So you did it:  You finally land the interview.  You wear the cute suit.  You smile.  You answer all the questions.  You ask some great ones of your own.  And then BAM!  Rejection.

What happened?
How did it all go so wrong?
Is Company X just not that into you?

You have two options here:
1. You can take it personally. Feel all rejected and dejected…. Or…. 
2. You can turn that frown upside down, and get right back on your job search.

There’s a great article online (http://www.careershift.com/Blog/ViewPost.aspx?postid=35) that talks about how to manage job search rejection.  One of the things I like about this article is that it talks about sending a thank you note.
“A well-written thank you note, mailed within one or two days of receiving a notice of rejection makes a positive statement. A thank you note expressing your regret at not being offered the job, while also thanking the company for their consideration of your qualifications, may lead the employer to give you some additional contacts or consideration. Anyone you meet while finding a job can potentially become a valuable contact.”

Truer words have never been spoken (or I guess written in this case).

Head and Shoulders used to have an ad campaign that said, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression,”  which is definitely still true whether you’re talking about dandruff or job interviews.  But especially in the case of interviews, you DO get a second chance to make a last impression.  Why not make it count? 

Ever see a job posting, that sounds too good to be true? (“Work from home part time and make $100,000!”)

Maybe something in the posting or on the website sounds too vague?  Or not quite right?

Well if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Every year, we get reports of a number of different firms with strange or unorthodox hiring practices.  Sometimes the hiring practices seems fine, but the job is sketchy.  Other times, the company seems fine, but the hiring practices are sketchy.  Either way, if it doesn’t feel right,  it probably isn’t.

Do your due diligence!
Research the firm!
Read company reviews!

If the job description sounds vague, feel free to ask questions.  Ask the recruiter what you can expect in the interview.  Find out if there are any Babson alum that work for the organization.  Ask what type of work you will be expected to do.  If the employer brushes you off or won’t answer your basic questions over the phone, something might be fishy.  

CCD tries to keep these organizations from posting to Career Connections, but many times they change names and can be hard to keep track of.   Plus, they may still show up on other job boards that you are using. Check out sites like ripoffreports.com or the Better Business Bureau.  Often times if you google the name of the company and “reviews” i.e. “Company X reviews” you can find out some good information.  If you have more questions or are unsure about a company, swing by CCD Drop in hours and check in with a counselor. 

Remember, if the organization looks shady, feels shady, or sounds shady… chances are, it’s a little slim shady.

Back before Beyonce was just Beyonce, she was in Destiny’s Child, who broke on to the scene with a song called, “Bills, Bills, Bills.” The song is written as a parable about men with wayward financial tendencies and in one line, Beyonce croons, “You triflin’, good for nothing type of brother.  Silly me, why haven’t I found another.”

I use this line as a reminder about the ill effects of being trifling: you may not only have a song written about you, but you may end up without a job. 

Just last week, I overheard a professor say to a student, “I got a call from Company X.  They said you listed me as a reference…”   The professor clearly had no idea, that he was listed as a reference for this particular student.

Webster’s dictionary defines trifling as being, lazy or shiftless.  It’s lazy, inconsiderate, and poor etiquette to assume someone will serve as a reference for you.  Maybe they are too busy?  Maybe they will be out of town? Or maybe they don’t think highly enough of you to do so? 

Always be sure to first ask if someone will serve as a reference for you.  Then, let them know the job you are applying to, the reason why you are asking them to be a reference, and provide them with a copy of your resume (and even the job description if you have it). 

After all, you don’t want some professor (or Beyonce) singing a top 40 song about ya’, do you? (Unless of course you are getting royalties… j/k!)

There’s been a lot of buzz in the news about Facebook and Twitter recently.  And if you haven’t heard of Twitter – brush up – you are way behind on your social media game.  As you know, many Babson offices, Athletics, Babson MBA, Babson PR, Dean Hanno, and Ugrad CCD all have twitter accounts.  But did you know that you can use Twitter to help find you a job?

