Job searching in student affairs is truly a process. The flow of job searching truly seem to come in waves. If you are looking for the next academic year, postings typically start in January and February, interviewing at the major job placement conferences or phone interviews in March or April, with on campuses coming in late spring. While a great deal of jobs are posted during this period of time, this cycle is not the only way to get a job in student affairs.

On twitter recently, many job seekers have been mentioning having to start their job search process over.  Right now, many may feel like they are hitting a wall, especially with the stressers of graduating for graduate students, unknown moving plans for those in limited term appointments, closing and graduation. At that into the stress of searching for two and the thought of being a candidate can be overwhelming. Don’t get overwhelmed, just consider a different view.

Job searching post the “traditional” search season is just a contiuation of your job search. You have not failed as a job searcher by not finding the right opportunity for you or your partner by May. Do not give into the pressure of having to have ANY job rather than finding the right job for you. Lots of amazing professionals have not gotten a job during the “traditional” job search process. As we move into the summer, many more jobs will be posting as positions as other professionals move up or on. Now is the time to find that motivational song on your mp3 player and up the pace of your run.

The challenge with searching outside of placement is that lack of timeline as well as the chance to meet people in person. Be prepared for anything during this period of time when it come to your search. Some schools will move fast, posting positions and starting their interview process quickly. Others may wait until the academic year is complete before starting their process. Be patient with the schools. You know how crazy April/May/June is at your institution. But with the difference in schedule, it is up to you to come up with your plan as to how to continue searching for jobs.

Now is a great time to reset the pace of your search. As roles may be changing, be it professionally or personally, take a look at how you have approached your search so far. Is your plan still working for you and your partner? Have you gotten any feedback from the processes that you have been in so far? Searching this time of year does not necessarily require a complete overhaul of your search, but rather some small tweaks to make your search process work for you. Use the tools on the job search websites that can help alert you to new positions to help you focus during this busy time of year. Daily e-mails of job postings can really help speed your search up. Also, don’t forget about the placement websites. Employers have the opportunity to post on them year round and more postings are put up every day. Your support network can also prove to be a great help during your continued search. Ask your references to review your search materials if they haven’t already. Getting feedback from them can prove to be invaluable as you continue your search. Let other professionals know (when appropriate) what you are searching for as many job descriptions may be sent over e-mail listservs this time of year. From my personal experience, I found out about my first two positions from job descriptions mailed to a colleague and forwarded to me after the “traditional” search period.

The race to find employment may be long. Remember to pace yourself and remember your goals. While everyone may run the race at a different pace, the important thing to remember is that everyone gets a sense of accomplishment when you reach the finish line, your dream job.

End of the year. Time for closing, recognition events, graduation, saying goodbye to students, and sinking into our chairs to focus on another completed academic year. There may be some celebrating that the students are gone too, just for a moment.

As you are celebrating the successes of your students and the end of the 2009-2010 academic year, isn’t it about time to celebrate yourself? As we work on the end of the year tasks, especially those who have performance appraisals or annual reports to complete, we take a departmental focus on what is the work that we do, how do we do it, and how can we make it better. So isn’t this the opportune moment to take a chance to look at all that you have accomplished as well?

Many people only pull out their resumes as they begin to put together their job search. However, resumes can serve as a great tool of celebrating yourself as well. Some of the things that you can think about as you reflect on the year include:

• Major programs that you were involved with are you most proud of
• Any committees that you served on
• New “other duties as assigned”
• Well deserved awards you were given
• New professional development opportunities you took part in
• Publications you have been involved with
• Hard numbers with regard to students served, budgeting, and other facts

Having the chance to really look at the year while we are still wrapping it up can make it easier to remember all of the facts that you want to include in your resume without having to think back to those tasks a year or two later.

Working on your resume now can also provide you with a great planning tool for the upcoming academic year. Is there a gap that you see in your resume that you would like to address? Are there events or tasks that you were involved with that you would like to make even better than they were? Are there professional development opportunities that you would like to pursue in the upcoming year?

So dust off that resume over the next few weeks and make sure to take the time to celebrate yourself!

For the last post, I shared a bit about twitter and the networking opportunities that exist for student affairs professionals. Most recently, there has been a twitter job search success story. Both the candidate and employer have been kind enough to share their perspective on using twitter as a part of the job search process.

For Becca, the successful candidate, her post on On the Go with Ed Cabellon, she found three ways that twitter helped with her job search:

• Connected me with other Student Affairs professionals and formed a support system.
• Validated my experience and classroom knowledge.
• Gave me perspective on what employers were looking for and my institutional fit.

Source: http://edcabellon.com/technology/twitters-impact-on-my-job-search/

For Mike, the successful employer, his post on The Student Affairs Collaborative, he offers the following advice to candidates using twitter as a part of their job search:

As a candidate you need to think through how you use twitter and what degree of access you want to provide.  It can be hugely beneficial for employers to triangulate your professional perspective and network connections.  On the other hand it can also be detrimental, particularly related to candidate authenticity and consistency in different settings if your interviews and application materials don’t align well with your presence in social media.

