The competition challenged student teams to design a Sustainable Learning Center in Rosemont, MN for the Dakota County Technical College. Teams needed to incorporate a gathering place to educate and enlighten students and community members about sustainable design and technology.  Teams could work with mentors who could help projects progress and aid student professional development. One of the UW-Madison team’s greatest accomplishments was working through complete building design, as opposed to just working with the landscape.

“It was an architectural competition so we had the chance to experience that element of the project.” said Small (“full” beard).

Student design competitions are a great way for students to learn about the architecture industry and demonstrate professional skills to potential employers.  Participating in a team competition can also show experience with teamwork – an important characteristic to employers.

“Working with a team is very important in a [design] firm environment.  To be able to show an example of collective thought – that makes it a great piece,” said Wievel (“okay” beard).

As a team,  the students were forced to think through real-world challenges and opportunities outside of class.

“We don’t have that many opportunities to do group projects in-studio. I think one of the coolest aspects of doing this was just the shear amount of work we were able to get done by working as a group of four with a concentrated effort,” said Parker (“no” beard). “That experience mirrors a lot of the way a firm works, how the real-world operates.”

By participating in this “real world” environment, the team felt they were able to draw on each other to learn important skills related to the landscape architecture profession.

“We definitely learned a lot of things from each other that we wouldn’t have learned just working beside each other in the classroom.” said Wievel. “Everyone starts to specialize in their own areas and figure things out outside of class.  Being able to take those special skills and bring these into a collective environment was great.”

Each student appreciated the competition and felt it was a great representation of skills  they would use in internships and full-time positions.  Student competitions are available for virtually every major/area of study. For information on how you or your student organization can get involved in student competitions, contact your academic advisor, career center or even alumni from your program.

Below is the project they handed in for the competition.

Q: What did you do to find an internship?

A: I found my internship by emailing different contacts of mine and my family’s asking if they had any positions available or knew of any openings.

Q: What did finding an internship teach you about searching for a full-time job?

A: Finding my internship reminded me how important it is to make personal connections and to reach out to others. If you put yourself out there, meet people, work hard and create a good name for yourself, others will be happy to help you the best that they can.

Q: What type of on-campus research opportunities did you pursue to enhance your resume and help improve your professional skills?

A: My work in research labs here on campus gave me many of the skills that my internship was looking for. My knowledge of lab techniques and training with mice were what this internship required.

 Q: How did this opportunity help you in achieving your career goals?

A: This internship was an amazing opportunity to work in a cutting edge research lab, but it reminded me that going into medicine is my true calling. I really enjoy participating in and reading about groundbreaking research, but it is not what I want to do for the rest of my life. Although it is not what I want to do with my life, I worked very hard over the summer, and I earned the respect of my colleagues and a great letter of recommendation from the professor I worked for.

Q: What did you do during your internship?

A: I was able to work in one of the world’s most cutting edge biological research labs. My work in the Rinn Lab was centered on a new project in the lab’s quest to discover new lincRNAs and define their roles and functions in mammalian cells. In order to accomplish this goal, I helped maintain eleven strains of knockout mice lacking specific lincRNA genes and cloned mouse lincRNAs to be expressed in different cell types. To maintain the mouse colony, I set up breeding pairs, weaned pups, and genotyped and sacrificed mice. The other half of my work involved cloning mouse lincRNAs from different cell types and inserting them into bacterial plasmids. By cloning the lincRNA genes into plasmids, they could then be put into viruses and inserted into mouse cells in vitro.

 Q: In what way was your internship valuable to your professional development?

A: This internship taught me many new research techniques and allowed me to learn more about how cutting-edge science is performed. It also taught me the value of working hard and being able to accomplish things that have never been done before.

Q: What was the most important thing you learned at your internship?

A: I think the most important thing I learned was the value of working hard and doing my best work. As I pushed myself to learn more about the biology of the systems I worked with and the techniques I was using, I became more engaged in the project and was able to produce greater results in less time. While I worked hard, my colleagues and supervisors took note and praised me for my contributions and accomplishments.

Q: Do you feel your internship experience was important to your career development? If so, why?

