The increase in enrollment suggests that students are excited about the opportunity to work in this sector – however we have noticed some outstanding job opportunities often overlooked by life science graduates.

Most notably, careers in agriculture.

Unemployment rates for college graduates with respect to industry. Click the picture for more information. Statistics provided by the 2010 U.S. Census.

As shown in the table above, the unemployment rates for Agriculture and Natural Resources and Science Life/Physical is relatively low. Using both of these industries in your job search will tremendously increase the number of jobs you can apply to.

Many of the skills you learn as a life science major can apply to careers in agriculture – which is an applied life science. The agriculture industry needs biological scientists for jobs that focus on research affecting both animals and plants. From nutrition and health to genetics and sustainability – scientists are key to new and innovative discoveries. And you don’t have to grow up on a farm or major in agriculture to make a difference.

At the CALS Etiquette Dinner a few years ago, I spoke to a representative from  Covance. She had an important role in one of Covance’s labs and a BS degree in a biological science. To my surprise, she didn’t start her career at Covance, but rather at a company called ABS Global, a bovine genetics company. She worked as a lab technician at ABS Global before eventually landing at Covance. This employer was able to use her lab skills and science background to transcend industries.

There are great opportunities in agriculture that are perfect for life science students – even if it might not be so obvious. Start by asking yourself a few important questions:  Do you want to help the planet by conserving resources and increasing food supply? Do you want to help improve the genetics of animals and plants? Do you want to make the food supply safer? If so, consider a career in agriculture!

By Jordan Simonson
CALS Career Services Peer Advisor

1. Start with the basics (resume, cover letter, references)

The first step to a stellar application is making sure there are no typos or grammatical errors in your resume, cover letter or references. Ask as many people as possible to look over your resume before you send it. Our peer advisors would be a great way to get an extra opinion on your resume.

2. Keywords

Keywords are words that describe important elements of the position. Many online applications use keyword searches to find the best matches for a position. A good way to find keywords for a specific position is to use the words used in the job description. Once you have some keywords, make sure to put them in your cover letter and resume when explaining your skills. Doing this will make your cover letter and resume more appealing to the person looking through your application.

3. Send your application early

Getting your application in early is a great way to stand out to your employer. You look like someone that gets their work done quickly, and you also give the employer extra time to review your qualifications. This can be especially important if you use tip number six.

4. Save everything in one file

When you send your application over email, make sure to save your cover letter, resume and references (in that order) in one pdf file together. Save the file as” lastname, firstname – position title” to help the employer when he or she have to save and remember multiple applications. You should also paste your cover letter into the email because putting your cover letter in the email body increases readership.

5. Get company employees to endorse you

Obtaining an endorsement from a company employee is actually very important because it is an indicator for the recruiter that you would be a good employee. You can obtain endorsements using LinkedIn. Simply reach out to employees that work in the organization to which you are applying. Interacting and sharing ideas with them could lead to endorsements. If you are able to obtain an endorsement from someone for a position, you can mention this in the first paragraph of your cover letter.

6. Social media

Social media is a tool that can be used to make your application look more appealing. Starting a blog about your industry is a great way to begin. It tells employers that you know about the industry and what you are talking about. You can use LinkedIn and Twitter to promote your blog and connect with others in the industry. Directing your content to the employer is a great way to get noticed. When using social media for this purpose, it is important to review all of the content extensively for mistakes. Putting your social media information on your resume is also a unique way to direct employers to this content.

Job applications are very important and shape an employer’s first impression of you. With attention to details and a few of our recommended tricks – you are sure to make your first impression count!

By Jordan Simonson
CALS Career Services Peer Advisor

CALS forestry student, Steve Link, at his summer internship for the Nicolet Hardwoods Corporation.

We can all remember the Earth Day festivities in elementary school when wildlife experts would bring animals to the classroom and tell us interesting facts about their behaviors and habitat. For some students, conserving these species and their environment turned into a career aspiration – something they wanted to do for the rest of their lives.

