University Career Center

Once the ball starts rolling on your search, you’ll need to be able to quickly showcase your qualifications to employers and connections. As you begin your search, you’ll want to have:

• Resumes
  • ​You’ll eventually end up tailoring your resumes to specific jobs, but creating your resume early or freshening up an existing resume makes things easier when it’s time to apply. Once you feel confident with your draft, you can use it as a foundation to then tailor it to the different roles to which you are applying. 
• Cover Letters
  • ​Cover Letters aren’t always required, but getting familiar with what to include before you start applying can help you easily create one when it is required. Even when not required, if there is an option to submit one and it is an organization you are interested in, expressing that interest in a cover letter that highlights your skills and experiences can go a long way.
• Digital Profiles
  • ​Your digital “brand” is important in this virtual environment. You’ll want to make sure your online and social media profiles are complete and showcase you well when employers are searching online for candidates. By freshening up your profiles, these tools can start working for you by notifying you of targeted job postings recommendations and connections. We recommend starting with profiles on LinkedIn, Handshake, UCAN.
• Interviews
  • ​Plan ahead! Interviewing is a SKILL -- you want to get good at it! Interviews can be scheduled on short timelines in a search process, so get ahead of the game by preparing and practicing. 

The UCC coaches are here to support you with all your preparation for interviews, resumes, cover letters, sharpening your online tools like LinkedIn, and learning tips to best leverage Handshake. Make an appointment for more help.

The best advice other students have shared is to start early when looking for a job/internship: National statistics show that most searches take 3-6 months. Make the most of your time by developing a strategy that allows you to maximize the time you have available.

Resist the urge to spend all of your time dropping the same resume into large job posting boards. That’s not a job/internship search! Recent studies indicate between 60-70% of jobs are obtained through word of mouth/networking.

Now, this doesn’t mean you should ignore job boards- use those too! Organize your search (and your time) so you can prioritize specific employers that interest you, have great opportunities, or are in fields of interest and then seek out alumni and other professionals in those areas to talk with to get a better understanding of how to succeed (AND uncover opportunities that you may not have known about).

Here’s a strategy to stay organized. Create a spreadsheet with three tabs: 

• Organizations to Target
  • Create a list of 30-40 organizations you want to target. This is your “prospect list”. Pick a few at a time to focus on and continue to work through your list. Go to the organizations’ websites to see if they are hiring and at the same time learn more about them. Reach out to a recruiter to learn about their hiring process and also any U-M alumni at the organization for an informational interview. You always want to learn more about the organization and how to stand out as a top candidate for their positions. 
• Contacts 
  • Search UCAN and LinkedIn for alumni who can help you navigate your search and give you insight into their organization or industry. Track your outreach so you remember when to check back in with them (AND the key step, documenting that you sent a thank you note!). So many people are excited when college students reach out and they are more than willing to talk and be helpful (especially alumni from Michigan!) 
• Applications
  • Track your applications in one place so you never miss a deadline. The Muse offers a free spreadsheet template. Check on applications that you haven’t received any feedback on to see where those organizations are in their processes and express your continued interest.

Consider using alerts on your calendar or phone to remind you about application deadlines. 

Meet with UCC Career Coaches for a job search appointment or internship lab if you find yourself at a standstill, need help generating more options, or have other questions!

Networking is the single most effective way to optimize your job search. Don’t get stuck in a rut spending hours everyday hitting “submit” for jobs posted on unwieldy job boards. By networking you gain access to people who can give you advice, help you navigate how to be successful, share with you opportunities they hear about, and sometimes get you connected to other professionals so you can keep expanding your connections! 

U-M alumni are an excellent place to start:

• UCAN- University Career Alumni Network has thousands of alumni volunteers who are willing to talk with you, answer your career questions and offer their advice. 
• LinkedIn U-M Alumni Tool- LinkedIn has over 300,000+ U-M alumni on the platform. There you can find alumni in every industry and in thousands of organizations.

• Sharpen materials:
  • Use VMock and Targeted Resume for instant feedback.
    • VMock uses artificial intelligence to show you how you can improve your resume while TargetResume gives you feedback on how your resume can be uniquely tailored to each internship or job posting you’re applying to.
    • Together, these two resources give you a way to increase the odds of your resume landing in the hands of the person responsible for hiring and interview decisions. Hint: This is also a great topic for an appointment with a career coach.
  • Handshake profiles matter. Make yours work for you.  
    • Do you want recruiters to see your profile on Handshake and reach out to you directly? Enhance your profile with the 3 must-haves for recruiters. This will significantly increase recruiter interest.
    • And don't forget your LinkedIn profile too. In these days of virtual engagement, your online profiles are more important than ever. Here are a couple of great resources for tips on making your profile pop. LinkedIn and LearnLearnRetire.
• Prepare to ace a virtual interview (e.g., phone, Google Meets, Zoom, and more): While many of the same best practices apply to both in-person and virtual interviews, there are some unique considerations as well. Big Interview is a tool to help you learn the basics of interviewing and to practice answering interview questions. You can also check out these resources with timely tips from the pros. Hint: This is also a great topic for an appointment with a career coach.
  • Live Career
  • The Balance
  • The Muse
  • Hire Vue
• Build skills: Sharpen the skills that will be important in any future position or learn something totally new. Checkout free websites or apps: LinkedIn Learning, Kahn Academy, Udemy, Coursera, DuoLingo, Vault, and more. Some possible skills include:
  • SPSS, SAS, Tableau and other data analysis tools
  • Excel
  • Google AdWords 
  • Learn a foreign language
  • Learn a programming language
• Gain Experience: This could be a time to try new things or to get involved in your community. These are an excellent way to meet new people, build skills, and expand your interests.
  • Create a website 
  • Launch a blog
  • Create and share a video
  • Volunteer in the community and offer your services to a community organization
• Micro-internships: Many employers offer short term, virtual, paid, professional experiences to get projects completed and to test potential applicants for permanent positions.  For students, these practical experiences are great for skill building, testing out your interests, making some money, and getting a foot in the door. For access to paid micro-internships, check out: Parker Dewey, MindSumo (click I’m a problemsolver), and Forage.