Menu

Career Development Center Blog

Director’s Cut: Career Communities

Posted on by nbragin

Career Communities

By: Pat Donahue

 

 

Want to know a secret?

Visit the Career Communities on the CDC Website

What you will find is a treasure chest of information that will teach you how to explore different industries called career communities.

The career communities are divided into seven continents in the world of work:

  • Science
  • Business
  • Information Technology and Data
  • Health and Human Services
  • Government and Non-Profit
  • Communication and Culture
  • Arts, Sports and Entertainment

Each career community includes the following:

  • Career Guides
  • Major Guides, which also include information on minors & certificates
  • Explore Jobs & Internships, which showcases part-time jobs and internships related to that career community. For many more job and internship postings, be sure to check out Handshake on the Student Employment website
  • Upcoming events, which lists career panels, networking sessions, and employer visits affiliated with that career community and/or major. These events are sponsored by career services offices on campus.

You will find the Career Guides especially helpful because they help you decipher what career is a good fit for your VIPS (values, interests, personality, and skills) and how to design your major to correlate with your career goals. In addition, majors related to a career or industry are listed.

The Careers in Your Field section includes information on careers in an industry that is compiled from data collected by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics for its Occupational Outlook Handbook.

The handbook lists succinct information about most careers in the U.S., including typical responsibilities of the career, starting salaries, education needed, and predictions on job growth for that profession.

Another section of the career guides lists student organizations affiliated with that career. For example, under the heading for Entertainment and Sports careers, you will find IU student organizations such as the Music Industry Networking Club, IU Student Television, and the Business Careers in Entertainment Club.

You can also find volunteer opportunities that will help you explore careers you are interested in, which I shamelessly call volun-careering. I swear it’s going to catch on.

To top it off, professional associations for each career community are listed along with links to additional online resources. Almost every career in the U.S. has a professional association. Yes, even career services.

And finally, to really totally top it off, there is information on graduate school, since many careers require advanced education. After graduation, over 25% of IU students pursue graduate and professional degrees.

So, if you have a homework assignment to write about a certain type of career, the good news is the Career Development Center staff has done most of the work for you. You are welcome.

Take time now or over the break to check out the career communities, then schedule a meeting with your assigned career coach virtually to discuss what you want to do for a living.

And tell a friend. The Career Communities are a secret worth sharing.

Director’s Cut: Wondering & Wandering

Posted on by nbragin

Wondering & Wandering

By: Pat Donahue

 

 

What’s the first job you ever had?

My first part-time job growing up was working at my Dad’s veterinary hospital during weekends, holidays, and summers. Although I was only eleven, I would go with my Dad to work at 7AM and start cleaning the cages of the 40 dogs and cats at the Churchland Animal Clinic.

I would clean the cages at least three times a day; wash and dry the animals, including flea baths;  and hold the animals while my Dad examined them or gave them shots.

Remarkably, over the course of six years, I was only bit four times. Doberman, Husky, and Cocker Spaniel. The fourth was a Dachshund during a distemper shot. That was the same day I was deeply clawed by a tomcat during a fecal test and stung by yellow jackets on my face while trimming a hedge behind the kennels.

For the first and only time, my Dad let me go home early that day, not because I needed to heal, but because I was scaring the customers. A client had come in with his sick Irish Setter, took one look at my bandaged arms, hands and face, and said, “Jeez, I thought my dog was having a bad day until I saw you.”

So what did I learn from that job other than child labor laws don’t apply if your Dad is the owner of the business?

I learned motivation. Once you clean the cage of an English sheepdog with diarrhea, then repeatedly bathe that dog and dry it off with a blow dryer for over an hour, you are motivated to find another line of work.

You should view part-time jobs like getting involved with student clubs and organizations. Some may not be a good fit, but others will help you solve the puzzle of who you want to become in life. You will learn, both good and bad, from all of your jobs.

Being a cage cleaner at an animal hospital taught me how important it is to be empathetic to the customers you serve. Not just the animals of course, but also their owners. Because our pets show us unconditional love and cannot discuss politics, people often love their pets more than they love members of their family.

