AN INSIDER’S GUIDE TO CAREER READINESS
ROAD MAP 2018 Career & Internship Expo Minnesota State University, Mankato link.mnsu.edu/handshake
2 • MSU Reporter
Career Development Road Map
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
How to get a job immediately after graduation LUCAS TORBORG Staff Writer Senior year of college is a lot of things. It’s exciting and refreshing to be nearly done with 17 years of school. However, it’s also completely horrifying. Senior year signifies that you’re no longer a child and you are that much closer to entering the real world-the adult world. Getting a job is what all the long and tiring years of education has built up to. However, in school we are taught what to do when we get said job, but not how to get the job. When entering senior year most students have hundreds of questions when it comes to finding a job. One of the most asked questions is “When should I start looking for a job?”. Karina Clennon, the Assistant Director of the Career Development Center at Minnesota State University Mankato, believes it’s the fall semester before graduation when students should start looking for a job. Although, positions do open up in the spring and summer, it is
during the fall that it is found that students have the most success when it comes to receiving a job offer. Through a student’s four years at college there are lots of connections that are made whether they know it or not. For example; these can consist of professors, fellow students, or people met through organizations. It can be difficult to understand who is a good networking source. Building your network is extremely important, however it may also feel extremely overwhelming. The best way to begin searching through a network is for the student to begin with their “inner circle,” Clennon said. “It’s not as complicated as it seems” Clennon said. “Every time you talk to someone in class you are networking, every time you ask someone how their day is you are networking.” Clennon stresses that when looking for a job everybody in your network, especially your extended family, should know you are searching for an internship or job. This way people in your network will instantly think of
you when a position opens up. Although sometimes it is hard to find a job to apply for, sometimes the problem is that there are too many jobs possible to apply for. “In this economy you see that there are so many available positions it can be hard to figure out which one you are qualified for and which one do you actually want to apply to,” said Clennon. A good way to narrow down the job opportunities is to attend a career fair. University set fairs, for example MNSU’s October Career & Internship Expo is especially important. “These employers are specifically coming to recruit MSU students,” said Clennon. The best way to stand out to employers is to become more than just a name on an application and that is why attending these fairs are so important. “Even in 2018, meeting somebody face to face still means something,” said Clennon. Other great ways to narrow the job search and to find a position more suitable for you is to use online resourc-
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es. Handshake particularly stands out from the others. For instance, Handshake is posted for MNSU students and most positions are set at entry level. Clennon also stated that LinkedIn has recently been very successful for students. “LinkedIn” is big, but enables the recruiter to scan
your profile really quickly,” said Clennon. Although senior year is an exciting and ambiguous time and sometimes it may feel as if getting a job is inevitable, there are ways to make a smooth transition into your desired career.
“Every time you talk to someone in class you’re networking, every time you ask someone how their day is you’re networking.”
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Stop by our career fair booth Tuesday and Wednesday!
Positions posted on Handshake, LinkedIn and Indeed.com
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
MSU Reporter • 3
An Insider’s Guide to Career Readiness
How to dress appropriately for an interview MARIA LY Staff Writer You look in the mirror, running your hand through your hair as you think about what to wear for your job interview that you’ve been anticipating all week. You dash to your closet, should you go for business casual? Black tie? How about that funky blouse that you haven’t worn in two years? Students find themselves in this predicament every day, spending hours worrying about every aspect of their big interview including what to wear. First impressions are important and how you dress can make a big impact on how the employer views you as a person and your professional brand. The Career Development Center has many tips for students regarding looking your best to get the job. One of the many tips is to try on your outfit one day before the actual interview. Making sure everything fits is essential to looking professional. If it’s too short, loose, long, or tight, do not
wear it! Maybe wearing that funky blouse you bought years ago isn’t such a good idea. Most clothing requires alterations to make sure the outfit fits well and that you look your best. However, have in mind that they do take about 1-2 weeks to complete. Bust out that iron, because going to an interview with wrinkled clothing is a big NO! Clothing you must also avoid are untucked or low-cut shirts, sleeveless or spaghetti strap tops, leggings/workout attire, and hats. A professional suit, a nice blouse, a blazer, clean moderate dress shoes, dark socks, a conservative tie, a briefcase or portfolio and limited jewelry are all outfit components of looking professional. These garments should be classic and conservative rather than trendy. If you have a belt loop, wear a belt. Also, ditch any bulky coats and bags, and make sure not to put anything in your pockets that stick out. Besides your outfit, make sure you look neat and clean; your hair is groomed, nails
Photo courtesy of Career Development Center
trimmed, piercings out, tattoos covered, face washed, neutral makeup, and especially do not overdo it on the perfume or cologne. Nobody wants their nose clogged with the overwhelming smell of axe body spray. However, do wear deodorant. The CDC also gives information about how to dress on a tight budget; a helpful guide to any broke college student. They suggest purchasing clothing items with a multiuse potential, invest in
year-round type clothing, incorporate clothing you already own, purchase matching components, and buy dark or neutral colored pieces such as: charcoal, navy, black, brown, gray, ivory, tan, or beige colors.
