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Occupational Wellness

Eight Dimensions of Wellness

Intellectual

Emotional

Physical

Social

Environmental

>Occupational

Spiritual

Financial

Find mentors for occupational wellbeing

Be sure to check out these departments as you seek to deepen your occupational wellbeing

 

Handshake (off-campus employment)
SCU Law Jobs

Career Center Staff

Meet the Career Center staff to make an appointment for Career Coaching with anyone on the staff, please schedule through the "Make an appointment" button below which will take you to Handshake.

Make an appointment

Human Resources

Human Resources staff assist departments and units with hiring students, setting up their timesheets, and more. They can be contacted at studentemployment@scu.edu after you have been hired. To look at what positions are available login to Workday

Career Influencer Network -

Recognizing that students develop circles of trust all across the Santa Clara community, there are many faculty and staff having career conversations with students. Currently, the network is made up of over 100 SCU faculty and staff who support students’ exploration and pursuit of meaningful opportunities. To view which faculty and staff students can contact for career conversations, visit here.

Resources to support your occupational wellbeing

Occupational Wellness 

is the potential to attain equilibrium between work and leisure time, handling work place stress and making good relationships with coworkers. Occupational work must be related to your interest and which gives you capability to show your talent, skills, unique gifts, and capability.

Attributes that distinguish occupational wellness

  • Purposeful and rewarding career 
  • Balance work and leisure activities
  • A workplace environment that fosters your unique talents, skills, and abilities

SCU Career Center’s Tools and Resources

Human Resources: On-Campus Jobs

Graduate Student Career Resources

Post-Grad Year of Service opportunities

Many Santa Clara students express their commitment to service and social justice through one or more years of service. Whether in an organization like Jesuit Volunteer Corps or Peace Corps, or a graduate program like ACE Teaching Fellows or our own SCU ExCEL program, this kind of formation often leads to unexpected opportunities for career development and previously unexplored life possibilities.

Vocation Discernment 

Where might God be calling you? Have you considered religious life, the priesthood, or lay ministry in the church? Discover a directory of resources, including religious congregations, service programs, and graduate and professional degree programs at Campus Ministry's Discernment website. 

  • Contact Fr. Kyle Shinseki, S.J. for more information about vocations to religious life. 
  • Contact Julia Claire Santos to learn about lay vocations and year of service programs.
  • Be sure to explore the vocation journal prompts in the reflection section below.  
Reflect on your occupational self-care

Reflection questions

The reflection questions provided are based on the five steps of the Ignatian Examen: Give Thanks, Review, Reflect, Resolve, and Look Ahead.

1. Give Thanks

  • What is a professional accomplishment I am proud of?
  • What is something I have learned about myself while working?

2. Review

  • Am I finding meaning in the work I do?
  • Am I finding myself over or underworked?
  • Do I feel valued in the workplace?
  • Do I define myself based on the work I do?

3. Reflect

  • How do I feel about the work I do?
  • What motivates me to do this work?
  • How do I connect with others I work with?
  • Do I value my voice in professional settings?

4. Resolve

  • Are there any aspects of my work experience that I could think about more positively?
  • Is there anyone at work who I need to share constructive feedback with?
  • Am I open to constructive feedback?

5. Look Ahead

  • Do I have any goals I want to set for my work?
  • Can I find more meaning in my work?
  • How can I find a better work-life balance?
  • Are there ways I can practice more confidence in myself professionally?

Additional journal prompts

Please take a few moments to journal your responses to these prompts and questions.

What does vocation mean to you? 

  • Have you heard this word? 
  • What do you think it means?

"Vocation" definition expressions:

  • “(Vocation is) The place where your deep gladness meets the world’s deep need.” ~Frederick Buechner
  • “Vocation does not come from a voice out there calling me to be something I am not.  It comes from a voice in here calling me to be the person I was born to be.”  ~Parker Palmer, Let Your Life Speak

When we think about vocation and deciding what we want to do with life, these 3 key discernment questions from Fr. Michael Himes, a Theology professor from Boston College, can provide guidance on where your life is going:

  • What brings me joy?
  • Am I good at these things?
  • Does anybody need me to do these things? 

What stood out to you as you answered these questions? 

