career choices and developmentcrystal.uta.edu/~carroll/cse3316/uploads/8f2debc6-24a3-a... · 2013....

Career Choices and Development (Class 13.1 – April 16, 2013)

CSE 3316 – Professional Practices

Spring 2013

Instructor – Bill Carroll, Professor of CSE

Where Are We?

Contemporary issues (1/15 – 1/31) Professional ethics (2/5 – 3/5) Mid-term exam (3/7) Spring break Communications (3/19 – 3/28) Entrepreneurship (4/2 – 4/11) • Career planning (4/16 – 4/23) • Student presentations (4/25, 4/30, 5/2) • Final exam (5/7) • Guest lecturers throughout the semester

Reading Material (S&E Library reserve)

Communications module Professional Practices in Computer Science, Vol. 3, Pearson Learning Solutions, 2010, pp. 95-204.

Entrepreneurship module Professional Practices in Computer Science, Vol. 3, Pearson Learning Solutions, 2010, pp. 1-94.

• Career Planning module Professional Practices in Computer Science, Vol. 2, Pearson Learning Solutions, 2010, pp. 1-87.

Today’s Topics

• Career paths for CpE, CS, and SE

• Job search skills

• Resume’ packages

Career Paths for CpE, CS, SE

• Set goals or objectives • Map out a plan • Identify skills, knowledge, and education needed (BS, MS, PhD) • Identify employer type

– Industry (large, medium, small, start-up) – Government (agency, lab) – Education (K-12, community college, university)

• Identify industry type – Aerospace – Defense – Computing – Telecommunications – Banking – Game – Software – Consumer products – Manufacturing – Media

Professionalism, 3rd Edition

Lydia E. Anderson & Sandra B. Bolt

© 2013 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc

Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Chapter 13

Job Search Skills





“Choose a job you love,

and you will never have

to work a day in your

life.”

Confucius





THE JOB SEARCH

• Successful job search strategy identifies

– Type of job you will be looking for

– Needed tools and resources

– How to use tools and resources

• Goal of job search is to secure an interview

and job offer





CHOOSING THE RIGHT CAREER

• Realistic job preview

– Identifies day to day and common tasks for a

specific job

– Identify additional educational needs

– Identify other requirements

• DMV history

• Credit history





CAREER OBJECTIVE and PERSONAL

PROFILE

• Introductory statements for resumé

• Both statements are used on résumé to

relate to target career, target employer,

introduce key skills, and express interest in a

position

• Statement will be first item listed on resumé





CAREER OBJECTIVE

• A Career Objective is for individuals with

little or no work experience

– Include interest in position

– Brief one line description of skills related to

position and how you will utilize your skills

– Acceptable to use “I” and “my” in career

objective





CAREER OBJECTIVE

• Example:

“Seeking a position with an established

accounting firm where I can utilize and

apply my current accounting and

computerized skills toward the excellence

of Bell Company.”





PERSONAL PROFILE

• A Personal Profile is for individuals with

extensive work experience

– Group key skills and accomplishments into

general categories

– Identify key qualities that match target job

– Take information and turn into two-three

sentence statement that provides snapshot of

professional qualifications





PERSONAL PROFILE

• Example:

“Highly professional and detail-oriented

accounting professional with demonstrated

leadership and success in the areas of

payroll, collections, and project management.

Excellent analytical, communication,

computer, and organizational skills. Bilingual

(English/Spanish).”





INDUSTRY RESEARCH

• Identify and Target

– Step toward a satisfying career job

– Reflects your values

– Support your life plan

– Industries that require your key skills

– Specific jobs in identified industries

– Desired work environment





THE TARGETED JOB SEARCH

• Leads you through process of identifying open

positions at target employers

– Where you want to work

– Cost of living

• Average costs of basic necessities





PREPARATION

• Electronic Image: image formed when someone is

communicating or researching you through electronic

means

• Conduct internet search on self

• Delete defamatory photos, writings, or other negative

material

• Maintain professional e-mail address and voice mail

• Avoid text slang in written communications





JOB SEARCH PORTFOLIO

• Job Search Portfolio: collection of paperwork used

for job searches and interviews

– Some items from job search portfolio will become part of

your interview portfolio covered in Ch. 15

• Keeps job seeker organized and prepared while job

searching

• Use three-ring binder with tabs and/or electronic files

• Keep original and two copies of each item

• Place original documents in page protectors






• Electronic job search portfolio

– Recommended

– Computerized folder that contains electronic copies of job

search documents

– Scan copies of documents in your hardcopy portfolio

– Send as attachments if needed






• Personal Business Card

– Contains personal contact information

• Name

• Mailing address

• Phone number

• E-mail

• Professional and easy to read – No graphics, colors, or fancy fonts

• Share card with anyone you meet






Items to include:

