Why It’s Not Too Early to Meet With Your Career & Recruitment Specialist

September 28, 2022 Management Career Services Leave a Comment

Welcome to Dal! If you’re a first-year Commerce Co-op or Management student, you’ll become familiar with Management Career Services (MCS) in the coming months. MCS is the co-op and career services office for Rowe School of Business students at Dal. We foster your professional growth by providing industry-specific knowledge, resume, cover letter, and interview support, and access to job opportunities and employer events. You’ll be assigned a Career and Recruitment Specialist (CRS) based on your major or your industry of interest. They’re here to support you on your way to becoming a professional in your future career.

If you’re a Commerce Co-op student, you might think you don’t need to meet with your CRS until it’s time to look for your first co-op. If you’re a Management student, you might believe you should wait until you’re ready to start thinking about your first post-grad job to book that meeting. That’s not the case – your CRS is here to support you at any point during your time at Dal.

Here are four reasons to book that first appointment with your CRS sooner rather than later!

Build a connection with your CRS
Our Career and Recruitment Specialists have a collective network of alumni and professionals that spans many industries and sectors. By building a relationship with your CRS, you’re not only tapping into them as a resource, but also their network of connections.

Building a connection with your CRS early will be very beneficial later. When you’re ready to start looking for a co-op, internship, summer job, or grad job, you’ll already have a relationship underway and your CRS will have gained an understanding of who you are and what you’re looking for, which will help them provide even better support.

Your CRS is an expert in recruitment of students who are exactly where you are in your career. Don’t wait to start tapping into their expertise to help you on your professional journey.

Get your resume and cover letter job-ready early

Think of the job opportunities you will come across in life as doors. To open those doors, you need the key – your resume and cover letter. Whether it’s a work term, part-time job, or post-grad position, the length of time that door is open will vary, and it is likely shorter than you think. Don’t wait until you see the first job posting that interests you to ask your CRS for feedback on your documents. Having your resume and cover letter prepared and reviewed early will ensure you don’t miss the doors that close quickly.

Also remember that this isn’t a once-and-done thing – you can (and should) ask your CRS to review your documents with you throughout your job search process, especially if you aren’t landing interviews. They are always here to provide support at every step of the way. Remember to send your documents to your CRS a few business days in advance of your meeting so they can prepare meaningful feedback.

Practice your interview skills

Congratulations! You’ve landed your very first job interview. But it’s Friday… and your interview is at 8:30am on Monday. Meeting with your CRS to practice your interview skills before you start securing interviews will help you avoid getting into a situation like this. Interviews can be stressful, but the more you practice, the less nervous and more confident you’ll feel.

Develop necessary skills for future success

To be successful in your future career, you must be open to feedback to help you improve. Your CRS will help you become job-ready by answering your questions about what to expect in the workplace, especially if you will soon be going into your first job. They, along with the resources available on the MCS website and Brightspace, will help you learn how to acquire the skills and knowledge you need to land your dream job. With your CRS, you can develop a job search strategy and gain an understanding of what you need to do between now and graduation to develop yourself to meet market demand.

Sometimes an email to your CRS will suffice, other times it’s best to meet virtually or in-person. In either case, your Career & Recruitment Specialist at Management Career Services is here to assist you with your professional and career development during your time at Dalhousie.

Want to book a time to meet with your CRS? Head over to myCareer!

Alumni Spotlight: William Gregg

March 29, 2021 Management Career Services Leave a Comment

William Gregg is a Dalhousie alumnus who graduated from the Bachelor of Commerce program in 2020. After taking part in various tours of Dal, he was sold on the campus atmosphere. He went on to choose the Bachelor of Commerce program because of the variety of courses and majors offered, as well as the ability to attain valuable co-op work experience.

Using Management Career Services to his advantage, William polished his resume and cover letters during his job search, and used his past employment history to set him apart from other applicants. “My Career and Recruitment Specialist helped me develop relationships, fine-tune my resume and cover letters, and provided myCareer access – a great portal for job postings. I found all of my co-ops through myCareer postings.”

For William’s first two co-ops, he worked at TJX Canada as a Logistics Analyst. “They have a great corporate culture, work-life balance, great people, and an amazing office with pool tables, video games, and other fun stuff to enjoy on break!”