I recently posted an article on how Twitter is becoming a must-have for job seekers.   But like with all social media, you have to be careful how you use it.  There’s a great video on CNET called, “Don’t Let Facebook Get You Fired” that talks about how social networking sites can help or harm you in your job search.  The video is kind of long, but if you don’t get a chance to watch it, here are some quick tips:

·         Adjust your privacy settings: Remember Facebook is open to EVERYONE now, so not only can your Mom be your “friend” so can the recruiter at the job you just applied for

·         Clean It Up: Make sure you aren’t posting anything on your twitter/blog/etc… that you wouldn’t want a prospective employer to read

·         Leave it out: Don’t list your blog or website on your resume unless it’s relevant AND appropriate

·         Be Careful:  Anything that goes online, can be read by someone or everyone.  And remember, putting your life on the internet, is like getting a tattoo.  With the way search engines archive information, what goes up on the internet, doesn’t always come down.

Regardless of whether you think employers should be “all in your business” or not – they are.  So use the internet to work for you, not against you.

by Stephen VanVreede

It is hard to imagine a job seeker today who isn’t on Twitter. Like LinkedIn, it is rapidly becoming a must-do social networking tool. And also like LinkedIn, it is rapidly becoming a popular hangout for job seekers.

Unlike LinkedIn, however, Twitter moves at a strange pace. It isn’t just about adding contacts you’ve worked with in the past or with whom you have had some connection. Twitter is mostly about making new friends, be it socially, professionally, or both.

At first it can be a confusing world where you are limited to just 140 characters and are bombarded with “tweets” and “retweets” that all sound like random non sequiturs.

Over the last two months, my partner (@rezlady) and I (@noddleplace) have spent a great deal of time “tweeting” with job seekers on Twitter, and many of them have the same issue. They want a job, they have heard that Twitter is a good tool for finding one, and they have no idea how to use it to accomplish that goal.

So to help newcomers (and maybe those who’ve been on Twitter a while but are now starting to use it for their job search), I have compiled the top 5 things we are often advising job seekers about when they are trying to maneuver their job search on Twitter:

1. Update your profile to include job sought. Many times job seekers will tweet out little laments, I’m assuming in the hopes that someone will notice them. They will say something like “I need a job. Will someone help me?” The first thing I do when I see this cry for help is click on the person’s profile. All too often when I do, I see nothing on there that tells me the type of position sought. If you are going to use Twitter as a job hunting tool, then you at least need to let Twitterville know what you are looking for. Be as specific as you can in the 140 characters allowed. As with anything in the job search, the more targeted the better.

2. Watch your tweets. Once you enter into the job search realm, Twitter should no longer become an avenue for ranting, raving, and misbehaving. I’m not sure it ever bodes well, but it is an especially bad idea if you want hiring managers, recruiters, and the like to speak to you. Before I engage in a conversation with a job seeker, I will often look at the quality of the tweets he or she has posted that day. Sometimes it is amazing how profane or crude they are.

Also, be careful not to go off on your past or current employer. Stop providing details about recent interviews or companies you are applying with. Remember, your “tweets” are public. Unlike LinkedIn, more than just your followers can read them.

3. Start following career pros. Twitterville has so many career pros, from resume writers to recruiters to staffing agencies to placement firms. Niche sites are frequent users of Twitter as well. Looking for hospitality jobs or IT jobs or freelance opportunities? You can find several specialty job boards on Twitter to follow. Recently, a Twitter job board was launched called www.twitterjobsearch.com.

Furthermore, feel free to take advantage of hash tags like #jobangels, #jobseekers, and #jobs. You can post the type of job you are seeking and then use one or all of these hash tags. Your post will then be read by everyone who follows those tags.

4. Find other job seekers to help. Because Twitter is so full of job seekers at the moment, there are plenty of others you can help along the way. As you are going to be tracking job advice, postings, etc., you will see lots of opportunities that may not be right for you, but they might be a good fit for someone else. So “retweet” or pass along those to someone else. After all, that’s how true networking works. If you want to make friends, it’s a give-and-take relationship. If you don’t want to make friends, well, then Twitter isn’t the place for you anyway.

