Career Blog
- Details
Now that the exam season has winded down, you may find yourself with a little bit more time on your hands, or maybe you are just as busy getting ready for the holidays! Whether you are baking treats, wrapping gifts or spreading holiday cheer, check out these business and career-minded podcasts:
1) JOLSID Podcast
The JOLSID podcast uses research to improve your cognitive performance; some of the previous podcasts have provided facts in becoming an effective communicator both verbally and non-verbally.
2) SUCCESS Insider
The hosts of SUCCESS Insider speak to listeners about personal empowerment, entrepreneurship and career development. Each week they bring on guests that are proven business leaders, industry experts and trendsetters to get you thinking about YOUR next idea!
3) The Tony Robbins Podcast
Tony Robbins, a Life and Business Strategist, alongside other prominent business experts share how you can achieve results in business, relationships, health, and finances.
You don’t need to grasp and follow everything you hear in these podcasts, but you should write down a few takeaways and in the new semester and New Year give them a shot! Whether it is in class or at a Telfer networking event, there is no better place to see if these tips work for you then in these learning environments.
Most importantly, during the break, we hope you get the chance to relax. You have earned it and on behalf of the Career Centre Ambassadors, Happy Holidays and all the best in 2018!
- Details
New year, new me, right?
With 2017 almost at the end, one thing I’ve realized that makes a big difference in all aspects of my life; whether it be academic or my professional career, is staying organized and on top of deadlines. Since it’s a new year, you might as well break those old habits of submitting that essay 2 minutes before the deadline or being late to an important appointment.
Here are some tips that will make your 2018 more productive in terms of your personal life, overall, as well as your academic and professional career!
1) Buy an agenda (and actually use it!)
You have probably heard this multiple times by now, but I am going to say it again; having an agenda is essential to staying organized!
Helpful tip: colour code each class to help differentiate between them, but also colour coding other commitments such as work and extra-curricular!
2) Set goals
As it comes to the end of the year, you might have reached your goals or have completely different ones. With the new year, set new goals!
Helpful tip: Align your goals with the bigger picture; where do you see yourself at the end of your degree? That can either be in your personal life or your professional career.
Book an appointment with an
3) Think in advance!
With finals, almost out of the way, you will have some time over the holidays to look into summer employment opportunities. Employers are already thinking in advance for summer student positions/internships, so you should start applying to jobs now for summer positions! Check out these recent job postings on the Career Centre website.
Hopefully these organizational tips will help you start the New Year with on the right foot.
Good luck with finals and happy holidays!
- Details
“My time here at Telfer has been challenging so far. Despite these challenges, my experiences have been rewarding. Telfer has allowed me to study in French immersion, as well as to gain valuable volunteer and work experience. After much hard work and determination, I am proud to say that I was admitted into the CO-OP program. Ultimately, through my developing skills, I have learned to overcome these obstacles by setting goals, being persistent and managing my time.”
- Heather O.
2nd Year Finance Student
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
- Details
You have successfully gone through the process of having your resumé reviewed by recruiters and you are now at the interview stage, where you will have to convince them to hire you. It’s your time to shine and set yourself apart from other candidates. By paying close attention to your outfit and to the way you stand, you will be able to do just that.
1. Do some research on the company
First of all, find out about the hiring company. You should normally do this before you send out your resumé, so that you know what you could be getting into and whether the values of the company are in line with yours. You can even adjust your outfit to the company culture.
2. Don’t try too hard
Choose a sober and professional outfit that is a little less casual than what you would normally wear in this position. Avoid low-cut tops, loud and bold colours, heavy makeup, short skirts or high heels. The goal is not to distract the recruiter from what you are saying.
3. Avoid perfume
Avoid wearing perfume since it can be unpleasant to someone who doesn’t share your tastes. Instead, choose a light eau de toilette.
4. Pay attention to your posture
Adjust your posture according to the message you want to convey. Stand upright and lean slightly toward the other person without crossing your legs and arms. And most importantly, maintain eye contact with the recruiter and don’t forget to smile.
Good luck to you all!
References:
http://www.coupdepouce.com/style/mode/article/comment-s-habiller-pour-une-entrevue
- Details
Did you know that recruiters only spend about 6 seconds reviewing each resumé in their pile? When everyone has a good GPA and similar work experience what can help you stand out? A good cover letter is definitely the answer. In this post, I will share my 6 tips on how to write a successful cover letter.
