How to Look for Summer Work

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How to Look for Summer Work
Engineering Science Felicity Morgan, M.Ed. March
10, 2005
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Workshop Goals

• To develop a targeted action plan for your summer
  work search.
• Determine your goals
• Review effective job search methods
• Discuss résumés and cover letters
• Provide an overview of Career Centre services

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What type of work do I want?

• Identify your needs
• Experience
• Financial
• Time and Flexibility
• Location Local, another city, international
• Skills Development
• Personal Interest

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Job Search Methods

• Passive
• Newspapers
• Career Centre
• Government programs
• Websites
• Agencies

• Active
• Network
• Family, friends, professors, former
  employers
• Professional
  associations
• Cold calls

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How do I find it?

• Government Programs/Internships
• Job Postings - Career Centre
• Network
• Research

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Government Programs/Internships

• FSWEP www.jobs.gc.ca
• Ontario Government Summer Student Hiring
  http//youthjobs.gov.on.ca/eng.html
• Summer Company (Ontario website above)
• See Summer Work Search tipsheet for more

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Career Centre Summer Employment Listings

• Only U of T students and recent grads
• Basic/Advanced search screen
• Delisted positions
• http//www.careers.utoronto.ca

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Geographical Search

• The National Job Bank
• http//jb-ge.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca
• Canada WorkInfonet
• http//www.workinfonet.ca
• Workopoliscampus (formerly CampusWorklink)
  http//campus.workopolis.com
• Employer Directories
• Network

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How Employers Hire
The way a typical job-hunter likes to hunt for a
job (starts here)
5. Ads / postings ---------- 4. Unsolicited
resumes ---------- 3. Screened applicants
Agencies, Search firm ---------- 2. Networking
contacts/offers proof ---------- 1. From within
Source Bolles, What Color Is Your Parachute
The way a typical employer prefers to fill
vacancies (starts here)
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Networking What is it?

• Develop layers of contacts
• 6 degrees removed from information you want

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Who Do You Know?
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Once You have the Contacts

• Who you are, why you are contacting him or her
• Your specific, relevant skills and or experiences
• Hi Mr. Brown, my name is and I am calling to
  inquire about summer positions with your firm.
  Do you have a few minutes to speak with me? I
  have previous experience in a manufacturing
  setting, working on the product line?

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Research - Industry Specific

• Delisted jobs
• Network
• Employer Directories
• Professional Associations
• Job Fairs
• Faculty/Department notices

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Places on Campus to Look for Work

• University of Toronto Libraries
• Food Services
• Athletic Centre
• Hart House
• Second Cup
• Departmental offices, Student Services offices

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Going Abroad

• Start early (i.e. one year in advance)
• Link with a specific program such as IASTE,
  AISEC, SWAP
• For more information see Going Abroad tipsheet
  and the International Student Centre

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Prepare Your Résumé

• Purpose to get the interview
• Know what you have to offer employer
• Tailor it to field RELEVANT and concrete
• Content and format are both important Keep It
  Simple

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Your Skills Come From..
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Résumé Formats

• Chronological
• Modified Chronological
• Functional/Skills

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Résumé Components

• Contact info
• Education
• Awards and Achievements
• Technical/computer skills
• Project work

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Résumé Components Part 2

• Experience paid and unpaid
• Extracurricular activities
• Interests
• References
• Optional objective, skills summary

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Résumé Fine-Tuning

• Use action words
• Focus on results/impact
• Quantify examples
• Maximum 2 pages 1 page is often sufficient
• Quality of paper
• Font size

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E-mail and Electronic Résumé

• E-mail be specific in the subject header
• Options use plain text in e-mail body, send via
  attachment, use PDF file
• Create a signature file
• Check e-mail regularly
• All the same rules apply

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Web Forms

• Cut and paste résumé into text boxes
• Answer questions on specific skills,
  qualifications, levels of experience or
  achievements
• Treat like interview questions dont assume they
  will make the leap for you

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Scannable Résumés

• Simple presentation no fancy fonts, graphics,
  lines, coloured paper etc.
• Use key words to describe your experiences see
  job description
• Left justify
• Avoid punctuation
• Use spacing

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Résumé Checklist

• Does your résumé look appealing?
• Does it highlight your relevant skills, abilities
  and experiences?
• Are there any grammatical mistakes, typos or
  misused words?
• Have you had it critiqued by other people?

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Cover Letters

• Focus on the top 2-3 relevant skills
• Clear, specific and concise
• Make link your skills and employer needs
• Include what you know about the employer
• No typos, run on sentences, grammar mistakes
• Have it critiqued by someone else

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The Interview

• Review your résumé, your relevant skills and
  experience
• Prepare concrete, relevant examples STAR
• Research employer and the job
• Practice
• Smile!

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Other Career Centre Services to Help You

• Career Resource Library
• Career Centre Workshops
• Résumé Clinic
• Practice Interviews
• Career Talk

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Action Plan

• Identify priorities
• Check government programs and web postings
  regularly
• Develop my network and work on intro speech
• Have my résumé critiqued
• Practice interview questions

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Best of Luck
www.careers.utoronto.ca 214 College
St. 416-978-8000