So you want to be a CEO?

 

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a CEO of a large company? Well this is your chance to experience and see what the life of a CEO is all about! Odgers Berndtson, a global executive search firm, has collaborated with Career Services to give Brock University Students the opportunity to be a CEO for a day! This is a valuable opportunity that you won’t want to pass down. Successful candidates will have the opportunity to shadow CEOs which will allow them to ask questions, network, and get there name floating around the company!

Participating Companies

Successful candidates will have the opportunity of visiting one of the companies listed below, located in either Toronto or Montreal.

·         Adidas

·         Cineplex

·         Sisco

·         GE Canada

·         Pan Am Game Organization Committee

·         Purolator

·         Twitter Canada

Who is Eligible?

Students must be in their 3^rd or 4^th year of study at Brock University.

When Can I Apply?

Applications open from October 1, 2013 to October 25, 2013. Applications will also be accessible through Career Zone.

Selection Process

Since there are only a handful of participating companies, the selection process will be competitive. For detailed information on the selection process, visit:  http://ceox1day.ca/selection-process/

Good luck!

Nella Paris
Senior Career Assistant
Psychology Major (Honours)

Goal Setting and De-Stressing!

Getting back into a regular school schedule is hard enough, but with juggling your personal life, academic work, extracurricular activities, a part time job, and anything else you might have on your plate, the world can begin to feel extremely overwhelming. A fantastic way to sort through all of the stresses of life is to write everything down, have a 'due date' for getting things done, and essentially giving yourself a visual of what you need to do. Goal setting is a skill all in its own and developing this skill during your post-secondary education will benefit you both now and later on in life.

At Career Services, we recommend using our 'Goal Action Forms' which will allow you to organize your overwhelming objectives into a clear and simplified chart:

A couple of 'Goal' examples could be:

• Get a part-time job
• Complete the first draft of my essay
• Obtain three references for graduate school
• Finish planing my friend's surprise party before her birthday

As you can see, a goal action form can be used for all aspects of your life - not just career and school related activities.

The second section, 'Purpose of Goal', is where you include information on why this goal is important to you and why you need to complete it. This can be as vague or as in depth as you feel comfortable with. There are no right or wrong ways of completing a Goal Action form.

'Action Steps' are the breakdown of what portion of your goal you want to have done and 'Completed By' is the due date that you give yourself. It helps to be a little more specific in this section since this allows you to break your main goal into smaller goals which will assist you in truly understanding what steps need to be taken before your main goal is completed. If you were creating a Goal Action Form for finding an on-campus job this section might look something like this:

'Investment', the fourth section of the goal action form, is where you include information regarding the money, time, and resources that are necessary for you to complete your goal. For example, if you know that your friends birthday party is going to cost around $100.00 to plan, include this information here.

And finally - the most important part! - the 'Goal Completion Date'. Remember to make this realistic and to fill it in after you have filled out the rest of the Goal Action Form. This way you can ensure that the completion date falls under the designation of being a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timely) goal. 

The Goal Action Forms are available in the Career Resource Centre. Feel free to stop by and grab as many as you would like, free of charge! The Career Assistants will be happy to help you fill out your Goal Action Form and assist you with breaking down your big career related goal into smaller SMART goals.We are open from 9:00 - 4:30 from Monday to Friday - no appointment necessary!

Best of luck with your goal setting!

Ashley Paolozzi, Lead Career Assistant
4th Year History of Art (Honours)

Big Updates to the DEGs!

Many of you have probably already come into our office to pick up your program specific Degree Exploration Guide. If you haven't, these guides (which we call DEGs for short) include listings of Career Options, Transferable Skills, Career Search Resources, Volunteer Resources, and links to a list of Professional Associations that are all specific to your program.

During this past summer, I went through each guide and included any updated information, new websites, career options, and professional associations that I felt were a good fit. We have also been working closely with your academic advisers to ensure all of our information is accurate and reflects the interests of the students in these programs. 

