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Clark University
Clark University
Career Connections Center

As a first-generation student, you may be wondering where to begin. No matter your starting point, the Career Connections Center can help you explore your interests and skills, set career goals, and help you prepare for your next steps. You can make an appointment with a career adviser to ask questions, build a strategy to find a job or internship, and learn how to navigate the resources available to you.

Resources to Help You Get Started
  • The Career Connections Center website has resources to help you get started. Take a look at the How-To Guides to find sample resumes and cover letter templates, interviewing tips, networking advice, and more.
  • Clark’s Office for Identity, Student Engagement, and Access (ISEA) assists students of ALANA (African-, Latinx-, Asian/Desi-, Native/Indigenous-American, Pacific Islander, and multiracial) and descent and first-generation college students in the development and implementation of their academic, leadership, and career goals.
Find a Job, Internship, or Fellowship
  • Clark’s On-Campus Student Employment website has resources to help you find and apply to on-campus jobs.
  • The Career Connections Center offers job and internship search strategies and resources.
  • Project Onramp, an initiative of several Massachusetts organizations in the life sciences, provides under-resourced college students with access to paid internships in STEM. To learn more and to apply for STEM internships, email the Career Connections Center at cservices@clarku.edu.
  • First Gen Fellows is a paid summer program for undergraduate students who are the first in their immediate families to attend college and who intend to pursue careers in social justice.
  • Apply for funding for your opportunities through the Career Connections Center if you secure an internship or research project that is unpaid (or underpaid).
Make Connections and Find Community
  • Office for Identity, Student Engagement, and Access (ISEA) assists students of ALANA (African-American, Latinx, Asian/Desi-American, Pacific Islander, Native/Indigenous- American and Multiracial) descent and first generation college students in the development and implementation of their academic, leadership and career goals. MFGSS provides mentoring, training and community spaces.
  • The ClarkCONNECT Network is a virtual community of alumni, students, and faculty where you can find a mentor, apply to jobs, internships, and ClarkCONNECT projects, explore research collaborations, learn about an industry, and get advice from professionals in the field. You can find Clark alumni who identify as first-generation students on ClarkCONNECT by logging into your profile, clicking the “Connect” tab, and selecting “First-Generation College Student” under “Help Topic.”
  • The Scoop: How to Get To Know Your College Professors is a Q&A video with students and educators about building relationships with your professors.
Financial Resources
  • If you need support identifying additional financial aid resources or understanding the types of aid available to you, contact the Office of Financial Aid. You can also check the Frequently Asked Questions page to find answers to some of the more common questions.
  • Understanding How Financial Aid Works can be overwhelming, but it will help you navigate deadlines, plan, and make important financial decisions. This resource, from Federal Student Aid, walks you through how to understand different types of financial aid.
  • Funding to make co-curricular experiences more accessible is available through the Office for Identity, Student Engagement, and Access (ISEA). A limited number of annual scholarships to support students in accomplishing their goals are available to students of color and/or first generation Clark University undergraduates. The Career Connections Center also provides funding for opportunities that are unpaid or underpaid internships, research, or projects.
  • Go Ladder Up is a hub of resources to guide you in completing the FAFSA application for financial aid, understanding award letters, applying for student loans, and other college finance questions.
  • This Financial Aid Toolkit can help you understand financial aid and make financial decisions.
  • Clever Girl Finance offers resources and education on how to manage your money while in college and how to create a budget you can use while in school.
Academic Advising
  • The Academic Advising Center offers general academic services to help you plan your academic program. You can choose your major (or design your own), develop strategies to overcome academic difficulties, receive assistance around learning or special needs, evaluate transfer credits, and more. You can also find commonly requested forms.
Health and Wellness
Additional Resources
  • America Needs You fights for economic mobility for ambitious first-generation college students by providing transformative mentorship and intensive career development. Students can apply for a two-year fellowship through the program.
  • First in the Family provides first-generation college students with educational information and guidance written by other first-generation college students.
  • I’m First is an online community celebrating first-generation college students through student blogs and special programs.
Contact Information

Career Connections Center

Office Location

Shaich Family Alumni and Student Engagement Center (ASEC Building)
939 Main St.
Worcester, MA 01610

1-508-793-7258

1-508-421-3752 Fax

cservices@clarku.edu

Career Lab Hours

The Career Lab offers on-demand reviews of resumes, cover letters, and LinkedIn profiles 12 – 4 pm weekdays. Upload your documents, or make an appointment for the Career Lab on Handshake!