I was concerned by the misconceptions perpetuated by the staff editorial in the Sept. 22 edition of The Marquette Tribune.

The Career Services Center strives to assist all students and alumni in discerning, developing and pursuing meaningful traditional and non-traditional career paths.

We have resources, tools and advice for all majors at all levels. Our greatest concern is that students do not take advantage of the services the CSC offers.

Successful navigation of the Career Fair stands as the culmination of effort put forth by students long before mid-September of their senior year.

As freshmen, students should begin engaging in the career development process, visit the CSC to learn about our offerings, participate in activities to discern interests and values and enroll in one of our courses, Career Planning & Decision Making.

As students develop awareness of their interests, skills and values, it’s time to learn about the world of work and build skills.

Using our databases to research careers, engaging in informational interviews and shadow experiences and pursuing internships, co-ops, volunteer activities and other career-related experiences are the way to do this.

The CSC helps with discerning career direction, cover letter and resume writing, interview preparation, job search, and graduate/professional school decision-making. This support can be accessed through one-on-one appointments, workshops, presentations and our other career course, Job Search Strategies.

By this point in time students should be able to navigate the Career Fair to their greatest advantage to obtain an internship or full-time employment.

No major is “unwanted” at the Career Fair. Companies pay to come to career fairs to meet students.

This is an excellent place to network with professionals, learn about the types of organizations that would hire you and ask good questions to generate potential job leads.

Though recruiters are hiring for their current job openings, they always want to meet talented young people who can articulate what they can offer. Students should go to a career fair prepared to talk about their skills and career goals.

During the last academic year we served 9,683 students. I challenge all students to participate in at least one career-related activity each semester.

Check out our most comprehensive program, the “Celebrate Careers Monthly Series.” Each month we focus on a different career topic and offer workshops, presentations, panels, webinars, etc., related to that topic.

Look for these events through your college, chalking, table tents, fliers, Axis TV, News Briefs, Facebook and Twitter.

We share a common concern of getting all students more involved in the job search process. In the end, engaging in the services provided by the CSC is the choice of the student and we encourage everyone to be proactive in his or her career development process at every stage during his or time at Marquette.

It’s never too early nor too late to start!

Courtney Hanson is the assistant director of the Career Services Center