2010-2011 student handbook - El Camino College Compton Center

• Visit Your career center. Your campus most likely has
an office full of dedicated professionals whose sole
purpose is to help you find an internship or a job
after college. At most schools, this is called the
College And Career Development Center.
The career center will often deliver seminars on such topics as
resume writing, interviewing skills, and marketing yourself to
the working world. They might host career networking mixers
where you can chat informally with people who already work
in the career you are planning to pursue.
Contact your campus’s career center to learn more about
upcoming events or to get on an email list to update
you periodically.
• Plan To Attend Career Fairs on Campus. Career fairs
are usually set up by your career center and present
you with a valuable opportunity to deliver your
resume to many different employers at once.
Visit each company’s booth that interests you, and talk to the
representative as you drop off your resume. Anything you can
do to distinguish yourself from the other candidates milling
around the career fair will go a long way in making sure that
your resume lands in the right hands.
Make sure to follow up with a short email to thank the person
you spoke to for taking time to talk to you.
Networking is the best way to get first-hand information about
working in a particular career, and can lead to opportunities to
establish relationships with the decision-makers who might
ultimately offer you a job at their company.
• Explore Online Career Resources. There are several
excellent websites dedicated to career exploration
services. Here are a few of the better-known ones:
www.WetFeet.com: This website is dedicated to helping job
seekers research career options by providing a comprehensive
collection of information on any career you might be considering.
www.Monster.com: A huge database of job openings, articles,
career tools, and advice.
www.MonsterTrak.com: A great website for finding internships
and entry-level employment opportunities.
www.CareerBuilder.com: Another excellent job search website
with nationwide coverage.
www.Career.com: This site is free for employers, so you might
have a better selection of positions to choose from on this site.
www.TrueCareers.com: This website is dedicated to helping
people with degrees get on the track to a new career.
www.Indeed.com: A no-frills job search site with jobs arranged
by starting salary.
• Network With Alumni in Job Areas that Interest You.
Your career center will most likely have a database of
alumni who have already agreed to allow current
students to contact them for networking purposes.
www.CollegeRecruiter.com: This site specializes in internships
and entry-level positions.
Also, check out your college’s Job Posting Board at the Career
Development Office.
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