The CDC strongly suggests in investing a professional outfit on their website, stating, “Quality is key. Your professional wardrobe is an extension of your education investment.”
“Making sure everything fits is essential to looking professional. If it’s too short, loose, long, or tight, do not wear it!”
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4 • MSU Reporter
Career Development Road Map
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
How you should properly prepare for a job interview STEVE JOHN NDIKUM Staff Writer We often ask ourselves this question, how accurate are our decisions towards the attainment of our goals? Do I need more skills? Is the job I am doing now or going for part of my passion? There are thousands of companies, and how do I identify which one has a driven force towards my growth as an individual? In the 21st century, preparing for a job interview entails three systematic pathways. Firstly, it’s what we do before the interview, the information we gather. Secondly, what we do during the interview, how our resume is presented and outlined, the cover letter, our presentation of skills, and tactics. This will make you different from the previous person who sat on that same chair before you. Lastly, keeping in contact with the interviewer. Before booking a flight for a family vacation in a country we often are not familiar with, we turn to do research to
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discover more things about the country we going to. It’s the same thing for a job we are seeking in a company
we aren’t familiar with. Getting information about the company’s historical establishment, their mission
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and vision, and how employees are treated are the things we want to know before the interview.
Most business owners and human resource officials focus on future employees who will want to be part of the vision
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Tuesday, October 16, 2018
MSU Reporter • 5
An Insider’s Guide to Career Readiness
PREPARING FOR AN INTERVIEW from page 4
of their organization. For that to happen the employee must show proof of determination, time management, and react responsibly to the task assigned. Participating during the interview gives a good impression of your level of interest for the job. When writing a resume, manage your expectations. The information written down should be geared towards the audience. Give your resume a professional
Make the communication flow without breaks, get into every detail without involving personal life details such as race, religion, or political opinions. Anticipate questions from the interviewer, such as “what’s your biggest weakness?” Or, “where do you see yourself in years to come?” And, “why do you want this job?” It will be also good to admit the things you don’t know and be real and honest when
“Most business owners and human resource officials focus on future employees who will want to be part of the vision of their organization.” look and use the job posting as a guide, review and note each experience you have with all sincerity. Next, prepare a list of questions to ask your interviewer. Ask questions about the company and its future plans to explore the market. Ask questions about the company’s corporate social responsibilities.
presenting your strengths. In any workplace, your outfit and appearance are a sign of professionalism and is sometimes used to gauge your level of competence. When your coworkers or customers meet you in person, they should immediately feel comfortable working with you. Our appearance should
reflect the job we are going for. Most colors are highly suited in the business world. Those colors are blues, browns, grays, and blacks. These colors give a professional impression. Ensure what you are putting on is lint and wrinkle-free. For women, dressing professionally could mean wearing a smart knee-length skirt suit in a dark color, along with sheer, non-patterned hosiery, closed toe shoes and subtle makeup. For men, choose a white dress shirt, any of the colors listed above suits and comfortable, good-looking shoes. Time is the most effective tool to attain your goals, so always make sure you show up 10 to 15 minutes before the interview. Go to bed early before the day of the interview, sleep allows many of our hormones such as melatonin to replenish so we have the optimal energy, immunity, appetite and coping ability to face the day’s highs and lows. During the interview, keep your answers straight and brief. Back your points with
Photo courtesy of Career Development Center
good facts. After the interview, shake hands with the interviewer and exchange pleasantries. Invest some feeling in the handshake like a smile. Even if you think you thumbed the interview. The interviewer should give you a time frame for when to expect a callback. If you didn’t get that detail you can ask.
Secondly, send a thank you email to your interviewer within 24 hours. You may include some details which was left out during your interview, those details should be brief. Lastly, stay in touch with your interviewer at the appropriate time, and stay positive!
6 • MSU Reporter
Career Development Road Map
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Tuesday, October 16
Science, Engineering, Technology, & Construction
Wednesday, October 17
Business, Communications, Human Services, & Healthcare
9:30 A.M. - 2:30 P.M.
Centennial Student Union Ballroom
Attend Both Days!
Log into your Handshake Account with your StarID and password for a full listing of employers attending the Expo.
LOG INTO YOUR HANDSHAKE ACCOUNT TO START CONNECTING TODAY!
