As another semester passes, it is time to start thinking about how to land your dream job or internship!
Last semester, Suffolk University’s Career Development Center hosted a job and internship search strategy session, which provided attendees with various tips and strategies to look for job opportunities.
Most people utilize job boards, like Indeed or Glassdoor. However, job boards include only 20% of jobs in the marketplace. It is important to not miss other opportunities that may be out there. For example, Suffolk has a partnership with Handshake, an online platform designed to help students find a job that meets their skill set. Beyond this, the platform also has a unique feature that allows its users to filter by jobs that offer sponsorship for international students too. Similarly, LinkedIn is a professional networking website that fosters relationship building through connections. While this is an excellent resource, one should be aware that the website mostly caters towards job postings for larger firms compared to smaller firms. Again, it is important to ensure that you are making the most out of your searches and not to miss out on any opportunities that can be found elsewhere.
In addition to learning about where to look for jobs, a key strategy emphasized in this session was to avoid including experience level, i.e. “intern” or “staff,” within a search. Instead, after you search for a position on a job board, there is an option to filter by experience level, which will make the results more accurate if performed in this manner. There are also many websites, such as MassBio that include job postings specified by industry, for an easier, narrowed search.
Ultimately, there is an opportunity cost associated with looking for a job. To avoid this opportunity cost, you can utilize a recruiting firm to find job positions for you. It is important to remember that many temporary employment positions do lead to full-time positions.
Finally, attending job fairs and joining professional associations are other great ways to network and hopefully obtain a job. It is entirely possible that the job you are most qualified for doesn’t already exist; don’t be afraid to create your own opportunity!
Interested in attending events like this hosted by the CDC? View more events here!
-Tiana Maraia, MSA ’19