Environmental careers are gaining traction, and more students are finding jobs every year working with the environment. According to a study done by Universities in the Midwest, there has been a forty percent increase in the number of recent graduates accepting jobs in Environmental Sciences, Fisheries and Wildlife Biology since 2009. Average salaries have also increased by over ten percent during that time, from $29,962 in 2009 to $33,033 in 2012.

One place of large growth is in organizations that are beginning to make the environment a higher priority. Environmental Consultants are people that work with organizations to improve the organization’s impact on the environment and help them comply with regulations. The average salary in 2012 for an environmental consultant was $38,000, nearly $5,000 above the average salary stated above. The number of graduates with this job title has also increased 600 percent since 2011.

Maria McGinnis sitting at Gaylord Nelson’s desk. He was the founder of Earth Day.

Other positions including Environmental Technicians, Fisheries Biologists/Technicians, Urban Forresters and Wildlife Biologists/Technicians have also seen increases in salaries in the last four years.

As the environment continues to hold a larger importance to the general public, environmental jobs will continue to increase in demand. Earth Day has definitely helped increase support for conservation efforts around the world, and has probably helped the recent gains in environmental jobs as well.

1. How much experience is required?

As a college student, experience is the largest hurdle you will face. As a recent or upcoming graduate, stay away from positions that ask for three or more years of experience. When the experience required is below three years, then you need to use your judgement. Think critically about the amount of experience you have in the field and whether it comes close to the amount listed for the position.

2. Don’t focus too much on the major.

Some students get caught up in the major or field of study in a job description. For some positions, looking through the job duties will give you as good of a picture of whether you fit the position as the major listed in the position. In some cases, employers don’t fully understand all of the majors that could work for their open position. Most job descriptions list “or related field” next to their list of required majors. As long as you have the skills to back it up, you likely fall under the “related field” category.

3. Have you done the job before?

When looking at the job description, it is important to analyze whether you have previous experience with any of the job duties – either directly or indirectly. If you have already mastered a large portion of the job duties, you are likely qualified. If there are significant duties associated with the job you have not done, then you need to determine if you are able to learn these things quickly or if it will be too difficult. If you think you can learn – go for it! In a down economy, employers tend to gravitate to previous experience rather than potential. Love it or hate it, it’s expensive to hire people with “potential” alone and little to no experience.

4. What is required?

Many job descriptions have “Required” and “Preferred” qualifications sections. If there are significant required qualifications that you do not posses, then you might not qualify for the position. Whenever an employer lists a job duty or candidate attribute as “required”, it is important that you have the skill – or a variation of the skill. These requirements are considered the bare minimum experiences you must possess in order to be considered for the position. In terms of “preferred” qualifications – this area is where an employer lists skills and attributes that would allow a person to excel in the role. It’s almost like an employer “wish-list” – good to have, but not required to do the job. Much of the required/not required skill determination comes from data provided by the U.S. Department of Labor.

If you still have doubts about whether you qualify for a position, you can always call the employer. It’s better to ask clarifying questions proactively rather than spending time on applications materials only to find out you do not qualify. Asking questions also shows an employer that you have initiative and attention to detail! Happy job searching!

By Jordan Simonson
CALS Career Services Peer Advisor

The 2012 S.T.E.M Fair.

The UW S.T.E.M. Fair is tomorrow, Thursday, April 11, from 1-4 p.m. in the main lobby of the Engineering Centers Building. Below are five key tips and things to remember.

1. Wear professional dress

We all know you dislike (some hate) wearing professional dress, but you really should wear it for the S.T.E.M Fair. While we cannot speculate on what others will be wearing, if there are others wearing professional dress you will make a poor first impression if you are not wearing it too. If no one is wearing professional dress, think of the awesome impression you will make. The way I see it, it is a win-win to wear professional dress. Check us out on Pinterest for some great suggestions for Men and Women.

