If you’ve been following this blog all summer, you know that its founder, Marly, started a new job this week. Best of luck to you, Marly! But the show must go on. Or, in this case, the job search. For most people, the start of a new job search begins with updating and distributing their resume to prospective employers. Having an effective resume is the catalyst to any job search; it’s your introduction to a potential employer and the first hurdle toward an in-person interview. With that being said, let me introduce myself.                                                               

                                                     

My name is Erin Fabrizius, and I’m a recent graduate of UW-Madison. I majored in journalism and political science, which has made for a very tough job search. Luckily, I have been able to intern at Madison College this summer-- adding a much-needed line to my resume. I’m currently looking for work in the marketing world and really like Indian food. If you know of any available jobs, please drop me an email.

When you’re a recent graduate like myself, your resume will most likely consist of interning, extracurricular activities, educational information and after-school jobs. So how should you organize this information? I’ll be using a combination of things I learned from teachers, my personal philosophy and the UW Career Center to help you craft an effective resume. Please keep in mind that I address each topic in the order it should appear on your resume. Let’s start with the basics.

Style: You want your resume to be visually pleasing. Make sure that it’s divided by headings and sub-headings. Keep your style consistent throughout (i.e. your use of bold, font size and alignment is the same for each section).

Do                                                                                           
Use active verbs ("planned”, "managed”)                                 
Use a smaller font size to maximize space (11 pt is good)         
Proofread for grammar and spelling mistakes                           
List experience in chronological order, starting with most recent

Don't
Use Pronouns ("I", "my")
Use colorful or non-standard fonts
Exceed one page
Include information from high school

---

Contact Information: At the very least your resume should include your full name, e-mail address, phone number and home address. If you go home for the summer or are nearing the end of your lease, it’s a good idea to include your permanent address in addition to your current address. Maintain a blog or social media account that is professional in nature? You can include a web address or handle here—it’s a great way to highlight design or writing samples. Virginia Tech has great tips for including websites on your resume.

Objective: Employers always ask what your career goals are during in-person interviews. So be proactive and address this issue on your resume. This gives you a chance to craft a thoughtful, concise answer before stepping foot in an HR office. Your objective shouldn’t exceed one line.

Ex: Seeking a fulltime media planning position within an advertising agency.

Education: As a recent graduate, the most valuable part of your resume is your newly completed degree. Madison Area Technical College should be listed first with your degree type and year featured on the line below. Use this space to highlight your G.P.A. and any scholarships or awards that you received during your time at Madison College. If you don’t have a lot of relevant experience, feel free to list any relevant courses you completed at Madison College.

Education

Madison Area Technical College
Associate of Arts, Animation, May 2010
Certificate: Social Media
G.P.A: 4.0/4.0
Dean’s List, four semesters

Relevant Experience: Make sure that your relevant experience is featured before any unrelated jobs. For example, this section of my resume is titled " Marketing and Communication Experience.” I’ve only listed experience that relates to the jobs I’m applying to. As I mentioned earlier, be sure to use active verbs in your descriptive sentences and provide as much detail as possible. Using bullet points makes your resume easier for employers to scan quickly. Also be sure to provide metrics, such as dollars raised, number of viewers to your website, or clients served.

 Marketing and PR Experience

Madison Area Technical College, Madison, WI
Communications Intern
June 2010-Present
• Maintain a job search blog that receives 500 views-per-day*
• Assist with the implementation of a social media strategy
• Created a multimedia-marketing project
                                            
*Not Really! But please tell your friends to read!

Additional Experience: For most of my college career, I worked in food service at a local hospital. While dealing with hungry patients tested my people skills, it didn’t do much to advance my marketing and public relations career. But it’s still an important part of my resume, because it highlights the fact that I worked my way through college and stayed committed to one job for four years. That’s the beauty of an Additional Experience section, you can add important, but not necessarily relevant, experience to your resume. This is also a great place to highlight volunteer experience or your work with student organizations. Again, list positions chronologically, starting with the most recent. 


