Your career counselor will listen, ask questions, give feedback, provide valuable career resources, and teach strategies on the following career topics:

• Deciding on or changing a major
• Assist in examining your interest, abilities, skills, and values as they relate to selecting a career path
• Talk about what you are going to do after graduation
• Administer and interpret assessments to determine abilities, interests, and other factors
• Encourage exploratory activities through assignments and experiences
• Utilize career planning and occupational systems to expand understanding of  the world of work
• Facilitate the development and establishment of career goals and plans
• Explore if graduate school would complement your career goals
• Teach job search skills and strategies
• Work on preparing for interviews and managing interview anxiety
• Provide support during career related transitions
• Help improve career decision-making
• Identify barriers to obtaining career goals
• Provide opportunities for improving decision-making skills
• Help resolve potential personal conflicts on the job through practicing interpersonal skills
• Assist in understanding the integration of work and other life roles

Distance career counseling offers the convenience of being able to work with a career counselor regardless of your location. The UIS Career Counselors have received special training to provide distance counseling services and are currently certified as a Board Certified-TeleMental Health Provider (BC-TMH). Distance career counseling is no different than face-to-face counseling except you use technology devices such as a telephone, virtual platforms (Zoom, Handshake), and/or e-mail to communicate. After scheduling an appointment, you will receive an e-mail from the Career Counselor explaining the logistics involved when using services from a distance.

• It is never too early to begin working with a Career Counselor
• The earlier you get started, the better prepared you will be
• It is never too late to meet with a Career Counselor
• There are many things you can do early in your college career to set yourself up for success
• Are you ready to get started? Schedule an appointment today!

• Login to UIS CareerConnect (password required)
• Select Career Center in the upper-right corner of your screen or below the banner image on your homepage
• Select Appointments from your Career Center's page, located below UIS name
• Select the Schedule a New Appointment button in the upper-left of the page
• Choose the appropriate Department
  • Career Development
  • Office of Engaged Learning, or
  • Student Employment (if approved)
• Use the Category, Type, Staff Member, and Appointment Medium menus to change selections and choose from available appointment options
• Select the date to display the available times, then click on a time that works for you from the list that appears under the date
• Type a message of what you want help with
• Choose Request button to submit an appointment
• Look for an email confirming appointment in your UIS webmail

Alumni, if you have not yet met with a career counselor, call our office at (217) 206-6508. We’ll assign you a counselor based on your needs and current goals. Then, you can schedule your appointment in UIS CareerConnect.

• Go to your UIS CareerConnect homepage
• Select your "initials" icon in the upper-right corner and then choose Notifications
• Look for the scheduled appointment and click on the red Cancel Appointment button
• Call (217) 206-6508 if you are unable to access UIS CareerConnect

• You will meet with the Career Counselor in a private office and/or secure distance method
• The counselor will review your background information and career concerns with you
• Be prepared to answer a host of questions
• Together, you and the counselor will identify your goals and develop your Career Action Plan
• Typically, an initial appointment will last 50 minutes, and then you will schedule a follow-up appointment

Sometimes students and alumni request to take a test that will tell them what to do with their lives. Career assessments will not tell you which career or field of study to pursue. However, completing assessments is a great way to learn more about your interests, values, skills, abilities, and personality types. They may also help you sort out thoughts and ideas about possible majors, career paths and occupations. To explore whether taking career assessments would be helpful, request an appointment to meet with a Career Counselor. A small testing fee will be charged to students and alumni according to the assessment selected.

The CDC is located on the eastside of campus in the Human Resources Building (HRB), Room 80. If driving, you may want to park in Parking Lot A if you have a decal or in the metered lot located just east of the Human Resources Building.