Picking the Right Fork and Acing the Job Dinner Interview

You’ve just received an interview with your dream company, but it includes a meal. Would you know what to do? Or which fork to use first? On Wednesday, October 24, Career Services hosted its annual Dining Etiquette Dinner. We have some advice on how to successfully navigate a meal interview with a potential employer. 

 DO dress appropriately. Men should wear at least a jacket to the meal, while women should stick to a dress or skirt and avoid sandals.

DO order your meal first. Since you are the guest, it is custom for you to order your meal first. It is also expected that your employer will pay for the meal, since they invited you.

DO remember to use polite table manners. Be sure to wait for everyone else to be seated before putting your napkin on your lap or opening the menu.

DO act gracious. Avoid causing a scene by sending food back or fussing over small errors with the order. The employers are taking note of how you behave in social situations.

DO build bridges, not ramps! By this, we mean to always put your knives, forks, and spoons down by placing the entire utensil on the plate. Don’t rest them on the table like a “ramp”. 

DON’T discuss controversial topics such as politics, religion or sex during the meal.

DON’T slouch or place your elbows on the table. An upright posture shows that you are positive and attentive to the conversation with the employer.

DON’T forget to treat this as any other interview. It is important to bring copies of your resume, to research the employer and position beforehand, and to have questions prepared for the interviewer.

DON’T leave your phone on. It would be rude to the employer if your phone went off during the interview. Be sure to also keep it off the table and hidden from sight.

DON’T order alcohol, even if you are of age.

If you follow these Do’s and Don’ts, your interview should run smoothly. Remember that the priority of your interview is to be respectful and polite—treat the meal as you would an interview in a professional setting. One of the advantages to a lunch or dinner interview is that you can utilize moments of chewing to think of your answers before responding!

It's almost Halloween--but career fairs aren't so spooky!

Business Horizons 2014. Photo credit: Pamplin: College of Business Magazine 

Walking into a career fair can be a terrifying experience—the room is filled with other students competing to impress potential employers for the same opportunities you want. However, if you choose to prepare for this event, your experience doesn’t have to be so scary. In fact, you will find being prepared leads to confidence and success. You can use these tips for the upcoming FallConnection Job Fair on Oct. 14^th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Squires Commonwealth.

Research the employers beforehand

Do your homework before the career fair. You should research which companies are coming to the fair, what kind of positions they have available, what the company does, and what they are looking for. Create a list of the companies you know you want to approach.

Look over your resume – again

Not only should you be proofreading your resume for any mistakes or checking to see if all your information is updated, but you should also be sure to refresh your memory on your experiences. Be prepared to talk in-depth about any experience on your resume, because a recruiter may ask for you to explain further. Be sure to print many copies on resume-quality paper!

Have your questions ready

Avoid questions like, “What does your company exactly do?” or “What is the salary?” You can stand out to an employer with smart and thoughtful questions. Some examples of good questions would be, “What opportunities are there for collaboration” or “What does an average day look like for an employee at your company?”

Know what you’re going to say

Be sure to have at least a 30 second introduction prepared. This elevator pitch should include who you are, what you have done, what you can do, and what you are interested in from the employer. It can be a good idea to end your pitch with a question regarding the position or company, so that you are pulling the employer into a conversation. After you’ve figured out what you want to say, practice it until it becomes smooth and natural.

Remember, if you take the time to prepare for each individual employer, your efforts will be noticed!

Remembering Deriek Crouse: Thankful the Hokie Nation Stands

In remembrance of Officer Deriek Crouse 

who gave the ultimate sacrifice on December 8, 2011

Counting the Gifts You Already Have

Thanksgiving week came and went, and I never wrote the post about things for which I am thankful. I was too busy having fun cooking (and eating!) and spending time with family.

Since the season of giving is upon us, and Tuesday is Giving Day, I created a list of 25 gifts for which I am grateful, one for each of the first 25 days of December. How many gifts do you already have? Can you think of at least 25? 