• Network list

• Personal business card

• Resumé

• Cover letter

• Reference list

• Letters of recommendation

• Transcripts

• Current state licenses

• Awards, certificates, samples

• Completed generic

application

• Copy of ID and/or driver’s

license

• Copy of DMV record

• Personal commercial

• Small calendar, notepad,

pen

• Performance appraisals





EMPLOYMENT APPLICATIONS

• Have completed generic application available

• Do not list social security number or birth date on

application

• Applications are legal documents

– Credit checks

– Background checks

• Fully understand agreement prior to signing

• A keyboarded application is best

– May be online or at a kiosk





• Professional references

– Potential employer will contact

– Do not list on your résumé

– Create a separate page for references

– Do not send references with résumé unless it

is requested by employer

– Have a copy available at the interview

PERSONAL REFERENCES AND

RECOMMENDATIONS





• Letters of Recommendation: written testimony from another person that states credibility of applicant

• Have at least three letters of recommendation

– No more than two years old

– Letters can be from • past or present employers • coworkers • instructors • someone you worked for as a volunteer

PERSONAL REFERENCES AND

RECOMMENDATIONS





SOURCES OF JOB LEADS

• Directly from target company

• Internet search – Job banks, social networking sites, message boards

• Industry journals and associations

• Current employees of target industry/company

• Posted job positions

• Your professional network

• Government career assistance centers






• Visiting a company for open positions

– Treat as interview

– Dress professionally

– Have extra copies of resumé

– Display confidence

– Bring interview portfolio

– Be polite and respectful of other job seekers

– Be prepared for an on the spot interview






Unsolicited Cover Letters and Resumes

• Send cover letter and resumé (may be through electronic means)

– One to the human resource manager

– One to the manager of your target job

• Prior to sending, call company to secure names of both managers

– Correct spelling

– Correct gender

• Increases the opportunity to secure an interview





NETWORKING

• Networking: the act of creating

professional relationships – Resource of individuals to call upon for

assistance and/or advice

– Face to face

– Social media





Person 3

tells

Person 2

tells

Person 6

tells

Person 7

tells

Person 5

tells

Person 4

tells

And this network continues

you

tell

Person 1

tells

PROFESSIONAL NETWORKING

Building a Professional Network

Figure 13-1






• People to include in network:

– Coworkers

– Supervisors

– Instructors

– Family

– Friends






• Networking begins with attitude

– Be confident

– Initiate and introduction

– Use your personal business card

– Begin with a professional handshake

• Create an electronic network

– Be cautious when sharing information






• Informational interviews: when a job

seeker meets with a business professional

to learn about a specific career, company,

or industry

– A way to find out about a company

– Ask questions about:

• Jobs

• Hiring

• Company culture





• Attending professional or trade association meetings

• Talking to parents when attending children’s sporting or music events

• Volunteering for a local park clean-up day

• Visiting with members of social clubs or religious groups


Networking Opportunities






• Network list: a written list of all

network contacts.

– Include contact’s:

• Name

• Address

• Telephone number

• E-mail address





PROTECTING YOUR PRIVACY

• Be cautious and only share personal

information with reputable sources

• Beware of identity theft

• Ensure target employer is legitimate

• Do not share birth date or social security

number





KEEPING THE RIGHT ATTITUDE

• Stay positive

• Stay active

• Keep learning

• Stay connected

• Stay focused





KEEPING THE RIGHT ATTITUDE

• Keep job search confidential

• Do not quit current job before accepting a new

job

• Do not bad-mouth your company or anyone

that works for your current or former employer





Chapter 14

Resumé Package





“Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell ‘em, “Certainly I can!” Then get busy and find out how to

do it.”

Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919)





BUILDING YOUR RÉSUMÉ PACKAGE

• Résumé package-cover letter and résumé

• Résumé : a formal written profile that presents a

person’s knowledge, skills, and abilities to potential

employers

– Conflicting advice as to how the perfect résumé should

look and what it should include

– Appropriate résumé depends on work experience

– A well written résumé makes it easy for potential

employers to quickly identify your skills and work

experience





• Five Steps toward a winning résumé:

1. Career Objective/Personal Profile

2. Gathering Information

3. Proper Layout

4. Skills, Accomplishments, and Experience

5. The Final Résumé

• As you construct your résumé, make every word,

visual presentation, and information sell your skills

and accomplishments

BUILDING YOUR RÉSUMÉ PACKAGE





STEP ONE:

CAREER OBJECTIVE/PERSONAL PROFILE

• Both statements are used on résumé to relate to

target career, target employer, introduce key skills,

and express interest in a position

• Career Objective: used for individuals with little or

no work experience

• Personal Profile: used for individuals with more

extensive career experience





STEP TWO:

GATHERING INFORMATION

• Create draft document with the following key headings:

– Education

– Skills

– Employment

– Languages

– Honors and Awards

– Professional/Community Involvement

• Do not include personal information





STEP THREE:

PROPER LAYOUT

Arrange information in proper résumé layout

• Functional résumé layout:

– Emphasizes relevant skills and education

– Used for entry-level positions

– Typically one page

• Chronological résumé layout:

– Emphasizes related work experience and skill sets

– Stresses major accomplishments and responsibilities

– Used for those with extensive career experience

– Typically two or more pages





• Both résumé layouts present employment history

and education in reverse time order

• When listing work history, bold job title, not

employer

• When listing employment dates, use only month

and year

• Be consistent in layout, dates, and tense

• Avoid the use of résumé templates

STEP THREE:

PROPER LAYOUT





• Provide details in electronic document

– Limited or no experience (functional layout)

• Learned skills, job duties, and accomplishments

– Work and/or career experience (chronological layout)

• Specific activities achieved beyond job duties

• Quantify skills, responsibilities, and accomplishments

STEP FOUR:

SKILLS, ACCOMPLISHMENTS & EXPERIENCE





• Job-specific skills: skills that are directly

related to a specific job or industry

– May not be useful in a career change

• Example: A Medical Billing Clerk who knows

how to use a specific software program such as

Medical Manager would not need to use this skill

if he or she changed jobs to become a teacher

STEP FOUR:






• Transferable skills: skills that are transferred

from one job to the next

– If you change careers, you will still be able to use

(transfer) these skills

• Example: A Medical Billing Clerk may have

consistent contact with patients and must

practice patience and be positive when dealing

with customers; if he or she becomes a teacher,

that skill will be transferable to the children in the

classroom

STEP FOUR:






• Soft skills: people skills necessary when

working with others in the workplace

• Employers want employees that are:

– Reliable

– Team players

– Good communicators

– Able to get along well with others

STEP FOUR:






• When listing work experience

– Include job title (bold)

– Company name

– City and state of company

– Duties of the position

• When listing job duties

– Be as specific as possible

– First list skills most relevant to target job

STEP FOUR:






• Identify key knowledge, skills, and abilities

the employer desires

– Secure a copy of the job description

– Use O’Net, a database of occupational

information developed by U.S. Department of

Labor

• Excellent resource to ID key requirements for

specific jobs http://online.onetcenter.org/

STEP FOUR:


http://online.onetcenter.org/





• Power Words: action verbs that describe

accomplishments in a lively and specific way

STEP FOUR:






Power words for skills section

• Ideal oral and written communications skills

• Understanding of office practices and procedures; ability to operate fax machine, copy machine, and ten-key machine; ability to enter data; ability to effectively interpret policies and procedures; work well under the pressure of deadlines; establish and maintain a positive working relationship with others; ability to communicate

• Accurate typing skills at ______ wpm

• Experienced with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, and Outlook

STEP FOUR:






Power words for skills section cont.

• Excellent English grammar, spelling, and punctuation skills

• Accurately proofread and edit documents

• Strong attention to detail

• Accurately follow oral and written instructions

• Excellent attendance and punctual record

• Maintain confidentiality

• Positive attitude, motivated, and organized

STEP FOUR:






Power words for work section

• Prepared reports and other materials requiring independent achievement

• Enjoy working in a flexible team situation

• Established and maintained positive and effective working relationships

• Planned, scheduled, and performed a variety of clerical work

• Maintained office equipment and supplies

• Proofread forms and materials for completeness and accuracy, according to regulations and procedures

STEP FOUR:






Power words for work section cont.