Skills/Professional Memberships, etc.: I’m going to be honest, I don’t have a skills section on my resume, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. You can use this section to highlight any languages or computer software you are familiar with. Or list any professional organizations you are a member of, like the Rotary or Social Media Breakfast. Don't worry about providing descriptions of your involvement, simply list your affiliations and skills. This should be the last section of your resume.


 Skills/ Professional Affiliations

Social Media Breakfast, Member 2009-Present
Language: Spanish (proficient)
 

For more information and to view sample resumes, you can visit the Madison College Career and Employment Center.

Do you have any questions about creating your resume? What topics would you like me to cover in the weeks to come? Feel free to e-mail me at efabrizius@gmail.com.

  
Photo Courtesy of Dreamstime.com

The hardest part about getting a job is getting your foot in the door for that one-on-one interview. I know from experience. I have sent out about 30 job applications and haven't heard back from most of those places. Most people feel that once they score an interview, the rest is a piece of cake. Is this true? For me, when I've applied to a job or internship and I do get an interview I am usually able to receive a second interview as well. Interviews can be a great way for you to show off your skills and personality. Well, it definitely can be for those who know strut their skills in an interview. Here are my top seven tips to follow for a job interview:

 

1) Know about the company and the position you’re applying for.

The biggest mistake people make in the interview process is not being prepared enough for an interview. Not only does this look bad on the employers end, but if you aren’t prepared you are likely to feel nervous and less confident (see #5). A few summers ago I went in for an interview at FOX News Chicago, never having really watched the channel much before. My potential employer quizzed me on the times of the broadcasts, the anchors and other facts I had no idea about. Needless to say I left the interview feeling terrible, doubting that I would ever hear back. Somehow, with what must have been a combination of my experience, alumi connection and enthusiasm, I got the internship. 

Do research on the company, exploring the website, well-known accomplishments of the company and even look up who you are interviewing with (LinkedIn is an excellent tool for this, and I've done it before). You should also understand the job functions of the position you are applying for so you are mentally prepared with what types of questions you might be asked and what previous job experiences you will need to talk about. Quint Careers has an outstanding guide on how to prepare yourself for an interview, from where to research your company to updating your resume. 

2) Think about your strengths and weaknesses, and be honest about them.

Some questions may come as a curve ball—still, without fail at interviews you will very likely be asked about your best skills and your weaknesses. These examples may be related to the position specifically, or they could be personality traits. Either way, give honest answers because you will probably have to explain yourself, giving examples of a time in your life when you persevered, worked well with a team or struggled to meet a deadline. If you are forced to bring up a weakness, try to pick your best one, or at least one that won’t harm you as much for the position (i.e. "I’m a perfectionist,” "I’m indecisive, but that means I like to get the input of others and think through my decisions”--these are my usual answers).

3) Dress to impress.

Regardless of what anyone in the office is wearing, you should look nicer than they do. Even if there is a chance this is a jeans and t-shirt kind of place, don’t feel bashful to show up in a suit, dress or nice pants with a button down. The employer doesn’t know much about you, so first impressions are key. For more specific advice on the appropriate dress code, check out the details on jobfairy. com. 

4) Be on time.

Like I said, first impressions are key. Don’t be late. Don’t be ridiculously early (I’ve done it before, and it can get a little awkward), but show up about 10-15 minutes early. Leave time to find the office if you’re going to a new destination. I have a friend whose alarm didn't go off for a job interview. She called the employer back, profusely apologizing--but she never heard back.

5) Act confident, no matter how you’re feeling.

Let’s be honest, if this is a position you are really vying for, you might be nervous to go into the interview. Don’t act it. Act calm and just be yourself. While you are trying to impress the interviewer to get the job, you are also trying to figure out if this is the job for you. So…

6) Ask questions.

