One of the things we constantly emphasize at Career Services is how you can ‘transfer’ the skills you’ve learned during your academic career to a job in industry or consulting. I recently heard from a PhD in Biochemistry who just accepted an academic position at a Florida University that the ‘transfer’ can sometimes go the other way.
In his email, he emphasized that what made the most impact on his selection committee was what he’d said in his “Statement of Teaching Philosophy” about how to get his students to approach a research problem. Instead of using a piece of academic research to illustrate this, however, he’d used something straight out of a workshop I’d led on ‘Managing the Non-Academic Interview”—how to answer an off-the-wall quantitative question like, “How heavy is a Boeing 707?”
First, he emphasized that the wrong thing to do would be to try to come up with the ‘right’ answer, as students might be tempted to do if they were facing an academic advisor or dissertation committee. Instead, he went into some detail about how the question should be clarified (“Before or after a flight?”, “With passengers or without?” etc.) and then separated into component parts, (“Let’s see…a Boeing 707 probably has 30 rows of seats, with 6 people in each row, except for first class…6 rows of 4 seats, so that’s 24 + 144…160 passengers with an average weight of let’s say 150 pounds, and average baggage of 25 pounds, so 175 x 160 equals 28,000 pounds. Then the plane itself is pretty light—less than what a car would be per passenger—let’s say 1000 pounds for 4 passengers, or 40,000 pounds for all of them. Then a gallon of fuel is lighter than a gallon of water, and that weighs about 8 pounds, so let’s say 6 pounds x 1000 gallons…”) You get the idea.
What made this so appealing to the selection committee was that it closely matched the spirit of inquiry and cross-disciplinary thinking that were fundamental components of the University’s mission. The ‘thinking-out-loud’ aspect of the description triggered a lively discussion of the candidate’s interview, and gave him much more of a chance to display his teaching style and techniques than any discussion of his own research might have done.
So the next time you’re in a Career Services workshop on the Non-Academic Job Search, keep your eyes open for something that might be useful on the academic side as well!
CareerCast: Working at a Start Up
by Jaclyn Chen (W ‘12) & Angie Luo (C ‘11)
Want to watch this video on your mobile device? Click here!
Don’t get your lines crossed!
Dr. Joseph Barber
“Hello, I love you!”
You don’t expect to receive that kind of e-mail message from anyone other than your significant other or family member. You might be surprised to hear, then, that several of the counselors at Career Services have stories about receiving this kind of e-mail from students who they have previously advised, or sent program/workshop information to.
There is an explanation. The “hello, I love you!” messages are usually followed by this sort of message:
“Dear Dr. Barber, I am very, very sorry that you received that last e-mail. Please ignore it. My phone was taken by my friend/roommate/drunken colleague and they sent out prank messages to my contacts. I apologize for the inconvenience.”
Of course, that’s only if the owner of the phone realizes that messages have been sent out on their phone by their “friends”. Who knows what mischief they are up to with your phone while you are off in the bathroom? At Career Services, we are used to receiving the odd message that has been sent by mistake. After any program announcement that I send out by e-mail to our listservs, I usually get one message along the lines of:
“Hey, I’m at the library, let’s do lunch. Are you done with classes yet? See ya!”
I let the sender know that they sent their message to the wrong person – no harm done. But what if your mischievous friends, or a slip of your finger, mean that wrong messages get sent to that prospective employer you have been e-mailing? How are they going to react to messages where you seem to be telling them that you love them (or worse)? Well, probably not well. They are unlikely to e-mail you back and let you know that you sent them a wrong message, and they might be much less forgiving than we are when they receive your hastily sent apology e-mail. First impressions always count, and it is hard to convince someone that you are well-organized and professional if you cannot keep track of your phone or e-mail.
Employers receive far more applicants than they have jobs available, and the job of whittling down 200 applicants to the top 10 is a tough one. Don’t make it easy for them to discard you – keep your phone and your e-mail secure, double check your e-mail recipient list before you send, and don’t drink and phone/e-mail/text (and especially not when driving).
Mistakes with e-mails can happen – it’s not the end of the world when they do, but it should be something that you take care to avoid whenever possible. In a somewhat creepy fashion, Mayor Nutter appears on my TV at night and asks: “Do you know where your children are?”. You should heed the mayor’s advice and always think about the location of your phone in a similar way.
Job Postings: More than meets the eye…
By: David Ross
So by now some of you have probably seen more job postings than you care to think about. After reading through a few of them, it can be easy to “cut to the chase” and focus on applying for the position. While applying for job openings of interest is imperative, important clues can be revealed in job postings – minor details here and there – that not only signal whether the job is truly a good fit for you but also help you improve your application.