A: This internship was an amazing opportunity to participate in something that I find incredibly interesting. The work ethic that it reinforced within me will help me in every area of my life, but the specific biomolecular techniques are less applicable to the rest of my life. It was a very valuable experience, and one I hope to be able to repeat next summer.

Q: Who do you feel helped you the most in your professional development and why?

A: I think the people that helped me prepare for the professional world the most were my parents and the post-doctoral student that I work with here in Madison. My parents are both business people, and they taught me the importance of meeting people and making good impressions. They also helped me write my resume and cover letters. My post-doctoral student taught me about how to work in a lab, participate in research, and stay invested in a project.

Q: What did you do to find an internship opportunity?

A: I underwent the online application process found at the U.S. Department of State’s career services website. I enrolled in an international study abroad course with IAP that dealt with processing my role in my international internship.

Q: What did finding an internship teach you about searching for a full-time job?

A: The overall process (especially for government jobs) takes a long time. I applied for the internship in November, was offered a placement in December, completed my background check in March, and began working in May. I also learned that you need to sell yourself and highlight things that you think your employer would want to hear.

Q: What type of student organization experiences did you pursue to enhance your resume and help improve your professional skills? 

A: I was a grant writer for Slow Food UW in the fall of 2011. This position helped tailor my writing skills to sell an idea which translated over into selling myself in the internship application.

Q: What did you do during your internship?

A: I helped in American citizen services which ranged from replacing lost/stolen passports to writing reports on trends that occurred within the Consulate Office.

Q: In what way was your internship valuable to your professional development?

A: I learned how to conduct research and write official government reports, or cables. I also was exposed to Spanish culture and the language which I hope to use in my career.

Q: What was the most important thing you learned at your internship?

A: The most important thing I learned was to have enthusiasm. If you have enthusiasm or passion about what you do, then you will not be afraid to ask appropriate questions and take the initiative. Also, by having a positive attitude, you will develop good relations with your coworkers.

Q: Do you feel your internship experience was important to your career development? If so, why?

A: I want to work in environmental policy on the international scale. This opportunity to work in the Consular Section with the U.S. Department of State in Barcelona gave me insight into how the government functions and the duties of a Consular Officer. I also was able to practice Spanish.

Q: Who do you feel helped you the most in your professional development and why?

A: The assistant consular officer helped me the most in my professional development because he really pushed me to look into taking the foreign service exam and pursue the State Department as a career. All of my coworkers helped me experience multiple aspects of the Consulate Office.

Q: What did you do to find an internship opportunity?

A: When I first came here to the UW, I talked to my advisor to make sure that at some point in my college career I would get an opportunity to do something related to turfgrass over in Norway.  We began planning and waited to see what connections would provide the most practical education so I could get the most out of my experience.

Q: What did finding an internship teach you about searching for a full time position?

A: It taught me that trying to be ahead of schedule is the best thing you can do.  Start searching early and getting the pieces in place well ahead of time. This will increase your chance of getting an internship or job because it shows a drive and determination towards a goal, which both employers and places you are trying to intern value very highly.

Q: What type of student organization experiences did you pursue to enhance your resume and help improve your professional skills?

A: I have been involved in the Badger Turf and Grounds Club since I started here, which allowed me to see what other students had done for their internships, giving me great ideas for how to approach looking for one.  It also allowed me to take a leadership role, which translated into taking responsibility and advancing myself as a leader.  I have also been active in the Collegiate FFA Chapter, which has given me even more leadership experience and an opportunity to work with the CALS Student Council to better understand how our CALS government works from the inside.

Q: What did you do during your internship?

A: Throughout the summer I got a chance to work firsthand on the research trials that were being conducted at the turfgrass facility.  This includes all aspects of mowing, topdressing, collecting clipping/water/soil samples, registering plots, turfgrass establishment, fertilizing and spraying.  I also was allowed to go to different golf courses and soccer fields in Norway and help diagnose problems that they were having and offer solutions.  The facility I worked for hosted the European Turfgrass Association’s annual conference, where I assisted in setting up our facility for a field day and helped out with the speakers during the education portion of the conference.

Q: In what way was your internship valuable to your professional development?