Here are mine:

1. My husband, Charles, and the family I married into: we just celebrated our 28^th anniversary on November 30.                                                                                                       
   
    
2. My two children, Preston and Maggie. Having a child is truly a miracle.
3. Being a mother - my most important job.
4. My parents, Professor Huey and Dr. Mary Tom Long, who were wonderful parents and two terrific role models for me to grow up around.
5. My brother, Darden Long.
6. All my nieces and nephews.
7. My second mama, Becky Ford.
8. Since both of my parents were only children, I don’t have any aunts or uncles. But was blessed to have relationships with relatives and close family friends I claimed as such: Frank and Liz, Aunt Frances and Uncle William, Uncle Bob and Aunt Marion          
   
9. So many dear close friends. Some I have had since growing up in Blacksburg; more since my four years at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College. And even more: my Girls Night Out friends and my close friends in Career Services at Virginia Tech and at other schools!
10. My faith in God which keeps me grounded and going.
11. Growing up in the small Southwest Virginia college town of Blacksburg, VA.                 
12. Living in the country in Montgomery County and raising our children on a farm.        
    
13. Our dog, Lexi, and the many other pets (mostly dogs!) that have been a part of my life for most of my life.
14. My job as a career advisor. I love what I do!
15. The amazing team of co-workers I have the privilege to work with in Virginia Tech Career Services.                                                                                                                             
    
16. The leadership in Career Services and the Division of Student Affairs who support and encourage pursuit of professional development and leadership opportunities on campus, in professional organizations and across the US and embrace trying new initiatives.
17. All of the Career Services Interns and Graduate Assistants I have had the pleasure of working with throughout my time in Career Services. Still stay in contact with many of them, including Ariel Cohen who helped create this blog and still writes posts and maintains our site!
18. The multitude of students and alumni who have touched my life. That means you, Ashleigh Waddle.
19. The participants in our Friday English Conversation Group at Cranwell International Center. I have learned so much from people I have met on the Fridays I spend there.
20. Dr. Carl Stern who was one of my economics professors and supervisors when I was an undergraduate. Dr. Stern knew all about appreciative college instruction and applying positive psychology to teaching and advising years before the concept of appreciative advising was introduced.
21. The experience of studying abroad for a year at the University of Reading, England, as an undergraduate.
22. Having a liberal arts education from a single sex institution, Randolph-Macon Woman’s College.
23. Being a Hokie MBA!
24. My mentors and personal board of directors. Feel fortunate to have them to lean on and miss the ones no longer with us, like Dr. Norrine Bailey Spencer.            
     
    
25. And finally, I am grateful for these co-workers and/or friends who left us way too soon: Barbara K. Tipton, Mark Hunter, Paul Driscoll, and Christine Lindell

A Child Hears the Voice of God

A childhood memory I recently shared with the Roanoke Times that was featured Sunday in their Corner Shot column.

Go out and Experience!

Explore. Experience. Achieve.

After talking about Explore, it's time to discuss experience.

As you might have gathered from my post about Gobblerfest, I'm passionate about my fellow Hokies getting out and experiencing everything they can.  College is a great time to do this, since for most people it's your first time having the freedom to find yourself and only be responsible for you.

You've probably heard it before - you can't learn everything in the classroom or from a textbook.  Some things you just need to experience for yourself.

However, experience is so much more than just getting internships and learning what "living in the real world" is like.  Experience is putting yourself out there, making mistakes, and getting in touch with your inner self.

Academics are important.  I'll never deny that.  As a computer science major myself, I have missed out on a plethora of opportunities while I slaved away over programming projects in the CS lounge.  However, everyone needs a break.  Why not take a break by trying something new?

Once again, Virginia Tech comes to the rescue by being the huge university that it is.

Did you know that vt.edu has a calendar that lists a number of events that happen every day on campus?  Although a number of the events listed are academic, there's also a great list of different exhibits and performances by students and professionals alike.  Of course, many of the bigger performances are also posted over at student affairs.

Fine arts not your style?  The Virginia Tech Union (VTU) hosts concerts and films on campus all throughout the semester for significantly cheaper than you'd find anywhere else.

Although it's getting into the colder part of the year, Virginia Tech is also within a half hour's drive to Cascade Falls, a beautiful hiking trail that's dog friendly.

So next time you're sitting in your dorm, lazily browsing Reddit or Facebook for hours on end, remember there are plenty of awesome activities and events going on within walking distance or a short drive.  There are a multitude of better ways to put off your homework.

Get off those tail feathers and go experience all this Virginia Tech (and surrounding areas) has to offer!

But try not to put off studying for your finals for too long.

Have a question for an employer? Get answers TONIGHT!

