The Career Development Center offers a wide variety of services. The following are particularly relevant as you complete the Launch Your Career section of GOALS.
Career Counseling
Career counseling services are available either face-to-face or through distance secured methods. Licensed Professional Counselors and supervised counseling interns assist individuals and groups with the decision-making process and facilitate the development of career action plans as it relates to life and career directions. Career counselors tailor services according to the needs of the individual in order to clarify life/career aspirations. Some common concerns confronting individuals can include identification of interests, values, skills; improving decision-making skills as related to choosing a major and/or career; identifying resources such as career planning and occupational information systems; educating about job search strategies; resolving personal conflicts on the job by improving interpersonal skills; assisting with the integration of work and other life roles; providing support and decreasing job stress, job loss, and career transitions. Learn more about Career Counseling.
Job Search Preparation Services
The Career Development Center staff is readily available to assist with teaching you how to comprehensively develop and implement your job search strategy in order to be competitive in the job market. Additionally, the Center also offers office based and online resources and tools to identify occupational information, labor market and salary trends, and industry information. The key is to plan early and establish a timeline to be prepared and to remain on task while tapping into the services and resources offered by the Career Development Center.
Establishing job search goals associated with interests, values, and skills:
Determine primary strengths and formulate them into marketable statements to be used when communicating with prospective employers. If goals have not been established, the ability to market yourself and be competitive will decrease considerably.
Resume Development
Gather and organize information into the most appropriate format exhibiting unique skills and offerings to prospective employers. The “one size fits all” format is unacceptable and should be tailored to the job and employer of your choice. Additionally WinWay, a resume software system, is available on the CDC kiosk located in the Career Development Center which provides suggested formats, phrases, and graphics to assist you in creating a professional resume.
Business Correspondence Development
Business correspondence can consist of cover letters, thank you letters, and other career exploration correspondence letters. All forms of correspondence should be in a professional format and contain information using appropriate grammar and spelling. The content of your letter should be carefully thought through for a variety of reasons such as providing information about sources of referrals, providing concrete examples and showcasing your writing skills.
Networking Methods
Networking is one of the most important aspects of the job search. Staff will partner with students and alumni in identifying effective networking approaches best suited to the unique needs of the individual. Educating students and alumni about general facets of networking, the rationale as to why networking is important, how to make contacts and who should be part of one’s network, leads to enhanced job opportunities.
Informational Interviewing
Informational Interviewing can serve as a dual purpose. The technique can be used to gather important information, so decisions can be made about choosing or refining your career path, identifying what is required to succeed within a chosen career, or to learn how to gain access for entry into a chosen field. An added benefit of informational interviewing is meeting new people and keeping in contact with those individuals who have common interests which expands your network.
Interviewing Tips
Remember the statement first impressions are lasting impressions? This critical point also coincides with the interview. Therefore to remain current in interviewing trends, preparation and practice are essential to a successful interview. Discover tips about interviewing preparation, interviewing techniques, responding to commonly asked questions, evaluation criteria commonly used by employers, differentiating between legal and illegal pre-employment questions, understanding behavior and appropriate conduct during an interview, and knowing when to disclose sensitive information. Not only can the staff assist in interviewing preparation, but an online system called Interview Stream will allow you to practice in privacy. Interview Stream can be accessed from within UIS CareerConnect. Just login to your student or alumni UIS CareerConnect and locate the Interview Stream logo at the bottom of your home page. No password needed!.
Mock Interviews
Mock interviews are available by appointment with the option of being videotaped. The mock interview simulates a real interview with a thorough critique upon completing the interview. Therefore, you should have completed the interview preparation activities and come prepared as though you were interacting with a recruiter. Proper dress, arrival, and professionalism are required. Please review the Mock Interview Checklist (Word) to ensure you have completed the requirements in order to be eligible for the interview.
Business Etiquette
A common complaint from many recruiters across the country is that applicants need additional guidance to enhance skills in business etiquette. A simple way of becoming more competitive is to polish these “soft” skills. The Career Development Center staff can educate and train you in soft skills and proper business etiquette, enabling you to have future opportunities to demonstrate a more polished and professional presentation.
Internship and Job Postings
All experiential opportunities consisting of internships, volunteer, part-time, full-time, and seasonal job postings are accessible in our online system called UIS CareerConnect. UIS CareerConnectis a very comprehensive system available 24/7 which requires a password to access. More information about what the system offers, how to register, and how to access the system is available at UIS CareerConnect.
On-Campus Recruitment
The Career Development Center throughout the year provides opportunities for recruiters, students, and alumni to connect through information sessions and on-campus interviews. Information about industries, company profiles, internships, part-time jobs and full-time jobs is shared. In order to participate in on-campus interviews and information sessions, students and alumni must first register and sign-up for these opportunities through UIS CareerConnect. It is highly recommended students and alumni upload resumes into UIS CareerConnect, so they will be prepared when opportunities occur on short notice. Make sure you have checked the box that gives permission for employers to view your resume.
Job Offer Evaluation and Salary Negotiation
Until you have accepted a position, your responsibilities have not ended when it comes to the completion of your job search. Although a job offer has come through, you want to be sure you have all of the information prior to accepting a position. Some critical points to consider include the relationship of the company and position in comparison to your abilities and goals; equitable salary comparisons should be researched; company’s ability to pay according to market demand and level of responsibilities; benefit package including amount of employee and employer contributions, and consideration of cost of living based upon geographic location.
UIS CareerConnect
UIS CareerConnect is an online job system with the following career-related features:
- Search and review job, internship, volunteer, fellowship and scholarship postings
- Upload resumes for employers to search
- Upload documents to create an e-Porfolio
- Alumni and professional mentor contacts
- Search and view employer profiles
- Professional Development event calendar
InterviewStream
Use this innovative tool to gain an edge over the competition. It creates a realistic simulated interview experience with more than 1500 interview questions and answers. This tool will put you in the “hot seat” and help you think on your feet quickly.
Interview Stream can be accessed from within UIS CareerConnect. Just login to your student or alumni UIS CareerConnect and locate the Interview Stream logo at the bottom of your home page. No password needed!
View a complete listing of the services offered by the CDC.