The Search is on for Summer Jobs!

The warm weather is quickly approaching and we're all getting ready for that dreadful search- the search for summer employment. Here at Career Services, we do our best to make your summer job search as effective and pain-free as possible. Here are a few tips: 

How to Find the Perfect Summer Job

The key to finding the perfect summer job is remembering that it might not currently exist. As important as it is to look for positions that align with your personal goals and passions, remember that gaining valuable experience comes in many different ways! Rather than looking strictly for a job within your field of study, focus on finding a position that interests you- even if it doesn't necessarily fit into your "perfect job" category. Many skills are transferable and can be used in various roles, so instead of asking yourself what type of job you want, ask yourself what kind of problems you would like to solve or what skills you'd like to gain. 

Where to Look

Go to Careerzone (careerzone.brocku.ca) to take a look at positions that are available on and off campus. Many on-campus summer jobs have the potential to extend into part-time positions in the school year.  Here are a few on-campus services that you could apply to this summer:

• Brock Dining Services
• Brock University Students' Union (B.U.S.U)  
• Brock Human Resources
• Recreation Services
• Student Life and Community Experience

Off-campus jobs also have their benefits, here are some general job search sites that can help you land a position within the Niagara Region:

• http://www.jobbank.gc.ca
• http://www.jobgym.com
• http://www.indeed.ca
• http://www.wowjobs.ca
• http://talentegg.ca 

When to Look

Don't wait, start now! One of the biggest misconceptions students have regarding summer job searching is that they have to wait until the summer to start. Many employers prefer to begin their hiring process months in advance. You can find summer job postings as early as January! Start your process now and make your chances of getting summer employment higher. 

How to Prepare 

Preparing for your job search can seem difficult at times. Drop by the Career Resource Centre or email us at Career@brocku.ca for interview tips and job search strategies to help you land a summer job that you enjoy!




Lydia Collins
Senior Career Assistant

Navigating CareerZONE

CareerZONE is a campus resource that provides you with access to a variety of career and job search tools, and will help you connect and prepare for the world of work. From job postings, resume templates and online workshops CareerZONE is a Brock student’s one stop shop for everything career related!

First, go to careerzone.brocku.ca and click the student login tab along the top. Your login information is the same as your student portal (one less password to remember!).

Once you login you will have access to a variety of resources including …

1. Job Postings

The CareerZONE job posting board has a variety of domestic and international summer jobs, volunteer opportunities, on-campus jobs, internships and full time jobs listed. Updated on a regular basis and not customized to any specific program, Brock students in all disciplines will find something that interests them on our job board.

 2. Career Services Events Calendar

Throughout the year our department hosts a variety of career and job fairs, further education events, workshops and employer recruitment events. This calendar is being updated as new events are announced so check back often and don’t miss out on some amazing opportunities!  

3. Online Resource Centre

Many of our resources in the Career Resource Centre can be found here. It is divided into different sections to make it easier for you to navigate the variety of resources available.  Some sections include:

Career & Job Search -> This section includes resources on general job search sites and interview tips, using LinkedIn and social media for your job search, Niagara Region employment and volunteer agencies and a link to the directory of Careers and Employment in Canada among others.

Career Assessments -> Links to Career Cruising, Typefocus and Talentoday career assessments are listed in this section. To find out more about these assessments check out our previous blog posts on Career Cruising and Typefocus. 

Cover Letters, Resumes, CVs & Letters of Intent -> This section includes everything from checklists, templates and examples for all common career documents. We even have sample resume’s for every program at Brock!  

Interviews -> Resources include handouts on informational interviews and general interview tips along with a link to Interview Stream, an online tool which helps you prepare for an interview by providing feedback and tips on non-verbal behavior and communication missteps.

Further Education -> All of our “Considering Grad School” information series handouts are listed in this section including resources on teachers college, law school, med school and social work.

Going Abroad -> Everything you need to know about international internships, teaching opportunities, exchanges, working and volunteering abroad can be found in this section. A link to Going Global, a country-specific career and employment database containing more the 30,000 pages of information is also included in this section.

