The Career Development Center Blog « Explore. Educate. Empower. Engage.

I wrote this after watching Larry Smith from the University of Waterloo give a TEDx TALK on “why you will fail to have a great career” , an interesting video to me especially because I work in the Career Services department. I hope that you will take the time to watch the video that inspired me to write this blog post.

I am writing you today because…

I want you to reach your fullest potential.
I want you to find your true passions, those that go deeper beyond mere interests..
I want you to influence the world in positive ways and become a person whom you admire.

One of my favorite quotes is “I am Human. Nothing Human can be alien to me.” – Terence. This quote means to me that if a human being dares to change the world, dares to be a doctor, dares to be Martin Luther King, or dares to be the person they admire, it means so can you, because you are human being also.

Reaching your fullest potential is hard and maintaining it is even harder. We all have looked at someone close to our heart and felt a sense of sadness because they are not being the great human being that they could be. I personally have watched a friend of mine who has a vast amount of potential constantly veer away from becoming the amazing woman she could become. I notice though that we are constantly assessing our friends and family trying to help them reach their fullest potential, but what are we doing for ourselves? It is time to practice what you preach. So here is a self test that is currently working well for me in my life to ensure I reach my fullest potential and self-actualization.

Do a self-assessment of the person you are and the person you are becoming. A good way to see if you are in line with becoming the better and greater you is to see if you are in line with your life purpose. If you don’t have a life purpose, take the time to write one now and do a check in with yourself to make certain you are choosing the right career, the right mate, and the right friends. If you realize you are not, then it is time to make changes. Below is my life purpose:

“My life purpose is to nurture my community and the people that surround me. I wish to become a person in leadership where I will empower, educate, and embrace new ways of thought that will lead to overall success in my life and that of my team’s. I want to make people feel worthy of my time and attention. When I leave the room I want to people to have many good things to say about me instead of bad. I want to mentor my future kids to be successful, active members of society that do good for the world and their local communities. I want to be an example, leader, husband, father, family member, and mentor. By doing these things in my life it will help me feel fulfilled, thankful, happy, and healthy”.

By assessing what your life purpose is, I hope that you choose a career path that supports your values and goals. Finding passion in the career you choose that is also in line with your life purpose is going to be difficult but finding this out earlier rather than later will save you lots of money, time, and energy. We all have interests and sometimes our parents tell us what our interests are. This can lead to us choosing a career path that we are not totally in love with. I met a woman recently who found out she hated accounting and now has a bachelors degree in a field she hates. She is now pursuing sales and that is her real passion. We may end up in a career that makes us feel miserable and at that time it may feel it is too late to make the switch. But it is never too late to discover your passion. Everyone in your life will respect you more if you do this for yourself.

Now hopefully you are running full force for your full potential. Your passion is driving you there. So now what are you going to do for humanity? When you leave a room, do the people you’ve affected have more good things to say about you than bad? I love to give back, it makes me feel so good. Part of that comes from my job. But what else are you going to do? What imprint on the world will you leave? How will what you do for others affect the generations that come after you? Doing something for the greater good will make you feel full. Be grateful that you are here and you still have the opportunity to do something .This will also get you connected with bright, enthusiastic people who share the same passion as you.

In conclusion, be the person who you admire, be the person I would admire. Go for the career that will bring the greatest passion into your life. I cannot wait to read about all the great things you are doing!

What do you think about the video? What is your passion? Please comment and share!

Posted by Zack Sperow, Career Services Assistant and Human

To view this job/internship listing, you must be a currently registered OSU student and have an existing Beaver JobNet account. If you are eligible and do not have an account, register now. Beaver JobNet is a great way to get your job or internship search started. Meet employers from a variety of organizations.

Job/Internship of the Week
2014 Financial Application Engineer
Bloomberg

Description:

The Role
Bloomberg’s Research and Development department offers 2 exciting training program opportunities for students with a variety of academic backgrounds!