After completing his first co-op with TJX Canada, William decided he wanted to extend his time with the company and was willing to put in the extra work to try to secure a second work term there. Understanding the importance of reaching out to contacts and making new professional relationships through networking, he expressed interest in returning. “I did reach out to networking contacts to secure my co-ops, especially when arranging to return to TJX Canada for my second term.”

William then went on to complete his final co-op term with Adgar Investments & Development as an Operations Assistant. Even though the positions differed, he enjoyed both experiences and what he learned from each company. “I still value the experience I gained from working with these businesses and doing real career tasks. It really prepared me for the first year of my professional career.” Shortly after graduation, he secured full-time employment at DHL Express as Operations Supervisor.

When reflecting on the biggest challenge during his time securing co-ops, William, like a number of his peers, said job interviews. For many students this is their first time in a professional interview. “My biggest challenge when searching for co-op roles was learning how to master interviewing. All it takes is lots and lots of practice.” It’s very easy to get discouraged when applying for jobs, so staying motivated and not losing hope is key. “Apply, apply, apply to as many jobs as you can would be my best advice, because even a bad interview is always good practice.”

William’s advice for you:

Never give up on searching for a job that you actually want, and don’t settle for a job that may not fit what you’re looking to do. I received my first co-op job offer on Christmas Eve, just over a week before I actually started working. I cut it close, but it was worth it!

Pronouns: He/Him

Student Spotlight: Taryn Faliszewski

March 15, 2021 Management Career Services Leave a Comment

Originally from Vancouver, B.C., Taryn Faliszewski will be graduating this May from the Bachelor of Management program, majoring in Management in Globalization. After attending school as a marketing student in Vancouver, Taryn decided to transfer to Dal because of its “unique program, internship option and variety of business clubs on campus, including case competitions.”

Taryn took advantage of the internship option and secured remote employment with En Point as a Marketing and Business Growth employee. En Point is a company based in Halifax that supports young adults in starting their professional careers, encouraging individuals to focus on their passion. “The En Point Mentorship platform harnesses the power of mentorship in an easy-to-use, cloud-based tool designed to help create structured, but meaningful relationships.”

As COVID-19 presented numerous new challenges in the middle of one of the busiest job searching times of the year, Management Career Services worked diligently to find new remote opportunities for students. Regardless, Taryn knew she was going to have to get creative in her job search. “To do this, I leveraged my connections on LinkedIn and reached out to some local companies.” She enjoyed working remotely as it allowed her to jump straight into tasks and begin her morning swiftly, as opposed to the normal routine and commute that comes along with getting ready for work in the morning. Taryn has adopted new habits to ensure she remains focused throughout the day. “Sometimes it’s difficult separating work and play since I work from my bedroom, but keeping a clean workspace definitely helps!” she says.

Taryn is excited about the future and everything she will be able to carry forward from her internship with En Point. When asked what some of her future goals were, she replied, “working on my skills to apply for jobs post-grad and really leverage my connections so I can be prepared for when I get there, find a career that suits me, and be able to travel and work remotely!”

Taryn’s advice for you:

Always reach out! Never be afraid to ask questions. You never know who you are going to meet, or what companies you are going to find. It took me some time to get this down, but it really helped me get out of my comfort zone when contacting potential employers.
Keep your phone away from your desk and work out a daily schedule.
Plan what you are going to do a week ahead and create rewards for when you get there.

Pronouns: She/Her

Student Spotlight – Noah Innes

February 12, 2020 Management Career Services Leave a Comment

For this week’s edition of our student spotlight, Noah Innes, a 3^rd year Bachelor of Commerce student shares his experience.

Originally from Halifax, Noah chose Dalhousie’s Commerce program for the mandatory co-op and the opportunity to gain valuable work experience during an undergraduate degree.

Over the last Fall, Noah secured his job with InterTalk Critical Information System as a Marketing Intern. InterTalk is a company based in Dartmouth that makes and sells and sells radio dispatch consoles. He was attracted to the job because it was a completely new position in the company which means the scope of development was huge. In his role at InterTalk, he was responsible for managing their social media, writing press releases, and maintaining the website.