Source: http://thesabloggers.org/2010/04/job-search-success-via-twitter-i%E2%80%99m-a-believer-now/

Social media can be a successful part of your job search toolbox both as a candidate and an employer. What stands out for both individuals is that through use of social media, the small field of student affairs became more personal for all parties involved. Being able to research what social media the institution is utilizing as a part of their efforts can help to provide insight for the candidates about the culture of the institution. On the other side of the coin, social media allows employers to follow what candidates interests and insights to the profession can be when the media is used appropriately. Through the use of social media, you can shrink what can seem like a daunting job search down into a more manageable task and ultimately success story. Congrats to both Becca and Mike!

How are you finding success using social media in your job search?

Long gone are the days where one of the first places to look for a job was in the paper. I remember the story of a colleague talking with a student who needed to find a job to help with their school expenses. The professional was offering the student suggestions on how to search for a job and mentioned looking in the newspaper. The student had no clue that there were job postings in the newspaper and scoffed at the thought of using one as a tool for her job search process. Don’t you just love those moments in Student Affairs where your students make you feel old…

Searching for a job has changed over time with a shift from the sign in the window announcing job availability to the online Human Resources website. Searching for a job online can prove to feel like rolling the dice. Every day is a new roll. You check the websites that are important to you based off of your search needs. My daily search has included The Placement Exchange, Higher Ed Jobs, Inside Higher Ed as well as localized HR websites for institutions that I am interested in. Each day is a new day to see if you can find the dream job you are looking for.

However, don’t feel like searching online is your only option in your job search. One of the most important aspects of any job search, especially those that are searching for two, is networking. Being that it’s the end of April, many people may feel like your networking opportunities may be limited as the major conference season has passed, but fear not, networking is a year-round experience and something that you can always do. Plus, you may make some new friends in the process.

One of the greatest networking tools out there right now that is getting a lot of use in Student Affairs is Twitter. One of the most well utilized groups is #SAChat, which meets on Twitter every Thursday in the afternoon from 1pm – 2pm EST and in the evening from 7pm-8pm EST. Each week a topic is selected for the chat. This past week’s chat was on Staff Recognition and Motivation. Being a member of the chat, you can be as vocal as you would like or if you prefer to watch, the #SAChat touts that “lurking is learning.” One of the best part about this group is that the conversations extend beyond the chat times into a great source of networking with others in the field during the week. Jobs are posted on twitter every so often and the members of the group have proven to be a great resource for those job searching. Most importantly, just looking at the group you can see the connections that individuals in Student Affairs are making everyday. You never know who may have the lead for that perfect job or who can help you process through any questions as to how to approach your search for two. For more information about how SAChat works, they have provided a great tutorial for those just starting out. Additionally, there are new chats forming on a wide variety of function areas including Residence Life, Student Unions and Greek Life.

Beyond Twitter, another great tool to utilize in your job exploration and search process is the informational interview. Informational interviews give you a chance to talk with individuals about their job and the institution. Informational interviews are not the chance for you to ask if they have any job openings, rather they are a chance for you to learn more about the person, their career path, the department and roles at their institution, and the institution itself. Informational interviews can prove to be very helpful when you are considering a functional area that is outside of the area that you are currently working in or if your geographic region may be limited. The nice part about an informational interview is that you are in control of the interview. The challenge with the informational interview is that you are in control of the interview. Go into an informational interview with a list of questions that you want to ask but be comfortable with going with the flow of the conversation. By learning more about the function area or the institution, you have the chance to determine if this is a career path you would like to consider and the chance to make a connection with the person that you interview.

Building new relationships and expanding your network is important, but don’t forget about the network you already have surrounding you. Look to your colleagues and relationships that you have built over your career. If you feel comfortable, let them know what you are searching for so that if they hear of any postings or opportunities, they can share that information with you. Some of these people may be serving as your references, so keeping them in the loop can prove to be extremely important. Additionally, if you have gotten a job and your partner is still looking, use the network at your new institution to help your partner with their search. Once you are on-campus or when you have accepted the job, you can ask the question of if the institution is willing to help your partner find a job should you accept a position. Most places I have talked to have been very supportive of being able to provide assistance. At the last institution that I was at, I arrived in the area without a job. Based off of the connections  my partner and I had made with people at the institution, the network helped me find a position within two weeks of arriving in town. Without those connections, it may have been a challenge to find a position in a timely fashion.

While your cover letter and resume are important tools during your job search, don’t forget about the importance of your network. Not only can your network help you with your job search, the individuals that make up your network are individuals that you can chat with year round to get new perspective and support as you approach your current or new position. And sometimes, you can make some life long friends in the process of finding your new path.