This role, the Financial Application Engineer, is designed for students who have NOT completed a computer science degree but have some exposure to programming and would like to pursue a career in software development. A minimum of 2 programming classes is required.

If you have completed a Computer Science degree or have completed the following coursework: Algorithms, Data structures, Operating Systems and 2 Programming classes then please apply to the 2014 Financial Software Developer training program.

All applicants are only eligible for one of the programs. Please apply to the training program that best meets your academic profile. All applications should include both a resume AND an official/unofficial transcript.

The Training Program
An extensive 16 week training program will provide technical and financial skills needed to succeed in Bloomberg’s fast-paced and dynamic organization. Successful applicants will be involved in the design and development of state-of-the-art software for financial information products.

For more information on how to apply check out the posting in Beaver JobNet.

I was teaching a class of career advisors over the last few weeks on how to instruct their clients on the proper use of social media in their job hunts.

Several of their clients had lost their jobs because of inappropriate comments on Facebook.

Other clients had lost potential opportunities because of not having a photo on LinkedIn.

Shortly after the second class on Facebook Privacy, Facebook changed its privacy settings, makin

g about 2 hours of training obsolete.

That’s fine with me, in fact, the pace of change is one thing that attracts me to this business.

However, some of the students asked the director to ask me for step-by-step instructions.

Step-by-Step Instructions Don’t Work

I had to decline this request for three reasons.

First, Facebook already looked a lot different than it had in our training. If I were to send them instructions, they wouldn’t recognize anything. Likewise, in another 3 months LinkedIn’s interface may change.

The reality is that the question of “Where to click” is the least of our worries when using social media.

Second, YouTube has a plethora of free video training on all aspects of social media. In fact, when I’m selling my webinar training services to Career Centers at universities, my biggest competition is YouTube.

It isn’t until I explain that the value in what I do, as different from YouTube, is that I’m not just showing people where to click. There is an actual strategy, with clear proven steps, that builds on mere technical knowledge.

And I never stopped the career advisors from taking notes.

You Can’t Advise What You Don’t Know Yourself

In a strange way, I really want to give people a magic sheet of paper with all the answers to their social media questions.

As advisors, we must be the answer. The value that I strive to impart was the reason behind learning social media.

The reason they should learn this stuff …

That 80 percent of employers are going to look their clients up online. That their first impressions are likely to be online impressions. That flippant comments on Facebook could cost you your job.

My goal when teaching social media is to impart the importance of really understanding the benefits of using it.

Social Media is not a silver bullet by any stretch of the imagination. It is just another tool to be used by a job seeker.

Getting comfortable with these technologies takes time. So when you are just getting started, try to resist the desire to have a sheet of paper with all the answers.

In due time, you will develop an intuition for the best ways to use these tools. Trust me.

Joshua Waldman, author of Job Searching with Social Media For Dummies, is recognized as one of the nations top authorities in Social Media Career Advancement. To learn Joshua’s secret strategies for shortening the online job search and getting the right job right away, watch his exclusive video training here to learn How To Use Social Media Find a Job

NOTE: This post was written by a guest blogger and the content for the post approved by Oregon State University Career Services. We are not responsible for the content on the guest blogger’s personal website and do not endorse their site.

Job/Internship of the Week
Novogradac & Company LLP
Staff Accountant 2014

Description:

