Get a Head Start on the Summer Job Rush - Career Options Magazine

By Kathy Kirkpatrick and Jill Latschislaw

Is winter the time to think about your summer job? Yes! For most of you, the summer job is your main source of income; not only does it pay your living expenses and social life, but it also helps cover most or all of your tuition for the coming year. You probably also want a job that pays well, is fun, rewarding, and will look good on your resum?. So start looking now!

Here are some valuable tips to help you secure a job that will bring you the money and experience you need?and maybe even some fun.

1. Start soon. If you want to start work in May, begin your search in January. Most employers start posting their summer opportunities on campus career centre websites as soon as classes resume after the winter holiday break, so don?t delay your search.

1. Visit your career centre. The staff there can help point you in the right direction for your summer job search. It?s their job to provide you with a range of useful resources and services, including one-on-one counseling, r?sum? and cover letter reviews, mock interviews, job postings and a network of business contacts for employers who are interested in hiring students like you.

1. Network. You might be surprised at what, and who, the people in your network know. Reach out to your friends, relatives, associates and professors, and don?t be shy about chatting up the people you meet at wine and cheese events, information sessions or job fairs. You reap what you sow; the more people who know you?re looking for a job, the greater the odds that someone will speak up about where you can find one.

1. Attend career fairs. They?re a great way to meet prospective employers and get your name out there. To ensure that you make a great first impression, prepare for each job fair as you would for a job interview. Find out which companies will be attending, then do your research and prepare a suitable list of questions to ask. You should also revise your r?sum? so that it?s current and in top shape.

1. Register. There are a number of job programs and job banks available, and you should be sure to take advantage of them by registering with as many as possible. The Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP) is administered by the federal government, and links students with relevant, fun, meaningful and well-paid summer and part-time work experience. There are also several provincial and municipal job registries that can help you, as well as a slew of privately run job posting websites that enable you to create a profile and upload your r?sum?. Don?t forget to make use of your career centre, which may have summer r?sum? banks where you can also register.

1. Expand your horizons. If you?ve ever been interested in working abroad, there are plenty of organizations dedicated to helping make that happen. For example, SWAP Working Holidays provide the perfect mix of seeing the world while earning money. Look into it.

While searching for a summer job, remember to keep your mind, as well as your options, open. The experience you?ll gain at work isn?t just about what tasks you perform on the job; it?s also about the skills you build and the people you meet while performing those tasks. Whether you?re a lifeguard, a camp counselor, an office assistant or a landscaper, you?ll be developing transferable skills that you can add to your resum? and apply throughout your professional career.

Just make sure you start looking in time to find a summer job?it works.

Kathy Kirkpatrick and Jill Latschislaw are Career Coordinators in the Career Development Centre at the Asper School of Business, University of Manitoba

Helpful links to summer employment information and programs:

Career Options Magazine

http://www.careeroptionsmagazine.com/

Federal Student Work Experience Program (FSWEP)

http://jobs-emplois.gc.ca/fswep-pfete/index-eng.htm

Service Canada Job Bank

http://www.jobbank.gc.ca/prov-eng.aspx?OfferpPage=50&Student=Only

Government of Canada Job Search Sites

http://jobsetc.gc.ca/categories.jsp?category_id=2600&crumb=1&crumb=34

Youth Resource Network of Canada

http://www.youth.gc.ca/eng/home.shtml

Resort and Hospitality Jobs

http://cooljobscanada.com/company_view.aspx?id=135

http://resortjobs.com/

http://www.out-there.com/

http://www.hcareers.ca/

Young Canada Works!

http://pch.gc.ca/ycw-jct

SWAP Working Holidays

http://swap.ca/out_eng/index.aspx

Parks Canada

http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/bc/glacier/ne/ne1.aspx

Talent Egg

http://talentegg.ca/

Work as an Au Pair

http://www.aupairplacement.com/

Disney

https://www.disneyinternationalprograms.com/summer.html

Jobs and Volunteer Opportunities Overseas

http://anyworkanywhere.com/

Tree Planting

http://treeplanter.com/

Retail Jobs

http://www.retail.ca/homePage

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