CAREER TIPS
On this page, you'll find helpful suggestions to create a more positive job search experience.
New Graduates Can Overcome Hiring Challenges
You’ve just finished an exciting graduation ceremony and are eager to take your shiny, new—hard-earned—degree into the workplace to begin a sterling career. Fast forward a few months as you’re staring at your computer e-mail screen or telephone wondering why none of your outstanding cover letters and CVs has generated not even one positive response from prospective employers. New graduates should understand some less-than-encouraging realities of the post-recession business, education, health care, research, and IT world. Many employers, are, as a group, disappointed with recent new graduate hires. They are not displeased with the candidates but with their useful knowledge level. These employers do not find fault with the graduates, but do find their educational training, which lacks the skills necessary for the immediate contribution employers desire. So what should you do:
- Find internships that offer the real world experience you lack.
- Identify your target industry(s) and learn what skills employers want. Use the Internet to better target the industry you prefer, and learn of the specific skills they want for new, inexperienced hires.
- Consider accepting entry level jobs at levels lower than you originally desired to gain some useful experience and understanding of the skills wanted by your chosen industry. and 4) Do your homework. Learn what skills your desired career path demands of those succeeding in your field. Homework and professional improvement never ends!
Use Social Media to Improve Your Employment Value
Instead of viewing social media, except for its tantalizing marketing opportunities, as a troubling development, many businesses now employ these sites as screening tools. While the final legality of using social media for staff monitoring or pre-employment screening has yet to be determined, thousands of employers, large and small, are taking advantage of the features.
Pre-employment background checks. Thousands of employers now use social networking sites to conduct “unofficial” background and character evaluations of potential employees. While LinkedIn is the most popular “professional” networking site for employees and entrepreneurs, employers also visit much more “casual” Facebook and MySpace pages, as well. Workers seeking new employment are wise to monitor their entries on these sites.
For example, you may create a highly professional LinkedIn career-oriented site, impressing potential employers and peers alike. However, if your Facebook page contains photos of beach beer parties and you dancing on bar tables, you will lose all the goodwill and respect you created on LinkedIn. Once you are beyond high school or college age, you should remember that social media sites are available to all—even current and potential future employers.
~Kelly Services Career Tips
Make The Most of Your Career Fair Experience
Career Fair success lies in effective preparation, and communication. Make sure to research the employers you want to visit: learn about them, the positions they're looking to fill, and what type of candidates they're looking for.
Tip: Arrive with a positive attitude- Have your 30 second commercial ready
Tip: Bring at least 20 copies of your resume.-
Fact: Employers only look at resumes an average of 10 seconds. Make sure you’re leaving employers with the impression - Hire Me!
Tip: Do your research- The more you know about a company, the more you can converse with the company representative and the more memorable you will be.
Tip: Get the interviewer's business card- If you are called for an interview, you will want to follow up with a letter that reinforces the points you made and the facts you learned.
Tip: Maximize, Maximize, Maximize- The lines might be daunting but don't fail to maximize this opportunity. Talk to every company that fits your experience and ambitions. If you meet with 20 recruiters, at the end of the day you will know 20 people by name. That sure beats sending a blind resume to "Personnel Director."
Tip: Plan a few key questions- Be ready to ask intelligent questions like asking how your skills might be utilized within the framework of the company and by asking questions about relevant news within that organization. Make sure to ask the recruiter what he or she likes best about the corporate culture to better assess if that company is right for you.
Tip: Wear Proper Business Attire- First impressions count!
http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobseeker/careerfairs/careerfairtips.aspx
Use Career Networking to Help Your Job Search
Your career network will include most people in your regular, professional network and some additional contacts. The key is to create your career network before you need it. If you wait until you start a job search, you’ll lose valuable time establishing an active career network. Who Should Be In Your Career Network? The short answer: Anyone and everyone who could help you with your job search. Peers, friends, fellow alumni. Your career network often offers more than just leads on job opportunities. Many of your personal networkers might have inside information that gives you an edge with the employer and their interviewers. Knowing information not available to other candidates may give that little something extra to stand out from your competition.
Online career networking sites can also put you in contact with other networkers and managers at employers in your area. Since you don’t know these networkers, be sure you tell them you’re looking for new employment opportunities and clearly explain the type of job you seek. Do not contact network members only after you’ve been downsized or decided to launch a job search. Stay in contact with your career network regularly. However sophisticated and high-tech your network or your efforts, always remember people enjoy dealing with people they know—personally. The “old school” technique of actually meeting others in person remains important. Attend as many local networking events as your schedule permits.
How to Find the Best Jobs During an Economic Recovery
Spend quality time cultivating your personal and professional network. Just as the best employment firms learn about good openings before the general public, employees of companies can learn about excellent new job opportunities before any official and time-consuming search gets underway. Remember, most companies will proceed slowly and carefully until management is thoroughly convinced that a recovery has taken hold. Once you learn of a new opportunity from your network, be proactive and get to work. Call to setup informational interviews. Do your research and contact the company and market yourself as the best choice before prospective employers are overwhelmed with resumes from equally- or lesser-qualified candidates.
Receive the Best Salary Offers for the Jobs You Want
Perform diligent compensation research (perform a thorough Internet search of websites that publish compensation ranges for similar jobs, including the geographical differences in pay scales)
Resist vocalizing your “salary requirement” number.
Be honest about former compensation. After avoiding answering salary questions and being forced to divulge your current compensation, be totally honest.
Politely reject the initial offer.After telling the employer how flattered and pleased you are to receive their offer, politely request their consideration of a 10 percent higher figure.
When convinced you’ve received the maximum dollar offer, negotiate improved benefits.
CAREER SERVICES OFFICE
Hours: Monday-Friday 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. and by appointment
Address: Located in Student Affairs Office, Suite A1-269 CHS
Phone: 310.206.7158