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Advice Category: Career Development

Tips from Employers to Guide Your Career Search

A few weeks ago, Core Programs in the Graduate School, Career Center, and the Alumni Association sponsored an employer panel for graduate students and postdocs. We would like to share a few pearls from the terrific UW alums who sat on the panel and who also hosted conversations during the networking reception that followed.

The job search is about finding the right fit for your talents. Be creative about your career options, test out new ways to tell the story of your (deep) experience and skill set, and it is never too early to start exploring and building your network.

Getting Started

  • Evolve your resume. Your resume should always be evolving and tailored to each job you are applying for. Also, describe examples of specific accomplishments, including those that came up during your education and training. What problems did you approach, how did you solve them, with what results? Find out more about building your resume here. If you’re interested in careers beyond academia, here are tips on how to revise your CV into resume format.
  • Build your experience. Find out what key skills or top tools are used and needed in the field of interest, and learn them. Look at the whole picture of your experience, inside and outside of graduate education. Align your skill sets to particular positions or organizations. Use specific examples in your talking points and written materials with the goal of making yourself stand out from an applicant pool. Learn how to get internship and related experential skills as graduate students at this upcoming workshop.
  • Demonstrate excellent communication skills (in writing and in person). Be able to discuss complex ideas in a simple, clear, concise fashion. Be ready to describe the research you are working on in 30 seconds or less–and in a way that anyone can understand.
  • Consider entry-level positions. Don’t get discouraged by entry-level positions. It can be helpful to get your foot in the door, demonstrate your contribution and capability. Depending on the organization (check this out first), you can move up within 3-6 months.
  • Find your passion. Pay attention to your energy and passion as those are the kinds of jobs you should be looking for (and not others!).

Networking

  • Start early. It is never too early to start building and growing your network. Networking is possible even for those of us who initially shy away from it.
  • Talk about your talent and passion. Practice. Get comfortable. Own it, but without arrogance. Do mock interviews.
  • Set up networking meetings. Identify target companies to narrow your options, and then set up informational interviews.
  • Use LinkedIn strategically. Start with classmates, alums, professors. Join LinkedIn groups in order to initiate professional connections and learn about new job postings.
  • Attend receptions. Face-to-face conversations can spark interest and connections at these professional gatherings. Send a resume to those you’ve connected with as a follow up. Personal connections always move a resume up if it is already in the pool.
  • Ask questions. You are interviewing the informant and the organization to determine fit as much as they are interviewing you. Show them you want to know what the work is like, that it matters to you (that is, you aren’t just looking for “a job”). Questions you can ask: What is your day-to-day work like? What is the best part of what you do? The most challenging? What is the culture like here? What would you change about your job (or the organization) if you could?

Interviewing

  • Phone interview. Always prepare for this as you would an in-person interview, and follow up with a thank you email or note.
  • Answering technical questions. If a potential employer asks you a technical question, or to solve a technical problem during the interview, how should you handle it? The interviewer mostly wants to know how you strategize solving a problem. It is important to show how you would approach the problem, what you’d consider, and why.
  • Be relationally savvy. Organizations are looking for people who will be colleagues.
  • Show resilience. You can’t always control what interviewers will ask or how they will behave. Show some resilience and keep your composure, as well as keeping things in perspective. If you don’t like how you were treated in an interview, chances are you don’t want to work there anyway!
  • Not hearing back. You might not hear back. Be persistent. Keep honing your materials and learning from the process.

Best Wishes on Your Career Paths!

Kelly, Jaye, and Ziyan
Core Programs Team

Finding the Right Fit for Your Talent

In late January 2016, the Graduate School co-hosted an annual Career Symposium for graduate students and postdocs. We wanted to share just a few pearls from the terrific UW alums who sat on the panel and also hosted conversations during the networking reception. Bottom line: the job search is about finding the right fit for your talent. Be creative about your career options, test out new ways to tell the story of your (deep) experience and skill set, and it is never too early to start exploring and building your network.

Getting Started

  • Evolve your resume. Your resume should always be evolving.  Describe examples of specific accomplishments, including those that came up during your education and training.  What problems did you approach, how did you solve them, with what results?
  • Build your experience. Find out what the key skills or top tools are used in the field of interest, and learn them. Look at the whole picture of your experience, inside and outside of graduate education.  Align your skill sets to particular positions or organizations. Use specific examples in your talking points and written materials with the goal of making yourself stand out from an applicant pool.
  • Demonstrate excellent communication skills (in writing and in person). Be able to discuss complex ideas in a simple, clear, concise fashion. Especially, be ready to describe what you are working on for your research in 30 seconds or less in a way that anyone can understand.
  • Consider entry-level positions. Don’t get discouraged by entry-level positions.  It can be helpful to get your foot in the door, demonstrate your contribution and capability and depending on the organization (check this out first) you can move up within 3-6 months.
  • Find your passion. Pay attention to your energy and passion as those are the kinds of jobs you should be looking for (and not others!).