5. Get application for searching. Twitter really opens up to you when you find a good application to use. Twhirl and Tweetdeck are popular ones that help you organize the tweets of your followers by making groups and help you search on specific topics, just as “job search.” They also help you see when someone has specifically spoken to you even while you were away. If you are going to be sending out pleas for a job, you don’t want to miss it when someone speaks back to you!

On a final note, as much as I love Twitter and recommend it for every job seeker, whatever your do, don’t limit your job search to just Twitter. Personal/professional networking is still the best approach. Face-to-face interaction always works best, and no matter how great social networking is, it can’t replace that type of connection. So don’t get too caught up in Twitter each day that you forget to get out there!

Original Link: http://noddleplace.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=18:beginners-guide-to-the-twitter-job-search-top-5-essentials&catid=1:resources

If you’ve ever seen the movie/play, “Rent,” you’ve heard the song, “Seasons of Love,” that starts with the line:

525,600 minutes, 525,000 moments so dear. 525,600 minutes - how do you measure, measure a year?  In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee. In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife.
In 525,600 minutes - how do you measure a year in the life?

Obviously, a lot happens in a year.  Where will you be a year from today?  Who knows?  But I can tell you where you’ll be in 53 days: Commencement.

So if you’re still looking for a job, I’ve packed this email with some resources (scroll down, there’s a lot!) to get you on your way and a couple of steps closer to that word of all words, EMPLOYED.   Don’t forget: Whether you’re just starting your search, or negotiating an offer, or maybe even starting all over, CCD is here to point you in the right direction. 

“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing,
the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”
- Theodore Roosevelt -
 

________________________________________
Resource #1:  JOB BOARDS that you should be checking

• Babson Career Connections
• MonsterTrak.com
• CareerBuilder.com
• USAJobs.gov
• Indeed.com
• Simply Hired.com 
• WomenforHire.com
• Ihispano.com
• Linkedin.com
• Craigslist.org
• Diversityjobs.com
• Higheredjobs.com
• Jobweb.com
• Internships.com
• Bostonjobsource.com
• Careerbank.com

________________________________________
Resource #2:  COMPANIES that are CURRENTLY hiring
Using the job boards listed above, we found some great entry level opportunities with the organizations listed below.   Often times, these jobs are posted directly on the company site but sometimes they are only visible on an external job boards.  If you need some help on how to effectively navigate job sites and to find these opportunities, come by during drop in hours or set up an appointment to see a counselor.

Adidas-Reebok/ Aerotek/ Apex/ AT&T/ Boston Properties/ Carat /Caritas Communities/ Center for Directed Philanthropy/ Compete /Consolidated Graphics Digitas / EMC/ Enterprise Rent A Car / Grey Healthcare Group/ Holcim / Lego/ Liberty Mutual/National Committee for Quality Assurance/New York Yankees/New Jersey Devils/Nets Basketball/Norbridge/ Northshore Medical Center/ Partners Healthcare/ Pepsi Bottling/ Personal Decisions International/ Phoenix Suns/ Sherwin Williams/ Staples/ Stride Rite/ Synamed / Tufts University/ Verizon Wireless/ WNBA/US Navy/First Investors

________________________________________
Resource #3:  NETWORKING that you should be doing

Have you:
• Contacted alumni? (Alumni Directory (via portal))
• Talked to your professors about your career interests?
• Created a Linked-In account?
• Set up informational interviews?
• Sent out Letters of Interest?
• Joined a cPOD?
________________________________________
Resource #4:  CAREERPODS

What is a careerPOD (cPOD)?
A careerPOD is a select group of students committed to working in a specific job function.  Members of the cPOD will receive up to date information regarding their career area of interest:  Articles about the industry, tips on how to market yourself, career advice, job boards specific to the area, etc.  Information will be shared with you through a Facebook Group discussion board.  Members are also welcome to contribute to the board.  The goal is to get the information to you about your interests as quickly & easily as possible!
 