1) The Salutation
Make sure to start with a salutation to the appropriate contact person. Do your research and try to find out who the cover letter and resume will be sent to. If you aren’t able to find a name, use a greeting such as “Dear Hiring Manager,” or something similar. Try to avoid “to whom it may concern”.
2) Spelling/Grammatical Mistakes
This is the worst mistake that you could make! Be sure to spend some time reviewing your cover letter before sending it out. Check for awkward sounding sentences and misspelled words - especially company names!
3) The Format
A cover letter should not exceed one page in length, and should not be one large paragraph. Use different sentence structure. The hiring manager has likely received stacks of cover letters for this specific posting - make sure you catch their attention immediately with an inviting first sentence. Sell yourself and your skills!
4) The Font
Times New Roman or Calibri are good font choices, but try to stay away from fonts like Courier New. You want to highlight your qualifications, without making it difficult for the hiring manager to read.
5) The Tone
You want to come off as professional and friendly, as well as enthusiastic about the position you are applying for. Make sure to show respect to the reader, and to get your points across as briefly as possible. You are writing this cover letter in order to introduce yourself to the company, and explaining why they should want to know (and hire) you.
6) Vagueness
You definitely want to use descriptive keywords in your cover letter, as well as your resumé. The more detailed your explanation of what qualifications you have is, the better your chance of getting a phone call for an interview! However, be sure to keep page length in mind.
I hope these tips will help you in writing a successful cover letter. It is an essential step in making an effective first impression with a potential employer.
If you are still struggling with your cover letter, the Telfer Career Centre and its staff are available to help. Book an appointment for a cover letter critique by contacting
Make sure to check out the Marketing Yourself section of the Career Centre website for more information on cover letters!
- Details
Studying for exams can be very overwhelming. How do you organize your time to optimize the few days you have between exams? What if you have 3 exams in 2 days? Exam season is never fun.
As a fourth year student, I have gone through several exam seasons, with extremely different exam schedules. Here are my top survival tips of getting through an exam season successfully.
1) Create a time schedule
If you have multiple exams in a short period of time, pre-plan how you want to break up your study days. This doesn’t mean that your timing won’t change, but at least if you have an estimated amount of time you want to spend on each class, it can help shape how you approach the day.
2) Give yourself breaks
No one can study for 5 hours on end. Put a timer on for 50 minutes and work hard. Then, the last 10 minutes of the hour can be your deserved break time. Of course, you can adjust this to fit your needs, but I find that 45-50 minutes is as long as I can go without needing a minute to recharge. I find having an actual timer going helps me remain true to the 50 minutes as I can check how much time I have left and that motivates me to just finish the time that I’ve set for myself. Breaks allow for blood to flow to your brain, which will help you think and remember better when you get back to it.
3) Eat right and stay active
We all love coffee or tea to keep us alert, but it is imperative that you are taking time to eat properly so that your body has the nutrients to stay naturally alert. A great alternative to coffee is eating an apple! The natural sugars that an apple contains actually makes you feel more awake (just like a coffee) and is slowing released throughout your body so it also lasts a long time.
Staying active is harder, as doing a full workout usually takes at least an hour out of your day. When exams are looming, that hour might seem like the difference between a 60% and a 70% (even though it probably isn’t). Exercising actually is really good for your brain functionality as it gets blood, oxygen and nutrients to your brain. Also, if you don’t want to commit to an hour to do a workout, use that 10 minute break from before to walk around the library.
4) Note Taking and Highlighting
I am an avid highlighter to the point that it might not be helpful. But what makes it helpful is the colour differentiation from the white background of the paper. Yellow does stimulate brain activity and draws our eyes to what should be remembered. I also love to write my notes out in different colours. I know this might seem tedious (and sometimes it really is) but if there is a concept that I am struggling with, writing it out in colour might change your literal perspective on the information.
5) SLEEP
There is nothing that replaces sleep. You need to recharge to be able to fully digest the information you are studying. Maybe you don’t need to get 10 hours of sleep, but anything less than 7 will leave you less alert when writing your exam and that is when mistakes can happen. So don’t look at sleep as a waste of time; look at it as the time for the information you studied to sink into your memory.
And that’s it! There’s many more things you can do to help you study (study with a group, say your notes out loud, record yourself saying the information and play it back on the bus…) but these are the top things that really help get me through the exam season.
Good luck on your exams everyone!
- Details
“Be yourself. What does it mean to be yourself - it starts with knowing yourself. If we are our self, our different uniqueness will be useful to a company or for any task. We always just need to be our self- that is how we are more efficient, performing better as our self.”
