How To Get A Job At A Job In A College Or University

Transcription

1 Expanding your Resources Beyond Campus & Geographically Targeted Job Search Career Services offers job search-related services to students, including on-campus recruiting, resume referrals, and job postings/listings. Although these services are an excellent source of leads, you must support these activities with your own job search; do not rely on any one method for getting a job. There are a number of factors to consider in conducting a successful job search. Job Search Skills Self-Assessment Before you begin, it is important to have a clear understanding of what you want and which jobs match your skills and interests. Detection You often must investigate the information you need to develop company contacts. Communication You ll have to rely on both written and verbal communication skills to get a job. Your resume, cover letters, and interviews are essential. Research You need to be aware of which resources will provide you with prospects and whether those prospects have opportunities for you. Job Search Techniques 1. Informational Interviews Informational interviewing is a method of career exploration and a way of discovering jobs not publicly advertised. It is not the same as a job interview. Informational interviewing allows you to talk with people already in the industry you have targeted. By obtaining informational interviews, you have gained access to the inside information regarding career paths, alternate careers that will use your skills, and people to contact who may be looking for an employee like you. It is an effective technique because it allows you to: investigate a specific career field narrow or expand your options obtain advice on where skills might be applied broaden network contacts for future reference learn about important issues in a career field build confidence for actual job interviews expand your job market information discover jobs/career paths that you didn t know existed deepen your understanding of the world of work in a variety of settings learn the methods that others used to get to a particular career point clarify your weaknesses in education, skills and development, and therefore improve those areas develop your listening/social skills Remember to: Dress professionally. Be on time or early. Prepare questions beforehand. Listen carefully and attentively to the contact person.

2 Building a Contact List for Informational Interviews Networking is creating a system of contacts both for information and support. It may include anyone from your career advisor to your neighbor. A key to successful networking is learning how to move beyond initial rejection; not every person you contact will be willing or able to help you. Networking is a refined skill learned through experience. Some good examples of people to network with are members of organizations and clubs in which you are involved, and your friends. Making Contact for Informational Interviews: Ask for the contact person by name; address correspondence to him/her. If calling, ask if he/she is free to talk at the moment (he/she may be in the middle of a meeting, another call, etc.) If free, explain you are looking for information only, not a job. If not free, ask for a convenient time to call back. State how you got his/her name (who referred you). State reason for contact ( I have decided to go into X field and would like your feedback on my resume/career goals/job search techniques, etc. ). Ask for his/her help or for the name of another person who could help you. If he/she agrees to help, set up an informational interview. Send thank you letters to contacts, whether the information was of use to you or not. Questions to Ask in Informational Interviews: How do most people get into this field? How did you become interested in X? What do you think is the best educational preparation for a career in X? Which part of the job is most challenging to you? Do you think there is/will be growth in this field? What personal attributes do you think are essential to success in X field? What qualifications would you look for in hiring someone for X position? What would you do differently in getting into this job/field? What are the biggest challenges? How does your company compare to others? Are there other related fields/jobs I should be considering? Who else should I talk to? May I use your name? 2. Focused Mailings Focused mailings involve sending personally tailored cover letters and resumes to a few seriously selected and carefully researched organizations. Follow- up is crucial to success. When

3 utilized with informational interviewing and networking, this is a very successful tactic because of the personalized and tailored nature of the job leads and your response to those leads. Many leads can be found by using the employer search feature in FisherConnect. 3. Mass Mailings This approach includes mailing cover letters and resumes to hundreds of companies without researching first. It depends on its sheer numbers to be effective. Its effectiveness is limited, however, by the fact that your follow-up will be non-existent or limited at best. Follow-up is crucial in order to make headway, and therefore, this method can be time consuming and costly. 4. Advertisements Responding to announced vacancies on the Internet or in newspapers, journals, bulletin boards, newsletters, in-house publications, etc. is a traditional means of looking for a job. These continue to be sources you should utilize, but never let this be your only means of job searching. Positions advertised with Career Services are legitimate positions for which employers are looking for candidates. However, sometimes positions advertised in newspapers are filled internally before they are posted, or companies advertise in newspapers as a strategy for identifying a candidate pool for eventual hiring. Continue to supplement your responses to advertised positions with other strategies. 5. Third Party Agencies/Data Bases Employment agencies may be successful if you are obtaining an advanced degree and have some technical expertise. Caution: there is always a fee involved for someone! Ask about fees up front if the employer doesn t pay the fee, you will! With simple cards like this, you can record and organize vital contact and referral information

