Secrets for Future Success

This article comes from the National Association of Colleges and Employers

Back to School: Secrets for Future Success
by Brad Karsh: President and Founder, JobBound

Nothing beats the new school year. The weather is great, the books are all new, and it's time to reconnect with your best friends. In fact, getting a job or internship for next summer may be the last thing on your mind. The truth is, often, what separates successful job-hunting students from the unsuccessful is what they do right now, at back to school time.

Here are four simple steps for the fall that can help you land a job in the spring:

1. Get your resume in order. More than anything else, this one piece of paper determines whether or not you will get the job you want. As you can imagine, that piece of paper needs to be great. On your resume, you need to focus on accomplishments instead of job descriptions. Most recruiters will tell you that a majority of resumes don't sell a student hard enough because they simply list the activities that anyone holding that position has ever done. If what is written on your resume can be written by the person who had the job before you, after you, or next to you, then you haven't done yourself justice.

2. Network, network, network. The single best way to get a job is to know somebody. Yes, it should be based on merit alone, but unfortunately, that isn't how it works. Tap into as many connections as you can. Reaching out to your school's alumni is a great place to start, and they usually love to hear from current students about life on campus. If you don't know many alumni in positions to make a difference for you, start e-mailing the graduates highlighted in your school's alumni newsletter, or check out Career Services. They often have lists of alums looking to help students. Don't forget you can network with your neighbors, your dentist, your parents' friends, older siblings' friends, etc. Remember sixty-six percent of job seekers get a job through networking!

3. Become involved. Grades alone won't get you the job. Most employers want smart, well-rounded, involved students. There's still time to gain the experience that companies are looking for in new hires. Join a club, get a part-time job, and volunteer for a charity. It's even more impressive, if you get involved in a big way. It's one thing to have, "Member, Student Activities Council" on your resume. It's quite another to have "President, Student Activities Council." Obviously, companies want to hire leaders and accomplished candidates. If you prove that you have those skills, when it comes time to make the hiring decision, you're the obvious choice.
Visit your career center. If you want a job or internship this summer, Career Services is going to be your best friend. Guess where companies go when they want to hire students from your school? Career Services. Guess where you can get someone to help you with resume writing and job interviewing? Career Services. And guess where you can go to find out whether you should be a lumberjack or a management consultant when you grow up? Carer Services. The fact is, your career center, located in the Student Success Center, BSC 331, is an amazing resource for the job search. And it's all free! Go early, go often, and you can't go wrong.

4.The new school year holds countless, bright possibilities and great opportunities. If you get started on these four, simple steps, you are setting yourself up for career and future success!

Interesting Article: Employer Pet Peeves

Just found this article on Yahoo!hotjobs and thought it was interesting!

You can check out the article below or go directly to Yahoo!hotjobs here.

The question we put before our panel this month is:

What is your biggest pet peeve about job seekers today?

The Price of 'Perfection'

My biggest pet peeve is perfect candidates. They only had successes, are perfect and can't see any improvement to make on themselves -- except maybe to "work a little less." People who are too insecure to admit their shortcomings or even their mistakes make me feel that they lack good emotional intelligence. In all the reference checks we reviewed at Checkster, none were 100% positive, so be realistic. If not, you will be seen as either not daring enough to perform difficult things, or stuck in a myopic belief that you are perfect.
-- Yves Lermusi, CEO, Checkster

Clueless Candidates

As a recruiter, there have been countless times when job seekers have asked, "What position is this for?" Job seekers shouldn't just apply to any job. They need to spend their time effectively finding jobs that are a match for their skills and interest.
-- Nga Nguyen, Technology & Operations Group Recruiter at Wells Fargo

Short-Cut Introductions

With more people looking for work in today's economy, I've been seeing an increase in what I call "lazy introductions" come across my desk. It goes something like this: "I'm writing you to introduce myself. I live in New York and I'm looking for a job," and in the signature is a link to a LinkedIn profile or possibly a resume. A brief introduction should come with a background, highlights, and reason for connecting. A job search is a job in itself and requires some personalization and effort for each and every introduction.
-- Lindsay Olson, partner, Paradigm Staffing

Can't Connect the Dots?

