Job Search Process

Steps to Developing Your Job Search Strategy back to top

Time & Effort = Interviews = Job Offers
This equation NEVER changes. Make a commitment to spending the time you need to find the job you want!

Step 1: Analyze yourself as the product by identifying your values, interests, skills, personality traits experiences, goals, strengths, and weaknesses.

Step 2: Explore career options with industries and organizations through company research, information interviews, and a review of professional organizations.

Step 3: Target and organize your job search. Solicit feedback from experts to evaluate your effectiveness. You should also prepare job goals, organize a timeline, utilize a monthly planner, and anticipate your search may take six to nine months from beginning to end.

Step 4: Prepare job search materials. Resumes, cover letters, portfolio information (if applicable) should all be developed to target your intended career goal. Google Yourself: what appears? Preparing a professional online presence is a critical and often overlooked step in preparing your professional materials/image.

Step 5: Build and practice your presentation skills. Create and hone your verbal presentation skills through mock interviews. Anticipate behavioral, situational, or competency based interview questions and prepare for those questions before you speak with the employer.

Step 6: Develop and conduct a job search campaign. Utilize multiple strategies such as pursuing advertised vacancies online and in the newspaper, developing a professional network, and contacting employers directly while consistently following up, keeping good records, and being persistent.

Step 7: Interview, negotiate, and secure an offer. Manage this critical stage by following through with sending thank you cards, negotiating win-win outcomes, signing a formal acceptance, and conducting yourself in an ethical and professional manner.

Adapted from the University of Evansville Career Services and Cooperative Education Office

The Internet and Your Job Search back to top

The following are tips for successfully using the Internet in your job search process.

• Develop a Strategic Filter. With all of the career-related Web sites available, you will be more productive if you have identified what is important to you in your next position before you begin searching (i.e.: is location important to you? a specific job title or functional area?).
• Be specific. Your search will give you better leads if you have developed a list of the factors or key words related to your career direction/search.
• Avoid sites that ask for money. The majority of sites post free information for job seekers. Depending on your career goals and professional field; however, it may be worth paying the fee if the information is important to you and will be helpful in your search.
• Identify key sites and revisit often; a good policy is to check the sites twice per week.
• Keep good records of the sites you visit and the information you have posted to avoid duplicate applications.
• Maintain a professional online presence. If an employer googled your name, what would he or she see? If you suspect it would be unflattering, you should remedy that situation before it is too late. 'Employer proof' your Facebook, MySpace, and other social networking pages.
• Make use of job search websites. In addition to UMKC's own CareerExec Employment Database, Career Services has partnered with NACE in creating a custom NaceLink Connect site to help you with your nationwide job search.

Networking back to top

Networking is one of the most, if not the most, important tools in your job search. Since most job and internship opportunities are never posted, job candidates often learn about job postings through their professional and personal networks.

Tips for Successful Networking

• Be ready to network any given moment. You can network at a conference, wedding, or even a sporting event. Therefore, you should prepare a 30-second oral resume or self introduction that will catch the person's interest and will allow you to confidently share your information and your career goals.
• To begin establishing your network, go where people are participating in groups, campus/community organizations or committees will help you get connected. Don't wait for networking to just happen.
• First impressions are key; make sure you establish and maintain eye contact and listen more than you talk.
• When engaging with someone for the first time, break the ice by asking open-ended questions such as, 'how did you get started in your field, what do you enjoy most about this profession, or what advice would you give someone just starting in the field?'
• The best networkers are the best listeners. Individuals will speak with you if you are not only talking about yourself. Pay attention to nonverbal cues from the individual indicating he or she is ending the conversation.
• Value quality over quantity. If you are able to have 5-7 quality connections with individuals at a large event, consider it a success.
• Keep a record of the individuals you have met and what you discussed so you don't lose the connections. Ask for business cards and record important points from your conversation on the cards for future reference.
• If you offer to send information or make a promise to do something, always follow-up.
• Maintain your network; it is an on-going process. Be sure to share good news, information, resources and success stories with your network�do not only communicate with them when you need something.

Adapted from the University of Iowa Pomerantz Career Center

References back to top

Employers and graduate/professional schools considering you for employment/ admission may require you to provide a list of references and/or reference letters for them to review. References verify your experience and confirm your credibility. Additionally, employers and graduate/professional schools use references to increase their confidence that your skills, abilities, past job and school performance, and accomplishments make you a good fit for the position and/or program. Careful consideration should be given to whom you ask to serve as your reference.

Identifying Your References

• Consider asking professors, advisors, supervisors/bosses, and co-workers to serve as a reference for you.
• As a college student or recent alumnus, at least one should be a professor or faculty member.
• Choose wisely. If an individual has minimal knowledge of your professional experience, do not ask him or her to serve as your reference. For example, you would be better represented if you selected an individual who knows you well and can speak of your skills than if you selected a well-respected professional in your field who knows you very little about you.
• If the person seems hesitant to serve as your reference, ask someone else. Do not settle.

