CAT Career ConferenceNovember 9, 2013

Developing a Career Search StrategyAnn Sherman, Director of Human ResourcesJulane Cappo, Assistant Director of Human Resources for Employment and CompensationNorthern Michigan University

Inspiration for this Presentation!(Forrest: Spring 2013 graduate)

What is a Career Strategy? What jobs can you

get with your degree?

Where do you want to live? Geographically Urban/rural Politically

What type of work environment do you thrive in? Size, playfulness?

Where do you have a good social network (if you want one)?

What industries are most aligned with your values?

What cultures are you interested in and/or most comfortable with?

What do you enjoy doing in your free time?

Jobs vs Degrees? What are some typical job titles (check out the info at

the ACAC wall)? What does an “analyst” do? A “coordinator”? An “account representative”?

What are the unique knowledge or skills that you’ve acquired as a result of your educational experiences?

What types of entry requirements are most typical in your field?

How can you translate other job experiences to your first professional position?

What do you uniquely offer that will make a difference to a hiring manager?

Who do you know that can help you explore a possible job, or network for various opportunities?

Where to live? If you could go anywhere, where would you want to go, and why?

Weather (hot/cold, natural disasters)

Language Culture (politics, religion,

diversity) Location (near/far) Foods Activities (sports, theatre,

outdoors) Rural/urban/global

What type of work environment will you thrive in? Banker vs Google

programmer? Entrepreneurial,

small-, mid-, large? Opportunities for

career movement? Flexibility & # of

hours expected? Risk or safety factors? Office vs outdoors

Social NetworksCollective

Do you want to live near friends and family? How close?

Are holidays and celebrations important events?

Does it feel awkward to break into new social circles?

Where do other people that you know live?

Individual Do you want to live

somewhere else? Would you rather be

vacationing during the holidays?

Do you make new friends readily?

Are you comfortable being on your own?

What experiences are you eager to explore?

What Industry? Medical Airlines Toys/dolls/games Golf Education Tobacco Guns Government Banking

What kinds of products or services do you love?

What kinds of activities do you enjoy?

How do your values and life perspective match with an industry’s output?

What culture? Culture has many dimensions. Where will you

feel most effective living and working? Do you have biases/prejudices? Do other cultures intrigue you, scare you, or excite

you? What if you can’t find your favorite foods? What if your faith community is not present, or

actively persecuted? Can you adapt to new cultures quickly? What stereotypes do you have of Asian, European,

or American cultures?

What makes life fun? Theatre (New

York) Music (Austin) Skiing (Colorado) Beaches (coasts or

Great Lakes) Hiking Wide open spaces Vibrant cities

The Reality: You can plan, but be prepared for your life to take you

in a different direction! Don’t burn bridges: you never know who will lead you

to your next job. Take advantage of every opportunity you get to learn

and apply new skills. Don’t sell yourself short, but don’t oversell yourself,

either. Give yourself time to explore, but don’t hesitate to

make another decision if needed. Timing will be a factor in the decisions you make. Do what you love, not just what you’re good at!

Let’s Put it All TogetherUse your worksheet to begin to develop your career strategy. We know the who (you!): now let’s determine what, where, when, and why