This is an underrated important aspect of job interviews. Everyone always tries to ace every question they are asked, and when it comes to "Do you have any questions for me?” it is tempting to breathe that sigh of relief and respond with, "Nope! So are we all done then?”. Not only should you use this opportunity to find out even more about the company and position, but it can help show how knowledgeable you are in this field. Ask pertinent questions that you are actually curious about. Develop thoughtful responses. Make sure you are paying attention to the answers you are getting while also constantly thinking of new questions. I'm lucky that I have a journalism background, so I am used to coming up with tons of questions. Sometimes I can forget it's their job to interview me, not the other way around. Don’t go to crazy with the questions—just show you are bright and curious.

7) Follow up.

Regardless of how the interview ends, make sure you follow up with the interviewer after your meeting if you are truly interested in the position. Email seems to work best nowadays. If you are supposed to hear back in a certain amount of time, give a grace period and then don’t be afraid to call inquiring about the position. This will show you are really interested and care about the job.

The Career Counseling Center has their own great list of top seven tips on interviewing. This is just my list of go-to tips. What are yours? For even more interview advice, check out Madison College's Online Career and Employment Resources for links like CollegeGrad.com that have tons of interview guidelines. Share your unique interview stories and tips with me by commenting below or emailing me at marly.schuman@gmail.com. 

Photo courtesy of Dreamstime.com

You have the tools you need to find a job—the college degree, the necessary skills and the previous jobs or internships to back up your work. But where do you go from there? This is the question I was asking myself just a few short months ago.

The scary part is that new grads are now competing with more experienced people for jobs that are beginning to emerge. This fact is distressing but it almost makes me feel better. I’d like to think that it’s not that I’m not qualified. There are just tons of people who have been working in media since I was in diapers (22 years is a long time). As of last year, there were almost 2 million unemployed college graduates, according to CBS News.

There isn’t a clear answer about where to begin your job search. It really depends on where you have been in the workforce and what field you’re in. For specialized fields such as nursing or teaching you’re in a different boat. But for many jobs you have to jump right into the water, either because you suddenly need new employment or you are entering the workforce for the first time. I am part of the latter.

So where did I start? I think some of the best advice I got was from a talk my advisor gave while I was still in college. He said not to settle. This seems like strange advice when jobs are scarce, but when you think about it this is crucial information for someone looking for her first real job. The point is that you don’t want to accept a job in a different field than you ultimately want to be in. For example, if you’re interested in doing video or media for nonprofits, a technical writing job for a huge company probably isn’t the best stepping stone to get there.

Once you know what your career goals are, you can tailor your resume and cover letters to reflect them. While the economy is in a tough place right now, there are still a ton of jobs nationwide but probably only a handful that meet your ideal qualifications. Don’t waste your time applying to everything—first focus on applying to jobs you really want. The Minneapolis Star Tribune agrees that you should "Find the job you want, don't take a job you need.”

Once you narrow your options you can narrow your search, ensuring that you aren’t wasting your time applying to jobs you aren’t really interested. CareerBuilder suggests finding where you want to work and applying instead of waiting for an opening to pop up. My favorite tip is just Googling your ideal job. Many people just start with whatever site they are familiar with such as Craigslist or a job positing site related to their profession. But if you simply searched for "substitute teaching jobs K-5 Madison, Wi” you might just find what you were looking for.

Did I start at the right place in my job search? Maybe not. But after my initial search I was able to figure out what I want to do ultimately, and I have been much more successful since then. Right now I know that the most important thing is to be happy about what you’re searching for and what you are finding.

Have you recently found a job? Where did you start in your job search? Email me at marly.schuman@gmail.com to share your tips and we’ll send you a gift from Madison College!