Resources for Teacher Candidates -> Resources on applying to school boards, teaching specific cover letters and resumes and teaching interviews are all included in this section

4. Workshops

Online workshops are available on a variety of topics including cover letters, resumes, portfolios, CVs and even basics of interviewing! All workshops completed can be tracked on experienceplus.

As you can see CareerZONE is full of a variety of amazing resources to help Brock students in their job search. We hope you find the information and resources your looking for and encourage you to visit us in the Career Resource Centre if you any questions or would like more information on any and all things career related!

Mike Pratas
4th year Political Science Major
Lead Career Assistant 

(Instagram)@brockcareerserv

(Twitter)    @brockcareerserv

(Facebook) @brockcareerserv 

Faculty Focus: Goodman School of Business

The Goodman School of Business here at Brock is extremely popular and includes many different programs. To explore them all, check out the 2015-2016 Goodman Degree Guide by clicking here! Even though Goodman students have exclusive access to their own Career Development Centre, Goodman students are also able to utilize the Career Resource Centre as well! Here is a breakdown of all that we have to offer Goodman students:

                                      Resources in the Centre/Online
Programs

• Cafe Connect (for more details, click here)
• Mentorship Plus (for more details, click here)
• Experience Plus (for more details, click here)
• Experience BU (for more details, click here)

Books (ALL books are located in the centre)

• Careers in Business
• Great Jobs for Business Majors
• The Best 295 Business Schools
  

Resources

• Degree Exploration Guides (to see yours, click here)
• Business Resume Samples Binder
• Goodman Career Binder 
• Post-Grad Studies Binder
• Brock Plus Programs Binder
• Go Abroad Binder
• Considering Grad School Handout
• Master of Business Administration Information Guide
• Career Edge Handout
• Entrance Exam/GPA Conversion Handout
• Grad Studies Overseas Binder

Don't forget to come visit us in the Learning Commons for any career related questions, inquiries, concerns, or to explore the resources listed! And remember, if you can't make it to the centre, head to our Online Resource Centre via Careerzone for online access to many of our resources!

Scarlet Stark
Psychology Major
Career Assistant 

Faculty Focus: Social Sciences

The Faculty of Social Sciences here at Brock encompasses many different individual programs which include child and youth studies, communication, economics, film, geography, labour studies, policing and criminal justice, political science, popular culture, psychology, social justice and equity studies, sociology, tourism and environment and women's and gender studies. There are many different directions one can go with these programs, which is great! Here are some resources to explore your options:

                                         Resources in the Centre/Online

Programs

• Cafe Connect (for more details, click here)
• Mentorship Plus (for more details, click here)
• Experience Plus (for more details, click here)
• Experience BU (for more details, click here)

Books (ALL books are located in the centre)

• So You Want To Be A Lawyer, Eh?
• Careers in Childcare
• Careers in Communication
• Careers in Social and Rehabilitation Sciences
• Careers in Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality
• Great Jobs for Criminal Justice Majors
• Great Jobs for Environmental Studies Majors
• Careers for Environmental Types and Others Who Respect The Earth
• Great Jobs for Political Science Majors
• Great Jobs for Sociology Majors
• Opportunities in Childcare
• Opportunities in Forensic Sciences
• Opportunities in Psychology 

Resources

• Degree Exploration Guides (to see yours, click here)
• Faculty of Social Sciences Resume Sample Binder
• Government Jobs and Uniformed Services Binder
• Post Grad Studies Binder
• Brock Plus Programs Binder
• Go Abroad Binder
• Considering Grad School/Social Work/Law School Handouts
• KOM Consultants Binders
• Sociology Portfolio Sample

Don't forget to come visit us in the Career Resource Centre for any questions, concerns, or inquiries you may have about finding work, volunteer, or other opportunities in your field! And remember, if you can't make it into the centre, head to Careerzone and access our Online Resource Centre right from your couch! How awesome is that!