  • Notice any patterns?
  • Do you consider the primary purpose of work to be an expression of who you are, your values and what you love? 
  • Or, do you consider the primary purpose of work to be financial security?
  • Do you experience family pressure to pursue a particular major, or a particular career?
  • Or, perhaps you don’t experience any family pressure?
  • Notes: There’s no right answer to these questions. Consider if you would prefer to be in the middle (versus select one option over the other)?  You have the opportunity to find a balance here that fits within your unique reality.
  • Am I taking breaks during the workday?
  • Am I finding time and ways to chat with co-workers?
  • Am I establishing boundaries with clients and colleagues?
  • Do I have a peer support group?
  • Am I balancing my workload so that no one day or part of a day is “too much”?
Connect with others about career and vocation

 Regular opportunities to foster occupational wellness

  • Virtual Recruiting Events and Fairs
  • Online Career Accelerator
  • Resume Workshops
  • Check for on-campus opportunities in Workday
  • Check for job and internship opportunities in Handshake
  • Meet with a Career Advisor

Social accounts to follow

  • SCU American Society of Mechanical Engineers - @scuasme
  • SCU American Society of Civil Engineers - @scu_asce
  • SCU Engineers Without Borders - @ewb.scu
  • SCU Maker Club - @scumakerclub
  • SCU National Society of Black Engineers
  • SCU Theta Tau Professional Engineering Fraternity - @scuthetatau
  • SCU Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) - @shpe_scu
  • SCU Society of Women Engineers - @scuswe

Also check out:

Habits and practices to foster occupational health

Habits of Health

  • Utilize the Career Center's services 
  • Attend the Career Fair and other LinkedIn Live events 
  • Make a resume
  • Meet with academic and professional advisors and mentors

Take action

(content credit: Myriam A. Bartz)

1.  Depending on your goals, create a plan and set-aside time each day or week for your internship and job search. Read more here about how to develop a job/internship search strategy during the pandemic. 

2.   Start to reach out to others. Consider the strengths that have helped you move forward during difficult times and highlight the transferable skills that can be applied to a new job or an internship. List individuals in your network (friends, SCU alumni, faculty, staff, family) that can assist you in your search. 80% of jobs are found through networking. Read the Career Center’s Recently Asked COVID Career Questions for more about how to network and connect with SCU alumni. 

3.   Take care of yourself and your body. It starts with adequate sleep. Get seven to eight hours of sleep. Eat nutritious food, avoid junk food and exercise every day. These actions are central for wellbeing. 

4.   Design a positive portfolio. Think about objects or mementos that make you feel happy, thankful or inspired and that evoke positive emotions such as joy, pride or amusement. It could be looking at photos, listening to your favorite music, reading a book, painting, cooking or gardening. Have your positive portfolio at your desk, computer or phone.

5.   Be kind to yourself. Self-compassion is a better motivator than self-criticism. Treat yourself as if you were talking to your best friend.

6.   Help others. It will increase your sense of meaning and purpose. We all have something to share with others.  Find ways to help people in need. Donate money, goods or volunteer.

7.  Practice gratitude.  Keep a gratitude journal listing three positive things or blessings that have happened to you during the day and write an explanation for why that good thing happened. This will help rewire your brain for productivity and positivity.

6 action steps to help you apply your talents, become a leader, help others and build your future career plans - even during challenging times.

(Content Credit: Jobscan Blog)
 

1. Tailor your resume and cover letter for all positions that interest you. Use resume resources like VMock (launching this fall) and these resume/cover letter samples to help you get started.

2. Set reasonable goals. During times of economic uncertainty, prepare your energy for a marathon, not a sprint. Job and internship searches may and likely will take longer. You may have to apply to 5+ jobs a day over a longer period of time, applying to dozens of positions. Stay positive! See more tips here for the search process during a recession. 

3. Consider - how can you be a leader right now? Make connections on behalf of helping others. Be authentic and share your knowledge.

4. Seek out a variety of professional experiences. For example, no need to only focus on internships, consider remote project work, research/fellowships, or remote part-time jobs. Discover your working style and preferred work environment. Use this time to explore, gain experience/skills and test the waters.  Visit Handshake’s blog for information about how to secure remote opportunities.

5. Adapt, have more than just one plan and pursue them all at once. Pursue opportunities in organizations that are thriving and hiring. Remember, in times of crisis and uncertainty, no job or opportunity is too small. Think positively and make the most of every experience.

6. Consider how you can contribute your talents to help your community? Make a list of causes you are passionate about. Use your unique talents and skills to drive change. 

Suggestions

We would love to continue improving our Wellness Model pages. Please share with us your feedback, or comments as well as any articles, podcast, etc. that help you be well. Please make sure you are logged into your SCU gmail account to view this google form. If you have any other comments you can also email getconnected@scu.edu #BeWellBroncos