Networking

  • Start early. It is never too early to start building and growing your network.
  • Talk about your talent and passion. Practice. Get comfortable. Own it, but without arrogance. Do mock interviews.
  • Set up networking meetings – informational interviews. Identify target companies to start with to narrow your options.
  • Use LinkedIn strategically. Start with classmates, alums, professors.  Join groups that might create good professional connections.
  • Attend receptions. Send a resume to those you’ve connected with as a follow up. Personal connections always move a resume up if it is already in the pool. Face-to-face meetings spark interest and connection.
  • Ask questions. You are interviewing the informant and the organization to determine fit as much as they are interviewing you.  Show them you want to know what the work is like, that it matters to you (that is, you aren’t just looking for “a job”). Questions you can ask: what is your day-to-day work like? What is the best part of what you do? The most challenging? What is the culture like here? What would you change about your job (or the organization) if you could?

Interviewing

  • Phone interview. Phone interviews are important.  Always prepare as you would for an in-person, and follow up with a thank you email or note.
  • Answering technical questions. If they ask you a technical question, or to solve a technical problem during the interview, how should you handle it?  The interviewers mostly want to know how you think rather than the answer to the problem.  It is important to show how you would approach the problem, what you’d consider, and why.
  • Be relationally savvy. Organizations are looking for people who will be colleagues.
  • Show resilience. You can’t always control what interviewers will ask or how they will behave.  Show some resilience and keep your composure, as well as keeping things in perspective.  If you don’t like how you were treated in an interview, chances are you don’t want to work there anyway!
  • Not hearing back. You might not hear back. Have persistence. Keep honing your materials and learning from the process.

“Interviews are helpful as I can tell right away if someone has the logic skills of a squirrel.”
– Mike Bardaro (UW Chemistry alum), Senior Data Scientist AOL

 

Originally posted on January 28, 2016.

You’re Hired!

I feel behind my cohort in terms of applicable experience. I’ve applied to several internships/practicum experiences, but my financial situation dictates that I either need a paid internship or another job while I complete an unpaid internship. Because my classes are during the day, I’ve found the latter next to impossible. Additionally, I haven’t revived much interest in hiring due to my lack of experience. How do I find the right positions for this situation?     —Inexperienced

(This week’s answer is courtesy of Catherine Basl, Lead Career Counselor, Career Center.)

Thanks for sharing a bit about your situation. It can definitely feel discouraging when we aren’t having as much luck as we want in the job search and when we are faced with hard decisions about lackluster paid positions versus highly interesting unpaid positions. Below are some tips you might find helpful.

  • Don’t worry! Most graduate cohorts are made up of students who have a range of applicable experience. If they accepted you into the program, they think you have enough experience to be successful! Though it can be difficult, try to stay positive and confident.
  • Consider making a list of what you are looking for in a job or internship. Whether it includes a desired weekly schedule, skills, location, or something else, making a list and prioritizing it can help when mulling over possible options.
  • Applicable experience is more than work experience. Consider your volunteer experience too! If you are within a few years of your undergraduate work you might also include relevant clubs and student activities on your resume. Don’t sell yourself short.
  • Use your network! If you have only been looking online, consult with your graduate program adviser, departmental staff members and faculty about possible internships. Depending on your field, HuskyJobs might also be a good resource.
  • Polish your resume and cover letter! Tailor your resume and cover letter for each position and consider getting them reviewed to ensure they are submission-ready. Sometimes tweaking your materials or doing a mock interview can make a world of difference in the job search.
  • Feeling stuck? Schedule an appointment with a career counselor—we can help you with every step of the process from deciding what’s most important to you to helping you prep for the interview that will land you your dream internship.