EVENT DETAILS
mnsu.edu/cdc/expo
LINKEDIN PHOTOS
Professional Portraits provided at no cost to you by the Career Development Center
Tuesday & Wednesday
A A A D L M M M M
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
An Insider’s Guide to Career Readiness
MSU Reporter • 7
MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY, MANKATO
100% OF EXPO EMPLOYERS ARE ATTENDING TO NETWORK WITH YOU! 90% OF EXPO EMPLOYERS ARE RECRUITING FOR INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES! 90% OF EXPO EMPLOYERS ARE RECRUITING FOR FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES! GOLD SPONSORS TUESDAY Apogee Enterprises, Inc. Arrow Building Center Blattner Energy, Inc. Bolton & Menk, Inc. Cretex Companies Daktronics Ellingson Companies EPPA Medical Scribe Program Federated Insurance Garney Construction ISG Lennar Homes
Maverick Software Consulting McGough Construction Minnesota Army National Guard Optum, a UnitedHealth Group Company Oshkosh Corporation Schwickert’s Tecta America The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company Thomson Reuters WABCO - MICO, Inc. Weis Builders, Inc. Wenger Corporation
WEDNESDAY ACR Homes Allstate Insurance Territory Sales- Minnesota Alternatives for People with Autism Daktronics Lennar Homes Mayo Clinic Minnesota Army National Guard Monarch Healthcare Management Murry & Associates, LLC
Mystic Lake Casino Hotel Northwestern Mutual - Twin Cities Taylor Corporation The Hertz Corporation The Occasions Group Thomson Reuters Walgreens Wenger Corporation
Get Prepared by attending QuickStop! Monday-Thursday from 12-3p.m. in the Career Development Center (WA 209)
8 • MSU Reporter
Career Development Road Map
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
The CDC can help students in many different ways MARK REYNOLDS Staff Writer If students at Minnesota State University, Mankato need help with their career paths, they need look no further than the Career Development Center. “The Career Development Center (CDC),” according to their website, “equips Minnesota State University, Mankato’s students and graduates with the tools and resources to successfully explore, develop and manage their career paths for a lifetime.” The CDC achieves this through individual appointments for résumés, grad school prep, career surveys, on-campus events, online resources and more. “The first time I went there was the beginning of my junior year,” said Eyan Bantebya, a Civil Engineering major at MNSU who has used the help of the CDC. The staff helped him create his résumé. They also helped him choose a font and helped him organize his experience by relevance to the job he was looking at. They also
Photo courtesy of Career Development Center
gave him interview advice. “They give you little, nifty tips and tricks. One of them told me, when it comes to getting a career out of college, you usually just attain skills, although an amazing GPA is good. It really comes down to how much involvement you have at your college,” Bantebya said. Matt Carlson, the assistant
director of the Career Development Center, has helped students there for about 15 years. Before that, he was an educator for 30 years. “They want you to talk about what skills you have,” Carlson said, “What brought you here today? What made you think you wanted to interview for this job? How
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are you going to solve their problems? They have money and problems; they’re going to give you some money to
solve their problems. How are you going to do that? You’re going to do it with your skills.” The CDC is focused on developing job-finding skills, not finding jobs for students. “If I give you a job, you have one job. If I teach you how to get a job, you have a lifetime of getting jobs,” Carlson said. One of the CDC’s great resources is Handshake. Handshake is a website that hosts a ton of job listings and internships, many of which have connections to Minnesota State University Mankato. The CDC offers one-onone advice with students about using Handshake to its full potential. Bantebya said that he found a few internships through Handshake. But according to Carlson, the best way to find a job is
“The CDC also provides many opportunities for students to advance their careers, which are best when combined with independent work and skill.”
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Tuesday, October 16, 2018
MSU Reporter • 9
An Insider’s Guide to Career Readiness
HELP
from page 8 through networking. This is why the CDC also hosts events like the Campus and Community Fair, the Career and Internship Expo and the Government and Nonprofit Job and Internship Fair. The website says students can “explore positions and career fields you could pursue with your major, increase your chances of interviewing with an employer, receive useful job search advice from seasoned company recruiters and start or further develop your network of contacts!” “We’ll have 1,300 students at that big career event, 1,300 each day that’ll come through,” Carlson said. The CDC also provides many opportunities for students to advance their careers, which are best when combined with independent work and skill. “Some people have better luck than others,” Bantebya said. “I think you should use all your options even if you’re lucky it’s never bad to get a better job.” The CDC reinforces the University’s philosophy of real-world thinking. Carlson said, “if you’re
Photo courtesy of Career Development Center
going to be a teacher, do something with people. Education comes in a lot of forms. If you’re going to be in management, try to get an assistant manager job.” The real-world experience
model combined with the Career Development Center’s services works. The Center’s statistics show that 76.1 percent of 2015 to 2016 Minnesota State University Mankato graduates
who are available for employment have received a related, full-time job within a year of graduation. “It’s really cool,” Carlson said, “that you can basically take this beyond what you
even could imagine. That’s been supported by the research. Whatever you do with this, it’s more than what you think you can do.”