A: Superintendents make decisions based on scientific data and research trials, so now I have a firsthand knowledge of how these trials are done and what the data means.  I also have more experience diagnosing diseases and problems on courses, then relaying the information to the superintendents and the greens committees that oversee how the course is being run.  This will help me in documenting what is happening on my course, assessing how to react to what is happening and making an informed decision on how to fix the problems.

Q: What was the most important thing you learned at your internship?

A: I think the most important thing is truly understanding how much effort is put forth into doing turfgrass research, and really trying to get the most out of reading their reports that are released.  It seems that too often people dismiss these trials when they are full of pertinent information that can be very valuable to you as a superintendent.

Q: Do you feel your internship experience was important to your career development? Is so, why?

A: I feel it was very beneficial to my career development because anytime you get a chance to work intensely with a particular plot, you notice the most subtle changes. This allows you to be ahead of certain pathogens and seeing if your fertilization and watering regimes are effective.  Also, when applying for the internship, I got experience in applying for a position, which will be important when applying for jobs once I graduate.

Q: Who do you feel helped you the most in your professional development and why?

A: There were two people who helped me the most in this process.  First, was my Soils advisor, Dr. Doug Soldat, who helped me make the first connections.  He allowed me to plan my whole experience so I could gain real-world experience in this adventure.  I had to make a schedule and budget, and find funding for the project, which are valuable skills to have in the future.  Second, was Dr. Trygve Aamlid of Bioforsk, who I stayed and worked with while in Norway.  Once I got used to how things operated at their facility, he was always willing to let me try new machinery, help collect data and really expand my knowledge of how turfgrass research is done.  He also let me experience the different golf courses in Norway, which allowed me to catch a glimpse of how different superintendents handle running courses and gain as much knowledge as possible in the different styles of golf course management.

Jordan Ebert Showing Siemers Goldwyn Goldie-ET, Picture by: Semex

The entire arena at the 2012 World Dairy Expo was pitch black, except for three spotlights circling the seven contestants. The suspense was building for Jordan Ebert as he held his cow, Siemers Goldwyn Goldie-ET, on the orange-colored shavings. Finally, the Reserve Supreme Champion of the Junior Show was selected, the spotlight turned to the Red and White Holstein.  Ebert blew a sigh of relief that his cow wasn’t chosen. The spotlights circled again and the crowd cheered with anticipation.  Finally, the announcer recognized the Supreme Champion of the Junior Show…

Jordan Ebert had been working his entire life for this moment; he started showing cattle at an early age.  “Our county fair had a ‘Kiddie Showmanship’ class, I can’t give you the exact age, but I want to say five to six years old,” said Ebert. “We started showing at a county fair level bringing our unregistered Holstein cows and heifers. Our first purchases of show cattle were Jerseys because my sister and I were pretty small people, so we started with smaller animals.”

Ebert, a freshman Dairy Science major, has grown a lot since his first time in the show ring, particularly during his first few weeks on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. He has become involved with Badger Dairy Club and works as a Student Manager for the UW Men’s Basketball Team.

“It has been an awesome experience so far,” explained Ebert. “We do some of the behind-the-scenes work, preparing for practice, miscellaneous things during practice, tearing down afterwards and some office time.”

Ebert hopes to bring his experiences at UW-Madison back to his family’s 3,000 cow Holstein farm in Algoma, Wis. “My plan is to go back to my farm and work my way up through the ranks into a management position where I am making some decisions, learning what it takes to run the farm through my dad and eventually take it over,” said Ebert.

When asked what the showing has done for his professional development, Ebert mentioned the value of networking and the interactions with professionals in industry. “My success in the showring has gotten my name out there a little bit. I have met people along the way and am a familiar face. I feel comfortable talking with them and introducing myself.”

The 2012 World Dairy Expo was an experience Ebert will remember forever.  He didn’t even expect to be  in the showring for the selection of the Supreme Champion of the Junior Show and actually had other plans on Saturday.  “Saturday of Expo I had quite an interesting day.  I had to work at the UW-Madison football game until kickoff at about 3:00 p.m. because the UW Men’s Basketball program uses the games for recruitment. Afterwards my dad picked me up and brought me over to World Dairy Expo, I put on some whites and had just a little time to breathe before we went in.”

