Career Growth - Here the 7 tips for career growth. Our tips include secret tips to boost your career. Take the Career Test FREE. Psychometrics 100% reliable. More than 15 career tests and personality tests. Find a job in 10 questions. All career tests, IQ intelligence, jobs, personality and orientation. Human Resources tests. Free trial offer. Personality, recruitment & skills tests.

Are you prepared to make informed career decisions? Consider the following: Personal growth is a journey that’s never complete. It’s easily sidelined by the day’s urgent tasks, yet it’s essential for long-term job satisfaction and advancement. Our tips include tactics that encourage personal growth and help keep it a priority. Check our Career assessment tools.

1. Career Self-Assessment :

Self-assessment, or knowing yourself, provides an essential foundation for career decisions making. Thoughtful self-assessment helps you to focus on organizations and opportunities compatible with your goals and enables you to market yourself knowledgably and confidently. When choosing a career, it is important to consider your interests, skills, and values, but first you must know what they are!

Seven Clues to Help You Get Started: Learning your own unique pattern of interests, motivation, satisfaction, and meaning is an important first step in career development. Think about these questions and consider meeting with a counselor to discuss your thoughts.

1. What classes fascinate and absorb you?
2. If you had three lifetimes, what dream jobs attract you, and why?
3. What do you naturally do well?
4. What local, societal, or world issues interest you?
5. What is the most gratifying thing you ever did? What experiences turned out to be the most dissatisfying to you?
6. If you knew you couldn’t fail, what might you most like to do?
7. What is something you are doing when you lose track of time?

2. Job Interview: Getting Experience and the Job Search

a) Prepare yourself: Research companies in advance; identify locations of ideal employers especially at the large fairs.
b) What to Wear: Dress according to your profession; overdressed is better than underdressed.
c) What to Bring: 2 resumes per employer • pens and paper • portfolio as writing surface and to hold your resumes.
d) What to Say: Have a 60-second elevator pitch ready and rehearsed.
e) What to Ask: Prepare a list of questions in advance that demonstrate your knowledge of the company.
f) Follow-up: Be sure to get names and business cards of individuals you speak with so that you can write a thank-you email.

3. Elevator Pitch: You have 60 Seconds to Convince an Employer to Engage you!

Avoid Missed Opportunities

Often times, we miss opportunities because of our lack of intent, preparation, or comfort in commonplace conversations that are simply banal. We can also miss an opportunity to effectively communicate by minimizing or overinflating discussions of responsibilities and accomplishments.

Do Your Research

Developing a meaningful elevator pitch requires research on the person, company, organization, or program that you are making a connection with. You should pinpoint qualifications, skills, and experiences that best align with the opportunity and reiterate interest in learning more.

Body Language

Be mindful of body language and use hand motions moderately. Maintaining enthusiasm and energy is significant. If you jitter in nervousness, consider grounding your feet to the floor and lean in when appropriate. And most importantly, don’t underestimate the power of a smile.

Managing Anxiety and Self-Doubt

Engaging in persuasive speech and talking about yourself can be a daunting experience that spurs up anxiety and self-doubt. Manage your angst with breathing techniques, power poses, inspirational quotes, positive attitude, and humor.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Assess the content you might add to your elevator pitch, acknowledge your successes with confidence, examine your body language, and identify growth areas to continue strengthening your pitch. You can practice your elevator pitch using Interview Stream (gecd.mit.edu/resources), an online resource that will record a customized mock interview of you with features to evaluate your performance. Even while you practice, don’t forget to dress the part, sometimes a blazer goes a long way. Be sure to focus on the message and being true to yourself—authenticity is impressive!

4. Resumes: Writing About Your Skills:

Your resume provides an overview of your experience and is often an employer’s first impression of you. Recruiters spend just a few seconds on average looking at a resume, so it is crucial to use a format that makes relevant information immediately visible. A good resume can help you land an interview, but even minor errors can take you out of the running. Bring your resume to our drop-in hours or schedule an appointment with a counselor to ensure it will be effective.

5. Interviewing and the Job Offer: Behavioral Interviews (STAR METHOD)

Behavioral interviewing is a technique used by employers in which the questions asked assist the employer in making predictions about a potential employee’s future success based on past behaviors. In behavior-based interviews, candidates are asked to give specific examples of when they demonstrated particular behaviors or skills.

Effective Formula for Answering Behavioral Interviews

• S: Describe the Situation you were in
• T: Describe the Task you needed to accomplish
• A: Describe the Action you took
• R: Describe the Results of your experience

6. Interviewing and the Job Offer: Etiquette

Make a Great First Impression
You only get one chance • If you attend an info session, plan on staying the entire time; it is rude and unprofessional to walk out on a presentation • Know the appropriate attire and be 5 minutes early for interviews • Be respectful and polite to everyone, not just the interviewers.

Know the Recruiting Policies
Know recruiting timelines, deadlines, and norms of behavior • Behave within those guidelines; the employer should do the same

Communicate Promptly and Respectfully
Respond within a couple of days to employers • A lack of rapid response reads as disinterest or rudeness • Always use a professional tone with employers (see in our web examples of written communication)

Advocate for Yourself
Ask questions if you are confused • Ask for: more time to make a decision, request a new interview date, or to negotiate • Talk to a counselor about how to talk to employers or recruiters

Say What You Mean, and Mean What You Say!
Saying yes verbally or in an email is a commitment with or without a contract • Do not accept unless you are confident in your decision.

7. Interviewing and the Job Offer Interviewing Tips

1. Research the organization
Know what they do and where they do it. • Find out what you can about your interviewer before the interview.

2. Practice in at least one mock interview
Make an appointment with a counselor. • Supplement mock interview with Interview Stream online.

3. Make a strong first impression
Dress appropriately and conservatively. • Arrive 10 minutes early. Plan for commuting delays. • Address the interviewer by his/her title (e.g. Dr. if appropriate). • Offer a firm handshake. • Maintain good eye contact and smile. • Avoid heavy cologne and perfume. Some people are very sensitive to smells. • Don’t ask about salary/benefits unless the employer brings it up first.

4. Keep your responses focused and use your STAR examples (see above)
Keep your answers to 2-3 minutes, unless you are asked to elaborate further. • Prepare examples ahead of time (STAR: Situation, Task, Action, Results).

5. Quantify and be specific
Generalities rarely impress. • Specific and quantifiable responses are the most compelling.

6 Summarize at the end of each answer as to how you approach that type of situation
Consider stating something like ‘So in general, when I have to interact with a difficult coworker, I...’ • This leaves the interviewer with the take-home message that you want him/her to remember.

7. Be clear on how you fit the job opening; convince them with examples that you could be a valuable team member

8. Express appreciation for the opportunity to interview
Thank the interviewer and ask about next steps. • Give a firm handshake before you leave. • Send a follow-up thank-you email or note.

8. Resume and Career Writing: CV Guidelines:

A curriculum vitae (CV) is a summary of your experiences and educational background. While it can resemble a resume, a CV is most often used when applying for a teaching or research opportunities, applying for a grant or fellowship, or for further academic training. The process will be similar to the process of writing a resume, however, CVs are frequently longer and include much more detailed information.