My Dad was an excellent veterinarian and a savvy businessman, owning two animal hospitals and a pet supply store before he died in 2014.  But what made him successful was that he simply loved animals. At his funeral visitation, there was a long line of people that our family greeted, most of them pet owners. They would say, “I was Client #3 when your Dad first started out”, “Your dad saved my dog when he was hit by a car”, or “My cat Mittens didn’t like most people, but she sure loved your Dad.”

Even though I did not become a veterinarian, I learned you first need to figure out what you enjoy doing, then find a career that aligns with your enjoyment. For some folks, that search takes longer than others. Mine was not a direct path, but a meandering one. After college, I worked as a production assistant in the entertainment industry, a legal assistant, and a newspaper reporter. Starting in 1991, I finally found my calling as a career coach and have been working in career services 29 years.

One of the reasons I wandered so much is that I never met with a career coach to develop a career plan. At IU, you have an assigned career coach who can help you figure out what your next steps are and how to make connections with those that can help you achieve your career goals. To schedule an appointment with your career coach, go to https://cdc.indiana.edu/career-coaching/meet-your-coach.html

Please remember that it’s quite normal to wonder what careers you should try. And wandering in different directions, rather than getting you lost, can help you find your way.

Director’s Cut: Career Services Update

Posted on by nbragin

Career Services Update

By: Pat Donahue

 

 

 

It’s good to see you again.

Granted, most of the time we are seeing you through the Zoom lens, but it’s still good to discuss your career plans with you online or six feet away, masked up, and drenched in hand sanitizer.

During this summer like no other, career services has been busy implementing changes that will greatly improve your career opportunities.

In the new career services model, students will have open accessibility to all job postings for which they meet the employers’ qualifications, regardless of which School they attend.Requirements that delayed or restricted accessibility to job postings have been eliminated. It may sound trite, but these new guiding principles truly level the job recruiting playing field for students.

Employers are pleased with these new policies because they will have access to more qualified and diverse applicants. In our old system, employers had to post the same position to multiple career services offices. In the new system, employers only have to post a position once and they choose if the position is distributed to all career services offices on one campus or to all IU campuses.To implement these changes, we have partnered with a new career services management vendor, Handshake. In order to schedule appointments with your career coach, apply for job postings, schedule interviews, and see career events and fairs, you need to register and set up a free account with Handshake.

After Labor Day weekend, there will be numerous virtual career fairs. Career fairs are open to all students, all years, all majors. Here’s a link to the career fairs in Handshake

To register for a virtual career fair, you must first set up your account with Handshake. Once you do that, go to the list of career fairs on Handshake, click on the specific career fair you want to attend, then push the register button for that specific fair. Depending on how the employer set up interviews, you will be able to select from individual ten-minute interview times or group interviews.

If you have never attended a virtual career fair (and most of us have not), please check out Handshake’s virtual career fair tips.

Because of Covid restrictions, the Career Development Center’s office in the Wells Library will be closed until further notice for face to face meetings, but all our services are being offered virtually.

You can still:

Despite all the changes that have happened the last six months, one thing has remained constant: the career coaches at the Career Development Center and other career services offices are here to help you with your career planning.

Until the day arrives when we can meet in person and shake hands again, please set up a time to virtually meet with us so we can help you achieve your career goals.

Join us for the 2020 Virtual Fall Part-time Jobs Fair

Posted on by nbragin

Are you looking for a way to earn a paycheck? Do you want to start building your resume?  Are you trying to find your fit?

If so, join us at the 2020 Fall Virtual Part-time Jobs Fair on Friday, August 21, from 1-4pm Eastern.

You must register and sign up for time slots in your Handshake account.  Click here to get started.

Five Reasons Freshmen Should Go To Career Fairs

Posted on by jennsims

Pat Donahue, Assistant Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education, Executive Director of the Career Development Center

It’s not just a marketing coincidence that career & internship fairs at IU start shortly after Labor Day. Employers are seeking top talent earlier as they compete with each other for qualified students. Between September 9 and October 1, Indiana University will offer 13 different career and internship fairs. A listing of the fairs’ dates, times and locations can be found at: https://career.indiana.edu/career-events/index.html

Most importantly, before you attend the fairs, download “The Fairs App”. This app lists all of the IUB Career Fairs, the location of each fair and the employers  that are attending each fair.

All career fairs at IUB are open to all students, all majors, and all years.