4 Keeping Track of Goals In addition to using these techniques during a job search campaign, it is also important to keep accurate records in order to follow up effectively. Without follow up, you become one of the many faceless resumes received by that company each week and may not be given a second glance. Keep a record of your contact with the company in order to verify details or provide effective follow up to previous contact. At the very least, you need a listing of the company name, contact person, position title, telephone number, and important dates of contact. Create your own job seeking spreadsheet to record contacts and follow-up actions. Another crucial step is the development of weekly goals, so that you force yourself to get things done. This keeps you on track and motivated. It also allows you to check your progress as your job search continues over time. Procrastination can kill a job search! Periodically, you need to sit back and evaluate your progress. Are there things you need to improve? Are you reaching your goals or falling short? Be sure to have some support while you are job hunting. The Career Services staff is always here to help you. The following are options for you to utilize in your Targeted Job Search: Other University and College Career Services Departments Make use of the career services offices of the colleges and universities in your targeted area. Request contact information regarding local employers or ask to meet with a career services employee for information about their services. Check their web site to see if they will be hosting job fairs which you might be able to attend. (If an office requests a Letter of Reciprocity, contact Darese Douglas [Douglas_68@fisher.osu.edu] for this document). Alumni Resources Alumni Clubs ( More than 229 geographically based Ohio State alumni clubs and contacts offer opportunities for service and friendship all over the world. Check out the club listing to make a Buckeye connection in your community. Fisher Alumni Mentor List This resource is a database of Fisher Alumni interested in assisting current students with various career inquires. To gain access to the Fisher Alumni Web Community: 1. You MUST be accepted to your major in Fisher. 2. Go to the Fisher web site: fisher.osu.edu and click on Alumni & Friends. 3. Click on First Time Users.

5 4. In the box labeled Find your record type in your last name and your first name, then click on the button Find My Record. Since you have not yet graduated, leave the class year field blank. 5. Your name will be displayed click on it and you will see a screen that asks you to verify your record. Type in your last name and dot number (e.g. Buckeye.1) and click on Verify my record. 6. You can then complete your registration choosing a user ID and password that will give you access to the alumni community. Once you have created a user ID and password, Click on Career Networking and sign in to begin the networking process. ** If you contact alumni, please them through the Fisher Alumni Community website. When you view the information of alumni, there s a link to click on to them. Chamber of Commerce Contact the Chamber of Commerce in your targeted geographic location. Many Chambers of Commerce will provide information regarding housing, employers, and other city information to help your job search and move easier. Some Chambers also sponsor job fairs! Personal Networking Make use of your family, friends, parents friends, friends parents, and anyone who might know someone in the area where you want to move. You may be surprised how people know people who know people who may be willing to help you. Companies that Recruit at Fisher Use Fisher Career Services resources such as FisherConnect to locate contact information of companies that place employees nationwide. You may find a company that interviews here on campus that would be willing to place you in your targeted job search area. Through interviewing with companies that recruit on campus, the recruiter directory, or past recruiting events contact information, you are able to make contact with companies that are located all over the country. Other Directories to Identify Companies The Book of Lists The Book of Lists contains key contact information and facts for thousands of top local businesses, industries, professions, governmental units, and non profit organizations. Book of Lists are available in three formats: print, CD, or electronic download. Over 63 different job markets are available. These may be available through Chambers of Commerce, or check Amazon.com and/or the OSU library. Hoover s Online The Business Authority Hoover's, Inc. maintains a database of 12 million companies, with in-depth coverage of 40,000 of the world's top business enterprises. Hoover's staff brings vital business information and knowledge to its coverage, updating the site daily to bring visitors and subscribers the most up-todate business information in the industry. OSU students can access Hoover s by going to the OSU Libraries homepage. Click on Research Databases on the Quicklinks and type Hoover s in the search box. Students off-campus must sign-in to access library databases. Company Websites Once you have targeted an area, find out what companies are located there. Look those companies up on the internet and submit your resume online. You may have even better results if you can have someone who works at the company refer you. Additionally, make sure to call to follow up on your resume (and cover letter) submission. Monstertrak (

6 Monstertrak.com is a resource that employers across the country use to post jobs and internships to college and university web sites. Ohio State is a Monstertrak school. To begin using Monstertrak, go to For Students & Alumni and click on New Account. Other Job Search / Career Related Sites (Username: fisherbsba Password: fisher)