Career Fair Do’s and Definitely Do not’s

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on March 5, 2013 in Alumni, Career Events, Employers, Faculty/Staff, Internships, Job Search, Networking, Resumes and Students. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .

Career Fairs and networking can be nerve-wracking, but we’ve got you covered as long as you present yourself professionally and have done your research. Take a look at our entertaining elevator pitch examples: 7 Tips For Career Fair Success where we demonstrate some of our recommended do’s…

Clip from: Seven Tips For Success

And our definitely do not’s:

It's good to be confident and personal but probably best not to act like this around an employer

It’s good to be confident and personal but probably best not to act like this around an employer

(Click on the screen shots or the 7 Tips for Career Fair Success above the picture to check out this fun video)

Career Fairs only come around once in awhile so take advantage of having hundreds of options all in one place. Make sure to dress for success, come practiced and prepared and ready to make a professional impression. These events often lead to employment or internship positions and provide ample networking time.

Buying Business Dress for Less

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on January 23, 2013 in Career Events, Employers, Internships, Job Search, Networking, Resumes and Students. 1 Comment Tags: , , , .

One of our big events for the Spring semester is the Career Fair on the Fox. Even if you can’t recite your elevator pitch forward and backward, your company research is all prepared, and your resume has been scoured and no t’s have been left uncrossed or i’s left un-dotted, but you can still blow the Career Fair experience if you don’t arrive in professional dress.

You’ve probably heard the saying you don’t get a second chance at a first impression.

A whopping 55% of how we dress, act and walk through the door are the biggest factors of an interviewer or recruiter’s first impression.

So let’s get down to the first impression wardrobe do’s and don’ts. Sweatpants, hoodies and sneakers are completely out of the question. Most jeans, even if they are MissMe or $200 designer jeans, aren’t going to get the reaction you desire either.

Suit up. For women pantsuits, pencil or A-line skirts paired with a button down and a cardigan or blazer are key pieces. Avoid anything too tight. Even if you want to show off your amazing figure, you can flatter your assets without flashing your assets.  Keep it conservative with an appropriate neckline and hemline. Add a pop of color with a scarf or simple statement jewelry.

Dress pants, dress shirt, blazer and colorful scarf

Dress pants, dress shirt, blazer and colorful scarf

Men should also wear a suit or pair dress pants with a button down and a sweater vest. A tie or bow tie is always appropriate as long as the pattern and print aren’t distracting to the interviewer. Of course you want to make a memorable impression, but charm them with your knowledge and wit without searing that loud ugly tie into their brain.

Khaki colored dress slacks, button down, brown blazer and red tie.

Khaki colored dress slacks, button down, brown blazer and red tie.

The best part is that it’s extremely affordable. These two display outfits cost under $10 each thanks to the local Fox Valley Thrift Shop. Affordable, professional, stylish and memorable makes for a lasting impression. Not the best at coming up with fashionable combinations or feeling fashion an savvy challenged? No problem! Check out sites with professional dress ideas like Pinterest. Many pins can lead you to fashion blogs and offer endless ideas to keep you looking and feeling sharp.

Tweet to Connect, Master Twitter Networking With These Tips

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on January 9, 2013 in Alumni, Career Events, Employers, Faculty/Staff, Internships, Job Search, Networking, Resumes and Students. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Twitter is the latest form of networking that is blowing up social-media using a form known as micro-blogging. Twitter limits users to 140 characters per post and allows linking to websites, connecting to other people or organizations by mentioning their Twitter handle (which is what we call the username with an @ symbol in front of it), and also hash tagging.

Users are free to use their Twitter account however they choose, whether it’s for personal expression, business, humor, social networking or information sharing. However, employers do take Twitter and social networking sites into consideration when getting to know prospective employees. For example, your drunken tweet from Saturday night with a picture of you doing a beer bong may have just cost you the job opportunity.

Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube are several sites that are changing the field of PR, new media and traditional media. It’s much more than a rolling news feed of status updates. It’s a source for advertising, talking with consumers, engaging other groups, promoting products or events, providing customer service and demonstrating service with pictures.

So how can you use Twitter professionally?

By using @ you can connect to specific users and create a relationship with them.