Novogradac & Company LLP is a rapidly growing national certified public accounting firm headquartered in San Francisco, CA with 15 offices nationwide. The firm maintains clients in a broad range of industries with a major emphasis in the real estate sector, providing publicly and privately held national and multinational enterprises with a full spectrum of audit, tax, valuation, trust and litigation support and general consulting services.
Novogradac & Company LLP is hiring Staff Accountants to join the firm in January 2014. We are seeking entry level applicants with sufficient accounting courses to sit for the certified public accounting exam. Applicants must have a GPA of 3.20 or higher. We maintain the strictest confidentiality with all applicants.
Responsibilities:
• Complete assignments, including audit and tax preparation and research;
• Identify and communicate potential problem areas during engagements;
• Work in an accurate, time efficient, and organized manner; and
• Develop general technical skills
Requirements:
• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in accounting with a GPA of 3.20 or higher
• Fulfilled the unit eligibility requirement to sit for the CPA exam
• 0 to 1 year of experience in public accounting or 1 to 3 years of experience in an internal accounting role
• Willingness to work under close supervision
• Basic computer skills; ability to work with report writing tools and spreadsheets a plus
• Availability to work overtime as necessary

For more information on how to apply check out the posting in Beaver JobNet.

Ready to get inspired for your job, internship, or career search? Each month we will spotlight an OSU student that has inspired us when it comes to their career development. Check out their success stories—besides inspiration, they also show that academic major does not have to restrict your goals and that there are many ways to define success.

Want to nominate an OSU student or alum for the Student/Alum Spotlight series? Or do you want to share your own success? Then please fill out this quick form and Career Services will contact the person nominated.

Name: Nick Reed

Major: Business Administration (options in Management and International Business)

Year you graduated: 2010

Company: Adaugeo Healthcare Solutions

1. How did you find out about your job?

I attended the fall career fair as an alumnus in November 2012. I spent nearly the entire day interacting with potential employers, including the company that I now work for.

2. What do you do in your position?

I manage our company’s medical laboratory operations in central Oregon, work on projects on the clinical side of the company, as well as train in clinic management.

3. What advice do you have for others interested in finding a job?

First I would encourage persistence and patience. In the span of 6 months I went from being the one applying for jobs, to the person responsible for hiring. If there is one thing that both helped me get into my current position and continues to help me find qualified candidates for positions that I have open, it is the persistence of the candidate. It shows that you want the position you have applied for. It also keeps your name in the forefront of the hiring managers’ mind, versus being buried by busy days. Second is requiring professionalism from yourself. This encompasses many different areas of your life and job search including, how you dress, what your social media reflects, how you speak to potential employers, your resume, cover letter, and letters of recommendations. Finally be open to new ideas of what your career could look like. You may find difficulty getting your dream job directly out of school, so be prepared and open to look for jobs that can help you build your resume and work towards your dream job.

4. Did Career Services or anybody else assist you with your career development? If so, how?

I received assistance from career services. I had help with career guidance, resume editing and my job search.

Thanks Nick for being our Student/Alum Spotlight! If you are interested in learning more about Career Fair, there are many resources available to you on the OSU Career Services website. Here is also a great link to help you prepare for the fair.

Regardless of what your major is or if you graduated with honors, there are specific skills all employers are looking for in their new hires. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) 2013 Job Outlook report, although degrees and majors in demand may vary from year to year, the key skills and qualities that employers seek in their new college hires remains nearly identical year after year.

Ability to:

1. Verbally Communicate

In today’s world of text messages and social media, the ability to effectively communicate verbally is in decline, but is still in high demand. Start improving this skill by putting the smartphone away and engaging in conversations.

2. Make Decisions and Solve Problems

With the increase in standardized testing, there has been a decrease in the teaching of critical thinking, but this is still a skill employers are expecting of their employees. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and risk being wrong in order to solve problems.

3. Obtain and Process Information

Listening and understanding is an important part of success in the workplace. Employers are looking for someone who is able to understand directions presented to them in verbal and written methods, but don’t be afraid to ask clarifying questions if you are unclear of the expectations.

4. Plan, Organize, and Prioritize Work

Employers are looking for people who are able to effectively manage their time in the office. Practice developing this skill by utilizing organizing software or apps and making and completing “to do” lists.

5. Analyze Quantitative Data

Statistical analysis is what drives decision making within companies. Employees don’t need to be statisticians to be effective in their jobs, but they must be able to disseminate quantitative information presented to them to assist with problem solving in the workplace.

