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.

How many of you selected your major as a guarantee for a job after college? What if you found out that you could have been a theater major and be just a successful as someone with an undergraduate degree in business?

In an interview with the New York Times, Clarence Otis Jr., the CEO of Darden Restaurants (Red Lobster, The Olive Garden & Capital Grille) says that theater was what prepared him for building teams. “I would say that probably is the starkest lesson in how reliant you are on others, because you’re there in front of an audience. It’s all live, and everybody’s got to know their lines and know their cues and know their movement, and so you are totally dependent on people doing that.”

When he is asked what he looks for in hiring for his team he responds: “The most important thing to me is, you want to see someone who has passion, who really gets excited about the world around them and has drive. I like people who are energized by what they’re working on. I’m comfortable with people who are passionate, comfortable with people who are ambitious for the organizations they work in, ambitious for the function that they are building a career in, and want to make a contribution.

Being comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty is a trait I look for, because those folks are pretty comfortable with diversity, and not knowing how people who have differences might react in a situation doesn’t unmoor them. They’re comfortable with it and may even like that. Those kinds of folks also, when they’re faced with ambiguity and uncertainty, they’ve got their wits about them, so they’re looking as much for the opportunity that’s inherent in that as they are for the risk.”

Did he talk about major? Does he ask about your GPA? No, as a leader he is concerned with building a team that values diversity. He wants people who will thrive in change and rather than resist, will draw creative energy from it.

Take a minute to read the entire article and then think about how you might prepare for an interview with Mr. Otis. It may give you a new way of thinking about your background and how you would describe it. And, it may help you to move from looking at only a few opportunities to a more broad view of possibilities.

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.

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.

This is the time of year when everyone, including the President is selecting who they believe will advance to the final four in the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball championships. With a little imagination, you can apply the bracket concept as a way to narrow down your career interests.

Let’s say you are totally undecided. Where do you begin? Try categorizing your interests using the bracket system. Instead of four regions, fill in four career fields that might interest you. Next, identify sixteen possible employers in each field. Go to the websites to view job openings. Log on to connect SC for possible listings. As you progress with your research, you will begin to eliminate some organizations in favor of others. Once you get to your ‘elite eight’ employers, start your information interviews. As you talk to people you will begin to establish a realistic assessment of your chances for success in an organization.

This ‘elite eight’ forms your target list. By the time you have narrowed your selection to eight, you should feel comfortable that each employer presents a realistic starting point to your career.

As with any selection process, you do not have total control of the process. The employer extends the offer and you have the choice to accept or continue to explore other options.

The NCAA tournament lasts three weeks. If you start filling in your career fields now, you will advance the exploration process at a pace to be ready for interviews by ‘tip-off’ in the championship game.

We tend to make a judgment on people within the first thirty seconds of meeting. A positive initial impression is critical, especially when you are connecting with a potential employer for the first time. From the first email, to a personal greeting as you begin an interview, it is important to convey your interest in a position with a fresh and positive attitude.

Whenever you contact an employer in writing via email or snail mail, be sure to have a second set of eyes review your communications before you hit send, fax or drop the letter in the mail. Spell check is limited in its’ ability to check for words, not usage. Print out a draft of any communication and read it out loud. Often you will catch an error when you hear it. Read the document backwards to check for spelling. Since you have probably been working on the letter, resume or email for some time, you may overlook an error. Have someone take a look to catch any missed mistakes. A prospective employer is seeking someone who pays attention to detail. A slip in your first contact may bring the selection process to an end.

As we approach the midpoint of the semester, it is easy to become ‘worn out’ and sick as commitments to part time jobs and internships overlap with mid term paper and exam deadlines. With spring break a few days away, it is easy to let your guard down when meeting an employer for the first time. Remember, the employer is probably overworked and stressed about the economy. Sharing your exhaustion and relating stories of how tired you are will not gain sympathy. And worse, it may cause the employer to rethink your ability to handle the pressures of the job and why they selected you for an interview.

If you want the job, you must show your energy and enthusiasm for it. You may mention that you are managing a difficult balancing act mid-semester, but convey your confidence that you have it under control and are pleased with the opportunity to spend the next thirty minutes discussing your potential for success in a new organization.

Think of your favorite entertainer. If you paid to see them in concert, what is your expectation of the performance? You want their best performance. That entertainer has to go out on stage every night like it was the first time performing. You have to approach your interview in the same way. This is your first meeting with this recruiter, even if you have been through 20 other interviews. Don’t break into song, but focus and conduct your best interview.

In this economy an employer is seeking an individual who will add energy and a fresh perspective to their workplace. In your first 30 seconds, convey the impression of a professional who is ready to contribute and manage the multiple challenges of a new workplace.