Get Ready for Placement Season with Coaching!

As we get closer to spring each year, thoughts start to turn toward finishing grad programs, coming to the end of fixed-term appointments, or dreaming of better days ahead, new challenges and new opportunities. For some of us, less idealistic notions (like getting away from departmental politics, nasty co-workers, inefficient policies, etc.) drive us in a similar direction.

Whatever your reason, Spring is a season of renewal, or reinvention, of taking stock of our careers, and seeing what else is out there. For many of us, this means brushing up on the resumé, networking like crazy, and possibly registering for placement at the Placement Exchange, Career Central at the ACPA Convention, or a regional placement conference. Then, later in the spring, as campus interviews start happening, we drive ourselves crazy preparing for long interview days, juggling schedules, keeping our motivation, and making the best arguments for that next step in our careers.

I know, because I’ve been there, that this can be a hugely stressful time, and that it is hard to prepare and be ready for all that might be thrown at you in a long interview process (or two, or three, or more.)

I’ve also been on the screening and interviewing side of the table many times, and I can tell you that is hard work, too. For many positions, you may get 100 or more applications for one vacancy. It’s extremely important to weed out the chaff and keep the wheat, and the competition for top candidates is often stiff.

If you are searching, are you ready?

If you aren’t, there are many things you can do to be better prepared. One of these options is to hire a career coach. There are others, and I will likely return to them in later articles. But for now, I’d like to introduce myself, and tell you what sorts of coaching I can offer candidates.

My name is Sean Cook, and for 15 1/2 years, I worked in higher education. During most of this time, I worked for Residence Life at Penn State University. I began there in 1995 as a live-in residence life coordinator and eventually moved up the ranks, ending as Assistant Director for North and West Halls. I was fortunate to work for a great department at a top university, and I was given a wide variety of interesting tasks, including Welcome Week/Orientation, block-booking of programs, multicultural programming, oversight of resident assistant training classes, marketing, etc.

I was also lucky to take part in  many selection processes, from student positions all the way to director, to lead placement interview teams at regional conferences, and to participate as a member of the selection team at ACPA. I estimate that over my professional career, I’ve seen several thousand resumes and done hundreds of interviews. I’ve always enjoyed the interview process, and I’ve helped many students and higher ed professionals with their resumés, cover letters and job search strategies. I get a lot of satisfaction from helping people find jobs they love, especially when those jobs are in higher education, where their impact can be deep, powerful and long-lasting.

After a lot of research and some testing out, I decided to pursue certification as a Life and Career Coach. I am currently finishing up the certification process through the Life Purpose Institute, and expect to be certified by early 2010 (hopefully the end of January).

As a career coach, I am specializing in work with candidates in higher education, because I believe in the impact they can have on college students and our society. Working in higher ed requires a different mindset than the corporate world. As someone with a lot of experience with higher ed selection processes, I understand that they are different beasts altogether, with daylong (or longer) interviews, involving all sorts of constituencies, including students, faculty, and at times people outside the department or from the executive suites of “Old Main” buildings. I’ve been on both sides of these processes, and I can offer you the perspectives of someone who has been there, as well as the lessons I learned from my personal successes and failures.

If you are a higher ed professional, and plan to go through placement this season, I would like to offer you my assistance with your search. Here are some services I can offer:

• Resumé/Cover Letter Assistance and Editing:
  • Resumé /Cover Letter critique (general comments and editorial advice, but you do your own editing.) $50
  • Resumé/Cover Letter revision (extended comments, reformatting, editing, and consultation over e-mail) $125
  • Extensive Resumé/Cover Letter revision/re-writing (all of the services of resume revision, plus up to one hour of individual consultation over the phone/Skype or another chat client.) $250

• Placement Preparation Teleseminar:
  • This will feature an overview of a typical placement center, and advice on placement center procedures and etiquette
  • Overview of placement center interview strategies
  • Advice from experienced candidates and interviewers
  • Question and Answer Session
  • Multiple sessions will be scheduled. If you are interested, e-mail sean@higheredcareercoach.com to be notified about upcoming times.
  • Teleseminars will be 90 minutes long, and held over a telephone bridgeline. Space will be limited to 15 persons per seminar.
  • Seminar registration will be $50/person. If you are interested in participating as a group, contact Sean to discuss a group rate.

• 1-on-1 Coaching
  • Pay-as-you-go Rate: $100/session (can be scheduled weekly or biweekly; sessions are 45 minutes each.)
  • Placement Prep Packages: For higher ed job seekers taking part in placement, I am offering some 1-on-1 Coaching Packages at a substantial discount from my regular rates.
    • Student/Recent Grad Rates & Packages:
      • 1-on-1 coaching only: $50/hour. (Must commit to at least 3 sessions between January and April 2010 to get this rate.)
      • Package 1: 6 sessions of 1-on-1 coaching, plus resume revision. $350
      • Package 2: 10 sessions of 1-on-1 coaching, plus resume revision and Placement Prep Teleseminar: $600
      • Other custom packages available by individual consultation.
    • Experienced Professional Rates & Packages:
      • 1-on-1 coaching only: $75/hour. (Must commit to at least 3 sessions between January and April 2010 to get this rate.)
      • Package 1: 6 sessions of 1-on-1 coaching, plus resume revision. $500
      • Package 2: 10 sessions of 1-on-1 coaching, plus resume revision and Placement Prep Teleseminar: $750
      • Other custom packages available by individual consultation.

Whether you decide to work with me or not, I wish you the best during placement season.

Good luck with your interviews!

© 2009 Sean Cook/HigherEdCareerCoach.Com

Permission is hereby granted to others to repost this article, link to it or syndicate it, as long as they leave in the copyright statement and link back to higheredcareercoach.com