Have a question for an employer? Get answers TONIGHT from employers! Need some job search tips? Questions about interviewing? Unsure about starting your first professional position? Find answers tonight and network with employers.
Employer Panel starts at 6 pm in Smith Career Center:
More information here

 

Cook Counseling Center - To Time Management Strategies and Beyond

In the blink of an eye, we're already over halfway through the semester.  With a little over a month left to go, we're getting to that dreadfully busy time - end of the semester projects.

Maybe you've known the assignment since day one, or maybe you're just starting to hear about it for the first time.  Chances are that you're at the point where you're deciding if it's worth beginning any of those projects now or if you'll wait until you finish just one more mission or side quest in that game you've been playing.  Or two more.  Oh, but this next one shouldn't take too long...

By this point, you probably have an idea of how well you've been able to manage your time.  For those of you with time management troubles and are looking for some help, I've got some good news for you.

Meet Virginia Tech's Cook Counseling Center.  While most may know that Cook Counseling Center is where students can go for psychiatric care and counseling, the center also has a number of other services to provide.  Not only do they have various seminars and programs
for students looking for some extra help with their academics, but they have some great online resources on their site.

Right now we're going to focus on their time management strategies.  If you have trouble with procrastination and time management, you are definitely not alone.  This issue is so prominent among students, Cook Counseling Center has a whole page dedicated to strategies to help you.

Their time management strategies page gives step-by-step instructions on great ways to both schedule your time and keep yourself from getting distracted from you work.  There's even a small quiz to "grade" how effectively you use your time.

Of course, every person has their own way of working.  If you find that the strategies and suggestions explained on their website don't work for you, Cook Counseling Center is always welcoming if you want to contact them directly.

And don't forget- there are plenty of other great opportunities to be found on their website.  From concentration help, to note taking, to improving test performance, you have a lot to gain by taking a few minutes to check their website out.

Good luck with your end of the semester projects.  I promise your game will still be there when you're done.

It’s Columbus Day: Do your own exploring of your career options

As course request for Spring 2014 approaches, some of you may be wondering if you are in the right major. If you are questioning your choice, taking steps to do some self and career exploration can help. And after all, today is Columbus Day, a perfect time for you to set sail exploring your career options.

Explore YOURSELF

There are a number of ways you can do some exploring of yourself. See these prior blog posts for information on self-assessment tools and on finding your major out of chaos.

To get started with self exploration, call 540-231-6241 and make an appointment with one of our career advisors.

Explore CAREERS

Here are 7 recommended “ports of call” as you map your voyage to research careers:

NEW!!! CandidCareer.com: Click on CandidCareer via the Career Services web site. This site has over 3700 videos on careers. You can search for careers, view Popular Tags, click on Explore where people talk about different aspects of their jobs or check out their Channels where you can research different industries.

VT Post Grad Report: If you are wondering what VT graduates do after they finish their bachelor’s degrees in a particular major, this is the site for you. In this report, you can see where graduates went to work including job titles, employers and locations or where they pursued an advanced degree where schools, degrees and locations are shared.  And, you can see trends where more than 5 years’ worth of data is available.

What can I do with a major sites: similar to our report mentioned above, many other career centers have great data that we have linked to here. My favorite sites that we are linked to include UT-Knoxville, UNCW, University of Delaware and Florida State University. On these sites you can see popular job titles by major, key skills you develop in a major, typical employers and links to places to go for more information.

Wetfeet.com: A publisher of many career books, Wetfeet’s site has 2 key resources that are really helpful for career exploration: over 25 Industry Profiles and 40 different Careers. Want to know more about Sports and Entertainment or Advertising and PR? How about Internet and New Media or Computer Hardware of Software? They have industry profiles for all of those and more.

MyPlan.com: If you click on Careers in MyPlan.com, you can search for detailed information about careers in which you are interested. Almost 500 of the careers in MyPlan have short video clips you can watch as well. And check out their Top Ten Lists that are linked on the Careers Page. Come see us if you want to do the Assessments in MyPlan – you can do them for FREE if you visit us first.

ONET: I really like ONET because when you look up an occupation, you can see if the skills, values and interests you learned about in your MyPlan self-assessment fit any of those for a career you are considering. You can also look for jobs that have a Bright Outlook, relate to the Green Economy, or a STEM Discipline under Find Occupations.

