Welcome to Career Services

Getting Started with Your Job Search

A woman seated in front of a computer and paperwork, a pen is held in her hand A successful job search begins with clearly established goals. As you look to the future, discovering what the right job is for you is an individual choice.


Ask yourself some hard questions:

  • Where do you want to live?
  • What work environment do you want?
  • How can you grow in your career?



It's important to know yourself and to collect data on your personality, interests, and work values in order to make a sound decision about what is right for you. Complete the assessments on MyPlan and/or meet with a Career Counselor to get to know yourself and establish clear career goals.

Be sure to polish up your cover letter, resume, and practice interviewing skills as you begin the job search process. Job search preparation is the key to being successful. Take the Job Search Readiness Survey (PDF) to see if you are ready to begin this process. Browse through Career Services Job & Internship Guide (PDF) to learn about additional ways to get started both on and off line.

 


How Do You Conduct Research?

You will want to do both online research and in person/phone research to identify current opportunities in the marketplace where you can apply your education and experiences.

Complete online research on careers, industries, employers, and companies:

Careers

Industries

  • Career Guide to Industries: discusses careers from an industry perspective.
  • Vault: prepare for a job search by viewing employer profiles and rankings, industry blogs, message boards, job boards, and education information.
  • True Careers: offers great industry overviews and links to 27,000 companies searchable by state and industry.

Employers / Companies

  • What Can I Do With a Major In: highlights the kind of employers that hire someone with your major.
  • The Riley Guide: search for jobs and other career opportunities, as well as receive resume assistance.
  • Hoover's Online: review company and industry profiles, discover trends, and learn about new opportunities.
  • Idealist: for non-profit organizations.
  • Alumni Survey: lists employers who have hired alumnus with your major.
  • MyPlan: information about careers, industries, and companies.
  • Career Services Resource Room: houses many job search books on topics such as careers, salaries, industries and employers, interviewing, and networking.


Research Opportunities by Connecting With Others

Finding a job requires stepping outside your comfort zone and taking some risks. Statistics show that connecting with others during your job search can have a great impact on whether you get a job, as well as how quickly you can get one. You can do this a variety of ways, such as networking, asking personal contacts, informational interviewing, and job shadowing (PDF).