2. Come with an elevator pitch

Right after you shake their hand, give them a 30 second elevator pitch. This is in a nutshell, the verbal form of your cover letter. It explains who you are, your purpose for talking to them, why you feel you are qualified to talk to them and that you are really interested in their opportunities. With this, anything you can add in your elevator speech about the organization you are talking with is a great bonus. Most of the time you get a short window with the employer, so making sure they know you know about their company will give you more time to talk about what you want to talk about, a job.

3. Know who you want to talk to

Before you come in the doors of the Engineering Centers Building, you better know the companies you want to talk to. Not only should you know the employer you want to talk to, but about their organization in general. I have gone up to organizations before and gotten caught not knowing anything about them – not the best first impression. Check out these links for a complete list of employers and labs attending the S.T.E.M. Fair.

4. Do a warm-up

Before you go and talk to your top three employers, talk to an organization you are not really interested in. Just grab an organization that does not have a lot of people standing in line and give them your pitch. This will help get the wiggles out and sometimes you might find an organization you actually want to work for.

5. You won’t get a job here

The most important thing to remember when you go to any career fair setting is that you will NOT get a job at the fair. A career fair setting is meant to give you leads to positions and connections in an organization. It is the connections you make and facilitate after the fair that make it such a great event. Send the recruiter a thank you email with your resume attached the next day and you could get yourself on the top of the call back list. These connections are your gateway to getting positions in the organization in the future.

1. Be confident

Employers can sniff out a lack of confidence from a mile away. As the first question, this is where they test out whether you are confident or not. Check out this blog post, Interviewing with Confidence: Taming the Midwest Humble, for more information on how and why you need to be confident in your interview.

2. Start with your credentials

First, you should start with your credentials. ” I am a senior majoring in _____.” I always have this little segment down. These are the main points you want to get across to anyone that you meet. This will lay the groundwork for what you want to address in this question.

3. Tell them why you chose your major/industry – give them a story

Passion is one quality employers look for because it’s an indicator that you will be dedicated to the work you will be doing. Talking about the inspiration for your major and why you want to have a job in this field is one way to convey passion. For example, tell the interviewer about a class you took that was inspiring or a life event that caused you to go down this path. Tell a story that gives them a reason to keep listening, giving them insight into why you would be a passionate and enthusiastic employee.

4.Tell them about your experiences throughout college

You then need to transition to telling them about the most influential experiences you have had while in college. Give them a short synopsis of an influential class, your internships, students organizations, volunteer opportunities or anything else that has been influential. This gives them a quick overview of why you have the experience for the job.

5. Tell them how your experiences help them in this job

The most important thing is the ending, or the “hook”. Tell them why your experiences make you the best candidate for this position. Tie all of your experiences and your inspiration together to make you look like you are an enthusiastic candidate that has the experience to back it up. Try an ending phrase like “I am specifically drawn to this position because it would offer the opportunity to utilize my _______ skills and grow in the area of _____. I feel drawn to the work you do here based on past experience and future goals”.

The five steps outlined above represent one way to answer the question. We’ve gotten feedback from employers that this is a good raodmap – but it’s certainly not the only way. Feel free to mix it up a little. Have a friend ask you this question to gain experience and increase your confidence. Like it or not – this question will always come up in an interview, usually right away. Below is a video that demonstrates some good and bad answers to this question.

By Jordan Simonson
CALS Career Services Peer Advisor

As someone from the Midwest, you may not think you are humble, which is the mistake I made. At one of my interviews I felt I was very confident, but after the interview the employer told me, “I wish you would have more confidence in your accomplishments.” “Wait, I haven’t been confident?!,” I was shouting at the interviewer in my head.

Appearing confident to an employer is very important and can be one of the deciding factors in a hiring decision. Here are three tips to help you appear confident in an interview.