The spotlights were circling and Ebert hoped his cow would be chosen for Supreme Champion of the Junior Show.  Once the Red and White Holstein was selected for Reserve Supreme Champion, Ebert thought “ok, maybe we have a shot at this!” The announcer resumed and began to announce the Supreme Champion, “The 2012 World Dairy Expo Supreme Champion of the Junior Show… is Siemers Goldwyn Goldie, the Holstein exhibited by Jordan and Whitney Ebert from Algoma, Wisconsin!”

“They called her [Siemers Goldwyn Goldie-ET] name and the place lit up a bit. I got the goosebumps and stuff like that, but it was pretty cool,” said Ebert explaining how he felt in that moment. “Once you got out there, it was like nothing else.  All of the lights were off except for the spotlight and they were announcing everything.  That was the coolest experience I have had for showing and just the way they made it a ‘show.’  It was an adrenaline rush.”

Video of Jordan Ebert, freshman at UW-Madison, winning the Supreme Champion of the Junior Show at World Dairy Expo.

Traditional interviewing calls upon the candidate to state opinions: “Tell me about yourself.” “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” “Why do you want to work for this company?” By contrast, behavioral interviewing requires job candidates to relate stories about how they handled challenges related to the skill sets the company requires for the position.

For example, if a job requires strong communication and team-building skills, an interviewer might ask candidates to recount past experiences where they explained new plans that brought a team together. Behavioral interview questions often start with phrases like, “Tell me about a time when …” or “Describe a situation in which … ” or “Give me an example of …”

While your skills and experiences could be a perfect match for the position, you could lose out if you can’t validate them with relevant anecdotes.

So how do you prepare for a behavioral interview?

First, you’ll want to put yourself in the shoes of the employer and imagine what the ideal candidate for the position would answer from the interviewer’s perspective.

Then, take the time to review thoroughly the job description and research the company and its culture. Look for cues about skills necessary for the job and valued by the organization. Next, think about the sorts of behavioral questions an interviewer might ask to determine those skills.

Here are a few examples of skill sets and some behaviorally focused interview questions aimed at surfacing them.

Decision Making and Problem Solving

• Describe a situation in which you used good judgment and logic to solve a problem.
• Give me an example of a time when you had to be quick in coming to a decision.

Leadership

• Have you ever had trouble getting others to agree with your ideas? How did you deal with the situation, and were you successful?
• Describe the most challenging group from which you’ve had to gain cooperation.

Motivation

• Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond the call of duty.
• Give me an example of a situation in which you positively influenced the actions of others.

Communication

• Describe a situation in which you were able to communicate with another individual who did not personally like you (or vice versa).
• Describe a time you had to use written communication to convey an important argument or idea.

Interpersonal Skills

• Give me examples of what you’ve done in the past to nurture teamwork.
• Give an example of an unpopular decision you’ve made, what the result was and how you managed it.

Planning and Organization

• When scheduling your time, what method do you use to decide which items are priorities?
• Describe how you’ve handled a sudden interruption to your schedule.

Once you’ve determined which behavioral-based questions you might be asked during an interview, look back on your past experiences and develop stories to answer those questions. Your stories should be detailed yet succinct, and they should always include the following three elements:

1. A description of a specific, real-life situation or challenge you encountered.
2. A description of the specific tasks and actions you took to overcome that challenge.
3. A summary of the results of those actions. (Try to quantify these results whenever possible.

Here is a sample answer to a behavioral interview question that incorporates each of these elements.

Question: Give an example of a goal you reached, and tell me how you achieved it.

Answer: Due to cuts in funding to our adult continuing education program, we faced the daunting goal of drastically reducing our promotional budget without sacrificing our media presence in the community. As program director, I researched alternatives to the effective, yet costly, course brochure, which was produced and distributed biannually to about 60,000 residents of our service region. I was able to negotiate with two local newspapers to produce and distribute a new course brochure that increased distribution by 33 percent, to 80,000 residents, and decreased costs by 50 percent.