Hello everyone,

My name is Jeff and I am in a duel search partnership (Hi Jeff). I introduce myself this way, because if you are not in a dual relationship it sometimes feels like a twelve step program. Cara and I have been in a dual search relationship since 2008, and have done three dual searches since that time. When Cara came up with the idea for a dual search blog I knew I wanted my first post to be about the most common question asked of me in a dual search relationship. The most common question I have been asked is what it’s like when you are searching. The answer is it’s similar to doing a search for two people. In order to make it work, we communicate constantly and make sure that both of us express our opinion. Since we have done the dual search on three different occasions, we have made several steps in order to make it work for us.

- Before searching we state what our goals are for the search. For Student Affairs this includes discussing what type of position and what field we want to work in

- Before either of us apply for a job, we research other schools in the area. This is to ensure that there are other opportunities for the other person.

-As interviews and job search processes are going we have to remember what may be the best career path for one person, may not be what’s best for your partner.

-Sometimes a couple moves to a new city or town, and both people may not have a job. Although it’s not preferred, sometimes a couple has to make a choice or sacrifice one person’s career for the other.

-Remember that sacrificing is not always the easiest pill to swallow. Cara and I have a rule: the person who sacrifices their career path must by a present for the other person. This makes it just a little easier.

-The same person can’t sacrifice every time you search. No matter how many presents you buy a person, if they are forced to continually sacrifice it will breed resentment.

-Remember that every job search is different. Every time we do a new search, we remember that our life is different from when we last searched. We have different priorities, different factors for what makes for an ideal job, and so it’s important to keep those things in mind as you are making decisions.

These are steps that work for Cara and I, every dual search couple is different. What steps work for you? What are some of the common questions you get asked being in a dual search couple? Thanks for reading!

Sometimes as you are going through the job search you need a helping hand to get you back on track, refocus you, or just motivate you that you are an outstanding candidate. For those of you already involved with #SAChat on twitter, many of you already know Sean Cook. Sean is a life purpose and career coach who focuses specifically on working with individuals in Student Affairs and Higher Education. According to Sean’s website, Higher Ed Career Coach:

He holds an M.Ed. in Counseling and Guidance Services from Clemson University and received his coaching certification from the Life Purpose Institute. He is the lead writer for HigherEdLifeCoach.com and HigherEdCareerCoach.Com, and a periodic contributor to the Student Affairs Collaborative Blog.

With over 15 years of experience working in Higher Education, he is an amazing resource for those going through the job search process and a great person to talk to as well. From personal experience, Sean has proven to be extremely helpful in talking about how to phrase answers to questions you may be concerned about and an advocate for keeping a positive attitude when approaching the job search process.

Offering both individual and group opportunities, Sean has also been offering a free Student Affairs Job Seekers Group for those interested on Sunday nights. Topics that have been covered during these sessions have included placement conferences, difficult interview questions, and staying motivated during the job search process. Come join us this Sunday, April 25th from 5:30 – 7 pm for this week’s Student Affairs Job Seekers Group. This week’s topics are supporting others, motivation, and starting over in the job search process. To sign up for the Student Affairs Job Seekers Group, please register here.

Disclosure: We have been members of Sean’s Student Affairs Job Seekers Group since February 2010 which has been offered to all participants free of charge.

Welcome to the first post of Dual Duel, a blog focused on job searching and being in a dual student affairs relationship.

Why Dual Duel? Being in a relationship while trying to find jobs in a similar field can prove to be a challenging task. Planning a search for one can prove to be a daunting task. Between figuring out what types of jobs to apply to, what areas of the country to look in, selecting your method of searching, job searching in student affairs can be a lengthy but very rewarding process. Now multiply that by two. You may have dueling interests in position type or you may even be applying for the same jobs! You may have dueling interests in area of the country based off of potential opportunities available for your partner. But most importantly, you are searching for two which can be one of the most exciting journeys that you can undertake with your best friend. There will be some challenges and compromises, but there will also be some great successes and you may even learn something about each other in the process. There is some comfort knowing that wherever you may move, you will know at least one person when you get there and they actually understand what it is that you do.

Now I feel it is only fair that I share a bit of my story with you. My partner will also be posting on this blog as well with his perspective on being in a dual student affairs relationship. I started my first professional job search at ACPA in Indianapolis in 2006. I went to placement looking for a job and ended up meeting my partner instead. He was in his first professional position located about 1,300 miles away from where I ended up for my first professional position. We were both live-in staff in residence life in a long distance relationship. Two years later, we embarked on our first career search for two. We were fortunate enough to find a location where he had a job and the staff at the institution were extremely supportive in finding a job for me within two weeks of arriving in town. A year later due to unforeseen circumstances, we began another dual search that is still ongoing. Being unemployed for two can be challenging as well. So, we’re on round three, with a positive outlook on the future.

We will be sharing what the dual experience has been like for us and would love to share any of your stories or answer any of your questions as this blog continues to grow. I also look forward to sharing information that may be helpful not only to those of you going through a dual student affairs search but general student affairs searches as well. Additionally, I hope to cover some of the experiences that we will have as we transition to a new location soon.

In full disclosure, this blog is being started as a part of my Global Career Development Facilitator coursework.