Photo courtesy of Dreamstime.com

Linkedin stands out from the other social media websites by establishing itself as a professional site for social networking. Potentially because of its confusing navigation and the more common use of social media for recreation, Linkedin hasn’t quite grown to the popularity of other sites such as Facebook. But the use of these connections for job purposes can really help in the long run, so check out first part of a two part tutorial to become an expert on Linkedin!

Navigating the Site

Unlike other more straightforward sites, Linkedin is a bit confusing upon first glance. What you want to be looking at, your profile and contacts, are not on your homepage.There are a lot of updates on the homepage, which is just like Twitter but not as useful for a professional site. You will probably want to bypass the general updates and check out the profile updates—this will let you know if someone has a new job or updated their profile.

The tabs at the top of the page are really where you’ll be getting most of your information. If you want to get information about certain contacts, click the "contacts” tab and select "my connections.” This gives you the ability to view your contacts alphabetically, search for them or sort through them based on a variety of criteria (what company they work for, location, specific industry or recent activity). A great way to make connections is also to search through your current contacts and see whom you already know but are not yet connected to on Linkedin. Under the contacts tab, you also have the ability to import contacts, meaning you can select people you’ve contacted through your email to join Linkedin. It can be annoying to sort through these contacts, but if you have the time it is a great way to expand your network.

 

Another tab is "groups.” These allow you to become part of a network of people and connect to others with a similarity to you. These can be any interests from online media to alumni associations like Madison College. Groups are recommended to you based on your profile, so take advantage of them.

The jobs function is the little-known secret of Linkedin. Since you have all of your information entered into your profile, Linkedin is able to generate jobs you may be interested in based on your experience. You can search for jobs and edit criteria with keywords, location, company type, date the posting was listed and more. You can apply for the job immediately by just uploading a cover letter and resume, or save the job and apply later. Just ensure that your profile is finished before you apply because employers will most likely view your profile if you apply through Linkedin. To view saved jobs, click jobs --> my jobs for the listing.

If you have a question anything job related, just check out the "more” tab and click on "answers.” You can ask your own question, answer new questions or just browse the topics to see what everyone is talking about. For faster use of Linkedin, scroll to the bottom of the page and click "tools.” This will allow you to connect your account to Outlook Mail, add it onto your tool bar or make it a widget on your desktop.Upgrading your account will allow you to contact more people with InMail messages, find more people in an advanced search and bookmark profile. If you’re using Linkedin for serious business purposes this may be helpful, but the features of a free account are ample for regular use. 

How to launch your career in a lousy economy. Doesn’t everyone want to know the answer to that question?  As a recent graduate of UW-Madison, this issue has been on my mind for months. My parents were encouraging me to enjoy my last summer of freedom—but only if I didn’t find a full-time job first.

As a new communications intern at Madison Area Technical College, I am fortunate that I get to do something I enjoy for the summer. Writing, communicating and online journalism have always been my passions, and it has been a very valuable learning experience putting those tools to work at the Madison College Foundation and Alumni Office so far.

Most importantly, my part-time summer position allows me to do what I should have been doing a few months ago: looking for a job. As graduation nears, the question often is, "Can I milk this education, no working thing any longer?”

Grad school. It just isn’t necessary for everyone, as much as we don’t want the collegiate experience to come to an end. For many Madison College students, you are coming here to learn about a specialized program, set up to prepare you for the real world. Nursing, culinary arts, dentistry, banking. As a part of a specialized program in journalism, I also knew that after I earned my degree, it would be the end of my education.

As this article from US News attests, the smallest start in your career can often take you the farthest. This rings true for those entering the workforce or those reemerging in a new field. While the economy seems to be pulling everyone down, we have to keep pushing upwards. Every job is a good learning experience. As I have learned from firsthand experience, even the jobs you detest can teach you something—that job isn’t what you want to be doing. At all.

Remember the importance of a positive attitude. Keep working hard, persist to reach the job you really want and you can climb the ladder it takes to get there. I may be on the first rung of the ladder, but with my resume in hand I think I can see the top from here.