Freshmen often believe that career fairs are just for juniors and seniors, but here are five reasons why freshmen should go to career fairs:

  1. See who is hiring freshmen: Some companies, especially those in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) industries, have started recruiting freshmen for internships or summer jobs after their first year. These industries often struggle to find enough talent to fuel their growth, so recruiting freshmen early can help build a recruiting pipeline for future employees. There are also a few federal agencies, such as the Central Intelligence Agency, that also recruit freshmen for summer internships. Government agencies, especially those involving intelligence analysis, recruit in September so they have time to run security clearances, which can take upwards of eight months.
  2. Collect information for a future resume: Even if employers are not hiring freshmen, talk to the recruiters to investigate what they look for on a resume for their particular organization: what kind of courses, lab experiments, research papers or study abroad; what kind of work/internship experiences, volunteering, or undergraduate research; what kind of student organizations or professional associations; or what kind of computer, creative, or language skills. By learning what employers want now, freshmen can better prepare themselves and gain related experience for future career fairs and job opportunities in the industry they are considering.
  3. Learn what to do and what not to do at a career fair: You should observe your first career fair and attend a “Preparing for a Career Fair” workshop so you know what to expect: how are employers’ tables arranged; where are the employers attending listed online; how to research employers; what type of questions to ask employers; how to give an elevator speech; and how to professionally dress. For more information about career fair preparation, please go to: https://studentemployment.cdc.indiana.edu/events-and-resources/job-fairs.html
  4. 4. Showcase experiences and skills through a professional resume: You will need a professional resume for the career fair. Exploratory and Pre-Major students in University Division can meet with their assigned career coach to have their resume critiqued. Direct admit students or students certified/admitted into schools should use the career services office of their respective school. More information on writing a resume and skill verbs for resumes can be found at: https://cdc.indiana.edu/resources/index.html

There are also sample freshmen resumes for each major at IU in the Major Guides section of the CDC website: https://cdc.indiana.edu/majors/index.html

  1. Why didn’t Marvel Studios attend the career fair? Learn which industries do NOT come to career fairs. Although this sounds like odd advice, it’s important to understand that media, advertising, publishing, music, artistic, museum, and entertainment industries rarely attend traditional career fairs. Because they are considered “glamour” industries, they have plenty of applicants for their open positions, so they do not need to attend career fairs. If you are interested in those industries, it is vitally important for you to meet with a career coach to develop a job & internship search strategy for that industry. There are job openings in those industries, but learning how to network to access those positions is a necessity.

Finally, one of the top reasons students attend college is to find a career, so freshmen should make time in their schedule to take advantage of the fact that over 500 organizations will be on campus in the next two weeks.

Who knows? You may meet your future employer.

Employer Spotlight: IU Recreational Therapy

Posted on by slheile

What is your name / job title?

Lisa Elder, CTRS – Director of Recreation Therapy

 

Did you have a part-time job as a student?

Yes! Many! I worked as a summer camp counselor for many years, worked in the mail room of a dorm for a few years and I also was an office assistant for a few places/people.

 

Were you involved with any extra-curricular activities during college?

Yes! I was involved in a student association for my church, intramural sports, alternative spring break trips, volunteer organization through my university, and a camping program that students put on for children with disabilities.

 

What is your #1 career tip you would like to share with college students?

Get real world experiences! Take the opportunities presented to you to gain experience in your chosen field or in areas that interest you.  As an employer of many interns, I am more interested in what experience they have more than anything else.

 

Tells us about your organization.

Bradford Woods is Indiana Universities Outdoor Center.  We provide experiential and therapeutic outdoor programs to people of all backgrounds and abilities on our 2,500-acre campus, located between Bloomington and Indianapolis.  We offer seasonal positions for students pursuing fields in Recreation Therapy or Outdoor/Adventure Education in the Fall, Spring and Summer months.

Employer Spotlight: IU Campus Bus Services

Posted on by slheile

What is your name / job title?

Brian Noojin – Assistant Director

 

Did you have a part-time job as a student?

Yes, Buffalo Wild Wings

 

Were you involved with any extra-curricular activities during college?

Yes, WIUS campus radio station

 

What is your #1 career tip you would like to share with college students?

Pursue your passion, but be pragmatic

 

Tells us about your organization.

Campus Bus Service operates 7 days a week and year round.  It’s a flexible, fun, but serious job for any IU student.