Job hunting in a down economy

I've had students express concerns about the job hunt in this questionable economy. The main piece of advice I can give is start looking early and network, network, network. Networking is a crucial part of any job search, especially when jobs may be in shorter supply than normal. If you're graduating in May '09, you should start your job search and networking now.

Get in touch with anyone who you think may be able to assist you or put you in touch with someone - your friends, your parents' friends, your friends' parents, aunts & uncles, professors, your neighbors at home, older siblings, former internship supervisors... you get the idea. Also join some professional organizations in career areas of interest, attend any networking events you can locate, conduct some informational interviews with professionals in your areas of interest.

Anything you can think of to establish contact with someone who may be able to help is worth trying. The average job search can take 3 to 6 months, but very possibly longer in a bad economy. Don't delay - get started now!

Review of Think Intern: The Internship Guidebook

A new guidebook reached the Career Services office this week: Think Intern (www.thinkintern.com).

At first glance the front cover looks a little childish, but the information inside is really great (and much more modern). Two of my favorite articles are Major Decisions: What Can I Do with My Major? and Internship Reports, Real Students: Real Internships.

What do I like most about them?

The first one, What Can I Do with My Major?, has real life examples about students who majored in various fields like Nursing, Communications, Art History, Accounting and Spanish. It gives you the straight information about what internships they had, their first job and their current job. People really do move around a lot! It also provides the following tips:

- Major in your passion
- Majors are just the beginning
- Think beyond the obvious

The second article, Real Students: Real Internships, is also very useful. Found on page 16-17, it features an interview with a Business Management major named Stephen who landed an internship with The National Hockey League, LLP. Stephen is very truthful about how he found the NHL internship and how he was able to live in NYC. I also like this piece of advice he gives:

START YOUR INTERNSHIP SEARCH EARLY!

Overall, I would definitely recommend the guidebook to students looking for internships or unsure of their major. I guess the saying is true: You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, because the outside of this book is very deceiving! (or maybe I'm just a graphic design snob ;) )

You can pick up a free copy of Think Intern at Career Services in BSC 331 (Student Success Center).