Scarlet Stark
Psychology Major
Brock University

Faculty Focus: Education

The Faculty of Education here at Brock encompasses the Education, Early Childhood Education, Adult Education, and Concurrent programs. As many readers will know, getting a job in the field of education can be very competitive. But not to worry! These specific resources can help you to get your foot in the door:

Resources in the Centre/on Careerzone

Programs

• Cafe Connect Program (for more details, click here)
• Mentorship Plus Program(for more details, click here)

Books (ALL books are located in the centre)

• 101 Alternatives for Teachers
• The Inside Track: Getting Hired to Teach in a Canadian School

Resources

• Teachers College & Teacher Resume Samples Binder
• Career Paths for Teachers Binder
• KOM Consultants Binder
• Faculty of Education Resume Sample Binder
• Considering Teacher Education Handout
• Teacher Cover Letter & Resume Guidelines
• Teacher Accomplishment Statement Chart
• Skill Words for a Teaching Resume Handout
• Board of Education Cover Letter Template
• Personal Teaching Philosophy (Templates & Sample)
• Applying to DSBN/Niagara Catholic/Halton District/Peel District/Hamilton-Wentworth Boards
• Degree Exploration Guides (to see yours, click here)

Additionally, our Online Resource Centre through Careerzone contains a whole section dedicated to teachers and teacher candidates. Log-in to peruse through them today & be sure to also come visit us in the centre to check out these great resources in order to help you enter the field of education!

Scarlet Stark
Career Assistant
Psychology Major

Faculty Focus: Applied Health Sciences

Starting now until Mid August, each faculty here at Brock will be blogged about in order for students to gain insight into the different resources, services, and programs we offer here at Career Services for all the different faculties within Brock.

Our first faculty of focus will be Applied Health Sciences, a diverse faculty ranging from Child Health programs to Sports Management. Even though this faculty includes a wide range of programs, we offer resources to suit all students within this faculty! Here is a breakdown of resources geared towards Applied Health Sciences students:

Resources in the Centre/on Careerzone

Programs

• Med Plus Program (to find out details about this program, click here)

Books (ALL books are located in the centre)

• Opportunities in Health & Medical Careers
• Opportunities in Hospital Administration
• Opportunities in Medical Imaging
• Opportunities in Laser Technology
• Opportunities in Sport & Fitness
• Top 100 Healthcare Careers
• MCAT Prep Book

Resources

• Degree Exploration Guides for each major within the Applied Health Sciences faculty (ie. Child Health, Community Health, Medical Sciences, Nursing, Physical Education & Kinesiology, Public Health, Recreation & Leisure Studies, and Sports Management which can be accessed online by clicking here or come into the centre)
• Faculty Specific Resume Samples (in the centre or Online Resource Centre; to access online, click here)
• Portfolio Samples for Sports Management and Kinesiology (in the centre ONLY)
• Considering Medical School Resource (in the centre or Online Resource Centre; to access online, click here)
• Entrance Exam & GPA Conversion Resources (in the centre or Online Resource Centre; to access online, click here)
• Careers in Healthcare Resource (in the centre or Online Resource Centre; to access online, click here)

So there you have it! Be sure to check out all of these helpful resources and come visit us in the centre soon for all career related questions, concerns, and assistance! Have a great weekend!

Scarlet Stark
Career Assistant
Psychology Major

Assess Yourself!

Career assessments allow you to get a better understanding of who you are, especially in relation to your personality, skills, and values, and can help immensely in the career planning process. If you are able to gain self-insight and match aspects of your personality, skills, and values to a career path, you will surely be on the way to a working environment which will best suit your competencies and who you are as an individual! Choosing a career path that suits you on an individual level can also lead to greater successes at work and can create opportunities for advancement simply because you are doing what you like and what you are passionate about. Additionally, career assessments help you to identify your strengths and areas in need of improvement. In this blog, I will focus specifically on three different assessments so you can decide which one, if not all, are the right fit for you to complete!

1. Career Cruising
Career Cruising is a great way to narrow down career options, learn about job duties and requirements in occupations of interest to you, gain knowledge of the typical level of education needed for particular occupations, as well as provides videos of interviews with industry professionals. A ranking of careers suited to your personality and interests is given after answering the required questions about yourself. With this assessment, the more questions you answer, the better the results! 