Familiarizing yourself with the behavioral interview style, crafting and practicing your stories and doing some homework on the position you seek will ensure that you won’t be caught off guard should you encounter a behavioral interview.

Remember just keep calm, take a deep breathe and be HONEST.

Q: What did you do at your internship?

A: At the University of Sydney it was my responsibility to perform immunohistochemistry on various biochemical markers in the development of colorectal cancer. To prepare for the upcoming day’s experiment, I spent countless hours doing online research to determine concentrations that I would be using later in my own experiment. Once this information was obtained, I then went into the lab and actually performed the experiment. A full experiment had various minute steps along the way, so a full experiment would ultimately take all day long, with analysis being taken the following day. Analysis included visual inspection through a normal microscope, a microscope with the ability to create a digital image, and ultimately, the digital image would be used in Photoshop or a scanning program to determine the percent of antibody that we were specifically looking for. Often times I found myself repeating experiments because the desired antibody wasn’t stained, or was stained incorrectly. Just as in any other scientific experiment, there are variables that can affect results, and repeated experiments are warranted in cases that do not give the desired result.

Q: What type of student organization and research experiences did you pursue to enhance your resume and help improve your professional skills?

A: Luckily for me I have held a variety of internships, and research positions while at UW. I had my first internship following my freshman year at a local hospital back home as a neuro-oncology intern. This helped me pave the way to get into research the following fall and through the fall of my junior year. Following my neuro-oncology internship, I worked as part of a clinical research group interested in radiation in head and neck tumors. I soon found myself wanting to experience laboratory science, so I opted for my own research project under the direction of Dr. Kevin Kozak, which I worked on for a year, and ultimately led to publication this past February. Starting in May 2011 I was also part of a clinical research team investigating the effects of Vitamin D intake in post-menopausal women and its effects on bone density and muscle fitness.

In addition to my research positions, I am also a member of the Undergraduate Neuroscience Society, National Society of Leadership and Success, Tri-Beta National Biological Honor Society. From these organizations I have been in contact with various healthcare professionals which helped me bridge the gap between my mentor and myself.

Q: In what way was your internship valuable to your professional development?

A: As a student personally invested in healthcare and medicine at a national and global level, my internship really put me at the forefront of research and medicine. I interned as part of a pharmacological research team interested in colorectal cancer, which happens to be the third most common cancer amongst both men and women. Being in lab or behind a computer screen all day caused me to be very isolated, with minimal contact with other members of my team. As an extroverted individual, it was difficult for me to work in an environment like mine for the mere fact that I was alone much of the time. Having worked in a very introverted environment, I have come to the conclusion that lab science is not what I want to do for the rest of my life, as I like the communication and I guess marketing part of medicine, more importantly how they play into public health. From this internship experience I now know what goes on more of a biological level, which I really appreciate, and I hope to bridge the gap between research, like mine, to making it understandable to the general public.

Q: Do you feel your internship experience was important to your career development? If so, why?

A: It would be hard to argue how my internship was not important to my career development. Not only did it finally convince me that laboratory research was not for me, but it really showed me how passionate I am towards combating cancer. Instead of trying to fight cancer by finding a cure, I am going to fight cancer on the preventative front. Cancer, although it has a genetic component, is very much dependent on peoples lifestyle behaviors, and it would be my duty to shape those to prevent the development of cancer. I am grateful that I learned the biology behind tumor progression and treatment, and I hope to bridge the gap between research and prevention.

Q: Who do you feel helped you the most in your professional development and why?

A: It is really hard to pinpoint one exact person that helped in my professional development. I would not have had the experiences I have had if it were not for my mentor, Dr. Hendrikus Krouwer, whom I interned with after my freshman year. He helped me get into my first research job at UW with Dr. Kevin Kozak. Ultimately I believe Dr. Kozak has been the most influential in my professional development. He was the one who trusted me as a sophomore to work as a clinical researcher on his team, and he was kind enough to allow me to do laboratory research when I had wanted to switch. Kevin also helped me get involved in the clinical research regarding vitamin D, and ultimately my research in Australia. Through all the experiences he afforded me I was able to finally set my aspirations on graduate school in pursuance of my masters in public health.