- Louis Tassé
Senior Human Resources Vice-President
Brookfield Renewable Energy Group
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
- Details
Networking events are always intimidating. There are limited topics that can be discussed with prospective employers, and the conversation typically only lasts a few minutes. Job searching always seems to be a difficult task. It can be tough to even get an interview! As an international student, you may find it tempting to give up on the job search. Before doing that, you should educate yourself with the resources and help that the Telfer Career Centre can provide you.
1) Telfer International Career Mentorship Program
The Telfer International Career Mentorship Program facilitates international students’ transition towards a career in Canada. Matched with accomplished mentors, these 3rd and 4th year students will develop their professional skills and learn about Canadian workplace culture. I participated in this program last year, and it taught me to think outside the box while searching for a job. In fact - job searching becomes much easier when there is a mentor assisting you. An exclusive mentor can also refer you to his or her company for work. I believe that signing up for the mentorship program, in addition to networking, really facilitates the job search.
It is comparable to the Telfer Executive Mentoring Program, but international students are more likely to get admitted due to the number of spots available.
2) Workshop: Job Search for International Students
The Telfer Career Centre offers many different workshops and networking events; however, there are still international students who are nervous about stepping out of their comfort zone. It is hard enough to converse with someone you do not know, especially so when English is not your first language. Job searching is a difficult task and can be even more challenging for international students. This workshop, organized by the Career Centre specifically for these students, highlights the nuances of the job search and recruitment process in Canada. It is usually held in the fall term.
Some of the other workshops offered include Self-understanding, Career Planning and Testing; Career Search Strategies; Rock Your Resumé; Interview Skills; Networking Strategies; First Impressions; Social Media; and finally, Job Search for International Students.
If you want to nail an interview, I would also highly recommend booking an appointment for a practice interview with a Career Counsellor or a Career Advisor.
3) Telfer Global Talent Portal
As international students, we are exposed to opportunities both in Canada, as well as in our own nation. The Telfer Career Centre has launched the Telfer Global Talent Portal (GTP), a global career portal that comes as an addition to all other existing initiatives and resources which students have access to. It is targeted towards international students looking for placements back home, and local students who want to explore different countries outside of Canada.
As a Telfer student, you gain an exclusive access to an international network of internship and job opportunities in Asia, Europe and America. There are 420 participating countries, and numerous large companies like Accenture, Amazon, IBM, CISCO, and Microsoft. Visit
https://telfer.higheredtalent.org to get more details!
I hope that this blog post will help you discover what the Telfer Career Centre offers students who are searching for work. One thing to always keep in mind - do not ever lose confidence in yourself and your abilities, no matter how challenging things may be! Believe in yourself, and know that the Telfer Career Centre is here to support you and answer any questions you may have.
- Details
“Be bold in figuring out your WHY. I had the opportunity to explore different programs, meet people from different nations (and in different nations), learn to fail without fear, and grow my depth and breadth of experience with the support of a community.
Telfer offers business students incredible opportunities, but you need to figure out how to uniquely leverage them. I was bold in my pursuit to figure out what my skills are and where my passions lie.”
- Naomi H.
Telfer Alumni
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
- Details
As business students, we are constantly required to give presentations. Whether it be a marketing pitch to investors or an informative presentation on a new database, there are fundamental skills we must acquire to be great speakers. Giving presentations may be nerve-wracking, but with these small tips, you are sure to see improvement soon.
Tip #1: Know the Topic
This may seem obvious, but in order to effectively portray the information, you need to know exactly what is required and make sure you address every aspect of the topic. You first need to know if the presentation is informative or persuasive, as this will affect the language you use and the direction you take for addressing the topic. You then must determine all aspects of the topic that must be covered in your content. Don’t leave your audience confused, ensure you fully grasp the topic of your presentation.
Tip #2: Do your Research
Giving a meaningful presentation means having valuable content. Your audience wants to know reliable statistics and facts to support your content. For informative presentations, this is useful for portraying the information in a numeric format. For persuasive presentations, this can help you show evidence that a change needs to be made. Having quality research gives validity to your work and gives the impression of professionalism and mastery.
Tip #3: Practice
In order to get your message across to the audience effectively, you must be prepared. You need to deliver all the information to the audience and to do this in an effective and timely manner, you should plan your topic points and practice presenting them. This will help you feel more confident and allow you to have fun with your presentations!
