plus 3, Career service experts weigh-in on how college ... - MLive.com

Career service experts weigh-in on how college ... - MLive.com
How to prepare for a second job interview - Syracuse Post-Standard
Schools Help Athletes Win Find-a-Job Game - The Ledger
Expert Helps Job Seekers Win The Interview. - PRLog (free press release)

Career service experts weigh-in on how college ... - MLive.com

Posted: 19 Apr 2010 04:32 AM PDT

By Michael Wayland | The Bay City Times

April 19, 2010, 7:29AM

John Ehlke | The Bay City TimesDelta College students Stephanie Suppes, 23, of Midland, left, and Shanell Miller, 29 of Saginaw look over the postings on the career services bulletin board at Delta College, 1961 Delta Rd, in University Center.
BAY CITY — Chris LaBrecque graduates from Northwood University next month, and he already is ahead of many of his classmates. He has his "dream job" lined up after graduation.

"I will be moving to Denver, Colo. and will be an associate financial analyst with MillerCoors," said the 22-year-old from Frankenmuth.

LaBrecque interned for the company last year and, thanks to some networking help, will begin working full-time in July for the beer manufacturer.

LaBrecque's transition from internship to first job isn't a fluke. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, an association of career-guidance professionals from nearly 2,000 colleges, 23 percent of graduating seniors with internship experience landed a job by the end of April last year. By contrast, 14 percent of students without internship experience found full-time employment.

Career service experts and counselors from around the Great Lakes Bay Region agree the job market is continually changing and Michigan's economy is still struggling. But hard work, internships and networking will continue to help graduates find employment.

College+Grads+002.JPG View full sizeJohn Ehlke | The Bay City Times'There are a lot of good, great, highly educated people out of work, ' said Associate Director of Counseling/Advising and Career Services Daniel Segura of Delta College about the job market for graduating college students. "It's gotten more competitive, and anybody in the job market has to approach the job market very intentionally," said Daniel Segura, associate director of counseling/advising & career services at Bay County's Delta College. "The rules have changed. (Graduates nowadays) can't approach it in the same way that they did a few years ago, or that their parents did. ... They have to look at what the job market looks like right now and approach it like that."

LaBrecque said career services officials at Midland-based Northwood University helped him get in contact with an alumnus who worked at MillerCoors before his interview.

"Old fashion networking is still very, very important," said Mike Major, director of career planing and placement at Saginaw Valley State University in Saginaw County. "It is a tough economy right now and a tough job market regionally."

But networking, according to Major, has changed with the introduction of the Internet and social networking Web sites.

Major said unflattering online photos, such as a student heavily drinking at a party, should be removed from Web sites, because the majority of employers check online about potential employees.

"The growing of social meeting networks can be an ally and it can also be their enemy," Major said. "LinkedIn, that is a great resource that I don't think enough students take advantage of."

LinkedIn, founded in 2002, is a worldwide business-oriented social networking site with more than 60 million users.

Segura said one of the best things a potential graduate or any job seeker can do is to "Google yourself" online. Type in your name and find out what Google, or any other search engines, find.

College+Grads+003.JPG View full sizeJohn Ehlke | The Bay City TimesDelta College Business Management major Jon Tester, 21, of Breckenridge looks across the Career Services bulletin board at Delta College, 1961 Delta Rd, in University Center Monday morning.Here are five tips Segura and other career service experts say will help recent graduates find a job:

• Customize resumes and cover letters for every company and position.

• Be aware of what is on your personal online profiles.

• Facebook and Twitter are not the best places to find jobs and make professional connections.

• If possible, serve an internship to gain experience in a desired field.

• Have at least one other person read over a resume and cover letter to make sure they make sense.

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How to prepare for a second job interview - Syracuse Post-Standard

Posted: 19 Apr 2010 03:56 AM PDT

By Jeffrey Garber / 360JobInterview.com

April 19, 2010, 6:43AM

Thinkstock

So you snagged a second interview with the company.

