Leverage your part-time or summer job

Establish a goal

You want to be able to identify your goals/aspirations. It’s important to note that these will change overtime as your interests change. What type of job do you want now? What results do you want from a job?

• Make money
• Get career-related experience
• Develop new skills
• Develop networking opportunities
• Have fun and/or adventure
• Test out a career interest

Make it relevant to your career goals

• Think about your long-term career goals – for example you work as Customer Service Representative but your organization offers different programs and services – offer to help on those projects that relates to your long term career goals
• Valuable skills can be developed in a variety of ways – for example working in retail shows communication and customer service skills which are applicable to any position you would consider in the future
• If you aren't sure which skills you have and which skills you'd like to develop, think about participating in Becoming YU
• Once you have identified which transferable skills you have developed, articulate them on your resume and cover letter – doing this makes you more marketable for future opportunities
• Working with others in any job or environment gives you the opportunity to tell stories during your future job interviews where you can highlights different employability skills and/or technical skills

Capture transferable skills

• Identify the various skills you have developed during your part-time or summer job; most of them will be considered as transferable for working in several industries.
• Review job postings that are of interest to you and make a list of skills that you have gained from your experiences and can be highlighted as transferrable skills to speak to the job requirements.
• Include accomplishment statements instead of just listing your basic job duties to provide evidence that you have successfully demonstrated theses skills in your part-time or summer job experience.

Build your confidence

Confidence plays an important role in your career success -Sometimes different fears hold us back which impact our career success. Confidence is something you can learn and build on. Here are some tips to build your confidence:

• Take advantage of your part-time/summer job and learn something new while supporting your colleagues - learning new skills makes you feel more confident
• Track you progress, reflect on your learning as it gives you that sense of pride when you see your progress
• If an assignment or project makes you feel overwhelmed break it down into manageable chunks or steps
• Reward yourself for achieving each small goal and feel that sense of accomplishment as it will motivates you to move forward
• Plan time to do something you are passionate about
• Respect and treat yourself well – this is the best investment you can do

Stay connected

• Whether your part-time /summer job was related to your career or it was just to make some income your former colleagues/supervisors can be part of your professional network in the future
• Create and maintain effective working relationship during your part-time/summer job experience as it will facilitate those long term professional relatioships
• Thank your employer for your experience and keep in touch with them
• Consider to connect with them on LinkedIn or other professional social media platforms

Request references

• Ask for permission each time you want to use them as reference
• Or if you have already got the permission to use them as reference every time you apply, then at least inform them every time you had an interview and already provided them as a reference
• If you already provided them as reference then give your references a copy of your current resume (if you feel comfortable) and a description of the job you applied for – it helps them to prepare in case your interviewer contacts them
• You can also ask your current or former colleagues and supervisors to endorse your skills or provide a recommendation on LinkedIn

  

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