Career Planning for IPOD Generation Carol Christen
August 2008                   Issue Focus: College Students  Vol 1, Issue 3
 Gen M 
 

Career E-zine
Greetings!
 
Welcome! We are pleased to bring you a bi-monthly newsletter which will give you "news you can use" about transitioning from school-to-work and getting a good start in a new career.  This newsletter will feature articles and information for teens and young adults ages 15 - 29.  We will help you navigate from high school through higher education and into a career that you enjoy and is worthwhile. 
 
Three times a year the issue will focus on helping high school students; the other three issues will help college students and those already in the workforce consider career options and ways to improve their satisfaction and success in the workplace.
 
This is our third newsletter.  The focus is on college students.  However, high school students can glance through the articles and find information that can help them in the future as they plan for life after high school. 
In This Issue
Finding the Perfect 10
Find Your College Career Center
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Teleclass For High School Age Students -  Free to the First 5 Registrants
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Teleclass for College -Age Students

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Finding the Perfect 10

By Carol Christen 
 
 
What Did You Learn?
 
Summer is over and you're back in school. Your summer job, internship or volunteer work is now just memories and that's that.  Or is it?
 
Our fast paced culture overlooks that there are actually three parts to an experience -- doing, reflecting and revising.  Our society tends to focus on the doing and forget about reflecting and revising.  By doing so, a great deal of what might be learned from each experience is lost.  Reflection helps you uncover what you liked and disliked about an experience, job or event.  These musings can help you revise your goals, expectations or what you know about yourself.  New self-awareness based upon reflections about your experiences helps you not just repeat experiences, but target new ones.  Spending some time analyzing your summer work or volunteer experience can help you seek out new jobs or opportunities that will help you achieve your personal and work goals. 
 
 
The Job Meter: A simple tool for reflection and revision


Whether you spent the summer working at the mall, a camp or doing an internship in a field in which you hope to work, you can use your experience to fine tune your future.  How?  Use The Job Meter*.
 
Rank your summer work experience on a 1 to 10 scale; 1 being dreadful and 10 being nearly perfect.  What number would you give your summer job?  In order to be considered a good match, your job must rate at least a 9.  Not even close?  You can still use your experience to help you build a path to a better job.
 
Ask yourself, "What would have to be different about my summer job for me to rank it a 9 or 10?"  Make a list of all the aspects you would want to change in order for your job to better match the kind of work you hope to do after you graduate.
 
Now, some of you will have no trouble answering the question.  Right away, ideas come into your head about how you would change your summer job or volunteer work to make it a 10.  That's because your mind works well with looking at an experience as a whole.
 
Others of you may have the kind of mind that works the other way.  You use details to build towards a whole; sort of like putting together the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. If this is how your mind works, it can be helpful to examine different parts of the job individually. 
 
For example, what about the tasks or skills you performed would need to be changed in order for you to rank the work you did as a 9 or 10?   Ask yourself the same question about what you needed to know in order to do the work; the people you encountered on the job;, the working conditions and the salary.  In addition, ask yourself how well the job matched your values or goals. 
 
Use the information about what you would change in each of those categories or how you would make the job different to write a description of a job you could rate a 10.  Use this description to guide your search for jobs or careers that would be a better match or to help you choose your next internship.

The Meter Has Many Uses
 
You can rank and revise many different experiences and activities using a 1 to 10 scale. Asking yourself, "What would have to be different for this to be a 10?" is a question you can use to find more fulfilling classes, better instructors and even a good boss.
 
For young workers, the importance of working for a boss you respect and can learn from can't be over-emphasized.  Having a good boss early in your worklife can make a huge difference in how rapidly you advance in your chosen career.  A good boss can become a mentor, assisting you in learning the ropes in your field or showing you how to be a first rate employee. 
 
________________________________________________________________________
*There's more information about the Job Meter and how to use it on pages 46-48 of What Color Is Your Parachute? for Teens.
 
The Job Meter is the invention of Marty Nemko, PhD.  Dr. Nemko is the author of several books, a contributing editor for US News & World Report and a brilliant career strategist.  You can learn more about his work at www.martynemko.com.
    

Find Your College Career Center: It Is a Valuable Resource

By Robin Roman Wright
 
Are you in school in order to prepare for interesting and challenging work?  Your college provides a free resource in order to help you find out about your career interests, majors that might be a good fit for you and the job market.  Many students visit their career center in the winter and spring of their senior year.  This is good.  However, you will be doing yourself a favor if you visit the career office several times beginning in your freshman year.
"Two years ago, we (the College Career Center) implemented our "Second Year Appointments" initiative for the purpose of getting students in to our office before their senior year  We identified majors with low numbers of visits to our office and started with them.  We invited every second year student in those majors to "meet with your career counselor for your second year career counseling appointment", describing the value of getting to know us and our services NOW.  Participation ranged from about 15-40% of second year students.  Responses were fabulous:
 

-         "I had no idea I could get all this for free",

-         "I'm so glad to know I should start working on this now"

-         "Wow - your internship resources are GREAT"

-         "I've already done an internship and informational interviews but now I know where to hone my interviewing skills"

-         "You've got a ton of information in here - I'm going to tell my classmates!"