While talking about managing a heavy workload, Noah said that his strategy to an effective work term search “is to get started early, preferably by using connections and networking, before the academic load picks up. I also have decided to only invest time applying to positions I am extremely interested in”.

Noah’s short-term goal is to find a third co-op position that allows him to build upon his current business acumen. His long-term goal is to find a full-time job in a marketing or customer related role with a large multinational company.

Tips of the week from Noah:

Ensure you take the time to personalize each cover letter, even if it may seem not to be worth the time investment.
Network as much as you can – the old adage ‘It’s not what you know, it’s who you know’ is actually true.
Maintaining a good balance between your social and academic life is critical for your happiness while doing a university degree. Get your work done first, then you can have a fun time without any responsibilities hanging over you.
Ensure your LinkedIn profile is up-to-date and has as much detail as possible.
Leverage your shared connections on LinkedIn and ensure all connection invitations are sent with a personal memo.
Maintain your connections throughout your degree – that means meeting for coffee chats to update them on your academic progress. You never know when one of them may have a hiring need down the road.

Do you want additional tips on your resume and cover letter? Book an appointment with your CRS to learn more.

Book via myCareer or pop in to Management Career Services at Room 2100 in the Rowe Building.

Student Spotlight – Gurpreet Singh

January 29, 2020 Management Career Services Leave a Comment

Gurpreet is a First-year Corporate Residency Master of Business Admin student who used effective networking and time management skills to land himself a dream work term. Keep reading to hear his story and top tips.

Originally from India, he decided to move Canada after working for five years in a consulting company.

When asked about his decision to chose Dalhousie, Gurpreet said the eight-month internship opportunity and high return on investment were major factors. Gurpreet also said that he loves the beauty of Canada.

Currently, he is on his work term with Deloitte as a Strategic and Operational Risk Analyst. He chose Deloitte because the work was inspiring and challenging, which would be a good fit for him because, as he said, “I love to think outside the box!”.

While talking about managing a heavy academic workload, Gurpreet added that “success is all about time management and efficiency,” and made use of the MBA and MCS offices for helping him during his job search and interview.

“MCS has been super supportive and helpful to me during my entire journey of job search and interview preparation. Special hearty thanks to Ally Howard, Cindy Ryan, Ayse Dai- Gammon,” said Gurpreet.

“During my internship search, the MCS team provided me with regular updates and feedback. Also, special hearty thanks to Dan Shaw and Julie Tarry for always helping me balance my studies and motivation.”

Gurpreet’s short term goal is to improve himself to the extent that people can see the difference and guide him better for the next milestone. In the meantime, he is also learning about Canadian culture. His long- term goal is to make his parents proud and use his experience and skills to help the community globally.

Tips of the week from Gurpreet:

Read English articles daily and try to converse on those topics with people around you.
If you’re talking to any fellow international student, please try to speak in English rather than a regional language.
Visit the writing center on a regular basis to improve your writing skills.
Feel free to speak with people from different backgrounds. Sometimes, conversing with a bachelors/masters student (not from your stream) would help understand how to break the ice.
Definitely visit the International Students center on a daily basis, it has been a great experience for me.
Set hard goals for yourself and try to achieve them.

To follow Gurpreet’s success, follow him on his Instagram @guru.ajmani.

Student Spotlight: Adam Sussman

October 29, 2019 Management Career Services Leave a Comment

Adam Sussman is a first-year dual JD/MBA student who participated in the Rowe Rumble over the weekend. Originally from Toronto, Adam studied Business Administration at American University in Washington, DC, before moving to Halifax. The ability to pursue a corporate residency in conjunction with the dual degree was a determining factor that brought him to Dalhousie. Adam has already started to get himself involved in the school community, becoming CRMBA 1st year academic representative on top of participating in many case competitions.

This winter, Adam will be working at QuantRes for his 8-month MBA residency. A trading firm that focuses on using scientific methods, data analytics, and mathematical modelling to exploit market inefficiencies. Adam was attracted to this unique finance opportunity due to the tangible financial skills and the ability to participate in such a highly competitive field.

