Building Careers
On-campus jobs are helping Fresno State students build skills they’ll need for their future careers – beyond just earning a paycheck.
Victoria Lupian, a career peer mentor, assists students with resumes and finding employment through the university’s online job board, HireFresnoState.
“For my job position, it’s more about helping people with resumes,” said Lupian. “So, resume building, we have packets. I can help you out if you’ve never created a resume before in your entire life. We can help get started with that. We help print out resumes, cover letters, and then we navigate through HireFresnoState as well.”
HireFresnoState allows students to search and apply for on- and off-campus jobs, internships, and volunteer opportunities, while also providing career resources and appointment scheduling.
Lupian says the job is helping her build soft skills she didn’t have before.
“I’ve built skills that are definitely gonna help me later on,” said Lupian. “Just communication skills, even customer service skills, answering the phones, making appointments — that kinda stuff. It’s building those soft skills that can help me out in a later job,” she said.
More than income, Lupian says her work experience is preparing her for law school.
“It’s going to help me when I’m applying for grants, when I’m applying for a different position, or when I’m applying for an internship opportunity that I need for law school admission,” said Lupian. “It is going to help me in the long run just because I learned stuff here that I probably wouldn’t have learned elsewhere.”
The Fresno State Career Development Center supports students in exploring career options, developing job search skills, and connecting with employers. The center also offers workshops, career counseling, resume assistance, and helps students navigate platforms like Hire Fresno State to find jobs and internships.
Claudia Lopez, a career advisor at the center, encourages students to try campus jobs even if they are unrelated to their major.
“It might not be directly with your major, but the stuff that you’re going to learn, there’s like the time management, learning how to work with a supervisor, learning how to be part of a team,” Lopez said. “So there’s just advantages of being on campus.”
Career coach Brandon Xiong said campus jobs help students explore career paths and build connections. He decided to change his career path to counseling after his jobs on campus.
“I think it really helps you again, build those connections and build those skills and qualifications, I think, to help you gain those. And again, it’s all about helping you see if you like that job, too, or like that field. So I think it’s valuable in a lot of those ways,” he said.
From communication to time management, Fresno State students are gaining real-world skills through campus jobs that prepare them for success.
For more information and dates on upcoming events, visit the HireFresnoState and Career Development Center websites. You can also schedule an appointment and visit the Career Development Center in person, located on the third floor of the University Student Union in room 306.
The Career Development Center is also hosting its annual Career Fair in the first week of October, which connects students with local employers across various fields. The Career Fair provides students with valuable networking opportunities, on-the-spot interviews, and insights into potential career paths.
The Career Fair will take place on October 8 and 9 in the Resnick Student Union’s Ruiz Event Space from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both days. The fair will focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Agriculture, and Manufacturing) on Oct. 8, while it will focus on Business, Health, Public Service, and Creative Careers on Oct. 9.
The Career Development Center is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m..
To view the video on this story, visit the Fresno State Focus YouTube channel.