For those who have finally rolled of the education conveyor belt the next step is to conduct a job search. If you are one of the lucky few you will know exactly what sector you wish to enter, making the task less daunting. Many however, leave education at a loss to which sector to enter, this makes undertaking a job search both uninspiring and time consuming.
The possibilities available to those leaving formal education are literally endless. My advice to those embroiled in a job search is to study what sectors and job roles will suit your personality. Luckily many services are available on the internet for this purpose; isometric tests are numerous and can take as little five minutes.
The purpose of these tests is to give some indication of the attributes you possess as an employee, by answering questions on how you respond to situations the isometric testing gives a simplified layout of your personality traits and how these relate to the types of job roles that will be suitable.
Undertaking one of these tests makes a job search simpler; some tests are twinned with recruitment services and give list of job titles that will suit your personality. You do not of course have to take this information on board but it can be a useful starting point when deciding on which career path to enter and where to begin your job search.
With so many taking degree courses now there is a surplus of graduates who have undertaken diplomas in subjects that do not necessarily lead directly into job roles. It is these people that will benefit from isometric testing when in the search for a job. Those who have taken more vocational courses will go straight into the business they have decided to become qualified in.
Courses such as law, social care and physical education have defined career paths and job roles suited to them; examples of these include legal secretaries, social workers and personal trainers. Classical degree courses however, can leave students in a quandary; history, politics and english are mostly written and hence the job roles for these diverse subjects are amazingly alike; making a job search more difficult for graduates in these fields.
In today's commercial world however the 'job for life' is no longer available. Increasingly, employees change job roles and even sectors many times throughout their careers. The old fashioned view that employees find a job role and stick with it for thirty years is becoming evermore outdated as transferable skills are now a huge part of the modern applicant's CV.
This does not however make it easier for those involved in searching for a first job and finding the right career to undertake. Everyone needs a starting point and deciding on this starting point can be a demoralising task. My advice is to try anything once, get a good idea of the skills you as an employee possess and present these skills in a positive manner that employers will respond to.
Embarking upon a career path is not an easy task, even if you have a good idea of the types of jobs you would like to do, conducting a job search is not always an enviable task. Luckily the recruitment market is saturated with websites that provide both national and regional jobs; trawling through the papers and endless letter writing is no longer required when job hunting.
That is not to say that that these past methods will be fruitless, it is my experience that when involved in a job search, try all means at your disposal to advertise yourself to prospective employers. It is about percentages and the more proactive you can be the better your chances of success.
A friend of mine recently asked for some honest advice. He is an unemployed design engineer. It actually caught me off guard because I always thought of engineers as very desirable employees. They usually have degrees and good problem solving skills. I know engineers can major in different areas and often get specific certifications in chemical, electrical, mechanical and also many other areas. Most that I have met seem to have the two very desirable skills in any employee: organizational and problem solving.
Here is where it gets a little tricky though. My client had 8 years using one particular simulation software. It was one of two or three most often used in his industry, so when he interviewed with a company using a different software application, he needed to sell himself as able to quickly become proficient in that program. Not an impossible task, but he was competing against others who could claim to "hit the ground running". My first reaction was why not learn all the top software? As I quickly surnised, because it can take hundreds of hours,and sometimes more, of class time and actually using a software to become really proficient at it.
This issue prompted me to start thinking about the best way for people to prepare themselves for employment in an area where they might be using software to perform a large part of their job. Would it be best to try and learn the basics of two or three of the most widely used programs, or better to become as proficient as possible in one? First, let's take a quick look at some of the larger employment sectors and see if we can't list a few of the competing software companies in each sector. Engineering/Design. One type of program used is CAD, an acronym for computer aided design. Three of the larger ones in use are Catia, SolidWorks, and Unigraphics. Business/Enterprise. These are softwares used to run large companies or enterprises or even just certain aspects of enterprise. SAP, and Oracle are good examples. Accounting/Small business. Peachtree and Quickbooks come to mind.
I am going to go out on a limb here. Based on experience in recruiting and SAP training, I believe it is best to become an expert in one software program or even in one specialized area of a software. The old adage of "jack of all trades and master of none" is unlikely to land you a prime position in a competitive employment landscape. Your expertise in a given area may even carry over into associated areas in the eyes of a company. Of course their are dozens of employment areas and dozens times dozens of software to go with them. I'll assume that you already have an idea of what type of work you want to be doing. Let's just say you are working in or looking for a job in small business accounting or bookkeeping. Do you intend to stay in your current geographic area? If the answer is yes, then do your research and try to find out what program is used most in your area. Learn that program if you want to increase your chances of finding a job. If you are looking to relocate, then your research should focus on discovering the most widely used in the whole nation or area where you hope to relocate to.
You can also use other criteria when making a decision on what software program. Does one pay more than the other? Has one program been on the scene longer and is the company that makes it solid? Is it only used by one mega company and no others? For my engineering friend my advice to him was to take more training in the program he had used for so long. His value was in knowing that software and additional training only strengthened his value.
Both Shaun Parker & Bryan Glasson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Shaun Parker has sinced written about articles on various topics from Online Marketing, Auto Insurance and Wedding Bells. Recruitment expert Shaun Parker understands how to conduct a and find the right career for prospective employees. To find out more please visit. Shaun Parker's top article generates over 246000 views. to your Favourites.
Bryan Glasson has sinced written about articles on various topics from Careers and Job Hunting. Bryan Glasson is a marketing associate and software career consultant. Find out more about how can help advance your career.. Bryan Glasson's top article generates over 14800 views. to your Favourites.