I often get asked, “Is career services open during the summer?” Without a doubt – the answer is a resounding YES! In fact, the summer is when we prepare and recruit for important upcoming events like the UW Fall Career and Internship Fair coming up on September 20.

Newly Weds Foods (NWF) located in Chicago, Illinois is a long-time fixture at CALS events including career fairs. I had the chance to ask Tom Kubica, Senior Director of Research and Development, a few questions about why he uses career services at UW and other schools as a means to recruit talent.

There are many ways employers can interact with a campus. Some will attend career events sponsored by career services, while others might work directly with faculty or staff. There are also employers who have connections to a student organization and might never even physically come to campus. Regardless of their chosen method, we try our best  to make sure employers connect with great students who will have an impact. NWF hires mostly Food Sciences majors from UW for internships and full time positions – below Mr. Kubica provides an employer’s perspective of career services.

Describe your interactions with career services – at UW and beyond.

We have a mixed bag across the schools that we deal with on a regular basis.  They range from lower profile programs to extremely visible, active and helpful.  More of the latter. To be fair, it is our responsibility to build relationships with key people at the schools where we look to recruit. There are a few schools that we have just begun to work with on a more frequent basis and we have had representatives from career services introduce themselves and offer assistance.  Time will tell how this changes, improves or stays the same.  In one of these instances, we have just hired a student that we had met and interviewed on campus.  Hiring a student from a new school is generally the best way to start a relationship with that school.

Do you see a difference in students who have worked with career services versus those who have not?

That is a tough question.  There does seem to be some degree of difference in how students approach us or do follow up that is consistent with the activity level of a school’s career services unit.

Describe your recruiting experience on campuses where you have a strong relationship with the career services unit versus no relationship…or little relationship.

On campuses with very active career services, such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison, we see a very active approach in having students directed to come meet with us during career fairs or our Job Shadow day during Winter break.  There is also communication through out the year via e-mail.  This is very helpful.

We have similar relations with a few others.  With Chicago being Research and Development headquarters, there are more of us to work with some of the local schools as compared to our other satellite labs that are not similarly staffed and do not have the opportunities to devote the time as much as we would always like.  Having an awareness of limited staff time for recruitment allows us to plan and do a better job with the time we have.

From your perspective, do career services offices further your recruiting objectives at NWF?

Easy – YES!!

Speaking of recruiting talented students – Check out the accomplishments of UW-Madison, CALS Food Science Students at the IFT Product Development Competition!

Blogger’s Note – If you are an employer looking to engage with UW-Madison, CALS students, contact Maria McGinnis at mmcginnis@cals.wisc.edu or 608-262-3460. Students wishing to make an appointment with a career advisor should log into their BuckyNet account or email career@cals.wisc.edu

The media blames the economy, some employers blame ill-prepared interview candidates, some job seekers even blame a disorganized hiring process. Regardless of your rationale, finding a job can be really hard. It’s an investment (and often a drain) from a time and emotional standpoint. Even if a candidate has a skill set that is in high demand – getting someone to just say “yes” is a process. I’ll outline a few areas that hopefully help put things in perspective.

1. How much is too much?
If you have ever come in for an appointment, you know that I advocate applying for multiple jobs at one time. Depending on your field – I might even suggest as many as 20 or 30. The reason is simple – the more jobs you apply for, the better your chances of getting multiple interviews. HOWEVER – employers can “sniff” out people who don’t really care about their company – but just want a job. So yes – you might apply for 20 jobs, but you need to tailor your cover letter and resume for each one of them. Like dating, no one wants to feel like the second choice. Tailoring your materials takes lots of time and energy – so you need to decide for yourself – “how much can I handle at one time”? Your answer might be five to start and over time it might increase to 10. Whatever the number, make sure it’s something that you are comfortable with.

2. Are you prepared?
You have spent the 2-3 hours preparing an application (yes folks, 2-3 hours), you created an online profile with your dream company and submitted your materials. You waited the customary week and followed up to make sure everything was received. Low and behold you have been invited to interview. You are busy, plus it’s summer. Studying for an interview is not really something at the top of your list. The bottom line is this: you have to treat interviews like exams. You would never take a calculus final without studying – would you? The same goes for interviews. You need to put in your time on the company website, reviewing behavioral questions, and using tools like LinkedIn to research the people who will be interviewing you. After time, you will get really good at the behavioral questions, and your interview prep will focus more on the company.