Though every DEG was evaluated and updated, I paid special attention to Brock's Faculty of Humanities and did a very large re-haul of many of these program's guides.

The following Humanities DEGs are now available in the Career Resource Centre (hard copy) and as PDFs online:

• Applied Linguistics
• Canadian Studies
• Classics (*Major updates*)
• Dramatic Arts
• English Language and Literature
• History (*Major updates*)
• History of Art and Visual Culture (*NEW*)
• Interactive Arts and Science
• Liberal Arts (*Major updates*)
• Medieval and Renaissance Studies (*Major updates*)
• Modern Languages, Literature, and Cultures
• Music
• Philosophy (*Major updates*)
• Studies in Arts and Culture (*Major updates*)
• Studio Art (*NEW*)

With regards to the new DEGs for the History of Art and Visual Culture and Studio Art programs, these were originally combined on a general 'Visual Arts' DEG. However, with the onset of program changes, these two disciplines have been separated. The History of Art DEG contains art history and culture specific information while the Studio Art DEG has arts and culture specific information. 

That being said, there were many changes made to programs within the other faculties that are also worth checking out. If you came into our office before the beginning of the 2013/2014 school year to get your DEG, we highly suggest you come back in and grab an updated version. You can also find all of the updated versions of our Degree Exploration Guides on our website.

If you have any questions or would like to pick up a hard copy of your DEG, feel free to stop by the Resource Centre!

Ashley Paolozzi, Lead Career Assistant
4th Year History of Art (Honours)

Ways to Contact Career Services

Looking for some assistance with your career planning process? We can help! There are several ways that you can contact Career Services if you have a question or concern relating to your career.

Drop-in - The easiest and most efficient way to receive advice is to drop-in to the Career Services Resource Centre. We are located on the main floor of the Matheson Learning Commons across from the Peer Help Desk. We are open Monday to Friday from 9am-4:30pm (closed statutory holidays). The best part is – NO appointment necessary (and it’s FREE)!!!

Website - Many of the resources we offer can be found on the Career Services website, including ways to access workshops and assessments tools, job search sites, info about our Plus Programs, and much more!

Live Chat - During most of our office hours, one of our well-trained Career Assistants will be online on our new Career Chat! This online chat function lets you ask quick career-related questions from the comfort of your own home (or anywhere else you may be!) when it isn’t convenient for you to drop-in to the Resource Centre. If we are offline, you can leave us a message and we will respond to you via email usually within a day or so! Access the Career Chat from our home page.

Email - Got a career-related question? Does your resume need revamping? Simply email your question or your career document to career@brocku.ca and we will help you over email if it is not convenient for you to come to our office. This is also a great solution for Alumni who are no longer on campus very often.

Twitter - Follow @JackMcIsaac (Career Services’ Mascot) on Twitter: twitter.com/JackMcIsaac

Facebook - ‘Like’ us on Facebook at: facebook.com/jack.mcisaac

Phone - Quick questions about our services offered and if we are the right service for your needs can be directed to 905-688-5550 Ext.#5115

Pinterest - Follow us on Pinterest at: pinterest.com/jackmcisaaccs

Blog – If you are reading this post, then you probably already follow our blog but here is the website anyways! You can post comments about our posts and we can respond to you!

Now that you have found out all of the ways to contact us, you have no excuse for not utilizing this FREE, drop-in service that can help you at all stages of the career planning process! See you soon!

 

Jami Coughler, Senior Career Assistant

4^th Year Public Health [Honours]

BA: Sociology, Criminology Concentration [Honours] ‘11

Career-Zone! What is it good for? Absolutely everything!

Career-zone is your one stop shop for career related resources, events, job postings and more.

The job posting board on career-zone can be configured to show all job/internships/volunteer positions or only on campus positions. Local companies and businesses within brock both paid and volunteer are posted in one convenient location.  Upload your resume and cover letter directly to career-zone to create an application package and apply for jobs right on the website. BAM! Want to see a sample resume from someone in your program? We have those on career zone too!