Ask the Grad School Guru is an advice column for all y’all graduate and professional students. Real questions from real students, answered by real people. If the guru doesn’t know the answer, the guru will seek out experts all across campus to address the issue. (Please note: The guru is not a medical doctor, therapist, lawyer or academic advisor, and all advice offered here is for informational purposes only.) Submit a question for the column →

Preparing for Teaching Careers at Community Colleges

If teaching is your passion, it is well worth exploring a career working at a community college. Although community colleges can vary from one another, excellence in teaching and student-centered learning are always top priorities. Community colleges also offer an array of degrees and certificates, serving student populations that enrich and diversify the classroom. Because teaching is such a priority, it takes the right approach to be successful in getting a faculty position at a community college. It is also worth learning about, and applying to, different campuses to find the best organizational fit for you.  In the meantime, below are a few tips to consider when applying:

Preparing and Applying

Every community college has a unique mission statement and set of core values. Visit the college’s website to learn more about its institutional culture and courses offered. Contact faculty and set up informational interviews at the campus. Gain a sense of student experiences on campus by engaging students in conversation. Your goal is to learn as much as you can about the institution so you can tailor your application. More tips:

  • Read the faculty job posting carefully to know what is expected
  • Tailor your cover letter and highlight your enthusiasm for the college’s mission and student population stating why you want to work at that specific institution, your awareness of the college’s student learning needs, and your interest and experience in teaching
  • Submit a concise resume that showcases your teaching experience and de-emphasizes your research
  • Submit a well-crafted statement that describes your teaching philosophy

The Interview

Community college interview panels will have a standard set of questions. Set up a mock interview with a friend or peer and practice your responses to the following sample questions. You’re aiming for well-thought out responses that speak to your specific experiences with teaching and why you’re a great fit for the college. It also doesn’t hurt to contact the department and ask what you can expect during the interview. Sample interview questions:

  • Why do you want to teach at our college?
  • Give an example of a successful teaching experience you had in the classroom.
  • Talk about your greatest frustration in teaching and what you learned from this.
  • Tell us about your experience working or volunteering in diverse settings.
  • How do you assess student learning?
  • What departmental activities were you involved in during grad school or while you taught at another college?

Teaching Demo

During the interview, you will most likely be required to do a teaching demo for the hiring committee. Here are some suggestions to help you prepare:

  • Do an online search and look at course syllabi from the department you are applying to
  • Design a lesson with the college’s student population in mind and treat the demo as if you were teaching a real class
  • Start your lesson by describing the goals for the day and ask everyone to introduce themselves
  • Include activities that get committee members talking with each other
  • Use handouts as a teaching tool
  • Avoid lecturing and be relatable
  • Make sure your lesson highlights your teaching philosophy

Core Programs thanks our partners in the Seattle Colleges District for providing feedback on this newsletter:

Marty Logan, Human Resources Director, North Seattle College
Kate Krieg, Associate Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences Division, Seattle Central College

Additional Resources

It’s Never Too Early, or Late, to Get Started on Your Career Path

Welcome back!  We hope you made time for yourself to relax and enjoy the break. As you begin the Spring quarter, we know that many of you are thinking, “What next?!,” especially if you’re pursuing work outside of academia (note: For those of you who are interested in pursuing an academic career, we haven’t forgotten about you! Check out these resources.)  We assure you that it’s never too early—or late—to get started on planning your career path.

Here are some tips:

Research.  Conduct an online search about industries you’d like to work in. Take a look at these resources:  Exploring Options, Versatile PhD, or Ph.D. Career Guide.  Also, take your research offline and schedule informational interviews with professionals in fields that interest you.  From these one-on-one meetings, you’ll get a more accurate picture of specific job experiences and work environments.

Identify.  Know your strengths and transferable skills.  Highlight them in application materials and interviews. Earning a graduate degree means you can do a task to completion, meet multiple deadlines, display strong written and verbal communication skills, to name but a few.  More here:  Dependable Strengths, Ph.D. Transferrable Skills, and Transferrable Skills and Qualities.

Network.  Reach out to alums, join professional organizations and social media sites, or attend a campus or niche market career fair to make connections and market yourself as a strong and employable candidate.  A UW Career Center survey found that local employers usually recruit grads through networking referrals.

Practice.  Learning how to present yourself during job interviews takes practice, and one way to build confidence, learn what to expect, and effectively respond to different types of interview questions is to do mock interviews.  As with any actual interview, be prepared for your practice session by knowing the job description well, doing research about the company that’s hiring, tailoring your cover letter and resume, and brushing up on standard interview questions.  Here’s another set of commonly asked interview questions.

We recognize this is a lot of work and you already have a full plate.  As one alum said at a recent panel, treat looking for a job as a job.  If you set aside a little time each week, you can make progress over time.  By developing these habits now, you will set yourself up for success and work that is meaningful for you.

Effective Job Search Tips from Employers

You’re investing time (and money) building your skills, knowledge, and experience in graduate school, and earning that degree is just one piece of the puzzle in your professional development. As you think about future career options (inside or outside of academia), there are a number of things to consider–and work on–to help you be the right match between you and potential employers.

