CAREER SERVICES AND NETWORKING
Behind every successful woman is HERSELF!
—Ag & Life Science ’96
From the moment you enter Cornell, graduation will be looming in the distance. Don’t worry—you don’t have to run screaming in the other direction! It’s not as scary as it sounds, although you shouldn’t put off thinking about your future until second semester of your senior year. Instead, start exploring career possibilities as soon as you possibly can. Cornell classes are hard and don’t allow much time for trips to the Career Center to research possible careers, but when you start thinking about graduate or professional school or jobs your senior year, you’ll be in much better shape if you have already done your homework.
If you plan to find a job after Cornell, by the second half of your junior year you should do some introspection and self-evaluation and research career possibilities. Interning is a good way to meet people and to decide if you like a particular field. Many employers look favorably upon applicants who have had a summer internship; in fact, many prospective employers expect to see internships on a resume.
Another way to explore a career involves the mysterious concept called “networking.” Networking provides you with a way to move ahead of the competition by getting your foot in the door and gaining precious inside information. It is the most valuable tool for assessing your skills and interests, researching the career field in which you are interested, and possibly landing your first job.
As you start to explore your interests and skills that you might want to use on the job, networking (in the form of informational interviews) can help you gain a better perspective on potential career paths. To gather career information, speak directly with people who have jobs that you might want someday. Most people are extremely willing to talk about themselves - all you have to do is ask! As you conduct informational interviews, the people you speak with may refer you to other people; this is called networking.
Think of yourself as a spider: you have to build yourself a great big web of contacts extending in all directions. This web is your network of people. When you first begin to look for a job, contact these people again to tell them you are seeking employment and to ask them to keep their eyes open for you. They might even have job openings.
It is said that over 75% of jobs are never advertised - this is the “hidden job market.” This means that going to the Career Center to apply for advertised jobs or just sending your résumé to different companies only works 25% of the time. Networking is another way to open up the hidden job market. Although you may prefer to strike out on your own, the old adage is true: “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”
Sometimes the relatively egalitarian environment at Cornell creates the illusion that there is general sex equity in the outside working world. You may experience a rude awakening upon discovering that the glass ceiling still exists.
As a new graduate student, I realized that what I was really lacking throughout my life were female role models in my career area and also in professional situations in general.
Establishing contacts with women may even be more important than establishing contacts with just anyone. Women can give you insight on special concerns such as “the glass ceiling,” sexual harassment, and combining a family with a career. It may especially help to have a female role model in male-dominated fields.
Although women have made enormous gains in the workplace, we still experience discrimination. According to the book Women’s Action Coalition Statistics, typically women still make less money than men: in 1992 women could expect to earn only 66¢ (up from 64¢ in 1955) for every $1 that men earn. Women are also noticeably absent in corporate boardrooms: in a survey of 92 top U.S. corporations, women represented 37% of employees, but only 16% of management and seven percent of executive management. Establishing contacts with women can help you learn about the reality of these concerns in particular fields as well as find encouragement in the face of discrimination.
If you don’t know where to start, search the Alumni Career Advisory Network (ACAN) at the Career Center. ACAN is a database of over 2,500 Cornellians in many career fields. You can choose women professionals in the database. Some alumni specify that they are interested in helping young women start their careers.
Cornell University has done an exceptional job educating women leaders. From the beginning, Cornell women have achieved major successes in their professions. One goal of the PCCW is to identify these women who are outstanding in their fields and present them as role models to students and alumnae so that we may all be inspired to raise our own levels of achievement.
—Carol MacCorkle ’64
An invaluable resource for networking is the President’s Council of Cornell Women (PCCW). This alumnae organization brings together a wide variety of highly successful professional women. The group sponsors luncheons and networking meetings for both undergraduate and graduate women. PCCW also maintains a roster of alumnae who are willing to lecture to groups both on and off campus. Additionally, students can access the PCCW directory which is organized by profession and industry. Alumnae listed in the PCCW Profile Book have made their names accessible because they want to help other Cornell women succeed. PCCW also funds projects like the computers for the University wide extern program (see below), the PCCW grants program, Cornell Tradition, and facilities for women’s athletics.
If you live in the Northeastern U.S., you may want to attend the Senior Women-Alumnae Dinners to network with other women. Twelve separate dinners hosted by Cornellians at their homes in Washington, DC, New York City, Philadelphia, and Boston take place over January break. During these dinners, eight to fifteen senior women meet with an equal number of alumnae to discuss career issues of interest to women. Look for applications for this event after Fall Break or call the Career Center. Make sure you adhere to application deadlines, because space is limited for this popular event.
