Talking to employers in Boston
Talking to Employers – You Gotta Know Your Goals!
In order to get the most out of the COSD FULL ACCESS Student Summit, we ask you to take time before the event to reflect on a few questions about your future and how you believe that this event could further your professional development.
What are my professional goals?
Try to identify 3 short-range goals and 3 long-range goals. When creating your professional goals, there are many elements to consider, such as:
• What field am I interested in?
• What types of jobs can I see myself doing?
• What internships or other experiences might be beneficial?
• What is the eventual “dream job” that I aspire to?
• How do my values (i.e. money, family, education etc.) play a role in my future?
What can I do to accomplish those goals?
While goal-setting is an important part of planning your future, it is the smaller steps that you take towards achieving those larger goals that are often the most difficult. For instance, let’s say you want to be CEO of a corporation. You cannot immediately ask to become CEO, so you must take steps in the right direction such as learning about the corporation, interning for the summer, or later managing a section of the corporation. It is helpful to ask yourself:
• What steps do I need to take in order to reach my goals?
• What progress am I making in completing the steps above?
• What are some resources that I might utilize to further my progress?
o People that I know—network, network, network!
o Places on campus, such as the career center or the volunteer center
What do I say when I meet an employer?
When speaking with employers, you likely have less than 5 minutes to convince them to contact you for a future interview. With that in mind, the more prepared you are, the better you will be able to sell yourself. Preparing a 30 second “commercial” about yourself can help break the ice and get the interaction started in the right direction. Click here to get our quick guide to creating your own 30 second commercial.
What do I want to take away from this event?
It is up to you to get the most out of this event! You can do that by first understanding the goals of the FULL ACCESS summit:
• Learn effective techniques and resources to become better prepared to be competitive in the career search process;
• Utilize COSD Career GatewayTM as a resource to connect with employers
networking and self-advocacy skills in a “safe” environment;
• Gain confidence that quality employers will be looking for students with disabilities like me and raising my own personal expectation
• Learn how to build a potential network of future employment contacts and peer support;
• Understand what employers are looking for, so that your preparation will be most effective
Next, think about what experiences or information you would like to know by the end of the summit. Do you need to know more about how your disability will affect the career search process? Do you need information about disclosure? Or would you like the chance to become comfortable talking with employers? Whatever your needs may be, make sure that you do not leave the summit without them being met!