Job Searching Schedule
The following sections elaborate a suggested schedule.
Spring and Summer, Prior to graduation the following May:
You must make preliminary decisions as to what path you wish to pursue upon graduation. Are you going to law school? Then see the Pre-Law Advisor and register for the LSAT and LSDAS. The LSAT schedule is available from the prelaw advising office, or at www.lsat.org. If you are going to graduate school, consult with faculty about graduate school opportunities and register for the GRE or GMAT (www.gre.org) as appropriate. If you decide that you will begin professional employment upon graduation, begin exploring the range of options, using the suggestions in this Guide. Think very broadly at first, do not allow yourself to miss options simply because you did not know about them. You must be flexible and persistent when seeking employment that begins your career. Register with UCF's Career Resources Center (www.crc.ucf.edu) and use their resources.
August and September
If you are seeking employment you must begin serious work on your resume. You must work toward a decision about what kinds of jobs to pursue by completing your wide survey of options and beginning to identify the specific kinds of jobs you wish to seek, researching specific job requirements, beginning to identify contact points, and obtaining application information (this Guide suggests ways to do these things). Prepare you resume and cover letter with extreme care. Your resume summarizes your education and experience. Be positive but honest; anything other than honesty is easily detected and will greatly damage your future opportunities. Follow through with the Career Resources Center.
October and November
Focus on the most interesting and most likely jobs that fit your skills and aptitudes. Be honest with yourself; otherwise you may aim too high and be disappointed or you may aim too low and be disappointed. Develop lists of contacts, build your network, and ask for information interviews. Spend a lot of time with the web sites of the agencies or corporations in which you are most interested. Spend a lot of time on the web site of the Career Resources Center, and with their staff. Begin to contact potential employers.
December and January
Mail out inquiries, including your resume, cover letter and applications if appropriate. Make sure that you have others read your letter and resume. Understand that this letter is your first impression with a prospective employer. First impressions endure. Many possible interviews are lost due to sloppy letters or errors on resumes because these create the impression that the individual is sloppy and does not care about doing a good job. Be persistent in communicating with those in your network of contacts (and in enlarging that network).
February and March
Follow up your earlier mailings, try to schedule interviews, complete scheduled interviews. When you are interviewed, do your very best even if you suspect that this is not a job you will accept. You never know if there may be another position you will fit into rather than the specific one for which you are interviewing.
April and May
These are the months when decisions are likely to be made. Respond as quickly as possible to any offers, but consider carefully. Think about how the job your are offered fits into your career goals and about expectations on both sides. If you are not getting offers, do not be desperate, but persevere and rethink your strategy.