To secure this placement, Adam approached QuantRes for an informational interview even before commencing his interview preparation. Adam extensively researched QuantRes online as well as utilized class resources and his classmates to simulate mock interviews. In these practice interviews, Adam and his peers rotated, playing the roles of both interviewer and interviewee to help hone their skills. Even before the interview, Adam was setting himself apart from the pack. Prior to the interview, Adam had engaged in numerous exchanges over both email and phone with his interviewer to continue building rapport and learning about the firm.

In these exchanges, he learned about the company’s values and needs, which in turn helped guide his responses and thought the process in the real interview. Adam highly recommends a proactive and eager approach that can truly differentiate yourself from other candidates. A quick email or LinkedIn message is a great way to do this. Balancing a job search and class obligations is challenging, but the CRMBA has implemented ways to help students balance the two. Adam took advantage of his PPE class (BUSI 5000), which applied job search lessons as part of the course content throughout their summer semester. On top of this, formal interviews are concentrated into an interview week in September to really focus his time on securing his residency position.

Adam’s goal for this residency is to learn as much as he can about money markets before coming back to continue the Law degree aspect of his degree. Adam is confident all of these experiences will contribute to his personal development and aid in his pursuit of a career in corporate law.

To follow Adam’s adventure and experiences his LinkedIn here or his Instagram is @adamsuss24.

To learn more about the JD/MBA program click here or contact CRMBA@dal.ca

Booking an interview time slot in myCareer

August 19, 2019 cr549421

Quick Steps:

Log in to myCareer > Interviews tab > View upcoming and past interviews
Click on blue View button in Unscheduled row > Click on blue View button next to job interview request
Review interview details > Click blue Book My Interview Appointment button > Select preferred timeslot > Enter additional information as required

For more detail on the steps above, review the full step-by-step directions below.

If you receive an urgent interview request email from HireBusiness@Dal.ca notifying you that you have been selected for an interview, you are expected to log in to myCareer IMMEDIATELY (by the end of the day upon receiving the offer) to book an interview time.

Follow the steps below to book your interview time slot:

Log in to myCareer: https://mycareer.dal.ca/login/student.htm
From the main Dashboard, click on the Interviews tab.
Use the drop-down list to view Today / Upcoming (or to past interviews)
Click the blue View button in the row marked, “Unscheduled Interviews”.
In the results screen, you may have more than one job interview request listed. Click the blue View button next to each interview request, to see the full details.
The next two screens will contain important interview details as well as the available interview times:
a) Once you have reviewed the details, click the blue Book My Interview Appointment button.
b) From the schedule provided, select one of the available timeslots and click the blue Book (If the timeslot is already booked by another student, it will be noted as “Reserved”.)
You may be prompted to provide additional information, for example, if it is a phone interview, you may be asked to type in your phone number.

Your interview booking will be confirmed on the following screen where you will also see the options to reschedule the timeslot or decline this interview. If you simply chose the wrong timeslot, please click Reschedule Interview, rather than Decline.

If you need to refer to the interview details again later, go to the Interviews tab on your Dashboard and click on the blue View button next to your Booked Interviews. You can then view the details of any of your interview bookings by clicking the blue View button next to the applicable booking line.

Once all timeslot bookings are complete, MCS staff will finalize the schedule of interviews with the employer. If you need to cancel or reschedule your booking after the interview schedule is finalized, please contact hirebusiness@dal.ca directly.

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For more myCareer tips, consult our other Student User Guide tutorials.

Using the Resources Tab in myCareer

August 19, 2019 cr549421

Quick Steps:

For more detail on the steps above, review the full step-by-step directions below.

The Resources pages in the Management Career Services section of myCareer are where students can access:

myCareer Student User Guide: contains tutorials on how to use myCareer.
Industry Fact Sheets: each fact sheet contains useful information about the nature of a specific industry, industry-specific skills and recruitment habits, job search tips.
Program-specific Form Information: including links on how to complete self-developed job approval forms, and Work Term Student Acceptance Agreement forms.
Informational Handouts: including program fact sheets containing work-term requirements that can be shared with prospective employers.

Here’s how to access the Resources pages in myCareer:

Log in to myCareer: https://mycareer.dal.ca/login/student.htm
Click Management Career Services option in the main menu
Now, select the Resources icon

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For more myCareer tips, consult our other Student User Guide tutorials.