 

The "Second Year Appointments" program was instituted at the University of Minnesota, the St. Paul Campus Career Center, however, the types of resources offered by this campus are not unlike many other campuses throughout the U.S.  In fact NACE, the National Association of Colleges and Employers, published the following information in their 2007 report about college career centers.  The data in this table indicates that a vast majority of career centers on 4-year college campuses provide career counseling by appointment, career fairs, on-campus interviewing/ recruiting, assistance for employer offered co-op, internship and externship programs and workshops.  (In fact these services are offered by 90% of the responding colleges.)   You might want to check out the services offered on your campus to see how the career center can help you:

 
    

        Understand your talents and strengths

        Identify fields of interest - majors and career options

        Prepare to interview people about their jobs so that you can learn more before committing to a particular career or occupation.

        Investigate a field of study or an occupation in order to figure out if you would like it.

        Practice and improve your interviewing skills before you apply for an internship or a job.

        Write a resume.

        Find out about interesting companies to work for and particular job openings.

   

Service

2006-07

Percent of Colleges Responding Who Offered This Service

Career Counseling-by Appointment

98.0

Career Fairs

94.4

On-Campus Interviewing/Recruiting

94.1

Assistance for Employer Offered Co-op, Internship, Externship Program

92.7

Workshops (one-time events on or off-site covering resume writing, interview skills, etc.)

91.6

Career Counseling-Drop-in

84.0

Assistance for Academic Internships

76.4*

Student Employment (part-time seasonal jobs on or off campus)

61.5

Credential File Service

44.3

Credit Career Classes

32.6

Academic Counseling

23.3

Work Study (coordinated through career services)

11.5


 
If you visit a career center and still find that you want additional help, consider a career coach.  You can visit my web site at www.youthleadershipcareers.com and view a short 3-minute video on how a career coach can help you in your search to find fulfilling and meaningful work.
 
 
I want to thank two colleagues who generously shared their time and expertise with me so that I could prepare this summary for you.  Ms. Maggie Kubak, M.A., Career Professional, St. Paul Campus Career Center University of Minnesota.  And Ms. Krista Bogertman, Assistant Director of Career Services, Eastern Nazarene College.  Also, I thank Mr. Edwin Koc, Director of Strategic and Foundation Research NACE.
 
[1] Reprinted from "State of the Profession: NACE 2006-07 Career Services Benchmark Survey For Four-Year Colleges & Universities" with permission of the National Association of Colleges and Employers, copyright holder.  You can purchase the complete survey report online at http://www.naceweb.org/products/default.htm, NACE Homepage at www.naceweb.org
 
This article particularly refers to four-year schools.  We will highlight the career services offered at two-year schools in a future newsletter. 


Are You in College and Considering Getting an Internship? 
 
Join this Class
 
 
One Session:

Strategies for Landing an Internship

It's a Teleconference: 
  
  • The basics - how internships work.
  • Don't wait until your Junior year.
  • What do you need to know to find a good internship opportunity?
  • Practical tips for making a good impression during your internship.

This is a one-session Teleclass
Wednesday, November 12, 8:00 - 9:15 p.m. Eastern Time
 
 Cost - $25.

See More Information at Robin Roman Wright's web site: www.youthleadershipcareers.com 
 
Make the Most of your opportunities!!
 

Fall 2008 Teleclass:

For Teens And Young Adults -  

            Parents Also Invited

 

High School Students

Introductory Teleclass

 

1 Session - An Overview

 

Smart College and Career Planning

 

 

Choose:

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September 24 

 

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If you are a High School Junior or Senior, you don't want to miss this teleclass.  For the price of a video game you can learn how to avoid costly mistakes in your first years of college.
  • What do you need to know to make good career decisions for yourself?
  • What are the options: How can I afford to study after high school?
  • Choosing a major, getting an internship and preparing to get a job.
This is a one-session Teleclass

Wednesday, Sept. 17 or Sept. 24, 8:00 - 9:15 p.m. Eastern Time

 
FOR DETAILS AND REGISTRATION SEE
http://www.youthleadershipcareers.com/page6.html
 

     

April version should be better sizing

Helping teens and young adults plan for success in today's global market

 

Sincerely,

 
Robin Roman Wright, Career Coach/ AD/HD Coach
www.youthleadershipcareers.com
Carol Christen, Co-author, "What Color Is Your Parachute? For Teens"
 
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