The hash tag # symbol makes your tweets searchable and allows you to join in chats. It allows you to follow certain news and connect with other tweeters.

Make your Twitter you personal brand. Remember: Be interesting. Avoid toilet tweets. No one wants to know about your bodily functions. It’s also best to avoid sexual, religious, political and obscene tweets. Connect with professionals by sharing useful and intelligent or informational links. You can shrink the links to save space for descriptions or ideas by using link-shortening sites like bitly.com.

Check out this info-graphic from Mediabistro.com pertaining to social websites and employment. http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/twitter-posts-job_b27156

Social media affects employment opportunities.

Social media affects employment opportunities.

 

Career Services Intern Chai Lee Explores What Can Career Services Do For You?

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on December 4, 2012 in Alumni, Career Events, Employers, Faculty/Staff, Internships, Job Search, Networking, Resumes and Students. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Career Services Human Resources Intern Chai Lee

Hi Everyone,

Why come to Career Services?

Career Services can help you find jobs and internships, work on resumes, cover letters, and networking.  There also events that are held by Career Services such as, Career Fairs, Mock Interview, and Dining with Professionals and many more.  All students can use Career Services for free up until one year after graduation.  So use the opportunity to use Career Services because you also paid for all of these services so why not use the service.

All Students can use the services during Walk-In hours from 11:00AM to 1:00PM on Tuesday through Thursday or call to make appointment with the choice of advisor by majors.

Here is the website to see which advisor would best fit your needs.

http://www.uwosh.edu/career/about-us/professional-staff

My Internship Experience:

I want to share a little bit of my experience while I am an intern here at Career Services.  My name is Chai Lee, a Human Services Major.  Being an intern at Career Services, I had a lot of fun and also did a lot of exploration.  First of all, I worked on my resume and cover letter of a choice of employers that I want to work with.  I participated in the Career Fair; I got to meet many of employers and student from different majors.  During the Career Fair, I met with three different employers and gave my resume to them to look at.  Next, I attended class presentations with different advisers on topics of interviewing, portfolio, and general ideas of what is Career Services is.  Attending class presentations helped develop my professional skills and allowed me to find helpful resources.  My next step was the networking part, which I participated in Dining with Professionals and did the Mock Interview.  I did Dining with Professionals, where I met employers such as J.J. Keller, Alta Resources, Sherwin Williams and Big Brothers Big Sisters.  I had a choice of where I could sit, so I decided to sit at the table of Big Brothers Big Sisters and our host was Ellen Evensen.  During the dining, it is more of follow the leader or the host who talked about what to eat and drink with professional people.  At the end of the dining, I had some extra time to talk to Ellen and then she offered for me to send in my resume and cover letter for an internship opportunity.  I was so happy that I participated in Dining with Professionals and met employers from different companies.  I also attended Mock Interviews which was also with Ellen of Big Brothers Big Sisters.  Before hand, I did research about the agency and the person who interviewed me, so I had an idea of what the agency’s main role is.  The Mock Interview went really well and I liked it because it built my confidence and learned what I should say and not say to the employer.  Overall, being at Career Services, help me to get out of my comfort zone and explore the world.

~Chai Lee

Tips for Dining with Professionals: Eat Like This, Not That

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on November 20, 2012 in Students. 0 Comments

Snapshot of Interns Jasmine and Eric sharing a review of Dining with Professionals

Jasmine and Eric share their personal experience and review a recent event that allowed them insight on how to make a good impression when dining with professionals. Learn what you should and shouldn’t do when you have been invited to dine with a current or professional employer by clicking on the link below.

Dining with Professionals

5 Minute Resume Savers

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on October 23, 2012 in Job Search, Resumes and Students. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Saving Your Resume in 5 Minutes

Learn about our Career Service Quick Tips on our Vlog!

Why Attend A Career Fair?

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on October 2, 2012 in Career Events, Employers, Internships, Job Search, Networking, Resumes and Students. 0 Comments Tags: .

Two words; free pens. I can’t say I knew what to expect for my first career fair experience but it turned out there are no clowns and there are instead oodles of free pens.