My biggest pet peeve is receiving resumes or applications that describe background and work experience wholly unrelated to the position being applied for. Also there is either no supporting material or a generic cover letter that fails to connect the dots between what's on the application and what's in the posted job listing.
-- Noah Apodaca, lead recruiter for staff at the University of California, Irvine

Don't Go Generic

Job seekers hurt their own cause when they don't focus on specific ways they can help potential employers and instead simply mass distribute their resume. Individuals need to show hiring managers what they can do for the organization, not the reverse. Thoroughly research companies where you want to apply, customize your resume and cover letter for each opportunity, and in your communications with employers highlight your accomplishments and skills that demonstrate how you can positively impact the firm's bottom line.
-- DeLynn Senna, executive director of North American permanent placement services, Robert Half International

STUDENT NEWS ALERT: Bibs no longer acceptable in public

Join us for a night of fine food and excellent conversation at this Spring's Etiquette Dinner. With a new five-course menu and fabulous presenter you are sure to enjoy the evening!

BUY TICKETS HERE

$10 for SLU students & alumni
$15 non-SLU guests

Education & Nonprofit Career Fair

Interested in a career in service, education, or with a nonprofit?

Check out the Education & Nonprofit Career Fair on March 26, 2009 from 4-7pm in the BSC.

This event is free to SLU students and $10 for Non-SLU students.



Career counselors are available for SLU students and alumni looking to have their resumes reviewed from 9am - 5pm on Wednesday, March 25.

CAREER FAIR on Tuesday, March 3 from 1-5pm

Yes, the economy is in a slump, but there are jobs and internships to be had! Students should be doing anything they can to network... including going to the Spring Career Fair on March 3 from 1-5pm in the BSC Multipurpose rooms.

We look forward to seeing you there and so do these EMPLOYERS.

Career Services on TV!

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By Rebecca Wu

KSDK -- Saint Louis University student Dan Finucane is not only concerned about finals next week, but others have questioned his chances of getting a job even when the economy was good.
"Being a theology and philosophy major, I've always been told, 'What are you going to do with that?'" Finucane says.

Kim Reitter, SLU's Director of Career Services, says the key is to start as soon as you can.
"When the economy is good it typically takes three to six months to find a job," she says. "When the economy is not so good, it can take six to 12 months."

Reitter says jobs are available. In fact, job postings at SLU's career center were up 55 percent in October compared to the same time last year.

During winter break, Reitter recommends students work with career counselors, who will be on campus, to develop resumes. She also says to network with family, friends and neighbors while at home. Statistics show 70 percent of jobs are found through networking. And don't be afraid to contact potential companies.

"A lot of candidates who are out there looking believe no one hires between Thanksgiving and Christmas," Reitter says. "So if you are working on it, you have a better chance of getting and finding a position."

As for Finucane, he still has one more year before graduating. He's confident the tips he picked up when he worked at career services will pay off.

"I'm trying to network right now just with my former high school," Finucane says. "And just keeping in touch with them and trying to make sure I'm keeping my feelers out there for getting recommendations or ideas for jobs."

You know what you have to offer an employer, but what will you get in return?

Considering the current economy and the necessity of adopting a more flexible (and global) job search, I thought I'd share advice from Ronald Mitchell, founder of gottamentor.com and a graduate of Harvard Business School (see the article at Gotta Mentor Advice):

What I would do as a college senior looking for a job in this environment
By: Ronald Mitchell
Updated : 10/15/2008

There are no simple answers if you are looking for a job as a college senior right now, but here are three things you should consider:
1) Take a job where you will learn the most
Pre-1980, college students took jobs where they thought they would get the most job security. They went to the big companies like IBM, GM and GE. In the 80`s and 90`s college seniors started to focus on where they could make the most money like Wall Street. In the 2000`s, students started to focus on where they could enjoy the best lifestyle like the dot coms. Well today, the focus should be on where you can learn the most. This may mean that you make less money and have less flexibility. But in the long run the skills that you develop will set you free and enable you to chart a career path that you will have control over.
2) Go Abroad
What I am going to say here, may seem contradictory to what I have written above but it is not. Get your butt out of the country. This may mean studying for an extra year or taking some menial type of job abroad. In this case the type of job does not matter. Don`t worry about what you learn on the job, because learning about a different culture is just as important. Learning a language is just as (if not more) important. Tops on my list to go to would be China, India and Brazil. Big markets that are only going to become more important to the global economy.
3) Don`t cop out and go to law or business school right away.
I know that many of you are taking your LSATs, GMATs and GREs. Don`t cop out! Even in a good economy, I would tell you to work for a few years before going to graduate school. These schools will always be there for you. Once you go and saddle yourself with even more school debt, you will have even less opportunity to find or do the things you want to do. You have very little risk as a young person to go and try something different.