Keys to an Effective Job Search

Hampshire students and alums have strong skills and varied experiences that employers find impressive. CORC can help you with your job search: attend CORC workshops, visit the CORC web pages, and meet with a CORC career counselor to discuss the specifics of your search. Here are the fundamentals of an effective job search strategy:

1. Clarify your focus

 * Analyze your interests, values and skills to find careers that incorporate them.
 * Take another look at your Division II courses, projects and retrospective for inspiration. Does your Division III research or project lead you to a particular field?
 * Develop a “master” résumé that will help you identify the skills you can present to an employer, as well as skills you wish to develop. You can fine-tune and tailor the résumé when you target particular employers or job openings. Check out CORC's How to Write a Resume for helpful tips and guidelines.


 * Research careers and organizations that interest you. The CORC library and web site, the Hampshire Connect Alumni Network, and the Internet are good places to start.


 * Decide upon a direction your search will take.

2. Network for information and referrals
Networking is connecting with people who can 1) provide general information about a career area, organization, or geographic location that interests you, and 2) refer you to specific job openings. Information Interviewing, described below, is an effective way to gather information and build your network. Up to 80% of all positions are filled without employer advertising. These positions are the Hidden Job Market and they are filled by – sometimes even created for – candidates who come to an employer's attention through such means as employee recommendations, referrals from family, friends and professional associates, and recruiters. The employer doesn’t necessarily know these candidates, but they come "pre-recommended" by someone the employer trusts. Networking – using using your contacts to connect with an employer – is your key to the Hidden Job Market. (Source: Jobstar.org) You may not feel that you have a useful network of contacts, but every person you know is a potential source of career information, including family, friends, and alums. If you haven’t used or developed your network, now is the time to start! Some places to begin:


 * Seek out your professors, advisors, Div II and Div III committee members, and former employers to discuss your job search and ask for suggestions.


 * Contact Hampshire alumni. Alumni contact information is available in binders in CORC. If you are an alum, you can access alumni information through the Hampshire College Intranet. For more details go to Hampshire’s web page and click on Alumni; at the Alumni page click on Networking. (Remember: alums are very willing to help with information and advice, but it is not appropriate to ask them directly for a job.)


 * Talk about your job search with your parents, your parents’ friends, the parents of your own friends, aunts and uncles – in other words, anyone you know who has been in the workplace for awhile pursuing a career. They may be able to give you good general advice or specific information, or may know of someone working in your area of interest.


 * Find contacts at organizations where you would love to work and let them know that, although there may be no job openings at the moment, you would like to be considered in the future. Convey why you are interested in the organization and what skills you have to offer.


 * Volunteer! Find an agency or group that needs people with your talents and interests, and get involved. You may meet some people who can be helpful in your job search, or give you useful referrals. The Information Interview (For more tips, see CORC’s Information Interviewing handout.)


 * Identify professionals working in careers or at organizations that interest you.


 * Contact the people you’ve identified, asking if they’d be willing to talk with you about your interest in their field or organization. Most professionals are used to such requests and happy to help.


 * Prepare by doing research beforehand. If you go in with background knowledge of the field/organization and have a prepared list of questions, you will be more likely to achieve the goals of an information interview: good advice, helpful information, and referrals to other potentially valuable contacts.


 * When people have agreed to meet with you for an information interview, it is never appropriate to ask them directly for a job. You may bring your resume for the purpose of discussion; your contact may offer to pass it along to others in the organization, or may even offer information about specific job openings.

3. Join professional associations

 * As a member of an association, you can join listservs and chat rooms for networking and information. You will be able to keep up with trends in the profession. Some associations have employment referral services or advertise actual job openings. Many have reduced membership fees for students and recent graduates. • You can find a lot of good information about professional associations on the Internet. You may also refer to the Encyclopedia of Associations in the CORC library.


 * Attend professional conferences and network with members. There is often a job board or a job/interview fair at these conferences. Bring copies of your résumé and be ready to interview.

4. Obtain leads on employers from as many sources as possible

 * Join the CORC JobSeekers Listserv.


 * Visit the CORC web site for job search databases and career links according to area of interest. Check out

Spotlight on Careers, which covers over 30 career fields, with comprehensive links for each. • Participate in the 5-College interview program and job fairs to gain exposure to at least 100 for-profit and nonprofit organizations. A nonprofit career fair is held each spring.


 * Review the employer information in the CORC library.
 * Look in local newspapers and even in the Yellow Pages for organizations in your area of interest. If you are looking for jobs in a distant location, you can often find newspapers (including classified ads) for that location online. Town libraries usually have Yellow Pages for most major cities.

5. Apply directly to relevant employers

 * Obtain the name, title, and telephone number of the person most likely to be doing the hiring – the department manager, the president of a small company, the director of an agency. Look for this information on the organization’s web page, or phone/email them and ask.


 * Learn about the potential employer’s mission, service, products, culture and performance.


 * Organizations look for job applicants in a variety of ways. Small nonprofits tend to look only when someone resigns, at which point they usually want to hire quickly. A good network is a vital source of information about job openings in the nonprofit sector.

6. Take a post-baccalaureate internship

 * This can give you additional work experience to strengthen your credentials in a specific field. It is also a good way to explore your interest in a field before committing to a full-time job or graduate program.


 * A research study of nonprofit employees done by The Forbes Funds showed that 7 out of 10 began their nonprofit career with an internship.

7. Expand your job options

 * Consider temporary work, which will expose you to various work responsibilities, work environments and career

professionals who can assist you in defining your interests or career choices. Also, temporary work may lead to permanent, full-time employment.


 * Give thought to taking a less than perfect job, which may position you for a better one. Internal candidates often have an edge. Also use this tactic to gain experience, enhance your resume and expand your network.