I’ve been to a few fairs in my younger days, but this was my first formal attendance of the Career Fair on the Fox. Unlike my childhood memories of cotton candy and merry-go-round rides, this kind of fair involved much more mature opportunities like booths with company names on them (some still have candy), company chap-stick, and brochures. However as crazy as it sounds, I realize that a job opportunity has higher value and may last longer than a bit of sticky sweet pink fluff that dissolves in your mouth.

I wasn’t fully prepared for the enormity of the event with over 140 companies lined up in booths and waiting for me to approach them and strike up my best elevator pitch with the flourish of my well-rounded resume. In fact, I wandered through the aisles a couple times just taking in all the companies’ names and representatives smiling at me with their “ask me anything,” attitudes.

The first few booths made polite chit-chat but they just didn’t seem to have a position that I found desirable considering my Journalism Major. Reaching the homestretch of the final row of booths in the field house, I was drawn to the 4imprint company which posted openings for a graphic design position. I’m not a full fledged designing genius but I know how to work some of the newer graphic programs so I shyly smiled at Lia Cummings and we struck up a conversation about 4imprint and the potential career opportunities I may want to consider. I left with her business card, but the true gift had been the amount of information I had compiled today.

I also had a professional picture taken for free, which I can use for business cards and networking. The fair offered resume reviews and great interviewing experience. My reaction to this wonderful opportunity is that it really helped me practice and get comfortable with connecting to potential employers as well as learn about how to market myself and create positive and lasting  impressions.

Top Tips to Prepare for a Career Fair

Published by Jasmine Buchberger on September 20, 2012 in Career Events, Employers, Internships, Networking and Students. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Feeling hesitant about attending the Career Fair because you don’t know what to expect or how to present yourself? No problem! The Career Services Staff has you covered. Here are some tips straight from the office on how to prep, present yourself with confidence, and make the most of your Career Fair experience.

Go outside your comfort zone. Don’t be afraid to talk to companies and explore opportunities that you may not have been considering.

-Aleah Van-Gheem, Career Resource Specialist

Research and Identify Employers you may want to connect with prior to the Fair to avoid getting overwhelmed at the event.

-Rich Marshall, College of Letters and Science and CNL Career Advisor

Make sure to wear professional dress and bring several (5-10) copies of your resume.                                                                                                      

-Justin Lyons, Career Resource Specialist

Bring a business card. You can order them online or if you’re short on time make your own by going to a local supplies store such as Office Max or Staples and they can print them up on cardstock.

-Sarah Kriha, Career Event & On-Campus Interview Coordinator

Prepare and practice your pitch, a 30 second “elevator speech” which is a brief introduction you can give to employers which includes your name, major, academic year, and job positions you’re interested in.

-Chelsey Cegielski, Career Service Staff

Career Fairs are filled with opportunity and information, so don’t be afraid to polish your presentation, put yourself out there and make connections.

Take a look at last spring’s Career Fair on the Fox!

 

 

 

Career Services: Together We Make It Better

Published by Sheng Lee on July 19, 2012 in Faculty/Staff. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

Look to impress for less!

Published by Sheng Lee on July 18, 2012 in Students. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

By Emily Colon

If someone gave you $35 to spend on professional attire, do you think that would be possible? I am assuming most of you said no. Don’t worry, I was with you too. That is until I actually went out and accomplished this.

Career Services gave me $35 to find a professional outfit to wear to events. The best and probably only way to accomplish this is at a thrift store. Career adviser Cassie Curry and I went to take on this mission. What I found was unbelievable. I really found this hard to believe, but it turned out to be a total success. One of the most shocking things was that I was able to find more than just one outfit. I was able to find a professional suit, a very fun hot pink blazer, a few skirts, shirts and even shoes.

It was a fun outing and not only did we accomplish our goal I learned a few things as well. First I learned that Cassie has great taste and knew just where to find everything. I am 100 percent positive that I would not have succeeded without her. Some of the things I learned were what you can and cannot wear to certain events and outings in the professional field; I also learned that it is unprofessional to wear open-toed shoes to a professional outing such as an interview. Lastly, I learned that even though this is common sense, you should wear neutral colors to a professional gathering or interview and my pink blazer would definitely be inappropriate.

If you have any questions on what you should or should not wear to an interview or professional outing, make sure you pay a visit to Career Services to get some great advice!