Job Search Strategies for Arts & Sciences Students

• How to Find a Job: Special Concerns for Arts and Sciences Students

  • Introduction

  • How Can You Show that You're the Best Person for a Job?

  • Alumni Advice

  Cornell Career Services Jobs, Internships and On-Campus Recruiting

  How to find a job: Special Concerns for A&S Students

  Introduction

  Knowing what you want to do - or at least having an idea of one or two career fields that interest you--is the first (and often most difficult) step in finding a job. If you don't have a clue about what you want to do, start with Considering Career Options: Getting a Life after College. Once you've narrowed your focus, several Cornell Career Services sites will help with job search strategies and job listings.

  Recently, Kiplinger's on-line magazine published a succinct overview of the job market for new college graduates. Check out the Ten Job Hunting Myths by Erin Burt.

  As an Arts and Sciences student, often your most difficult task is demonstrating that you're a good match for a job even without relevant coursework or directly related experience. Find out what skills employers are seeking.

  How can you show that you're the best person for a job?

  • Put yourself in the employer's place - what job needs to be done? What problem needs to be solved?

  • Read up on the field and talk to people working in jobs that interest you to find out what skills are important to them every day.

  • Make a list of your skills that are relevant to the job.

  • Be able to describe where you used these skills. Your examples do not have to be directly related to the particular career field; they only have to demonstrate that you have the relevant skill. See how students in the past have convinced employers they're a good match for a job in cover letter examples and the alumni advice below.

  This may seem like a lot of work, but these steps are crucial to developing an effective resume and cover letter.

  By the way, you might want to clean up your Web persona. A 2006 CareerBuilder.com survey found that "One-in-Four Hiring Managers Have Used Internet Search Engines to Screen Job Candidates; One-in-Ten Have Used Social Networking Sites."

  Alumni Advice

  • The Class of 2000 Five Year Out Survey can be searched by major and career field here: http://www.arts.cornell.edu/career/survey/

    In addition to comments from alumni, you will find salary information compiled from information alumni reported in the survey.

  • I had no background in business; I had been a receptionist for a law firm and a camp counselor. The experience which turned out to be the best preparation for my job was an independent research project for a course in which I sifted through conflicting data and argued my hypotheses with the professor. Now that's what I do all day: sift through conflicting data and determine what is relevant to the problem I'm analyzing. Any kind of team activity is useful, as well as activities that force you to be resourceful, go out and get information, make a decision, and carry it through.
    Government '87, Management Consultant

  • I found that I had two very important skills that made me marketable to employers. First, my communications skills, honed at Cornell, enabled me to express myself well in interviews, reports, and meetings. Second, I had an ability to learn new things very quickly, and to adapt to new environments very quickly. This ability to multi-task, learn very quickly, and adapt to change was exactly what my employer was looking for in a trader.
    English '82, Principal Trader

  • Don't worry if your qualifications do not match exactly with the job description. For the job I have now, they wanted someone with a degree in English, communication, or journalism. In my cover letter, I wrote that while I didn't major in any of those fields, I took several English and communication courses, and wrote for the school newspaper. Having a positive attitude helps.
    Biology and Society '93, Caption Editor

This text last updated May 2008.