Great!

Now what?

Jeffrey Garber is the co-founder and chief executive officer of 360JobInterview.com. Garber started the company with Dan Fedrizzi in response to the recent job losses across the country. Their goal is to provide affordable career services to job seekers nationwide. The company provides live one-on-one services over the Internet in career counseling, preparing for interviews and resume building. Before founding 360JobInterview.com, Garber spent more than 20 years in marketing and communications. He wrote about how to overcome age bias in the Feb. 1 edition of MoneyWise.

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Help During Hard Times
Central New York experts in career counseling, job placement and family budgeting share their advice on landing a job, moving up in a career, re-entering the job market or stretching a budget. Find their tips each Monday in MoneyWise in The Post-Standard and here on syracuse.com.

You'll likely be asked the same questions again, whether it is the same individual or a different interviewer. Now, potential employers roll up their sleeves and delve into details and specifics as they relate to your qualifications and the position you are seeking.

Often the second interview is conducted to provide a way for hiring managers and their team to ask very direct questions and garner feedback on the validity of your candidacy. They want to see how you stack up alongside the other candidates.

Many hiring managers look to their staff for feedback on perspective candidates — so make sure that even if there are five consecutive back-to-back interviews, you appear engaged and energized through the whole process. The chances that you will be the only candidate called back are slim, so you will have to be at the top of your
game.

The purpose of re-asking the same questions deals with consistency, research and preparedness. Does your second set of answers mesh well with the first? Did you do further research into the industry, company, and the position since your last interview in order to offer more detail and insight? Make sure that your answers seem as fresh and original as the first time you delivered them.

Do you have a plan?

Preparing a plan of action, or proposal, for a prospective employer is usually not part of the thought process for a candidate at the stage of a second interview. It is, however, a potential leg up on your competition. Walk in there ready, showing that you did your research and can present it in a concise, interesting and well-researched manner.

Step 1: Do your research

After the first interview, you should have a pretty good idea what the essentials are for this job.

Research to come up with solutions to potential problems, ways to reach forecasted goals. Show that you're a cut above the rest in every way.

Step 2: Develop a plan

Make an outline of a path to follow for accomplishing goals and overcoming unforeseen or existing stumbling blocks. Create a scenario plan and go over it in an acutely defined fashion. While the presentation does not need to be anything fancy, a standard PowerPoint, or at least a few charts, graphs and a script to use at the interview are essential.

Foreseeing and creating a plan of action for potential on-the-job situations is typically not asked for at this stage by the interviewer. It does, however, show initiative, resourcefulness, creativity and leadership. Essentially, it provides the interviewer with a good picture of the qualities you have to offer for the position.

Step 3: Create a lasting impression

Keep in mind that the day you interview, you may be one of several candidates being interviewed and you need to create a positive lasting impression.

• Make sure you are memorable. As a candidate, did you convey that you are the best qualified and most innovative in your thinking, someone that they can envision fitting seamlessly in their environment? Above all, they will ask their peers if you are a true asset to their company and somebody with whom they'd like to work.

• Most companies are looking for talent that has growth potential and leadership qualities. Use the interview to make a strong case about the versatility of your skills and overall leadership abilities — even if the immediate position is not one of leadership. Employers like to hire talent with potential.

• Ask questions. Intelligent questions demonstrate to employers that you are interested in their company. Your questions should not be frivolous but crafted to showcase your knowledge of the industry as it relates to their company. Make sure your questions center on the company and the position and not your needs. In short, this isn't the time to ask specific benefits unless they bring up the topic.

• Don't change the job! Many candidates think they can change the job description, office location and hours. Years ago, when unemployment was low, many employers were flexible with their staff's requests in order to retain quality talent. Times are different. Don't ask if you can telecommute, if that is not what they are asking for. Don't ask for flex hours if they haven't identified that option in their job description. Tread lightly in your requests. If you are "one-of-a-kind" in a "one-of-a-kind field," you will develop the leverage to make requests.