 The events tab is the place to find out what career related events are happening and when. Events are shown in a calendar format which makes it easy to see what’s happening every day. See something you like? Click on the event for more information or to register.

The resources section of career-zone connects you to special services that are only available to brock students. Websites such as www.careercruising.com, www.typefocus.com, and www.goingglobal.com, are offered to Brock students FREE of charge. Through them you will find valuable career assessments which can be a valuable tool and a great first step in your career planning process.  Come in to see a career assistant to learn more about this awesome resource!

Need help writing a resume or cover letter? The workshops tab is a great place to start. Our helpful workshops cover resume writing, cover letter writing, interviewing basics, and portfolio development. Once you have the basics down come on in to the career services center with a hard copy of your document and have a career assistant review your documents for free.

 

This is only a few of the great resources you can find on career-zone. Be sure to take a few minutes and explore how career zone can work for you. Need help? The career services team is always here for you just drop by between 9-4:30 Monday to Friday.

Advantages to having a Part-Time Job while attending Post-Secondary School

Working part-time while attending university or college has many benefits. Some students may shy away from work because of the belief that they won’t have enough time for their studies if they are also working. The fact is that there are many on-campus jobs available for students that are extremely flexible and adaptable to student’s school schedules.

Check out the links below. Here you can find many different part-time on-campus jobs. Career Zone has both on-campus and off-campus jobs.

·         Career Zone

·         Brock University Student’s Union (B.U.S.U.)

·         Brock Dining Services

·         Recreation Services

·         Student Life and Community Experience

Working Off-Campus

If you can’t find work on-campus, don’t be worried about working off-campus. Employers who hire students are aware that you are in school and usually expect that they need to be flexible in order to accommodate your schedule.

Be sure to discuss schedule flexibility in an interview. It is important to be honest with yourself and the employer. If the employer requests that you work a number of hours that you feel are too much in addition to your studies, then let the employer know. If you turn down the job, you will at least have gained interview experience.

Benefits working while attending College or University

As a Senior Career Assistant, I see many students who have been well educated, but lack real world work experience. Education is important to have, but employers also like to see candidates who have work related skills and experience. This type of experience can be gained through volunteering, internships and jobs.

If you have any other questions about working on or off-campus, stop by the Career Resource Centre in the Learning Commons; or check out our resources online at http://brocku.ca/career-services]

Nella Paris
Senior Career Assistant
Psychology Major (Honours)

Resource Centre Information - Who are we and how can we help YOU?

Now that we have all had time to settle in to our new courses and schedules, I wanted to let you know the amazing and helpful resources that the Career Services Resource Centre has to offer students, alumni, staff/faculty, and community members!

The Career Services Resource Centre is located on the main floor of the Matheson Learning across from the Peer Assistant Help Desk. We are a free drop-in service open Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 4:30pm.

Listing every single service and resource we provide would take forever so I just wanted to highlight some of the main (the list is still pretty long though!) reasons why the Resource Centre should be on your list of places to visit (frequently!). 

  Career Planning Resources:

o   Degree Exploration Guides – Highlight career options, job search resources, volunteer and internships resources, community directories, and more…We have these tailored to every single program at Brock! They can also be accessed online through our website at: http://www.brocku.ca/career-services/students-alumni/degree

o   Career Assessments – We offer Brock students and alumni free accessed to Career Cruising and Type Focus. Both are invaluable tools for figuring out who you are, what your interests are, and what jobs you would be good at! They can both also be used as job search tools to find salary rates and job descriptions (hint: use the career options on your Degree Exploration Guide!)

o   Occupational Research Resources – Doing your research is an important step in the career planning process. Knowing what jobs are out there, what they entail, and what you need to do to get to your dream job can help make career-related decisions much easier and practical. Check out our Occupational Research section of our website at: http://www.brocku.ca/career-services/students-alumni/research