3. Rejection hurts.
When you are in the midst of an aggressive job hunt – rejection is unavoidable. If you are one of the lucky ones out there who has never been rejected in a job search -your time will come – trust me . When the rejection comes – it often knocks you down emotionally – even physically. The good news is: it gets easier with time and having a thick skin is a good quality in a job seeker and an employee. While you might be making some fundamental mistakes in your interview – often it’s not even about you. It just wasn’t your time – and this wasn’t the right job. I won’t go getting spiritual on you, but yes – I do believe that there is a plan for each of us…and getting rejected from one job gets you that much closer to the job you are supposed to have. If you are noticing a pattern of rejection – I think it’s totally acceptable to ask the employer for feedback. You might be surprised by what they say – but be prepared for them to be brutally honest.

4. Back to basics.
You followed my advice in step 3 and got some feedback from an employer who interviewed you and ended up hiring another candidate. He or she indicated that you seemed nervous and struggled to clearly convey how you might contribute to the organization. BINGO! Time to brush up on your interview skills. Conversely, you might get feedback that indicates that they enjoyed interviewing you, your communication skills were excellent, you answered the questions appropriately and you expanded your answers where necessary. They hired someone who had more experience in areas XYZ. In this scenario – there isn’t much that you could have done better. It’s often tough to understand, but in this economy, many employers are not taking big risks when it comes to employees – even if it would make them more successful in the end. They often hire people who are “safe” in terms of having done the exact job before – even if you could have learned the material you lacked and eventually outperformed the person they hired. It’s just reality. Accept it, and move on. Make sure to thank the hiring manager for giving you feedback and ask them to keep your materials on file if something else should come up.

5. Thrill of the chase?
For many job seekers, getting employers to “say yes” becomes an obsession. The competitive aspect of finding a job takes over and it becomes more about the thrill of the chase and less about actually taking the job if offered. If this is that case for you – it’s time to reevaluate your approach. If you come off as overly aggressive or “canned” – employers are going to keep saying no. This isn’t the opening of deer season – no employer wants to feel like they are your prey! If you find yourself forgoing things that are important to you, constantly worrying and obsessing over the next up and coming job opening – you might consider taking some time off from the job search. However, if you find a good job posting you should still apply – just don’t let it consume you. A healthy mind and body is the key to performance – especially in the job search.

Keep up the great work!

“Just because something isn’t happening for you right now, doesn’t meant that it will never happen”

When she arrived on campus, Emily Barker was a “stereotypical freshman with a campus map in my pocket that I didn’t want anyone to notice.” She walked into her first lecture three minutes early, a mistake she has never forgotten, “it was a 320 person lecture and I was sitting in the back of what felt like a stadium.”

It didn’t take Emily long to get into the swing of things. She got involved with a research lab her freshman year by knocking on doors and asking if anyone had openings. She does have regrets about being so excited to get a research position and wishes she would have investigated more labs before committing. “I think if I would do it over again my freshman year, I would have been networking more and talking to people,” said Emily. “However, I probably wouldn’t have gotten my internship with the Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation the summer after my freshman year without my lab experience.”

Emily has come a long way since her first year. She has been very involved in student organizations, volunteering opportunities, study abroad and internships. These pursuits played a large role in her recent acceptance to medical school here at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “It has been really helpful that I have been as involved as I have, and whole-heartedly involved, not just showing up,” said Emily.

Emily decided to defer her admission to medical school for a year to teach math and science in Tanzania. “People have asked me why I would teach if I am going to pursue healthcare, but I have learned from the global health certificate and my study abroad in Kenya that education and health outcomes are so interconnected,” said Emily.

Emily’s extra-curricular involvement and professional experience played a large role in her acceptance into medical school. When asked what she felt made her stand out from other applicants she said, “I don’t think it was my grade point average or test scores because they are both good enough to get in, but right at the averages.” It was the breadth of her experiences while in college that made her a great applicant.