<p>I'm a college student majoring in civil engineering. I'm graduating in December 2011 or May 2012. I want to get an internship for Spring 2011 or Summer 2011 or both. For most of my college career (Fall 2007-Present) I have had severe clinical depression and almost committed suicide. Because of this I haven't had a job or an internship most of my college career. I only have one internship (not related to engineering) and one part time job. I also have very few extracurricular activities. My GPA is 3.2. How do I explain my situation to an employer? There's a career fair at my school tomorrow and I don't know what to say. I feel un-employable.</p>
<p>This is a tough one. You don’t want to go in and start telling them how depressed you have been because that’s not something they want to hear when looking for strong candidates. </p>
<p>Do you have any professors who would write letters of rec for you? Have you worked on any projects that could showcase your skills? </p>
<p>At this point your job is to manipulate the things you have done to sound very impressive. </p>
<p>I can help but I’ll need you to give me some info like answering the questions I described above. </p>
<p>I have a friend who is an architecture major who always highlighted her in class and out of class projects she did dealing with a design. Do you have something similiar (like a portfolio)?</p>
<p>I am not a therapist but I can tell you that if you battle with depression it’s not good to tell yourself things like “I’m unemployable”. Thousands of college students have similiar situations (a “light” resume) and find jobs. Be very outgoing and friendly when speaking to potential employers and highlight technical skills you’ve learned in your classes and you might be okay.</p>
<p>I haven’t gotten close to any of my professors. I do have several engineering projects that I have put on my resume. I’m pretty good at programming, MATLAB, ArcGIS. </p>
<p>So what do I do?</p>
<p>Answer: start doing stuff - make excuses or lie. Join clubs, network with professors, do any part time job you can get. Don’t get caught up on your insecurities or lack of experience. Focus on your potential and ability. </p>
<p>Besides, lots of people didn’t have internships or jobs last year - blame the economy if you’re asked. It’s a valid reason.</p>