunity to participate in a great experiment. Step out, take your place. You have a place and only you know where to find it. Embrace this privilege, and discover your gifts.

What have you learned this semester that will help you with your career decision? Was there a class or a professor that inspired a new career direction? Did you work with a community organization? Perhaps you had an internship or a part time job. With each experience you add to your portfolio of skills. You also learn more about yourself and your strengths and weaknesses. And, you learn more about what you still don’t know.

Here are a couple of things to help you catalog your experience and plan for your next step.

Start with an inventory of the skills and talents you have acquired over the past three months. What do you consider your strengths?  Did you improve your research and writing skills as part of a class? Are you a better leader after holding an office in your fraternity? Did your internship project improve your teamwork competency? Are you more confident as a public speaker after delivering a presentation to the board of a community organization?

Next, consider your weaknesses. In the classroom or at your internship what feedback have you received that will help you improve your grades or job performance? Do you need to pay more attention to detail? Are you waiting to be told what to do, rather than be proactive and offer to help? Maybe your communication skills need some refining or it may be that you just need more experience.

Ask your friends to look at your list of strengths and weaknesses and add their input. The folks close to you are a good reality test of your list.

Finally, come up with a list of skills that you still want to develop. Where is the best place to gain more experience? Do you need additional courses, another internship or an advanced degree?  Build from your strong points and seek out opportunities to challenge your flaws.

Over the past week I have heard stories of a number of seniors who have yet to make post graduation plans. It may be the media stories of an abysmal job market have caused you to cocoon or it may be normal end of semester denial. If you have not started your job search, there are two things to know: it is never too late and employers are hiring.

The final weeks of the semester will pass quickly as you deliver final projects and presentations, write papers and study for exams. Even in a challenging job market, it is hard to focus on post semester plans when the academic demands take priority.

Many of us are quite proud of our success at procrastination. Although we would not include it as a skill on our resume, we have a complete menu of excuses to choose from to avoid taking action. Here is the compromise; open your calendar and commit to a date when you will start your job search.

Increasing numbers of students are balancing part time work and internships with their academic program. When you are stuck in traffic on your way back to campus after your internship and it looks like you may not make your 3:30 class, it is hard to think beyond today. However, on the day you are moving out of your residence hall or apartment it will hit you that you need to do something. It is not too late to start. In fact, you timing might be perfect for many employers.

Employers in accounting, engineering and financial services are the most visible on-campus recruiters. They represent Fortune 500 companies with sizeable hiring needs each year. But most organizations never step on campus due to resource constraints or the reality that they need someone to fill a position tomorrow.

When that moment of realization comes that it is time to start your job search, start with a list of the resources available to help. Begin with the career center. Open the calendar one more time and schedule an appointment with a career advisor.

Why do we work? The answer to this question may be unique to each individual. As you consider your career options, it is important to understand your motivation to work.

Up to this point, you may have worked to gain experience, pay bills or fund college. What next? As you write resumes, craft cover letters and schedule interviews have you considered why?

If you will be paying down significant debt after graduation, your goal in finding work might be to find the highest paying position, without consideration of the skill set you might acquire. If your first priority is learning more about a particular career field, you may decide to relocate, take a position at a lower salary or enroll in a graduate program. Or, you may want to work to support a different career goal: acting, writing or travel.

In a recent CNN interview, John Roberts asked former President Clinton why he worked. His response: “I have to go to work. I’m too much of a Calvinist. If I don’t work every day I get nervous.”

Asking ‘why?’ is a good place to start your job search. The answer may help you clarify your choice. It may help you prioritize your goals and begin to create a timeline to integrate what you do for fun with what you do to live.