• Processed and prepared materials for pamphlets, bulletins, brochures, announcements, handbooks, forms, and curriculum materials

• Provided training of temporary or new employees

• Maintained department files and records

• Demonstrated ability to receive incoming calls and route them efficiently

• Experience power phrases

• Processed purchase requisitions, ordered and distributed supplies, and maintained inventory control

• Responsibly planned and conducted meetings

STEP FOUR:






• Information Heading: personal contact information

including:

– Name (complete and formal – including middle initial)

– Mailing address (check for accuracy)

– City, state & zip code (check format, capitalization and

punctuation)

– Contact phone (only one phone number)

– E-mail address (remove hyperlink, professional address)

STEP FIVE:

COMPLETE THE RÉSUMÉ





• Review Career Objective or Personal profile

– Ensure it introduces reader to who you are

– Encourage reader to learn about your specific knowledge,

skills, abilities, and key accomplishments

• Review appropriate and proper résumé layout

– Confirm sub headings

– Consistent setup, tense

– Check spelling and grammar

STEP FIVE:






• Completion tips

– List experience and education chronologically (most

recent first)

– Keep setup consistent (all periods or none, line

spacing, alignment, format, uppercase/lowercase

words)

– Be consistent with word endings (keep the tense

the same in each section)

STEP FIVE:






• Underline, bold & italicize for emphasis only

• Only use bullets to emphasize key skills

• Use easy to read font and size – Times New Roman or Arial

– 12-14 point

• Only use black ink

• Do not include personal information – No photos, birth date, marital status, SSN or hobbies

• Do not list “References Available” on résumé

STEP FIVE:






• Professional presentation

• Printed on black ink (laser print ideal)

• 8½ x 11 inch, letter-sized paper

• Cotton fiber, 24 pound white paper (not

bound)

• Single sided - if more than one page, place

name at top of each page

• Do not staple documents

STEP FIVE:






• Check for information that is frequently

forgotten or not presented appropriately

STEP FIVE:






When you think it’s perfect …

– Have several individuals review for

• Clarity

• Consistency

• Punctuation

• Grammar

• Typographical errors

• Other potential mistakes

STEP FIVE:






SHARING YOUR RÉSUMÉ

• Start with a perfect résumé

• Online version

– Consider content-use keywords

– Send as an attachment to preserve formatting

• MS Word

• Portable document file (pdf)

– Electronic job boards

– Guard personal information





SHARING YOUR RÉSUMÉ

• Electronic file

– Microsoft Word vs. portable document file (.pdf)

• Electronic formatted résumé:

– American Standard Code for Information Interchange

(ASCII)

– Used when employers add résumé to special software to

search applicants based on key words

– Special format

– Key words

– Times New Roman (10-14 point)





COVER LETTERS

• Cover letter: formal letter used as an introduction

to a résumé

• First impression for potential employers

• Use a friendly but professional tone

• Point out how you can meet the employer’s needs

• Do not duplicate resumé; instead, expand the areas

of interest to target employer





• Although it is acceptable to utilize “I” and “my” in a

cover letter, be careful not to begin most sentences

with the word “I”

• Address cover letter to specific person

• Refer reader to the resumé

• Request interview (not job) at close of letter

• Display initiative

COVER LETTERS





• Carefully review job announcement

• Identify key job skills, and highlight company needs

• Include key qualifications in both cover letter and résumé

• In the cover letter:

– Mention the target company by name

– Mention how you learned of the job

– List specific qualifications (reflected from the job posting) that make you an excellent candidate to interview

• Include daytime telephone number on both

– Telephone voice mail and/or message machine is professional

– Do not include introductions that are unprofessional

COVER LETTERS





• Be honest with potential employer

• List jobs held while incarcerated (correctional facility in

place of employer)

• List all education received while incarcerated (include

educational institution that provided training)

• Do not lie on employment application

– Check “yes”

– Write “will explain during interview”

COVER LETTERS





• Identify key skills for your targeted position

• List key skills first on the resumé

• Emphasize specific qualification in the cover letter

• List phone and e-mail address on resumé

• and cover letter

• Make phone message professional

TAILORING YOUR RESUMÉ

AND COVER LETTER

career choices and developmentcrystal.uta.edu/~carroll/cse3316/uploads/8f2debc6-24a3-a... · 2013....

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