Newbie 101: Advice for new jobs

It is the nature of our work to shift jobs a bit more often than some of our counterparts in other industries. As student affairs professionals, we are the Gumbys of the higher ed world—we flex to changing hours, additions/deletions to our job descriptions, and even locations of offices and workplaces on campus.

Similar to other industries, however, our field sees a lot of our turnover around fiscal year-end/start in July. In our online #sachat twitter community, several of us are starting new positions and decided to share thoughts about what its like to be in a new role.  By answering a few basic questions about our new positions, we hope to provide some insight into role changing for our readers, and also get you interested in speaking with us more in the future on BlogTalkRadio.

First of all, what is your new position title and university? When do you start (or did you)?

Shannon: Residence Hall Director/Student Activities Coordinator at Lyndon State College in Vermont. I start July 19th, so just over a week from now.

Mickey: Assistant Director of Residence Life at University of Wisconsin-Superior.  I started June 14^th, so I’ve been in my role for about a month.

Becca: Assistant Director of Student Involvement and Leadership at the University of North Carolina – Pembroke. July 1st start date.

What is your professional preparation/background coming into this position? (other positions, fields, education, etc)?

Shannon: This is my first full-time position after graduating with my Master’s degree in College Student Affairs Leadership this past May. As a graduate student I had assistantships in Career Services and Residence Life, and did Internships in Summer Conferences and Service Learning.

Mickey: Previous to this I worked for a short time as Associate Director of Student Life at University of Maine at Machias, and prior to that was a full-time Hall Director at Iowa State University for four years.  I did my graduate work (and was a grad hall director) at Minnesota State University, Mankato ’03-05 and did my internship teaching a life skills preparatory course. I did my undergrad ’99-03 at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point where I got my start as a Community Advisor!

Becca: My education includes a M.Ed in Higher Education Administration from Kent State University and a B.A. in English, Journalism, and Applied Writing from Ashland University. During graduate school I worked at Baldwin-Wallace College as a GA in Greek Life and Leadership. I also completed internships in International Student and Scholar Services, New Student and Parent Orientation, and Student Conduct/Residence Life. As an undergraduate, I interned in Greek Life and orientation for two years as well.

What resources (networks/specific tactics/webpages/people/social media) were key in the search to find (and get) this position?

Shannon: Higher Ed Jobs became my best friend for searching by type of position or in the states I decided I wanted to live in. The #sachat network on Twitter was a great resource in learning how to read into a job description a bit more, decide what type of position was best for me, and general motivational support.

Mickey: Without a doubt my number one resource was my network through UMR-ACUHO.  I’ve been part of that organization for 7yrs now and those folks are like family to me.  I felt that a number of my colleagues were very interested in helping me get back into the region and back into a residence life role, and most of all, in Wisconsin!  Second to that I would say HigherEdJobs.com was incredibly helpful.  At the time of my search, I was still a newbie on Twitter, although that community was very helpful to me when it came time to do on campus interviews and ultimately accept and negotiate for my current position.

Becca: I visited the career services office at Baldwin-Wallace College to have my resume critiqued and gained feedback from my supervisor, @Kathy_Petras, and friends. Many members of the #SAChat community were integral to my job search, including @clconzen and @edcabellon, who helped review my resume and prepare for interviews. Social Media played an interesting piece in my job search as well. ( http://edcabellon.com/tech/twitters-impact-on-my-job-search/) I followed several potential supervisors, universities, and department accounts during my job search to gain insight into the positions I was pursuing. I interviewed for several positions at ACPA and subscribed to additional position postings from higheredjobs.com.

How did you utilize your references and mentors in your search process?

Shannon: References were great because most were current or past supervisors, so if there was a job I was applying for where I didn’t have one of the desired experiences they worked to find a way to get me that experience to stay extra competitive. They also put up with me during the ups and downs of the whole process. My mentors were great because they WEREN’T with me every day. They offered a great outside perspective on things, and since they worked at schools across the country, they were able to give me great perspective on what life was like in other areas of the US. Stacy Oliver, in particular, became known for her “Parking Lot Pep Talks” that started in the parking lot on her campus after I drove down to visit, have lunch, and get some advice.

Mickey: I have always been in the practice of sending weekly “reference update” emails to me actual references, and informal (yet similar) updates to my mentors/other colleagues that might get a cold call (see my previous post on this).  I sent (and received) a lot of email during my search, especially because I was struggling with being unemployed for a longer amount of time than expected.  These folks were both a personal and professional support to me, and also offered me opportunities to continue to grow my skills through being keynote speakers at their winter trainings.  This is also how I got connected with Sean and Higher Ed Career Coach and Life Coach and grew my professional skills to the online world.

Becca: My references helped me to reflect on and articulate my previous work experience as I prepared for interviews. I was able to process my interviews with supervisors and mentors after the fact to determine institutional fit and to prepare for second interviews. I was lucky to have a mentor with me at ACPA to debrief with between interviews and to re-energize during the process.

What are your initial goals in your new position?