6. Understand Technical Knowledge

Every job will have specific hardware and software specific to that location and it is expected of employees to constantly learn and adapt to the new technical information presented.

7. Be Proficient with Computer Software

Just like the technical knowledge requirements, employees are expected to be proficient with the most common computer software applications (Microsoft Office for example) and be able to learn and adapt to new software specific to the company.

8. Create and Edit Written Reports

Effective professional written communication is vital in the office. Remember that all written forms of communication should be professionally composed, including text messages and emails.

9. Sell and Influence Others

In 1936, Dale Carnegie wrote “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. Over 70 years later, this is still one of the most popular references for business communication skills.

Think about which of these skills you do well and a personal example to support your claim. For the areas you need to improve, think about how you can start improving these skills and implement a plan to gain these skills. Keeping your nose in the books and graduating with a 4.0 GPA won’t cut it when you get out into the workplace.

Posted by Jennifer Edwards, Career Services Career Advisor

I receive a fair amount of requests for LinkedIn recommendations, and I usually oblige without hesitation. However, a recent e-mail from an old colleague made me realize there are plenty of “networkers” out there who just don’t get it.

“Yo, would you give me some props for that time we volunteered at SunLight.”

I thought he was kidding. But unfortunately, he wasn’t.

Here are two important facts you should know about my business relationship with this guy:

I haven’t heard from him in years.
We barely worked together.

His request of a recommendation was awful, there was zero effort applied. Apparently I’m only worth 14 words of this guy’s time.

(If you want to know how he could have taken a better approach to asking for a recommendation, you can read my advice on asking for LinkedIn recommendations.)

If only this “dear friend” of mine knew about the new LinkedIn Contact product.
Had he known, he may have received more than a laugh from me. He may have actually gotten his recommendation.

All LinkedIn users need to follow these three tips to stay current and ask for help more skillfully.

Oh, if you don’t have the new Contact app, you can sign up for the beta release.

1. Understand Not All Contacts Are Created Equal

In her book, Is Your “Net” Working, Anne Boe suggests you categorize the people in your network into one of eight possible choices:

Keystones: The core of your network.
Experts: The people you respect in your field.
Tangential Helpers: The people who help you get your job done.
Mentors: The people who provide you with guidance.
Role Models: The people who have achieved what you are aspiring to.
Hubs: The people who connect you with other helpful people.
Challengers: The people who cause you to look at your direction and challenge your assumptions.
Promoters: The people who recommend you to opportunities.

With LinkedIn Contacts, use the Tagging feature (see below) to put your connections into one of these eight categories.

Ask yourself, “Who do I need to stay in touch with? Which category can I apply?”

2. Set Contact Reminders

My friend’s failed request came out of nowhere. Yet, I’m also sensitive to the fact he probably has an above average network.

How can he possibly stay in touch with everyone, right?

(Glad to know I’m somewhere at the bottom. LinkedIn is probably a numbers game for him.)

Well, don’t wait until you need something to touch base with your network. That’s poor practice and is usually pretty obvious. Instead, use LinkedIn’s Reminder feature to remind you to consistently stay in touch.

Rule-of-Thumb: You should reach out to your most important contacts at least once every 30 days. Other contacts don’t need to hear from you more than once every few months.

Before you forget, go into your contact’s list and set these reminders for yourself.

3. Pick Up Where You Left Off

With LinkedIn Contacts, the e-mails sent to that person can be found in their profile. This is what it looks like:

This means you can pick up where you left off in your last conversation.

For example, three years ago, this friend of mine and I were talking about creating a website together. The platform never materialized but our idea seems to have become popular, kind of an ironic and fun shared experience.

Tip: By linking together past conversations with your latest notes, you help the contact see the nature of your relationship. Your connections are busy (like you) so they may need gentle reminders about why they’re linked up with you.