Remember, the competition is keen and you need to accentuate why you are the best candidate. One of the key factors that most hiring managers consider in making their decisions is that they want to know that you can "hit the ground running" and be an asset from the start.

Good luck!

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Schools Help Athletes Win Find-a-Job Game - The Ledger

Posted: 19 Apr 2010 01:19 AM PDT

"I need a job," said Maples, who saw limited playing time in an injury-plagued career for the Tigers. So, too, do a host of gymnasts, swimmers, wrestlers, runners and other varsity athletes at Missouri.

About 150 of them, Maple included, showed up recently for their athletic department's annual career fair.

Like other NCAA schools, Missouri has a team of employees dedicated to enhancing its athletes' "life skills" - from academic tutors to community service organizers. For a growing number of Division I institutions, that also means helping players find jobs.

Career placement for athletes has even become a cottage industry, with schools such as Clemson, Kentucky, Ohio State and Oregon hiring private companies like CareerAthletes.com that specialize in connecting athletes with job leads.

"This is my sole focus," said Kim Martin, a former Missouri swimmer who is now the school's assistant athletics director for life skills. "I understand what their days are like, what their time demands are, what unique traits they possess."

Corporate recruiters who target athletes say they don't mind that many of the prospective hires can't boast of prestigious internships or a succession of summer jobs.

They instead look for the intangible qualities - leadership, sacrifice, time management, a willingness to take criticism - that can translate from success on the field to success in the workplace.

"If you're an athlete, you're a pretty competitive person," said Jeffery Seeburger, a Mass Mutual Financial Group recruiting director. "In our business, you have to have that mindset."

Athletes accustomed to the spotlight tend to do well in careers that require the personal touch, Seeburger and other recruiters said, from real estate and finance to pharmaceutical sales and investment banking. Their name recognition alone can mean an office invite instead of a slammed door.

Former Missouri wide receiver Brad Ekwerekwu, now a graduate student and special assistant to athletics director Mike Alden, played with 10 future NFL players. Yet he's just as quick to name the former teammates who have done well in the corporate world.

"Athletics is the avenue to get your name and face out there," he said. "It's your foot in the door."

The "Tigers for Tomorrow" career development program starts with first-year athletes researching potential majors and learning how to write a basic resume. They can later participate in mock interviews, etiquette dinners and alumni network events.

The program's motto: "transitioning elite student athletes into successful professionals."

"We're here to serve our athletes for the four and five years they're here, plus beyond," Martin said.

Such service is sorely needed in top-tier college sports, suggested Oregon State English professor Michael Oriard, a former Notre Dame football player and vocal critic of athletic excesses on campus.

"Universities have a moral obligation to their athletes," he said. "This sounds like a good-faith effort to make sure these athletes really benefit from their scholarships."

Career development offices are a staple in most academic departments, from law and business to journalism and social work.

The roughly 500 Missouri athletes receive far more individualized care than the 8,000 students who visit the campus career center in person or online each year, acknowledged the center's assistant director Craig Benson.

But given their service to the school, that extra attention is deserved, he said.

"These are students who are asked to do a lot more than the typical student," he said. "The idea of providing more convenient service makes a lot of sense."

Maples, a highly touted junior college transfer from northern Alabama, who arrived at Missouri in 2007, said that Martin's office should be a mandatory stop in the school's athletics training complex, as much a part of the routine as lifting weights or hitting the food line.

The 310-pound Maples hasn't completely abandoned the idea of a career dependent on athletic skills - he talks of becoming a professional wrestler. But at the job fair he visited recruiters from Aflac, Kraft Foods, Sherwin Williams and other corporations.

"I think all freshmen should be a part of this," he said. "Get them ready, so it won't be a smack in the face when they're a senior."

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