Another important networking event for seniors takes place the first two days of spring break in Washington, DC. Seniors choose a mentor from various fields ranging from law to the environment to the non-profit sector and meet with this mentor for informational interviewing. While in Washington, students also attend information sessions about working in their area and attend a reception where they can network with alumni participating in the event. Although this event is for men and women, you can request a woman mentor.
Externing offers another way of getting to know women in your field. The Cornell Extern Program gives sophomores, juniors, and seniors a chance to gain an insider’s view of a career field and experience the work environment firsthand. Each year during winter break, several hundred students spend from one day to one week shadowing alumni in dozens of career fields, everywhere from Atlanta to San Franscisco. They see what it’s actually like to be a bank vice president, an environmental lawyer, a museum curator, or a science teacher. A similar program - FRESH - enables first-year students to explore their career interests. Many participants have arranged summer or permanent jobs through contacts they made as externs!
Finding other ways to network is not difficult at all. Joining professional societies will give you an opportunity to network with members working in your field of interest. You should also check with your major department to see if they have special groups for women. For instance, women in the engineering school can join the Society of Women Engineers. Not only will you receive support from other students in your field, you have the chance to network with your professors and professionals out in the “real world.” If you are a member of a sorority, check to see what kinds of services are offered. National headquarters of many sororities have lists of alumnae who are willing to serve as contacts for other women in the sorority.
Cornell Career Services is comprised of college career offices and the University-wide services in Barnes Hall which work together to provide a full range of services to help students make the transition from Cornell to a first job or to graduate or professional school. Career offices in each of the undergraduate colleges and schools offer a variety of career development services, including advising and programming, tailored to the curricular and career goals of students in the colleges. Generally, college career offices offer the first point of contact for career issues during the freshman and sophomore years.
Professionals in the college career services offices will help you discover, explore, and choose a career or find your first job. Cornell Career Services educates students about the career planning and job search process and promotes linkages between students and employers, or graduate and professional schools. In line with this mission, Cornell Career Services focuses its efforts in several major areas:
Career planning - career testing, counseling on decisions with majors and careers, and networking opportunities
Career information - career library with an extensive collection of print, audio, and video reference materials on careers and career decision-making; employment; internships; graduate and professional schools; fellowships; and international opportunities to assist students with job searches and applications to graduate and professional schools
Job search strategies - job search seminars, employer career fairs, company information sessions, and on-campus interviews
Employment services - up-to-the-minute information via the Internet on summer jobs, internships, and full-time jobs after Cornell
Graduate and professional school, including health careers and fellowships - advising and seminars on the application process, information resources, a credentials service, and Graduate and Professional School Days
Cornell uses information technologies to provide students and alumni with access to information and job openings and to expedite communication between job seekers and potential employers. Here are some examples of the technological assistance you’ll find as a Cornell student:
Cornell Career Services Home Page on the Web provides 24 hour-a-day access to information about career services at Cornell, a calendar of events, career resources, summer jobs and internships, full-time jobs, and links to selected Internet career sites.
Internships and Summer Jobs are listed on Cornell MonsterTRAK, an online service that provides information about internships and career-related summer jobs nationwide. Inernships and summer jobs offer excellent opportunities for exploring your intersts and determining your “fit” with a career field.
Cornell MonsterTRAK also provides descriptions and application information for full-time positions with regional, national, and international employers. This database is used exclusively by Cornell students and alumni and is updated daily with positions for entry-level candidates and recent graduates in a wide range of career fields.
Each college also has its own career center which may better match your interests (see Resources).
Cornell Career Centers
For further information about dates and times of events and services, stop by the University Career Center or the career center of your college.
Cornell Career Services 255-5221
103 Barnes Hall
Agriculture and Life Sciences 255-2215
Career Development Office
177 Roberts Hall
Architecture, Art, and Planning Career Services 255-7696
B1 West Sibley Hall
Arts and Sciences Career Services 255-4166
61 Goldwin Smith Hall
Engineering Career Services 255-5006
201 Carpenter Hall
Hotel Administration Career Services Office 255-9794
255 Statler Hall
Human Ecology Career Services 255-2532
172 Martha Van Rensselaer Hall
Industrial and Labor Relations Career Services 255-7816
201 Ives Hall