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10 • MSU Reporter
Career Development Road Map
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Resume building and job searching is important after graduation MADISON DIEMERT News Editor So, you’ve just graduated school and you have a fresh new bachelor’s degree under your belt. But you have no idea what to do now. Well, let’s find out. First of all, you should have your resume in order. The Career Development Center’s website says, “Selling yourself to employers is like selling a product. You have to market yourself.” This means that you have to find the best way to basically sell yourself to the company you are hoping to work with. “A resume is a summary of your education, experience and skills that relates to your career goal or job objective. The primary purpose of a resume is to obtain interviews with potential employers,” says the CDC’s Job Search Handbook. The CDC also gives a detailed description of what your resume should look like. It should be about one to two pages long, no more. It should really grab the employer’s attention within
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the first few minutes! Your resume should be clean without any clutter. You should include all relative work experience, as well as your educational background, volunteer work, or any extracurricular activities
that you have been involved in that may be relevant to the job you will eventually be applying to. Also, be sure to include any contact information the employer may need, the CDC’s Job Search Handbook
says. This includes your name, address, phone number, and professional email. All of this is important for the employer to contact you especially if offered an interview, or even better, the job! Once you have a nice,
crisp resume ready for a future employer to look at, you should start searching for said job. Job searching can be difficult, but it doesn’t have to be. The CDC offers all students of Minnesota State
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Tuesday, October 16, 2018
MSU Reporter • 11
An Insider’s Guide to Career Readiness
RESUME BUILDING from page 10
University, Mankato a chance to use Handshake, formerly known as MavJobs. Handshake is a great tool for students to use, even if you haven’t graduated. To use Handshake, all you need is your StarID and password. The CDC can also help students if they need any help using Handshake. Handshake has many different listings of job and internship openings, from all over the nation. Students can refine their job and internship search and make it so much easier by choosing different tags to narrow how many listings they see. They can decide where the job listings are located, what field they are in, and so much more. This makes the search for jobs and internship a lot less stressful, as you can do it right from your couch! Once you have found a job or internship you might be interested in, it’s time to submit your resume. This can be done right on Handshake by uploading it to the website. You can also save the jobs you’re looking at by starring them. They will be bookmarked on your profile
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so you can look at them later. The CDC makes job searching easy for all recently graduated students. Following these steps will insure a successful job search. If you need any more help searching for jobs or otherwise, don’t worry! You
can always visit the CDC. They are more than happy to help. The CDC is open for dropins Monday through Thursday noon to 3 p.m. in the Wigley Center, room 209. You can also set up an appointment through Handshake.
Or you can call 507-3896061 to set up an in-person or phone appointment, and you can also stop in to the CDC to set up a date and time. Happy job searching!
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12 • MSU Reporter
Career Development Road Map
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
2018 Career & Internship Expo Booth Locations 1
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Day 1 GOLD SPONSOR BOOTH • Science, Engineering, Technology, & Construction Day 2 GOLD SPONSOR BOOTH • Business, Communications, Human Services, & Healthcare Booth Employer E01 Daktronics D01 Federated Insurance D12 Lennar Homes
Booth E02 D02 C13
Employer Minnesota Army National Guard Thomson Reuters Wenger Corporation
Day 1 GOLD SPONSOR BOOTH • Science, Engineering, Technology, & Construction Booth Employer E04 Apogee Enterprises, Inc. D04 Arrow Building Center D09 Blattner Energy, Inc. D08 Bolton & Menk, Inc. D03 Cretex Companies E03 Ellingson Companies E06 EPPA Medical Scribe Program D11 Garney Construction C10 ISG
Booth Employer C11 Maverick Software Consulting E05 McGough Construction D07 Optum, a UnitedHealth Group Company D05 Oshkosh Corporation C09 Schwickert’s Tecta America D10 The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company C12 WABCO C08 Weis Builders, Inc.
Day 2 GOLD SPONSOR BOOTH • Business, Communications, Human Services, & Healthcare Booth D03 D09 C12 D05 C10 C08
Employer ACR Homes Allstate Insurance Territory Sales- Minnesota Alternatives for People with Autism Mayo Clinic Monarch Healthcare Management Murry & Associates, LLC
Booth Employer D07 Mystic Lake Casino Hotel C09 Northwestern Mutual - Twin Cities C11 Taylor Corporation D04 The Hertz Corporation D08 The Occasions Group E04 Walgreens