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Career and Employment Planning
Every job-seeker needs to take the time to step way from the day-to-day grind of work or study and spend quality time reflecting on
his or her career and developing some plans for the future. If you are a student about to graduate from a college or university, it’s
time for serious and strategic career planning. But before you start your job hunt and sending out resumes, it is worthwhile to decide
what you would love to do, what you are good at, and what are your priorities. These factors are the key to getting the most out of
your degree and finding great work.
Phase 1: Explore yourself. Understanding your strengths and skills and your values and expectations is the first phase in devising a
sound and effective career management strategy.
- Strengths and abilities: It is critical to develop a profile of your important strengths and abilities. Think about things you are good at and gain satisfaction or enjoyment from doing them. On the other hand, it is equally important to identify and recognize your weaknesses and plan what measures you need to take to overcome them.
- Identify your values: Think about what you believe in, what influence other people have on you, who your role models are and what is important to you in your life. Recognizing and understanding your values is an important part of career decision making.
- Set short-term and long term goals: A short-term career plan focuses on a timeframe ranging from the coming year to the next few years. Develop realistic goals and objectives that you can accomplish in the near future. Free yourself from carrier barriers like personal attitudes, family pressure and peer pressure. Long-term career planning usually involves a planning window of five years or longer and involves more preparation. Recognize that the skills that you have or plan for today may not be in demand years from now. Long-range career planning should be more about identifying and developing core skills that employers will always value.
Phase 2: Explore the work. Develop an understanding of how you and others view work and how the world of work
around you is changing.
- How do you define work? Work can be defined in many different ways and your perception of work could be different from what others perceive it to be. Retain your individuality and think for yourself. Do discuss your ideas with others but don’t let external perception overly influence your decision.
- Local work scene: Your own community is your starting point. Identify the businesses, industries and resources in your local community that can provide work and networking opportunities.
- Change in work models: The nature and pattern of work is constantly changing. No longer is the permanent, lifelong job the dominant model. About 80% of new jobs in Western industrialized nations are not permanent positions. During the past decade, full-time jobs have risen by 14% and part-time jobs by 70%. Part-time, seasonal, project, contract and temporary work is rapidly becoming the preferred mode for employers wanting to cut costs. Indeed, you may have an average of 6 separate, but connected, occupations during your entire career span. To discuss these aspects, try to find someone who has been in full-time work for a long time, and ask questions relating to their working life, changes they have experienced and differences between employment now and back then.
Phase 3: Start the research and application process. This phase will involve investigating various options,
conducting research on companies that work in the field(s) of your interest, preparing your application and other strategies you should
follow concurrently.
- Conducting research: Maintain a portfolio of the companies that work in your area of study or interest. Visit their websites or call Human Resources department to get information on what exactly they do, their mission and goals and career development programs for employees. Adequate research gives you a leg up on the competition.
- Build your network of contacts: In today’s world of work, networking can make a huge difference in finding you the most suitable employment. According to the experts, only 10% to 15% of all job openings are advertised on the Internet or in a newspaper or other publication. So, you need access to those jobs, too. So get connected with the people and organizations that can help you find the majority of job opportunities, that missing 85% to 90%, the ones that aren't advertised anywhere. Prepare a list of networks that includes some of the people you contacted or people you may have met in the past. Use your personal network of friends, professors and family to help you launch a professional network.
- Attend career fairs, information sessions and other recruitment activities: Be prepared when you go to such events. Dress formally and carry several copies of your cover letter and resume with you. Discuss with every recruiter what they are offering and impress on them how you could be a good fit within their organization.
- Self-promotion: Self-promotion is not necessarily as demeaning and boastful as a lot of people tend to think. In fact, career counselors and recruiters emphasize that it is acceptable, and often necessary, part of the employment process. Self-promotion boils down to presenting your skills and suitability to a potential employer. If you don’t tell the recruiter about your accomplishments and achievements, no one else will.
- On campus recruiting: Career centre on your campus could be the most important and accessible source of career information. In North America, a lot of companies arrive on campus for recruiting in Fall term for the fresh recruitment cycle and this would be the best time to attend their information sessions and apply through the Career Centre. Keep an eye on the postings throughout the year. Some recruiters seek from potential employees on selected campuses only and the students in those institutions benefit the most.
- Fine tune your cover letter and resume: Preparing your application takes careful planning and a lot of time investment. Be sure to select a resume format that will allow you to adequately and aesthetically showcase your relevant skills, experiences and qualifications. Similar guidelines of clarity and simplicity apply to the cover letter. If you are unable to summarize in no more than 3-4 paragraphs why you ought to be considered further, you are giving the wrong message to the recruiter. The cover letter is your sales pitch – give it enough time.
For more resources on career planning and research, visit the “Resources” section in Reference Desk.
Credits
This page was developed with resources from:
http://www.quintcareers.com/career_plan.html
http://cornell.placementmanual.com/career/career-04.html
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