One of the first things job seekers look at is the position title. The more impressive the title sounds, the more interesting or significant the position may seem. Perhaps this is true in some instances, but it’s important not to instantly dismiss a position just because the job title is not exactly what you are looking for or what you ideally envision. Some organizations use their own classification or terminology for positions that may not make a lot of sense to those outside of the organization. But if the job responsibilities and tasks seem interesting, the position could be one of those hidden gems that ends up a strong fit for you. Another thing to look for is the experience/education requirement. Some position titles may imply a level of experience or education that doesn’t match your background. But looking closely at the details may reveal the position is indeed appropriate and can ensure you don’t miss great opportunities.
While on the subject of job duties and responsibilities (and even qualifications), it can be easy to lose sight of their significance. For some positions, you may already know what the job entails or have performed similar roles in the past. While that information and experience is certainly valuable, still be sure to carefully read through the job duties and responsibilities section. Similar roles in different organizations may vary in terms of the actual day-to-day assignments and responsibilities. Beyond that, any information in this section can provide tangible topics for you to consider addressing in a cover letter. Companies spend time including descriptions and overviews in their job postings for specific reasons – so why not focus on addressing these areas in your application materials? Detailed information listed in job postings can be helpful in attempts to tailor your cover letters to job opportunities at each organization.
What can also be quite interesting is information not included in the job posting. Sometimes postings can be somewhat vague or address some points of interest while neglecting others. For example, one posting may clearly highlight and indicate the requisite job duties and qualifications but neglect to signify how that position fits within the company’s organizational structure. For someone that values working in an organization as part of a team within a department, no mention of organizational structure may leave the applicant wondering about fit. Pay attention to any information important to you that’s missing from a job posting and use that as the basis for one or two questions to ask at the end of an interview. If you are focused on opportunities in one particular industry, it may be helpful to examine multiple job postings at different companies in that industry to compare and contrast them. What details are missing from one listing that are indicated in another?
Regardless of where you find a job listing (and I can’t emphasize this point enough), really stop to think if the posting is legitimate. Sometimes job opportunities are just too good to be true. I can think of several stories I’ve heard where applicants saw a job posting, applied for the position and found out the job really wasn’t as advertised. If you have a funny feeling or sneaky suspicion, don’t be afraid to ask questions or research to try to find more information.
These are just some of the ways to scrutinize job postings to reveal valuable information. Remember, sometimes there’s more than meets the eye…
Pronoun Abuse: An Interview Diagnosis
By Anne Guldin Lucas
Stuart Student was in the midst of a terrific interview. He was in the zone, responding to even the most difficult questions with thoughtful, succinct responses. Irma Interviewer was smiling and making comments that convinced Stuart he was about to clinch the job offer. Then he was asked the question for which he had been hoping: “What was your greatest accomplishment as a Penn student?”
Without a moment’s hesitation, Stuart responded, “During our first term at Penn, me and my friend started a program in local homeless shelters to increase the rate of high school graduations and college matriculations among homeless students. This year, our fourth year of the program, we achieved a 95% success rate. The Mayor presented she and I with a Philadelphia Citizenship Award.”
A shadow fell across Irma Interviewer’s face, and she muttered something about remembering that they had filled this job opening last week. As she was showing Stuart to the door, he wondered where he had gone wrong. Could Ms. Interviewer possibly object to educating children or did his response lack the proper humility? He didn’t even mention that their picture was on the front page of the DP!
What do you think, reader? Can you diagnose Stuart Student’s fatal interviewing error?
Yes, it was pronoun abuse! Whereas Stuart’s opening sentence required that he use a first person pronoun in the subjective (“my friend and I” vs. “me and my friend,”), his last sentence called for objective pronouns (“her and me” vs. “she and I”). If those grammatical terms are too hard to remember, simply omit Stuart’s friend from the equation, and your ear should guide you to the proper pronouns. Surely no one would say, “During my first term at Penn, me started a program….The Mayor presented I with…”
Contrast Stuart’s interview experience with that of Stella Student. Ricky Recruiter asked challenging questions, and Stella was prepared with all the right responses—and proper pronouns. When asked that fateful question, “What was your greatest accomplishment as a Penn student?” Stella quickly and expertly responded, “During our first year at Penn, my friend and I launched an initiative against Pronoun Abuse. Having cleared the Penn campus of errant pronouns, the English Department awarded him and me with Distinguished Student Awards.”
Needless to say, Ricky Recruiter’s next words were, “You’re hired!”
P.S. If you are inspired to become Sammy Syntax after reading this blog, you can learn more about pronoun usage by consulting: