Sinclair Community College offers several different free aids related to employment; not only current students, but also the alumni and the public through their Career Services Department.
Matt Massie, manager of Career Services said Career Services provides the tools to be successful in landing a job and obtaining a job, but cannot give the person a job.
He said that there are three different types of jobs that are available through Career Services— student, general and technical.
Student jobs are saved and obtain just by students, general jobs are jobs that are outside of a person’s desired career and technical jobs are jobs that would be related toward a student’s major.
Massie said that interviews are typically not easy or fun, but the biggest tip he gives to students about interviewing is to practice.
“The more you can practice, the more comfortable you will become with doing it,” Massie said.
To help the students practice and enhance their interview skills, Career Services has a simulated interview computer program that asks the students questions and records their responses. A student then can view the recording back that includes their facial expressions, their answers and an “um”, “uh”, and “duh” counter.
“Typically we see students who don’t sell their skills and abilities in their selves at all or they sell their skills and abilities where they come off as boastful or bragging,” Massie said.
He said the major difficulty he witnesses students doing in interviews in not being able to sell their selves, adding that it’s a very fine line between boasting or bragging and a person selling themselves.
Typically a resume is one page long that highlights or summarizes who the person is. Massie said it should not be a novel.
“The resume is your key through the door of the interview,” Massie said.
In a resume, a person should never use first person, it should always be in third person and that is a common error that people have said Massie.
He said Career Services will view and work with the student’s resume so that they can help their chances of being able to get the interview.
The Career Services is located in Building 10, Room 312. They are open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Anyone with questions about the services that are offered in Career Services should contact their office, at 512-2772.
“Why try to do it alone when there is a whole department here that is aimed to help you be successful,” Massie said.