What careerPODs are available?

• Entrepreneurship:  Students joining this cPOD are committed to participating in a start-up or growing companies on the cutting edge of business.  This POD includes students interested in the following tracks: Start-ups, Non-profit, Green Business or Corporate Social Responsibility.
• Finance:  Students interested in the Finance cPOD have a desire to work in a finance related job.  This can include Banking, Financial Services/Insurance, Investment Management, Corporate Finance or Financial Leadership programs.
• Management:  Students interested in Management may be interested in a variety of opportunities related to management.  This cPOD includes those students interested in: Consulting, HR/Operations, Manufacturing or Hospitality.
• Marketing:  Students joining the Marketing cPOD are interested in all or one of the following areas: Advertising/Media, Public Relations, Consumer Products/Brand Management or Retail/Fashion.

How do I join a specific careerPOD?
1. Log into Facebook
2. Click on ‘Groups’
3. Search for careerPOD
4. Request to join the appropriate group
5. You will be accepted by the administrator & have access to all of the up to date info.

What if I don’t fit into a cPOD?
Not everyone’s interests will fit into a careerPOD and that is okay!  If your interests are not covered by one of these four areas you will still receive up to date information regarding your career search.  Take a minute to schedule an appointment with CCD or stop in during drop in hours to talk about your specific needs.  This may only be the beginning of cPODs; we are hoping to build upon the concept going forward.   If there is an area of interest which you believe many students  would like a cPOD created for, please let CCD know and we will consider the idea for the future.

Navigating the Job Crisis: Have a Plan
Posted By: Carlo Dellaverson | Web Producer
CNBC.com
| 18 Mar 2009 | 03:27 PM ET

The earthquake that crushed Wall Street has now torn apart Main Street. American jobs are disappearing at an unprecedented pace. The country’s unemployment rate recently topped 8 percent – the highest it has been in a quarter century. With 2.6 million jobs lost in the last four months alone, and over 4 million people laid off since the beginning of the recession, nearly everyone has been touched by this crisis.

No wonder everyone is asking: where are the jobs?

Even for those of us who are employed, the situation out there is scary. Nearly half of all Americans worry about becoming unemployed. There are five states where the unemployment rate has reached double digits. Nine out of 10 people say now is a bad time to get a quality job. As a nation, we need all the help we can get.

First Step: A Plan

Jeff Taylor, who founded the popular jobs site Monster.com, says that everyone looking for a job needs to gain some perspective, whether they have been out of work for a week or a year. “Plan your work and work your plan,” Taylor says.

Identify 10 companies that you’re going to go after for a job and become an expert in every part of what that company does and the history of that business and industry. If you land an interview, don’t be afraid to lay out your ideas for the company. Tell the recruiter what you will bring to the table that will help the prospective employer’s bottom line.

With so many people vying for so few jobs, it is more important than ever to stand out and show how you can be an asset to the company, Taylor says, not just a worker bee like everyone else.

Executive recruiter Jim Citrin of Spencer Stuart shares that view. As a top headhunter for executives, he finds that those who are doing the hiring in this climate are especially attracted to potential employees who come in with fresh ideas and who have clearly done their homework about the company, its business and its culture. Be smart, be creative and add value from that first point of contact, he says.

Citrin and Taylor, along with Dr. Doug Hirschhorn, appear at a special town hall event : Where the Jobs Are, which premiered Wednesday night on CNBC. Hosted by Carl Quintanilla and Erin Burnett, it explores the unemployment situation. (Find out more here)

Also on the town hall, we spoke to Austan Goolsbee, a member of the Council of Economic Advisors and staff director and chief economist of the president’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board. Many are wondering how President Obama’s $787 billion stimulus bill is going to jumpstart an economy so mired in an employment crisis. Goolsbee reveals on the program precisely what jobs the administration expects the stimulus to create, where those jobs will be created and just when the American people can expect to see the effects.