Job/Internship of the Week

Marketing and Communications Specialist

Description:

Oregon State University’s Colleges of Business and Engineering, in collaboration with the Office of Information Services, seeks an interested individual willing to assist with marketing and promotion of an upcoming event. The internship begins immediately and culminates with the event on Wednesday, October 30, 2013. There may be some time commitment following the event for debriefing and wrap up.

Young women embracing technology is at an all-time low. Society continues to reinforce the stereotype of people in technology, having young women believing technology is not for them. NetApp, a world premier provider of storage or storage solutions for technology, is working to dispel the image by hosting an event titled, College to Careers. The public/private partnership is targeting young women with the intent of increasing interest in careers in the technology field, by inspiring, empowering and leading the way. This position is instrumental to the success of the NetApp event at OSU.

Outcomes

Help with the marketing and promotion on the OSU Campus.
Work directly with the contact(s) at NetApp and may require participation in a weekly 30-minute planning update conference call.
Develop and deliver print and electronic communications
Assist with webpage management, manage Twitter and FaceBook feeds and more.

If you are interested in serving in this internship position, please prepare and submit through Beaver JobNet a current resume and cover letter that describes your experience and/or skills and abilities you possess which will contribute to the success of this event.

For more information on how to apply, check out the posting in Beaver JobNet.

With summer coming to an end and the academic year fast approaching you may find yourself trying to squeeze in a few last minute trips and moments of relaxation. Take the next few weeks to also think about some goals you have for this coming academic year, whether they are academic, professional or personal. Here are a few tips for starting the academic year off right!

Organize

If you don’t already have one, go out and get yourself a planner: writing out assignment due dates, work schedules, classes and midterm days and times can help you stay on track
Write out a list of all your commitments for this coming academic year including classes, clubs, organizations, work responsibilities.

Set Measurable Goals

Write out goals for yourself, both short term and long term, and make a list of the steps you can take to accomplish those goals. Set a timeline of when you want to have them completed. Once you have completed one goal, set another.
Meet your Academic Advisor or visit a Career Counselor.
Make a point to meet with your Academic Advisor early in the term to plan out the academic year, talk about career goals and make sure you are on track with meeting your degree requirements.
If you find yourself struggling to choose a major, consider meeting with a Career Counselor; they can help you outline your strengths and interests as well as prompt you with questions to start thinking about your future.

Get Involved:

Depending on your level of commitments, consider getting involved with a new club or organization on campus, completing an internship or getting a part-time job. All of these opportunities will build your resume and enhance your skill set. You can check out internship and job opportunities on Beaver JobNet.

Posted by Ciara Lynn – Career Services Internship Coordinator

Job/Internship of the Week
Assistant Buyer
Stahlbush Island Farms, Inc.

Description:

The mission for this position is to perform daily tasks as specified by the Raw Product Buyer to provide assistance in the collection and documentation of information required to meet customer quality standards and maintain the status of the farm’s certification as a sustainable and organic farm.

Outcomes
-Interact with contract growers, including scheduling, field scouting and collection of necessary documentation.
-Support raw product procurement as needed.
-Support internal audits of the farm for compliance to meet sustainable and organic certifications.
-Support in overall raw product logistics and scheduling as needed.
-Review pesticide records.
-Provide and track harvest-timing estimates for all crops.
-Develop and manage systems for collecting and using historic data.
-Develop field standards and measures to better meet the quality standards for the finished products.
-Perform other duties as assigned.

For more information on how to apply, check out the posting in Beaver JobNet.

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The Career Development Center Blog

Explore. Educate. Empower. Engage.

Let Your Passion Lead

Job/Internship of the Week-Bloomberg

Job/Internship of the Week-Staff Accountant

Student / Alum Spotlight – Nick Reed

Skills: What You Need to Know

Job/Internship of the Week – NetApp & OSU

Start the Academic Year off Right

Job/Internship of the Week – Stahlbush Island Farms, Inc.

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