Requesting References

• Personally contact each person to ask if he or she will serve as your reference.
• If possible, schedule time to speak with each individual to share the types of positions you are interested in applying for and how you see your qualifications fitting with those positions.
• Ask early and be respectful. Ask individuals to serve as a reference and/or write letters of recommendation for you well in advance of date they will be contacted and/or need to turn in their letters.
• Build your recommendation portfolio by asking your employer or supervisor to write you a letter whenever you leave or complete your job if you left on good terms. If you great interactions with a professor and did well in class, you may also ask the professor to write a letter for you at the end of the semester.

Providing Your References With Information

• Provide your references with your current resume, summary of goals, and any other document (e.g., transcript) you feel is necessary for them to provide thorough and positive information for your candidacy.
• Notify your references when you have included them in a job application.
• If you are requesting the reference to write a letter of recommendation, you should provide a stamped and addressed envelope. Also, you may include a cover sheet with a list of the graduate schools or employers for which you are requesting letters to be sent.

Thanking Your References

• Send a thank-you card to your reference after you know the letter has been sent our or that he or she has spoken with the employer/graduate school.
• You may also consider contacting your references to update them of your outcome.

Formatting Your Reference Page

• Be sure to use your same resume contact heading and information on your reference page in case both documents are separated.
• Use the same font and font size that you used for your resume.

Citing Your References
While there are some exceptions, your reference page should be a separate page from your resume. The following is an example of how you may list your reference�s contact information.

Kasey R. Kangaroo, PhD
Assistant Professor of Sports Information
University of Missouri-Kansas City
5100 Rockhill Road
Kansas City, Missouri 64110
(816) 235-5555
kasey@umkc.edu

Accepting the Job back to top

Congratulations! You have been offered your dream position, now what? At this point, you have an important decision to make. Please consider the following points:

• Evaluate the offer. Is the position aligned with your career goals and objectives? Can you picture yourself working in the company and with the team? Is your total compensation appropriate?
• Ask for time to review the offer and to get the offer in writing when possible. You have the right to ask the employer for a period of time to reflect on the job offer and do not have to accept a position immediately after it is offered. The National Association of Colleges and Employers' Principle Committee recommends that employers provide students three weeks to accept a job offer. Communicate with the employer about how much time you need to make an informed decision, but remember that you do not want to keep the employer waiting. Once you have decided to accept the offer, ask the employer if you may have the offer in writing. This reduces the potential for future misunderstandings and allows for you to be clear about salary, benefits, start date, etc.
• Accept the job in good faith. After you have verbally accepted a position, you are committed to the employer and position even if a better offer comes along in a few days. Your honor, professionalism and reputation are valuable in the business and academic communities and hard to rebuild. Before you accept the position, be sure to spend the time to make a well-informed decision.
• Withdraw your candidacy from other positions once you accept the offer. Informing companies that you are out of the job market will demonstrate your professionalism. Also, it will help your friends who may be interested in the job(s) for which you were applying during your search.
• Provide additional information. Follow-up with the employer to make sure they have all of information they need to finalize the offer (i.e.: transcripts, reference letters, and other correspondence).
• Follow-up with your network. Don't forget to thank and notify your references and professional network of your new professional position.

Salary Negotiation back to top

Many recent graduates have questions about the best approaches to negotiation. The following suggestions will help you in your professional negotiation approach.

• Do Your Research. You need to justify why you warrant an increase in your salary and tie that to the value you will bring to the company (see the next bullet).
• Know your worth in the marketplace. Utilize salary Web sites to help you identify an appropriate salary range. Be prepared with this information early in your job search process because you may be asked by the employer for your salary history or expectations early in the interview process.
• Understand the negotiation process. The purpose of the negotiation process is to reach a mutual agreement with the employer. You do not want the negotiation process to be a confrontation. Remember, you will be working on the same team as the individual(s) with whom you are negotiating in a few weeks. ALWAYS REMAIN PROFESSIONAL!
• Avoid discussing salary until you have been offered the job or until the employer brings up the subject. The employer may have concerns regarding your genuine interest in the position or company if you ask about the salary before you ask about the position description.
• It is not always just about salary, benefits add up too. When individuals add the benefits the company is offering to the base salary, they are often surprised that they are making more than they would at another company offering a higher base salary. Benefits such as health insurance, retirement savings plan, vacation plans, opportunities to grow professionally, travel, overtime pay, and compensation time all quickly add up.

Remember, at some point you need to make some tough decisions.
If you take too much time or show too much hesitation, you may lose some offers.