1. Talk about your “top five”

Before your interview, you should identify the five most important things on your resume that relate to the position for which you are interviewing. During your interview, you need to make sure you get each of these “top five” into the interview conversation. Once you talk about each once during the interview, mention them all again.

2. Do your research and come prepared

“What do you know about us?” is one of the most important questions organizations ask during an interview. This surprises many potential employees (including myself) and can derail your interview. This is why it is really important to do your homework before the interview. The organization website is a great place to get some background knowledge, but that is not where your research should end. You should also look at their social media pages to see the latest news an organization is promoting. Read their blog posts from the last month, especially if that blog post relates to the position to which you are applying. In multiple occasions during an interview, I have used this information to make myself look “in the know” about a company.

3. What questions will they ask?

An important drill to go through before the interview is to think about questions interviewers could ask you and then answer them. This exercise will help you answer questions faster and with more confidence during the interview.

After you do all of this, you may still need to quell your actual nerves. Just make sure to watch the “ums” and breathe before every answer. You don’t need to rush your answers -  slow and steady wins the race.

By Jordan Simonson
CALS Career Services Peer Advisor

“I love science and I always have, even in high school and middle school. I always loved numbers and looking at data to come up with solutions to problems,” said Gasteyer excitedly. “I came to college thinking I could do everything on my own, I didn’t need anyone else.  You realize when you come to college, not only is it good to take advantage of other people, but you have to.”

This was something Gasteyer learned from a residential community called Women in Science and Engineering (W.I.S.E.) her freshman year.  She was on a floor in Sellery Hall with 60 women all interested in science, technology, engineering or math (S.T.E.M.).

“It is a learning community that provides support because sometimes it can be really hard to be a woman in science. There are not a lot of us.  I am in Physics 201 right now, which I’d say is 80 percent guys.  That is different for me, my freshman year I was taking general classes like math and chemistry, which is pretty much a 50/50 split. As soon as you get to those higher level classes, it starts to get predominantly male. It can be hard because then you feel a lot of pressure being female and it can make you want to quit and give up.  That is the purpose of W.I.S.E., to start from an early age and start with that mindset of, ‘you can do it,’” said Gasteyer.

Not only has this opportunity allowed her to gain meaningful relationships with women in S.T.E.M. fields, it has also helped her get connected on campus, including getting a job in the Huttenlocher lab.

“Another huge thing that W.I.S.E. helped me do was meet professors, and that is actually how I met Dr. Anna Huttenlocher. She came to W.I.S.E. and gave a talk about her research and I thought what she was doing was really interesting. Her research pertains to auto-immune diseases and I had some personal experiences with it. I went up after the presentation and asked her about her research and I actually asked her if there were any positions open.  She basically said ‘yes, why don’t we meet sometime together and talk.’ So I did and I ended up getting a job.  I can say I have a job directly because of W.I.S.E.,” said Gasteyer.

Through W.I.S.E., Gasteyer also found a passion for communicating science to the public, something she learned when she volunteered at the UW Space Place to help teach children science.

“I have done outreach with the UW Space Place through the W.I.S.E. program.  For our second semester, we had to participate in eight hours of science outreach in the community.  We went there a few Saturdays over the semester and we came up with a kid-friendly presentation that was interactive and exciting.  It was basically to get kids excited about science,” said Gasteyer.

As a sophomore, Gasteyer is a peer mentor for W.I.S.E., where she is helping women learn from her experiences as a freshman and now as a sophomore.

“As a peer mentor for WISE, we try really hard to help the girls take advantage of their resources.  We tell them about resources and get them excited about things, how to go about looking for a job or a research position and how to get help if they are struggling in a class.  Our primary goal is to show the girls everything campus has to offer,” said Gasteyer. “Another part of it is how the girls can take advantage of each other too. You can’t do it on your own.  One of my goals as a peer mentor is help the girls figure out, ‘yeah, you can do it on your own sometimes, but it is really good if you can collaborate with other people on the floor.’  You need to do that to help yourself out.”