  Career and Academic Documents:

o   Resume and Cover Letter Reviews – Aside from a multitude of resources and handouts that can help you create and tailor your resume and cover letter to employers, we also offer workshops. For more information go to: http://www.brocku.ca/career-services/students-alumni/workshops . After you create your career documents, bring in a hard copy to our Resource Centre for a free, 10 minute review session with a trained Career Assistant – NO appointment necessary! If you are not on campus, feel free to email your documents to career@brocku.ca and we will send you back a reviewed copy within about 1-2 business days.

o   CVs, Letters of Intent, Personal Statements of Interest – Just like resumes and cover letters, we have various resources that can help you prepare these academic documents and we offer free review sessions in person (drop-in) or by email.

o   Portfolios – From sample career portfolios to portfolio review sessions, the Resource Centre can help you develop and perfect this vital career tool. 

   Job Search Resources: We can help you find on-campus, off-campus, volunteer, internship, and career positions. Stop by the Resource Centre during office hours or check out our Find a Job section of our website at: http://www.brocku.ca/career-services/students-alumni/find-job . CareerZone (the first site listed under the “Find a Job” tab) is our own online job board for on-campus and community employers to post various types of employment. This requires a valid and active Brock log-in so Alumni may need to re-activate their log-in information to access this site. We also have information regarding interview techniques and offer mock interview sessions if booked at least 2 weeks in advance!

  Further Education Resources: From graduate school guides to academic job search information, we have something for everyone when it comes to further education.

  Abroad Resources: We have tons of resources and information about studying, working, volunteering, and teaching abroad! 

  

      As you can tell, the Career Services Resource Centre has something a variety of resources that can help you at all stages of your career planning process – we are a MUST on your places to see on campus whether you are an incoming 1^st year, graduating student, or alumni. See you soon!

  Jami Coughler, Senior Career Assistant

  4th Year Bachelor of Public Health [Honours]

  Bachelor of Arts: Sociology [Honours] '11

 

Coming Soon: Shop for Jobs Fair!

Mark Your Calendars!

  The 2013 Shop for Jobs Fair will take place on 

Tuesday, September 17th from 12PM - 6PM!

Shop for Jobs Event, 2010 (Image from The Brock News, 2011)

Brock University and Niagara College welcome their current students to the annual Shop for Jobs Fair at The Pen Centre in St. Catharines! Only a quick shuttle bus away from Brock's main campus, this popular shopping destination for Niagara residents is filled with a variety of stores that are looking to hire students for part-time positions during the school year!

Stores participating in the Shop for Jobs Fair this year include:

Clothing Stores:

Aeropostale
Aldo
American Eagle
The Bay
Buffalo David Bitton
Bootlegger
Danier
Garage Clothing
Jean Machine
Journey's
La vie en Rose
Le Chateau Ladies
Mexx
Ricki's
RW & CO.
Sears
Spring Shoes
Stiches
Suzy Shier

Electronics and Entertainment Stores:

Best Buy Mobile
HMV
Telus

Miscellaneous Stores:

Bath & Body Works
Green Earth
Zehrs
NJN Jewelers
Things Remembered
Michael Hill Jewelers
Pen Centre Guest Services
Stitch It

Visit the Pen Centre on September 17th between 12PM and 6PM with your resume, professional attire, and a sparkling personality for the opportunity of receiving on the spot interviews from all of the store listed above! For more information on preparing for the Shops for Jobs Fair feel free to stop by the Career Services office to talk to one of our incredible Career Assistants and to grab a copy of our "10 Tips for Success: Shop for Jobs" handout.

See you soon!

Ashley Paolozzi, Lead Career Assistant
4th Year History of Art (Honours)
_________________________________________________
For other opportunities working at the Pen Centre be sure to check the Job Opportunities section of there website which can be found here.

Welcome Back Badgers!