2. Type Focus
Type Focus will provide you with detailed information about your personality, interests, and values. Using this information, career clusters are offered that would fit your strengths specifically. For example, maybe helping others is valuable to you; if it is, a career involving aiding customers or clients will coincide with what you hold to be important. It even evaluates success factors which can help you to become better prepared to do well in your occupation of choice!

3. Talent Today
Talent Today focuses on talents and motivations in relation to career options. This assessment will provide you with a motivations radar (what motivates you), a talent id (your best skills), and a personality radar based on five dimensions (communicate, manage, dare, adapt, excel). A great aspect of this assessment is that it provides you with graphs and charts utilizing your own personal data which looks great in a Career Portfolio or LinkedIn profile!

So try one today! For Brock University students and alumni, these assessments are free and can be accessed through https://careerzone.brocku.ca using your login and password. Once logged in, click the Online Resource Centre Tab on the right hand side and than click Career Assessments on the main page.

Thanks for reading and I hope your assessment results provide you with the information needed to choose the right career path for you and get a better understanding of yourself!

Scarlet Stark
Career Assistant
Psychology Major

Interview Prep

With summer jobs being posted and resumes being sent out, students are starting to think about how they will prepare for an interview. Interviews are an important step in the hiring process; they can make or break your chances of landing that job.

We have a lot of resources at the Career Resource Centre to help students prepare and be successful. Some of these include our Interview Handout, our Interview Techniques Binder, our Mock Interview service and print resources such as Interview Magic, Job Interview Phrase Book, and Knock’em Dead Job Interviews. As a student you can take full advantage of these resources by coming in to see us at the Career Resource Centre!

One of our newest and most exciting resources we have to offer to students looking for interview help is Interview Stream. Interview Stream is a web-based, video practice tool that records you while answering up to 10 questions. It allows you to practice verbal and non-verbal communication skills and evaluates you on how well you did. Interview Stream has over 7000 interview questions that you can choose from (or set it to random to be totally surprised!). As a student you can access Interview Stream through CareerZone by going to Student> Log In> Career Services> Online Resource Centre> Interviews> Interview Stream.

Preparing for a job interview will ease your nerves and make it easier to show them your best.  Know exactly what the position is and a little bit about the company and the services they offer. In addition to this, know yourself. Know what your goals are and know why you are applying for this position. Ensure you know the time, place, date, and dress code for your interview so you are prepared and well on time. We hope to see you at the Career Resource Centre if you have an upcoming interview! 

Alysha-Lynn Kooter, Senior Career Assistant, 3rd Year Intermediate/Senior Concurrent Education, Visual Art 

Core Elements for Job Application

Resources offered by the Career Resource Centre such as editing resumes and cover letters are unknown to an extent, or not used to the full extent. Career services uses a broad range of different editing strategies that are all to give individuals the best opportunity at 
success in job applications.

A resume is a summary of different jobs  and experiences that an individual has gotten skills and 
qualifications from. A cover letter is a tailored document outlining why a  person is passionate or wants to pursue a certain job. It is important to  note that a cover letter and a resume work in a communal fashion to  convey qualifications and expertise.. What makes Career Service’s  really special is that the Career Assistants all have experience and 
training writing cover letters and resumes.

What a cover letter or resume review looks like is a student coming in  with a hard copy of their resume or cover letter and they can sit face  to face with a career assistant. This is a drop in service, there are additional resources and these are accomplished by friendly customer  service.

References are a vital document, essentially for applying to jobs. There  are 3 different styles of references: One being an academic (professor or teacher), the next being a personal (close friend), and  the last being a professional (a boss). These points of view give your prospective boss an opportunity  to get to know you holistically.Stop by the Career Resource Centre and get your career documents reviewed today!

Cheers

Tyler Harris                                 Kaitlyn Daw
3rd year Psychology                   3rd year English Language & Literature 

Volunteerism is more than Meets the Eye

As an employer, when hiring someone you need to know who they are as a holistic package because how much sense does it make to hire someone who knows nothing about you?  Volunteerism is a way to highlight the experience that you accomplish for the reason of that it’s what you’re passionate about. In my experience in my position as a Career Assistant, I have never heard of someone doing something out of the goodness of their heart that wasn’t passionate about their volunteerism area. Volunteerism is something that really does impact a person’s life from day to day. My personal purpose of volunteering and my career is because I aim to inspire and empower others to do great things and to me I want to make sure that I explain this in my resume through the volunteerism section. Let your employer know that you don’t care about the money only, rather that you do other things for the reason that you are just passionate.  Use the strategy of putting yourself in the employer’s shoes, would you really want to hire someone who has no volunteerism?

