Internships/Job Search
Looking for a job or an internship takes time, effort, and persistence. Career and Professional Development (CPD) is here to help! Below you’ll find useful advice and resources for every step of the search. Start by emailing CPD to set up an appointment!
Internship Search
- Plan Ahead
- Consider the basic requirements
- Consider what you have to offer an organization
- List your goals & expectations
- Network
- Pursue Leads, Advertised Internships or Create Your Own
- Meet with CPD to Prepare and Apply
Job Search
- Make a Plan
- Network
- Find Job Openings
- Research
- Prepare Your Materials and Apply
Networking
Countless available jobs are never advertised (or aren’t advertised widely), which is why you need to network to find opportunities. Talk to anyone and everyone about your job search, specifically focus on professionals who are already working in your field. Alumni, faculty, and professional associations are a great place to start.
Ways to Build Your Network
- Linked In – Currently the premier website for professional networking, Linked In allows you to create a professional profile and use your personal network for information, introductions to others and recommendations.
- Young Professionals Groups – In cities around the country, professionals in their 20’s and 30’s are organizing their own associations. A great place to network – or to meet people in a new town.
- Fort Wayne: Young Leaders of Northeast Indiana (YLNI)
- Central Indiana:Â Young Professionals of Central Indiana
Ask for Ideas, Not Jobs
Most contacts are happy to help students with their professional pursuits, but you have to ask the right questions in the right way. Start by contacting persons in your network and ask if they’re willing to help with some questions related to your job search. If they agree, think carefully about the type of information each contact can offer. Below are some ideas.
Ask professionals out of your field for:
- Contacts in your field
- Recommendations for potential employers to research
Ask professionals in your field for:
- Information on how to get started
- Suggestions for websites to use
- Professional associations worth joining
- Any openings you should consider
- Recommendations or introductions to potential employers
- Other contacts in your field
- Opportunity to job shadow or meet for an information interview
- Ideas for volunteer or internship opportunities
Salaries and Offers
Job offers and salaries can be tricky topics. The resources below can help you become more knowledgeable about typical salary ranges for your field, and how to negotiate to ensure a fair compensation package. If you’re going to talk salary, make sure you’ve done your homework. We are happy to discuss this with you, email to set up an appointment!
Handling Job Offers
Throughout your job search process, you should be researching and evaluating the organization. You need to learn all you can in order to know whether to accept an offer or not. In addition to the responsibilities of the job, here are just some of the things to consider: work environment, opportunities for advancement, relocation considerations and the compensation package. The research you did on the organization, as well as your questions and impressions at the interview, can help you gather information to make your decision easier.
Salary Research Links
- Entry-level Salary Information: NACE Salary Calculator Center
- Additional Salary Research: Salary.com and Wages by Location – Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Be sure to check professional associations in your field for additional salary guides.
Guidelines for Salary Research
- Remember that compensation varies by industry and geographic location.
- Pay attention to how the salary statistics were gathered. Many books and websites contain national salary figures, which may include wide variation from state-to-state.
- Remember how an average/mean is computed, and keep in mind that outliers (especially high or low figures) can skew an average.
- Keep in mind that reported salary figures are usually not entry-level unless they say “Starting Salary Offers”. Unless labeled “entry-level,” expect salary stats to include people with 10+ years of experience.
- Look at several sources of information. Statistics have limitations – using several sources will give you a more accurate picture.
- Privately-owned, for-profit companies tend to pay more (on average) than non-profits and governmental agencies.