Visit our career library: We still have 100’s of books about different careers in our Career Resource Center. We are open 8 – 5, M-F, where you can read our books, but you can also check out most of our books. And, you can see if we have a book on a particular career using our online catalog, Library Thing. Let us know if we don’t have a book you think we should have. We are always looking for suggestions.

Meet with our Captains of Careers

Still feel like a sinking ship after visiting these ports of call as you decide your career direction? Make your final port of call Career Services where you can meet with one of our experienced Captains of Careers aka career advisors. Call 540-231-6241 to make an appointment.

Start the journey to your career on this day we celebrate Columbus’ voyage!

Feelin' the "California Love?" 5 Ways to Find a Job in CA (or wherever you want to be)

California Love - Does 2Pac's song have you itchin' to move to sunny California? If you plan to leave these Southwest Virginia mountains and go work out West, Career Services can help you reach your destination, wherever it may be. These five resources should have you feelin' the California Love by your graduation.

1. With Career Shift, you can target your job search for exactly what you are seeking exactly where you want to be. For example, in a recent search, I found 64 marketing jobs at one company, Google, in California. You can also use this resource to find contacts. Using the same example, I found over 1500 contacts for Google in the Golden State.

2. Going Global has over 40 US City Guides, where the CA lover could tap into four guides for Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco. Each of these city guides provides information on top employers, professional and social networking groups, job listing resources, and a city overview. If you are an international student, each city guide also provides a list of H1B employers that is pulled from data provided by the US Department of Labor. Going Global also has a database called H1B Plus, which is a helpful resource for international students seeking to stay in the US to work.

3. In LinkedIn, if you click on Network on the menu bar, you can then access Find Alumni, to look for alumni by location, employer or function. As a Pamplin graduate, I found 188 alums in the San Francisco Bay area and 135 in the Los Angeles area. Going along with the example in #1 above, I also found 7 alums who work for Google and 776 alums in marketing. Hokies love helping Hokies, so this is a great tool to use.

4. Another way to reach out to alumni is through Alumni Chapters where these groups of alumni exist all over the world. Some chapters have their own career fairs, and most have regularly scheduled networking events. In CA, there are 5 chapters. You can't hope for a better person to help you with your job search than another Hokie.

5. Visit career center web sites at colleges or universities in CA or near a location where you want to live. Also be sure to visit the web site for a major similar to your major at those schools as well. I visited UC-Berkeley's site and found 5 top job listings mentioned for each week. Even though I couldn't get into their Callisto site like our Hokies4Hire site to get more specific information about those jobs, I could search for a job that was mentioned on a company's web site.

Using these tools should help you get to California by graduation with a job nailed down, ready to feel the "California Love." What questions do you still have about finding a job in a specific location? Share your questions with us, or make an appointment with a Career Advisor by calling 540-231-6241.

ROCK your resume! Be ready for career fairs and fall interview season

September is always a busy time for career fairs and the start of the fall interviewing season on our campus. To gear up for these events, it's critical to have your resume ready to hand out to employers. So, how can U ROCK your resume? 

U

se this 4-step formula for your experience descriptions:

Skill: What did you get out of performing this duty?

Structure: Put result into a statement.

Verb: Start with action verbs.

Clarify: Ask yourself who, what, where, when, why, and how many. Using this formula, take your description from “greeted customers” to “developed communication skills by greeting an average of 15 customers per shift.”

R

esults sell! As you describe your work experiences, volunteer positions or projects, be sure to share what you accomplished. Don’t let your resume just read like a job description.

 

O

rganize your resume sections from most important to least important as you go down the page. For now, list your education section before experience since you are spending most of your time working on your education.

C

ount! Numbers add impact in your resume. If you trained new employees, share that you trained 5 new employees. If you lead the fundraising efforts of your organization, share that you raised $500. Even if you think the numbers are small, they still paint a clearer picture.

 

K

eep it brief. Rather than sentences or paragraphs, use bullets, list items in columns and write descriptions in phrases. Try to keep to a page if you are an undergraduate. Those with extensive experience or advanced degrees may need to go past one page.

 
If you need help rockin' your resume, come see us in Career Services. For walk-in assistance, visit us Monday through Friday, 12 - 3. On Wednesdays in September, we're extending our walk-in resume help during Resumania where you can stop by 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. without an appointment. If you want some additional help as you prepare for the career fairs and fall recruiting, call 540-231-6241 to make an appointment with a career advisor.

What's your biggest question you still have about your resume that we didn't address above?