With summer only two months away, now's the time to kick-start your job or internship search if you haven't already. Career opportunities are usually very time-sensitive and may come up only once.
By getting focused and deliberately setting aside specific times to focus on job-search related activities, you are less likely to miss important career opportunities. Position yourself so that you are at the right place at the right time, lay the groundwork for your job search, and you will have an exponentially increased number of opportunities.
Not Missing the Obvious Opportunities: Job Search Agents
One way to ensure that you avoid missing important career opportunities is to set up a job search agent. These are automated emails you can set up which will notify you when a new job is posted. Being the very first one to apply often means you will be more likely to get an opportunity-- being the last one to apply (especially when a position is "open until filled") often means the position will be long gone by the time they get your resume.
EvansJobs allows you to set up a job search agent. It takes a few steps, but once it's set up, you can arrange to have job listings sent to you on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis; and you can target the search so that only jobs (or internships) in your chosen field, sector, or geographic area are sent to you. Go set one up right now! If you need help, download the EvansJobs student user guide from the Handouts Section of EvansJobs.
Many other sites allow you to set up a job search agent, such as Idealist, SimplyHired, USAJobs, and the Foreign Policy Association, as well as many individual employers. You can also sign up for listserves of job postings through the City of Bellevue (including many regional opportunities) by emailing cshanafelt@bellevuewa.gov and the Nonprofit Networking list by emailing NonProfitNetworking@yahoogroups.com among others.
Creating New Opportunities: Getting Out There
Another key way to make sure you stay aware of more opportunities is to meet more people. For instance, if you want to work for the Gates Foundation, you may have a chance to meet with the Senior Recruiter for the Global Development Program, who is attending the Evans School's Career Night on April 27, a special event open only to Evans School students, alumni, and employers (visit the Evans School Events Calendar to see more details on the numerous other employers who will be attending). If you have done your homework, you will be able to cite your mission and your vision, and how those align with the mission and vision of the Gates Foundation, with painstaking specificity. You should also look professional by dressing professionally for the event, having a professional business card at the ready, and being able to briefly state your top skills and accomplishments.
Career Night could also provide you with an opportunity to begin to make a good impression with employers of interest, as well as to gather the essential information about what employers look for in candidates and what red flags they avoid.
Many people meet someone at an event who later introduces them to someone who introduces them to someone else who eventually hires them for a job. It's like dating: them more you get out of your room and start meeting people, them more career chances you'll have.
Laying the Groundwork: Being Ready for Opportunities Takes Preparation
Activities that need to be part of your job search include:
- Thinking about your future goals and clarifying them into a clear vision and mission
- Identifying your skills, strengths and abilities
- Setting measurable, achievable, time-sensitive goals related to job search
- Writing and polishing your resume and cover letter
- Conducting research on your target employers, your favorite issue area, current events in your field, and important conferences and professional associations
- Reaching out to professionals in your field through attendance at networking events, fairs, cold calling, Linkedin.com, Husky Career Network etc. in order to become a known quantity, develop job leads, and further your research into the field
- Researching and applying to internship and jobs; and getting ready for interviews
Congratulations! You've read this whole blog post. Clearly, you've got some time on your hands. Start using that time wisely, by getting ready and out there so you don't miss any career opportunities-and grab the choice chances before they disappear like a melted popsicle.
Published on April 6, 2009