I (Anthony) actually received consideration for my seasonal employment because my employer was so intrigued by my volunteer section on my resume, as community involvement was a big area of focus for their organization. Thinking about it objectively, the best way to get something is to give something in return, and giving back to your community while also contributing to a cause you care about is a great way for employers in the community to give back to you... by offering you a position!
 

Some of the great benefits of volunteering

We offer a variety of resources for students looking to volunteer. Careerzone always has volunteer opportunities being posted for Brock students and Alumni to access, year round. There are both local and abroad opportunities being offered all the time. We also have a resource that offers a list of websites available to look at more volunteer opportunities. This resource can be found on careerzone on our online resource section, as well as in our resource centre. 



Brock also offers Volunteer Plus, a program designated to reward those who spend an ample amount of time volunteering during the year. Be sure to track all of your volunteer experience on Experience Plus to qualify! There are 3 levels:

Bronze: 30-40 hours
Silver: 41-75 hours
Golf: 76+ hours

All volunteer experiences can be recorded on your Experience Plus transcript! It may seem like a lot to volunteer for 76+ hours, but over the course of an entire year it is actually very minimal. Volunteer hours for Volunteer Plus are tracked from September 1st-August 31st, so you have all year including the summer to get involved!

Written by:
Tyler Harris
Career Assistant
3rd Year Psychology Major

Co-written and Facilitated by:
Anthony Mancuso
Senior Career Assistant
3rd Year Sport Management Major

Graduation and what lies beyond...

Halloween is tomorrow and I know what’s on everyone’s mind …. Career planning!

Consider attending one of our many events in the coming weeks and plan for your future…

November 4^th - Graduate Education Expo in the Marketplace 
Are you thinking about going to grad school? Want to learn about post-degree programs and professional educational opportunities? Connect with educational recruiters from a wide range of post-degree programs and certificates and learn about the many post-grad options open to you at this event. Stay connected with us on this event at #GradExpo2014.

November 12^th – YMCA Career Fair in MC-A Hallway
Want to make a positive impact on your community? Representatives from the YMCA of Niagara will be providing information on how you can join their team and build a better Niagara region. All students from all degree areas are welcome – bring your resumes and class schedules!

November 12^th – Niagara Regional Police Services Information Session @ Welland Job Gym 
Interested in working for the Niagara Regional Police Service? Learn about the required qualifications, recruitment process and possible career-pathing options in this 2 hour information session.

More information on these events and many more can be found on CareerZone. 

If you’re considering applying to grad school, take note that application deadlines are quickly approaching. Need help writing your Letter of Intent? CV? Stressed about writing the GRE/LSAT/GMAT? Stop by the Career Resource Centre and we can help you get started. Check out our grad school resources on CareerZone as well.

Even if you’re not graduating this year and/or looking for a job right now, it’s never too early to update your resume so when that perfect job opening comes up your ready to apply. Consider getting your career documents reviewed by a Career Assistant today.

Happy Halloween!

Mike Pratas                                                                       Wajeeh Alvi
Senior Career Assistant, 3^rd year Political Science Major           Career Assistant, 3rd year Computer Science Major 

Career Assessments: A Guide to Your Future

Whether you are graduating this year or just starting your first semester it is important that you start to think about what you want to do in a career… but where do you start looking? Still don’t know what you want to do?

NO WORRIES!

Self-exploration activities, or Career assessments help you learn about what makes you unique. They identify your personality, interests, skills and values among others, which you can use to generate job titles and career options.  All of our career assessments can be accessed through CareerZone in the Online Resource Centre.

Taking a career assessment, even if you know what you want to do, may give you peace of mind that you are going in the right direction or may show you career options you may never of thought of that you may be interested in exploring.

