It's Only Your Life

"It's only their life" said the recruiter when he talked about how casually students dressed for recent interviews. He couldn't believe people looking for jobs wouldn't dress to impress potential employers. Have an interview? Get your suit cleaned and pressed. Do the same with your dress shirt or blouse. Shine your shoes. Get your hair trimmed. Clip your fingernails. Shower but skip the fragrance.

Any questions? We'll be happy to talk with you regarding anything to do with your job search.

It's your life -- take it seriously.

~jan

Withdrawal Letters

Remember hearing that an interview is your chance to find out about the organization you are interviewing with? During or after an interview you may decide the job you interviewed for is not a good fit for you, or that you are not interested in working for that employer. If this happens, send a withdrawal letter. You don't need to give a lot of detail regarding why you are no longer interested--you don't want to "burn any bridges". You do want to be professional and courteous. Thank the employer for their time and consideration and say you would like to withdraw from consideration. Say what position you interviewed for and when you interviewed. Use business letter format. For more information, or an example of a letter of withdrawal, contact us. ~ jan

THANK YOU FOR THE INTERVIEW?

Want to stand out as a candidate. . .in a good way? Send thank you notes! Within a day or two of your interview, send a personalized note to each person you interviewed with. Point out something about the organization and what the person said that made a positive impression on you. This is an opportunity to tell your interviewer you are interested in his company. A thank you note is also a great way to remind the interviewer(s) of the strongest things in your background making you the perfect candidate. Be sure to look back over your thank you note carefully to make sure you don't have any grammatical or spelling errors.

Not interested in the company after your interview? Read my next blog on withdrawal letters.

~jan

People get jobs through people they know

Once in a great while, you get an opportunity you just can't believe you get. Happened here--last Wednesday night--for three engineering majors. A workshop on resume prep, put together by NSBE and SPHE, started out slow. . .good for the three people in attendance who got to sit down beside reps from Koch and Cessna and talk resumes -- their resumes. More important than their resumes, however, was the fact they had time and opportunity to make connections with some important employers! Over the evening, more students filtered in -- but the advantage went to the three students who were there early, resume in hand, ready to meet people who may be very important to their future.

The message: take advantage of the opportunities you have to make connections! Bottom line: people get jobs through people they know.

Salary negotiation and interviewing

Ten savy stuents attended Thursday night's workshop on salary negotiation and interviewing. Dana Thompson, HR/Recruiter from LSI gave practical sensible tips on when and how to attempt to negotiate a job offer. Kari Abrahms and Fred Rains, Target Managers, presented how to interview so well that you get that job offer in the first place.

Missed the session but want to know how to interview? Schedule a mock interview with one of our career counselors. What are you waiting for? Call 978-3435 today! ~ jan, career counselor

Dress for that interview

Interview season is here. So, a few tips for the guys from an upscale men's clothing store.

1) Want to look your best? Send your dress shirt to the dry cleaners to be laundered and pressed. Oh, and make that shirt white!

2) Can't afford an expensive suit? Buy a moderately priced suit and have it professionally tailored--that moderately priced suit will look like a million bucks.

3) Socks! Never ever wear a lighter color than your slacks.

4) And, ties. . .skip bright red, yellow, and big prints. Go for the more conservative look. Blues and small prints are good.

You'll be lookin' good!

~jan

Note: these clothing tips provided by Johnston's Clothiers

Speaking of the Fall Career Fair coming up Thursday

Have your business cards ready? Many employers will not be able to accept your resume. Therefore, it is a good idea to have business cards ready to hand over. For help with your business cards, check out these two resources, suggested and tried by one of your fellow students:

1. Microsoft Publisher and
2. website that automatically generates one for you with a logo of your choice: http://www.degraeve.com/business-cards/

Looking forward to seeing you at the Career Fair!