What are some key job search strategies & tips?

Your Tippie Career Coach
Seeking a new job, a promotion, or planning a career pivot, Tippie Career Services can help. Contact us to get connected with your career coach who can guide you on the next steps to support your goal.

Tippie faculty & staff
Connect and update instructors and program staff of your current situation and your career goals. They are constantly building relationships with employers, organizations, and leaders within and beyond the borders of your community. Keep them informed.

Assessment & exploration
Career assessment is a way to learn more about how well a variety of careers might suit you. Several types of assessments focus on specific areas, such as skills, interests, or values. Typically, an assessment asks you to answer questions about what you like, do not like, and what is important to you. Talk to your Career Coach as you determine if an assessment can help you clarify professional goals.

UI Handshake
The University of Iowa online search system is an important part of your career toolkit. Use this comprehensive tool to research companies and browse job listings.

Beyond B-school
Useful tutorials on LinkedIn profile writing, building your brand, and more.

Additional websites
Indeed.com, Vault.com, Careerbuilder.com, LinkedIn.com, Glassdoor.com, Google for Jobs, Idealist.com, USAJobs.gov and Ziprecruiter.com are other websites that also have job listings. 

These websites are what are often referred to as “spider search engines” meaning they pull from all websites that are not password protected. This can save you a great deal of time. It is recommended that you set up “saved searches” with keywords, set up job-alerts, and check these websites on a regular basis. It is not required to save your resume or create a profile to be able to utilize these websites as part of your job search.

Company list(s)
Sometimes it is about “keeping things simple” and going “grassroots.” If you are doing a search and locked into a geographic area this is a HIGHLY effective technique. It is time to build a list of potential employers from your area. How do you build this list? Get online, drive around your community, check out the Chamber of Commerce membership directory, and take inventory of where your friends and family work. Get creative!

Communities have Top 50 lists for their businesses, what a great resource that could be! Then you need to get serious about this list and determine which employers (25-30) on this list may be a good fit for you. Your list will become smaller as you dig deeper into their culture, products/services, goals, and opportunities. You will need to create a timeline for yourself on how often you will visit the websites of these companies to review their listing of opportunities, but you will also want to begin creating a support network (see networking).

Recruiter(s)
Working with a recruiter offers benefits. Recruitment firms have well-developed relationships with employers in their areas, provide insights on targeted potential employers, place professionals in positions that fit their skills and their personalities, and can make the job search quicker and more efficient. In addition, they frequently know about jobs that have not yet been advertised.

When considering a recruiter, look for a firm specializing in your field. A specialist will have opportunities better targeted to your needs and can provide stronger market insights and career advice. Remember, while there are search firms that will charge a fee for assisting you in a job search there are many reputable staffing firm options who do not charge job seekers a fee.

Career fairs
Participating and attending a career fair is a wonderful place to learn more about specific (hiring) companies, discover opportunities and get valuable face-to-face time with hiring managers and recruiters. Also because of the format of a Career Fair---there is time to prepare and research.

Typically, the sponsoring organization publishes their company attendee list online or in a guide. This allows you to review the list of employers participating in the fair and identify companies you are interested in speaking with. You will be more productive if you identify in advance the employers you want to meet with. 

Then you can research the organizations that interest you. This will help you be more informed of their company or organization when you speak with and prepare questions. If you cannot attend you still can use this list of employees to identify hiring companies (to build “your list” and use that information when you reach out “though I wasn’t able to attend the Career Fair in August, I am interested in exploring opportunities with XYA company.”

Informational interviewing
Learn more from other professionals through informational interviewing. It is a great way to expand your network, get your resume in front of professionals—in your field or company of interest, perhaps find a mentor, and learn about the job you want, the career path you wish to create, and the areas you may need to enhance to get where you want to go. There is no job at the end of these types of interviews so there is less pressure, but highly valuable as part of job seeking and professional development.