Take some time to discover yourself and plan for your future today!

As always, if you have any questions feel to stop by the Career Resource Centre or email us: career@brocku.ca .

Good luck!

Mike Pratas
3^rd year Political Science Student

Senior Career Assistant 

How students can utilize CareerZone!

If you are looking for tools to use to help you find a job, explore careers, prepare for an interview, attend career events, or build up your career documents, then CareerZone is the one-stop shop for you!

CareerZone is Brock's Career Services portal that includes everything you need  for career success. There are lots of categories to check out like "Career Services Events", "Workshops", and "Job Postings". On the "Job Postings" section you can find both on and off campus job postings! This is a great resource for students looking for some work during the school year. It also has postings for those who have graduated and are looking for work within their field! Use the "advanced search" option to find your best results!

Another great category on CareerZone is the "Online Resource Centre". By using the "Online Resource Centre" section you can find templates, samples, and guidelines to help you develop your career documents like your resume, curriculum vitae, cover letter, portfolio, or letter of intent.  You can count on these resources to be correct and up to date with the current trends in employment!

The "Online Resource Centre" section can also be used to help you with a variety of other career related things. The different categories to check out in this section are:

• Career and Job Search
• Career Assessments
• Cover Letters, Resumes,
• CVs, Letters of Intent
• Portfolios
• Interviews
• Further Education
• Going Abroad
• Government Job Search
• Volunteering
• Internships
• Career Magazines
• Resources for Students with Disabilities
• Resources for International Students
• Resources for Teacher Candidates 

If you are looking for information about any of these topics then definitely use this online resource to your advantage! Check out careerzone.brocku.ca today :) 

Alysha-Lynn Kooter, Senior Career Assistant, 3rd year Visual Arts and Concurrent Education 

How to Contact Us!

To help start off the 2014-2015 school year, we at Career Services felt that showing students the many different ways to contact us and use our resources would be beneficial! Everyone likes options, have you ever felt like there just weren't enough options? Fortunately for you, Career Services offers a variety of ways to contact us, for any situation! Stuck in your room with the flu, but really want your resume reviewed? Thought of a question to ask about your degree options, but you’re not at Brock at the time? Had a moment of inspiration where you thought about law school, but you don’t really know much about it? Maybe you thought of an exciting career and you want to know how to get there! Whatever it may be, feel free to come to Career Services for all advice and help on career-related matters.

Here are the ways you can use our services:

Career Email: career@brocku.ca. You can email us at any time for document reviews (attach your documents!), as well as any other questions that you may have relating to Career Services. We can respond within 24 hours during office hours, so if you can't make it to the resource centre just send us an email!

Blog comments: Right here! We are always monitoring our blog, and if you have any questions about the material we post here, or anything else for that matter, feel free to post in the comments down below and we will get right back to you!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jack.mcisaac. We're on Facebook! We are always posting useful information on upcoming events that are filled with Volunteer and Job opportunities, so "Like" our mascot JackMcIsaac on Facebook and stay in the loop!

Twitter: Follow us on Twitter! @JackMcIsaac is always tweeting and re-tweeting job opportunities and events. Jack is following an incredible amount of employers and job boards, and our twitter account is a great way to stay updated.

Chat: http://brocku.ca/career-services Did you know that we have a Chat function? There is a small box located at the bottom right of the screen where there is a chat function built into our page. You can click on that and ask any question that you may have for us! While we are online a Senior Career Assistant can respond to your question quickly. If we are not online, you can still talk to us through the chat, just leave us an email to respond to your question with and the career email will get back to you!

- 

Drop-in: Then there's the good old-fashion Resource Centre, located in the Learning Commons here at Brock. During our office hours, 9-4:30 Monday - Friday, you can drop in and use our services completely free! Come in for resume and cover letter reviews, job search strategies, job postings, degree exploration, self-assessments, career planning, anything related to careers is our function and we are always happy to help!

That's a lot of options. Feel free to use them all! No matter the situation, Career Services is just a moment away, ready to help.

Anthony Mancuso, Senior Career Assistant, 3rd Year Sport Management Student