On behalf of Career Services I would like to extend a warm welcome to our new and returning Brock University students. We encourage both students and alumni from all faculties to utilize our services in order to strengthen their professional documents and better prepare themselves for part-time jobs and the eventual career world.

As a refresher, Career Services is a free drop-in service located within the Learning Commons that assists students and alumni of the Brock community with any career/job/post-graduate questions and concerns. Our services include (but are not limited to!) the following:

• On and off campus job search strategies and websites including Career Zone our online job posting board only accessible to Brock students and alumni (careerzone.brocku.ca)
• Resume, Cover Letter, and CV evaluations, templates, and workshops
• Teach/volunteer/work abroad information as well as international resume samples
• Program specific resumes and Degree Exploration Guides that include information specific to each of Brock's programs such as Career Options, Professional Associations, and Job Search sites
• An assortment of printed handouts and books available on various topics including information on specific careers, job search, resume/cover letter writing, going abroad, etc.
• Portfolio creation, samples, and evaluations
• Post-graduate information including prep books for graduate entrance exams
  

If you have any questions about your current and post-graduation job search feel free to stop by our office!

   We are currently operating on regular Fall/Winter hours:

9:00 - 4:30 Monday - Friday 

Ashley Paolozzi, Lead Career Assistant
4th Year History of Art (Honours)

Welcome Career Assistant Team 2013-2014!!

Welcome back Brock students…I hope that you had an amazing and fun-filled summer holiday! Another school year is about to begin and we hope to continue to provide you with the best career-related advice and resources that we can. This year’s blog writers will include myself (Senior Career Assistant), Nella (Senior Career Assistant), Becky (Senior Career Assistant), and Ashley (Lead Career Assistant)! You may even hear a bit from Ben (Senior Career Assistant) and Brittany (Lead Career Assistant) from time to time.

I would like to take this time to introduce our new Career Assistants to the Career Services family!! I asked them each to write a little bit about themselves, their summer vacation, and what they look forward to about working at Career Services:

Anthony Mancuso (yes, he is Lia’s brother!!) is going into his 2^nd year of the Sport Management program here at Brock and loves it!  He writes: “My career aspiration is to use sport as a catalyst for change in developing countries. At Career Services I look forward to helping people discover more about themselves, and also I look forward to discovering more about myself in the process.This summer was the first time I went camping (crazy right?). My friends and I camped up in Tobermory and we went bouldering and caving which was wild”. Wow, that’s WILD Tony!!

Kelsey Osborne is going into her 3^rd year of Sociology and aspires to be a Wedding Planner! She writes: “I am looking forward to working for Career Services because I want to help other students at Brock discover their aspirations and then reach them by using the resources that Career Services has to offer”. Kelsey spent her summer “exploring British Columbia and falling in love with the mountains”. That sounds like an experience of a life time Kelsey!

Erik Gunn is going into his 4^th year of Bachelor of Business Administration – concentrating in Finance. His career aspirations are “to make a difference in the world and to attain my CFA
designation and own my own business”. Erik Writes: “I look forward to interacting with new people and making a difference for students. Also I plan on learning a lot about myself and what I can do to brighten my future as well as others”. Erik was busy over the summer; he attained his full motorcycle license and planned a trip to Vegas for Christmas break! Sounds like a blast Erik!

Michael Pratas is working towards his Honours BA in Political Science with a minor in History and is entering his 2^nd year. Michael aspires to “work as a high school teacher or work in city government”. He writes: “I'm looking forward to learning about the student job market and helping students get jobs in the Brock community”. Over the summer holidays Michael planned trips to Florida and New York for the fall semester! What a great way to start off a new school year Mike!

I am very much looking forward to working with our wonderful new team of Career Assistants!! WELCOME Anthony, Kelsey, Erik, and Michael! We hope that you enjoy your time at Career Services as we have all enjoyed ours :) 

 

Jami Coughler, Senior Career Assistant

4^th Year Public Health [Honours]; BA Sociology [Honours] ‘11