Find more on jobs.cnbc.com, from job-finding tools to a web-exclusive Q&A segment with our special guests.

Questions? Comments? E-mail us at townhall@cnbc.com

© 2009 CNBC.com

URL: http://www.cnbc.com/id/29757807/

If you’re like me, you’re probably disgusted by the egregious change in weather:  60 degrees yesterday, and a snow storm today. It’s confusing, annoying, and frustrating.

Needless to say, those same sentiments can apply to the job outlook and the economy. Confusing. Annoying. Frustrating.

However, there are certain things that are just true: Regardless of how much snow we get today, (or tomorrow, or next week) – spring will still come. Winter will end. And better days are just around the corner.

The same applies for your job search. Yes, the economy is tough and I posted an article* last week urging you to ignore, the doom & gloom, because just like our rapidly changing weather, sunnier days are around the bend. We just need to persevere.

Part of persevering, is controlling the things that you can control, and getting rid of negative thoughts. Stop saying things like, “there are no jobs out there,” and change that energy into something constructive, like looking for the jobs that are out there. Fox25 News has designated this week, “Career Week,” where every day they are highlighting career search tips. This morning’s guest, Martha Fields, Human resources expert at Fields Associates**, reemphasized what everyone in CCD has been saying for months now, “There are still jobs out there.” The key, as Martha put it, was to DO YOUR RESEARCH.Investigate industries, occupations, and your passions and adjust your expectations and parameters accordingly. Just like the aforementioned article noted, “Look to industries that you think everyone would need, even when their budgets have shrunk. There are some places that are OK in this economy: health care, education, government … core consumer products… We’re going to all continue to go buy our Grape-Nuts and our coffee.” (By John D. Sutter, CNN.com) So stay positive. Stay at it. And have a happy and safe Spring Break!

Monique

*Original Article Source

**Interview

To find a job, ignore doom-and-gloom news, experts say

(CNN) — If you’re unemployed, you know it’s a rough time to be on the job hunt.

There’s a huge pool of unemployed workers out there, and the unemployment rate continues to climb.

But if you want work, you need to block out the doom-and-gloom news about the economy, particularly this Friday’s federal jobs report, said John A. Challenger, chief executive office of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a prestigious job-placement and consulting organization.

“Don’t listen to it,” he said. “It’s not relevant to any one person’s search.”

His advice: Go look for a job, any job — now.

“You have to get a fast start, and you have to stay at it in this kind of market, because there are more people searching for fewer jobs,” he said. “So you cannot let up.”

But before you drop the laptop to go photocopy résumés, it may help to target your job search to certain industries or locations. See a CNN map of upcoming job fairs »

It’s generally agreed that there are more jobs available in health care, education, government and agriculture than in other industries. Those jobs are also thought to be more stable than those in failing industries like banking, manufacturing and construction. iReport.com: Tell us how your job hunt is going

Applicants should market their skills to the stable industries, no matter what profession they’re coming from, said Jennifer Grasz, a spokeswoman for CareerBuilder.com, the nation’s largest job listing Web site.

To get the jobs, applicants should be flexible, Challenger said.

“Be open to changing industries. Be open to moving for a job if you find one. Be open to a part-time job as an audition,” he said.

These days, about 40 to 50 percent of successful job applicants have changed industries to get work, he said.

There are also jobs within failing industries, he said, but they probably are not the same jobs that were hot before.

For example, a glance at an auto dealership might show that business is dead. But car mechanics probably are busy behind the scenes.

“People are holding on to their cars longer, needing more repairs,” he said. “So jobs for automotive mechanics are in strong demand.”

CareerBuilder.com released a map Thursday showing where jobs are most available, per capita.

The highest rate of jobs listed by the site is in the South, where Grasz said health care and energy are leading the way. As retirees move to warmer climates, the health care industry will continue to grow, she said.