Even with the amazing experiences Gasteyer has had as a student, she still isn’t sure of her path.

“I am doing all of these things to try and figure out where I want to be. I am trying to figure out what interests me and what I’m passionate about enough to enjoy coming to work every day.  I did programs like W.I.S.E. and got a job in a lab because I wanted to figure that out,” said Gasteyer. “Since starting in my lab, I have figured a lot of things out.  I know I don’t want to go to medical school and I know I want to do something more applied.  Something that involves laboratory work, but that can have applications in every day life.  Work has helped me figure that out and when I get to go to work, I love what I do.  I like sitting at my bench and running reactions or making solutions.  Lab has helped me figure out that I do like that.”

Even though Gasteyer doesn’t know her exact direction, she is doing a great job at doing things now to help guide her career path in the future.  It’s not always a bad thing to be uncertain about your exact career. The goal for every student should be to gain experiences that allow you to move closer to your career goal – programs like W.I.S.E are great for supporting students on this journey. For more information on the W.I.S.E program go to www.housing.wisc.edu/wise

Jordan Simonson,                         CALS Peer Advisor

“I  want to increase my opportunities, so I picked a broad major”. This statement is common rationale for selecting a major or double major.  In some cases a broad, seemingly wide open major can be good, but it means that a student will need to be focused and have a plan throughout his or her collegiate career.

Analyzing Your “End Game”

When you start your plan, you need to be focused on your “end game.” Your “end game” is where you want your career path to lead – your dream job. When initially picking my major, I wasn’t thinking about my “end game.” I had no idea what my dream job was, or more importantly, how I was going to get there. I was fortunate to choose majors and become involved in student organizations that gave me a direction. I now recognize how important it is to have an “end game” because it can help you find your career path.

Finding Your Career Path

When you are pursuing a broad major without a clear career path, you need to make that career path for yourself to achieve your “end game.” By using a combination of internships, research experiences, student organizations and career services/professional development opportunities, you can find your niche in a traditionally broad major.  For example, an internship would give you the opportunity to learn more about an industry, see the variety of careers available within a company and help you develop professional skills. Investing the time to develop specific skills will position you to be competitive in your job search. Even with a broad major – it is possible to be a specialist.

Having Realistic Goals

While navigating your broad career avenues, it is important to remember you will not always graduate with your dream job because your dream job is not always available upon graduation.  Consider focusing on jobs that you can do, matching your goals with the OPEN positions when you graduate.  Use this opportunity as a stepping stone to your dream job.  People change their job numerous times in a lifetime – the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in 2008 that the average employee stays at a position an average of 4.1 years. Starting in a position related to your “end game” is normal, and even encouraged as a means to build skills.

Major Doesn’t Dictate Career

In Career Services, we certainly have strategies than can help you find jobs, land interviews and accept offers. From the broad Biology major to the tailored Food Science major – we can offer great advice about how to land traditional careers in your area. However – just because you major in something, doesn’t mean that you have to work in that area. There is something to be said for pursuing education simply because it makes you a better citizen and caters to your mind’s desire to learn. In fact, we are seeing many students who have chosen to apply their majors in completely non-traditional ways – and it’s great!

Final Thought

A college major gives you a strong foundation in something, but your passion drives what you want to dedicate your life to. That said – we all need to graduate (even if we don’t want to), support ourselves and start paying off debt. A job – hopefully doing something we like – is a way to do this. Even if you want to stray from the traditional career path for your major – or maybe your major doesn’t have a specific path, things like work experience, internships, research and student organizations will always look good to employers and are your ticket to standing out!