Applying for jobs in myCareer

August 19, 2019 cr549421

Quick Steps:

Under relevant job posting section, click on black APPLY button for job of interest
Apply with existing package or create new one
Once complete, confirmation screen will indicate application has been received.

For more detail on the steps above, review the full step-by-step directions below.

Once you have found a job you are interested in, follow these steps to submit your application:

Read through the entire job posting carefully, paying close attention to the Application Procedure and Application Documents requested in the Application Information section.

If the Application procedure is listed as “Through myCareer” click on either the black APPLY button at the top of the job posting screen, OR click on the blue circle icon in the bottom right-side of the screen and select APPLY.

You now have two options:

A. apply with an existing application package that has already been created in myCareer OR

B. create a new customized application package by uploading the required documents, naming the application package, and selecting the documents to include in this package. Please see the tutorial How to Create an Application Package for more details on how to do this.

To keep track of your various applications, we recommend naming any new packages you create with the specific job ID number and title of the posting.

Once you apply you will be taken to a screen that indicates your online application has been submitted. Please be aware that employers can view the time and date that applications have been submitted, and no applications will be accepted after the position’s application deadline, as stated in the posting. However, you do also have the option of cancelling your application once it has been submitted (and re-applying with another if desired), as long as this action is taken before the application deadline.

You can view your co-op or internship application history by clicking on Management Career Services in the main menu and clicking on the Work Term Application Record icon, or by clicking on the Applications option under the Management Career Services menu.

Occasionally, when you’re applying for Co-op and Internship jobs through myCareer, the job description specifies that you must apply for the job directly on the employer’s website as well as upload an application on the myCareer System.

Why do you have to do both?

This application procedure must be followed because employers often use the myCareer system to set up interview slots and contact chosen students. If Management Career Services has no record of your application, then when an employer sets up interviews in the myCareer system they would be unable to request an interview with you. Therefore, be sure to apply as directed to avoid the loss of an interview.

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For more myCareer tips, consult our other Student User Guide tutorials.

Hack Your Hiring Process With These Handy myCareer Features

June 20, 2019 Andrea McKay Leave a Comment

Whether you are new to using myCareer, Dalhousie’s centralized online recruitment system, or have already created an employer account in myCareer, you may not be aware of all the benefits that come with using it to review, select, and engage potential candidates. Here are some examples of how employers are using myCareer to help them save time and make their hiring process more efficient.

Real-time applicant status
Choosing “Through myCareer” under Application Procedure when creating a job posting will inform the employer of any students that become unavailable during the recruitment process.

myCareer lets student and alumni users access their application up until the deadline in case they wish to make changes or remove it from consideration. As a result, when the job closes, employers who access their applicant list via myCareer will have the most up-to-date information concerning applicants.

Reposting a previous job
Instead of creating a new job posting from scratch every time, employers with one or more postings in the system, use the “Repost a Job” option to save time and effort. This is ideal when some, or all, of the job posting details remain the same, and allows employers to only update the information that has changed.

Brand Recognition
By posting your positions in myCareer you can also draw attention to the position by uploading a company logo to appear directly on the posting. This is a great and free branding opportunity!

System Notifications
After a job posting expires, an email is automatically sent to alert you. This email provides you with a link to log into the system to select interview candidates and schedule interviews. A link to step-by-step instructions on how to request interviews through myCareer is also provided.

Packaged application documents
All of the application documents each candidate submits are packaged together in one file.

Shareable Application Bundles
A PDF bundle of all applications to the position (or just the candidates the employer is interested in) can be quickly created and shared with other employees participating in the hiring process using the “Email Package” option.

Interview Scheduling: Self-serve or Access Support
When it comes time to scheduling interviews, employers can opt to coordinate them independently or use myCareer’s interview scheduling tool.

In offices that support student work terms, staff are available to assist employers with arranging student interviews. Select your interview candidates and then provide interview details via the Schedule Interview wizard. Staff will ensure applicants are aware of interviews and confirm dates/times and locations, saving you time and effort in having to make these arrangements.

These are just a few of the ways you can take advantage of myCareer’s ability to quickly and easily recruit talented and enthusiastic Dalhousie students. Login to myCareer today to explore the many benefits it has to offer!

Category: Career Resources