Among the worst places to look for jobs is the upper Midwest, the site says, where thousands of manufacturing jobs have been lost and unemployment is high; the finance industry in New York is also crippled.

California’s Web industry has seen major losses in recent months but probably will bounce back in the long term, Grasz said.

But the site’s analysis is limited, Challenger said. Looking at low unemployment rates, he said the best places to hunt for a job are in the middle of the country, particularly in North Dakota, Minnesota, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Many Southern states, particularly South Carolina and Florida, have been ravaged by layoffs and home foreclosures, he said.

Both Challenger and Grasz said the industry makes more of a difference than the job’s location.

Monster.com, another jobs site, said most industries added more jobs to online search lists in February than did so in January. But the rate of new job openings still is 26 percent below that of this time last year, the site said in a report.

Jobs in real estate, those with utilities and those in administration posted the biggest gains in February, according to the Monster Employment Index report, which measures job listings at several major job-search sites, including Monster.

By contrast, online job listings in arts, entertainment and recreation fell relative to recent months.

Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody’s Economy.com, said no industry has been safe from cuts, and only education and health care can be seen as bright spots in the grim economic picture.

“Conditions will likely get worse before they get better,” he said, noting that unemployment is expected to rise into 2010.

In such a competitive environment, Challenger said, it’s important for each job seeker to make his or her search unique.

“Always focus on your core skills. You are really defined by your function, not your industry,” he said.

It also may help to use a bit of common sense, he said.

Look to industries that you think everyone would need, even when their budgets have shrunk.

“There are some places that are OK in this economy: health care, education, government … core consumer products,” he said. “We’re going to all continue to go buy our Grape-Nuts and our coffee.”

Unemployment Rate

National Economy

Find this article

To most people, the word “networking” is a like four-letter word: something bad, heinous, and undesirable. However, with the proliferation of social networking sites, it’s never been easier to manage your networking contacts. After all, the 30 minutes per day* that the average college student spends on Facebook, is just another form of networking. Anytime you ask your friend, where they got their hair cut or where they bought that handbag, you’re also networking. And every time you make a new friend, shake hands with a new person, or introduce yourself to a mutual contact, you are networking.

So with all this constant networking going on, it’s no surprise that 70% of job hunters find their jobs through networking. Read that again: 70%! So if you’re not networking, then you’re not really job hunting. Period. End of Story.

However, there is a difference between social networking and social networking for a job. I wouldn’t consider updating your Facebook status to reflect the fact that you finally rocked Led Zeppelin on Expert Mode in Guitar Hero appropriate job networking (unless of course you are looking for a video game testing job with Activision). But updating your status to inquire whether any of your friends knows someone in HR at Activision may actually help your job search “networking.”

And I would be remiss in mentioning online networking if I didn’t talk about Linked-In. Linked In is a “professional networking” site where you can maintain your “business” contacts instead of your “social contacts.” I hate to quote Wikipedia, but… they highlight the following as some of the unique features of linked in:

• A contact network is built up consisting of their direct connections, the connections of each of their connections (termed second degree connections) and also the connections of second degree connections (termed third degree connections). This can be used to gain an introduction to someone you wish to know through a mutual, trusted contact.
• It can then be used to find jobs, people and business opportunities recommended by someone in one’s contact network.
• Employers can list jobs and search for potential candidates.
• Job seekers can review the profile of hiring managers and discover which of their existing contacts can introduce them.

(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linked_in)

So as a college student, maybe you don’t have a whole lot of “business contacts” but maybe your former boss from your internship at Company Y does. And she is connected to someone at Company X, which has a job that you just applied for. Reach out to her! Get Linked In! Network! Linked In allows you to request a “virtual introduction” to a mutual contact which can help you find out about job leads, follow up on applications, and set up informational interviews. So if you haven’t done it yet: GET LINKED IN!

There is a link to Linked In the CCD portlet. Portal.babson.edu Career Center (Useful Links)