When I was a graduate student in Life Sciences Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, I was a member of a student organization – NAMA, or the National Agri-Marketing Association. I was the lone graduate student in the group, but unlike many of my fellow graduate student cohorts, I really lacked a network on the UW campus. I did my undergrad at a much smaller campus and simply did not know the “key players” in my industry. I used organizations like NAMA to network with professionals. One such networking event was a breakfast that brought professional and student members together. I remember that day – it was a complete blizzard. But I got dressed in my modest professional garb and made the treck to the Clarion Hotel in Madison.

I sat next to the one person I knew – Jenny Dierickx (then an undergrad at UW). She was sitting next to John Rozum, who was good friends with Jenny’s former internship supervisor, radio personality – Pam Janke (The Fabulous Farm Babe!). John and I got to talking and had a nice conversation about career goals and his road to success. A few months later, John was hiring for an assistant – I saw the job posting and applied. The fact that I met John at a NAMA networking event created common ground that other candidates simply didn’t have – and I got the job.

How does a student make use of professional connections?

At the Career Fair on Monday, you met some great people. You had meaningful conversations with recruiters from organizations relevant to your career interests – and it’s clear that you will use these new found connections for the job and internship search. Now comes the real challenge – how do you make the best use of your contacts and even make them “work” for you?

Why LinkedIn Is Everything

LinkedIn is a wonderful resource that allows you to form a professional network without being too intrusive. You should try and connect with all of the recruiters you met at the Career Fair, especially those that you know you made an impact with. Be careful though, don’t be too pushy if they don’t want to connect. When sending them the invite to connect, make sure to say something about meeting them at the Career Fair, rather than just using the “stock” greeting. Using LinkedIn and adding new information to groups will help you stand out from your competition. Plus it puts your resume right in front of the right people. Most recruiters and business professionals simply can’t do their jobs without LinkedIn. If you don’t have a profile, you are missing out on a great resource to organize your network.

Following Up From the Career Fair

On Day 7, you followed up with all of the recruiters you met. This will provide another opportunity for you to stand out from your competition and make meaningful connections with the recruiters. Remember to ask CALS Career Services for the names of recruiters you spoke with if you didn’t get business cards. Not all recruiters give out their personal business cards – and many run out at the fair. As a point of protocol for yourself, get in the habit of asking for cards. Another way to stand out is to have your own business cards. For seniors,  WAA offers a small number of free cards to students who respond to an email. For everyone else, we recommend making a small investment in personalized and professionally made cards – check out VistaPrint.

File them Away

After you have made your initial connections with employers, create a filing system for contact information what works best for you. Some people organize their cards in a Rolodex with dates/event names written on the back. Others prefer an electronic method such as excel to store contacts. Sadly, many students simply lose track of connections they meet at various networking events – or feel like they are being too pushy by emailing or calling recruiters to check-in. It’s true – there is a fine line between being too bashful and too pushy, but the bottom line is that you need to communicate with people in your network in order to stay relevant and top of mind. Your connections can lead to opportunities in the future when their company has an opening that fits your interests. Staying organized is key to managing your network.

Use Your Network When Applying

When searching for jobs and internships, make sure to use the network you have created. On LinkedIn, you can actually state that you are actively seeking a job or internship. Make sure your headline says something like “Currently seeking my first challenge” or “Future Science Professional Seeking Internship”. Your connections may see this and have open positions for you. When you apply for jobs, make sure to contact people that may have a connection to the job. Maybe they work for the company, or know someone who does. Again – your connections can’t help you if you don’t reach out to them. LinkedIn comes in handy here again – send them a simple message inquiring about the open position asking if they think you would be a good fit for the position. If (and when) they say “yes”, you can actually make reference to this referral in your cover letter. This will help your application really stand out. Many companies have a referral policy that could even result in an automatic interview if candidates refer to a current employee.

A powerful network can do wonderful things for you when you are applying to internships or full-time positions. As the old saying goes – it’s often not what you know, but who you know. Remember – online connections are great – but nothing takes the place of face time. Make sure to keep attending events and going to career fairs.