Shannon: Since my job is in both Residence Life and Student Life I really need to learn the culture of each office when I arrive. For the residence life half my goals are to create a strong Community Council in my hall (always a bit difficult with an all-first-year building) and to create some quality programming, some that will hopefully become yearly traditions. For the student life half I’m working with overseeing all the student organizations so I’d like to create some Leadership development programs, and also resources/workshops for student organization advisors.

Mickey: I believe I am just about wrapping up my initial time frame for my immediate goals, which were to 1) network/form initial relationships with the campus life team and other colleagues on campus. 2) tons of reading on our shared drive (policies, previous documents on programs, etc) 3) start laying major groundwork on the training schedules and programs for the fall that are under my supervision (hall managers, assistant hall managers, academic resource coordinators, intern, etc).  Now its on to Phase 2 of my goals!

Becca: 1) Get to know my new colleagues and students. 2) Find opportunities to share resources and to collaborate on evening and weekend programming. 3) Develop evening and weekend programming to match the learning outcomes set by the Office of Student Involvement and Leadership.

What things are you making sure NOT to do in your new job?

Shannon: Hopefully I will not get too overwhelmed! Again, having a dual position I’m hoping to not get too focused on one half of it, to the detriment of my other responsibilities.

Mickey: Work/check email constantly at home.  In this position I am personally making it a goal to strive for as much balance as possible and I truly feel like I am really getting there (which is rare for our profession).  I’m also trying to not make “this is how it is/should be” statements based on past experience, but rather ask questions of why certain things are done a certain way, if there is flexibility, etc.

Becca: I am not pretending to be the expert. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to be the first person to fill the Assistant Director position and to contribute to the Leadership mission of the office– but I am not pretending to be an expert. Rather, I am excited to be a part of a team and to bring my perspective to the table.

What things are you making sure TO do in your new job?

Shannon: Definitely making sure to develop strong bonds with my coworkers, and with/between my student staff members.

Mickey: Spend time with my new team.  Eating lunch with them everyday, and hopefully hanging outside of work soon.  Building those trusting relationships so that they can count on me as a person and colleague and vice versa.  Also making sure to ask a TON of questions and taking TONS of notes (I need an iPad or something).  I’ve started keeping a few different files on Evernote as well (can sync between my iPhone/work computer/home computer) that are: 1) the idea file (future ideas), 2) observations, and 3) areas for development.  Taking notes is key for me.

Becca: Ask questions and listen to the answers. Learn the culture of the institution, the students, and the community. Engage in professional development opportunities and apply the new knowledge to my work.

Any advice for SA folks still searching in mid-July?

Shannon: Get excited about the possibility of jobs outside Residence Life. I noticed that as I got to the end of the semester/into summer a lot more Student Life/Student Activities jobs opened up. I’ve noticed now that even more Academic or Career Advising and Admissions jobs are opening. There’s still hope, and still lots of time before fall semesters start.

Mickey: Be more broad/less picky in what you are looking for, because in student affairs you get to do a little bit of everything anyway, so you might as well start broadly (if you are entry level).  It really concerns me when I see folks straight out of school (whether undergrad or grad) that are focused only on one or two areas when they just need to jump in to a position and get experience.  Make it known that you have many interests so that you can do your main role and other small projects once you are hired.  For mid-level folks who are still searching, I would say….save as much money in all areas of your life as possible.  As someone who was unemployed (by choice) I had to make a lot of tough financial decisions and ask for a lot of help/support from those around me because I knew it was going to be a harder/longer process to find that right mid-level fit.  Be ok with that, and be humble with your process.

Becca: Ask for help. The professionals in our community are eager to see each other succeed and are willing advise you through the process if you ask for help. In addition to your mentors, utilize your resources as much as possible: stay current in the field by reading The Chronicle, blogs, participating in weekly #sachat conversations (http://thesabloggers.org), and publications from your functional areas of interest.

Other tips/tidbits you want to add?

Shannon: Even if you don’t fit every qualification on a job application, apply anyway. Don’t tell yourself no, let them decide that. Moreover, be yourself. Lots of policy and qualifications can be taught. Personality can’t.

Mickey: If you don’t have a well-established network (references, mentors, friends, supportive family, etc) then focus your efforts ALWAYS on growing and nurturing that network.  Research (and personal experience) supports that these people are the ones that more and more are helping us find and secure jobs, and are also the ones that support us the best in our first few weeks and months on the job.  Grow your network!  Also, ask lots of questions, and don’t ever think that they are dumb or unworthy.  Sometimes forcing someone to answer your question helps them realize that their methodology or program has never been questioned, or it can also help display your interest in what they have going on!

Becca: Be open-minded. A position description and university website give you a partial picture of a job, just like your resume and cover letters do. Dig deeper and look for opportunities.

While being a new employee and new to a university can look different for everyone, we hope that we’ve given insight into what it can be like for three folks at different places in their careers to approach a new position.  Join us this Friday at 11 a.m. EDT on the Higher Ed Life & Careers Blog Talk Radio show with Sean Cook to hear more about our new roles and being new employees!

Have thoughts, questions, or comments? Please leave them below, or feel free to follow us on Twitter @slhealy, @mickeyfitch, & @beccafick!