Career Counseling

Resume Preparation

A great resume gets you through the door. Employers often receive hundreds of resumes for a single position. On average fewer than 2% of applicants are actually interviewed for any given position. Employers and human resource departments are looking for reasons to easily eliminate you from contention. Thus, even the most qualified and seasoned applicants need to present their credentials in a clear, concise manner. Furthermore, employers often spend as little as 30 seconds scanning a resume before making a decision about a candidate. You must make an immediate impression.

We know what employers are looking for because we have worked as hiring managers and in career services scanning and editing thousands of resumes during our careers.

Cover Letter Preparation

You should never submit a resume without a cover letter. A well-crafted cover letter is an essential part of an applicant’s “package.” Both resumes and cover letters are marketing tools, which must be geared towards a particular audience and focused on a specific position. Cover letters give you the opportunity to emphasize those qualities that are desired by a given employer and need to be customized accordingly. They also represent and convey your ability to concisely organize your thoughts and present your ideas in writing. Cover letters are edited and reviewed by career services professionals with over 15 years of experience and a professional editor with nearly two decades of experience.

Diagnostic Assessment/Testing

This testing is used to ascertain information about your aptitude, relative strengths and weaknesses, and to determine your interests. We choose measures on an individual basis that are geared towards addressing your specific needs. A licensed clinical psychologist administers and interprets all diagnostic assessments.

Interview Preparation

How you manage the interview sends a message to employers about your ability to interact with others under pressure. Interpersonal skills are not only needed to land a job but are a highly valued asset on the job. Often the most qualified candidates will not be hired because they do not present themselves well during an interview. Interviews can be biographical or behavioral in nature and like exams you can prepare for them. We provide you with questions that you are likely to be asked during an interview and provide feedback on your responses in order for you to present yourself in the best possible light. Interviewing is not necessarily intuitive and almost everyone we have worked with has found this assistance invaluable.

Job Search and Networking Strategies

Surprisingly, many highly intelligent people do not know the most effective ways to find jobs. The amount of time you spend using a particular strategy should be proportionate to the likelihood of finding a position using that method. For instance, about 15% of people actually find their jobs by searching publicly posted positions (i.e.; Internet job postings) while approximately 85% of people find their jobs through the “hidden” job market. Yet, most people actually spend a majority of their time searching job postings when in fact the odds of securing a position using this method are small. We will teach you about the hidden job market and provide you with networking strategies to optimize your chance of success.

Career Discovery/Transition Process

While there are some people who are seemingly born knowing their vocational calling, for the majority of us it is not as clear-cut. There are many recurrent issues that surface during a career search. As a recent graduate, you may have competing interests or feel that you have no strong interests at all. You might be questioning your desire or ability to pursue a particular path or obtain the required graduate education. If you have already spent significant time in the work force, you may have come to a point where you are questioning your previous occupational choices. Perhaps your interests have changed or you want to spend more time with your family or you want to make the transition to self-employment. You may have realized that you never enjoyed your chosen career or you simply do not enjoy it anymore. We can assist you to market your skills to better position yourself to make these occupational changes.

We believe that career decisions have an impact on all aspects of your life; therefore, you need to consider these other facets when choosing a career or making a career change. We can help you through this process using career exploration techniques developed over many years in addition to diagnostic testing.

Outplacement

In the past several years there have been significant layoffs even in the most stable companies. Layoffs can be traumatic both psychologically and financially. You may feel angry, demoralized, depressed or worried. On the other hand you may see this as an opportunity to make positive changes in your life. Either way, we can provide you with help to manage your feelings and motivate you to take the next necessary steps. If you have been off the job market for several years we can assist you in job search strategies, resume and cover letter preparation, and interviewing skills.

Salary Negotiation

There are several well-documented strategies to negotiate better salaries. Do you know that a Fortune 100 company offers salaries ranging from $55,000 to $110,000 for an entry-level management position? You might be thrilled to be offered $55,000 if you earned only $40,000 in your previous position; however, you may not realize that you are actually worth significantly more. Your starting salary is very important because future increases will likely be calculated as a percentage of this salary. The first offer is never the final offer and benefits are almost always negotiable. We can teach you the best methods to negotiate the best package for you.

Entrepreneurial Ventures

Starting your own business is a time-consuming and complex task. New ventures require knowledge about all aspects of running a business. You may require a business plan, which includes marketing and operational strategies, competitive analyses, information about current market conditions, and financial projections (revenue potential and expenses). A well-written business plan is essential if you intend to pursue venture capital funding. We can assist you in this process.