Check out these strategies:

Reflection.  Reflect on what you really want. What are you passionate about? What type of impact do you want to make? What work environment would best suit you? Imagine yourself in different environments and jobs – what draws you in?

Build Relationships.  Networking, meeting people, becoming known, expressing genuine curiosity in others – is absolutely critical. Informational interviews, mixers, conferences, and coffee meetings are all great strategies to build relationships. Be intentional in your approach to networking and always try to walk away with two names of potential contacts. Often times, job candidates who make it through the first round of resume screenings are those who have somebody advocating for their application.

Professionalism.  Evaluate and maintain your brand and professionalism – examples include an intuitive e-mail address, an appropriate voicemail message, a polished and up-to-date LinkedIn profile, and non-embarassing posts/pictures on social media sites.
Translate – Practice internalizing and communicating how aspects of your graduate work translates into a broader skill set – project management, meeting multiple deadlines on time, problem-solving, clear and effective communication, etc.

Communicate.  Practice communicating your work to all different types of audiences, at different levels of detail, in different mediums – academic presentations, posters, concise slide decks, executive summaries, and conversations with your neighbors are some examples.
Intangibles – Be confident about what you bring to the table; passionate about your background and the job opportunity; genuine and true to yourself; steer clear of being presumptuous or full of yourself.

Focus on the Employer.  Convince recruiters that you want to do those tasks, in that job, in that organization, in that sector. Directly state how you will bring value to them, what you can do for their organization, and what you can do to further that company’s goals. This requires that you research employers very carefully–mission, environment, catalysts for change, job description, etc.

Application Materials.  Create targeted, specific, non-generic application packets that convey why you want the position. Use specific words from the job description in your cover letters and resumes. Quantify your contributions when possible and discuss the impact or results of your work. Have somebody proofread your materials; simple things like spelling errors can get your application tossed out. Treat the job search like a job and give it the effort it deserves.

Interviews.  Take the interviewing process seriously and prepare ahead of time. Anticipate what you’ll be asked. Role-play various interview questions. Prepare a few examples in advance that show qualities you wish to highlight. Effective stories will be succinct and include: Situation, Task, Action, Result. Be specific. Focus on your role in projects you’re discussing. Make good eye contact.

Tips gathered by Briana Randall from the Employer Panel at the 11th Annual Career Symposium & Networking Reception–an event co-sponsored by the Graduate School and Career Center in January 2015. Briana is the Associate Director of the Career Center. Check out more academic and non-academic career development resources.

Your Elevator Pitch

Imagine yourself in the following scenarios:

You’re talking about your research to an academic audience outside of your field…
You have a very brief window to network with potential employers…
You are having that “Soooo… what is it that you do again in grad school?” conversation with Aunt Thelma…

To help navigate these interpersonal and professional interactions, develop and practice your “elevator pitch.” An elevator pitch is a 30-second to 1-minute sentence (the time it takes to ride the elevator a few floors with someone) that outlines your intellectual/professional work. Consider your context and audience. Start with this bite-sized piece to gauge their interest and understanding, before launching into a 5-minute version.

Here are some strategies to get you started:

  • Introduce yourself. How do you present who you are and what you do in a few words? What are your strengths? What is key to your identity in this particular context?
  • Consider time and timing. You only have a moment to create a connection or establish interest. As you give the short version of your work, think about the impact you’re making.
  • Know your audience. Are you speaking to an academic peer at a cross-disciplinary conference? Did a friend just introduce you to a potential employer at a party? Are you spending time with family during the holidays? As in the next point, the pitch is less about you being the smartest person in the room and more about engaging the person and piquing their interest.
  • Figure out points of connection. You know why your work is important to you, but how is it important to your family and community, your colleagues, and your field of interest? Find that point of connection—or a metaphor—that makes sense in their world. Most importantly, express mutual interest in your audience. Listen to their responses and feedback. You are building relationships.
  • Start and end your pitch. Don’t forget to express a simple “Hello!” and “Thank you so much for your time.” General graciousness goes a long way.
  • Follow up. For professional contacts, foster and maintain these relationships by using your elevator speech as a point of reference. For example, in a follow-up email or phone call, you can say: “We met recently at the career fair, and I spoke with you about my work in ______. I would be interested in exploring further (what your company needs are at this time, or where our interests may align). Is there a time we can talk for 30 minutes in the next few weeks?”
  • Practice, practice, practice. Integrate your elevator speech in everyday conversation. Opportunities abound: at the bus stop when someone asks, “What do you do?” or when a fellow customer in the coffee shop line strikes up a conversation. Try out different versions and see what works.

Okay, now go!