One Thing I Learned Being a Resident Assistant...

…Is that you can find relevant skills and experience just about anywhere!

A lot of students have been dropping into the Career Center lately to get their resumes critiqued because they are hoping to become Resident Assistants. Now, I may be biased; As a former RA, I think being an RA is wonderful and has a lot of great opportunities for learning and advancement. It was actually partially due to my role as an RA that I am writing to you now as the Graduate Assistant in the Career Center!

One thing I’ve heard from students hesitant to apply is that they think they have no relevant experience: they do not have past participation in their residence hall, they’re only first-year students, or none of their jobs or activities seem related to the job of being an RA. In my experience of applying to be an RA years ago and even working with the new applicants here at Hofstra, I’ve found this to be untrue!

When you sit down and think about what skills you’ve utilized in your previous experiences, even if they seem unrelated, try thinking about the skills you’ve developed and how they can be relevant:

• Did you work in the food industry? That sounds like a lot assessing customer needs and communication skills to me!
• Did you work in retail? Seems like a lot of conflict resolution skills and patience!
• Are you a member of a campus club? You’ll need the creativity and different ideas for programs in your residence hall!

So, before you get yourself down and discouraged about applying for the RA position or that dream career/internship opportunity, I encourage you to take a moment to sit down and think about what you’ve done in the past: what skills you had to utilize, and in what ways is it relevant to your current goal.

And as always, we at the Career Center are available to brainstorm with you and to help you look at your experiences with a fresh set of eyes! Stop by Quick Questions (Monday-Friday 10-11AM & 2-4PM) or give us a call at (516) 463-6060 to make an appointment! 

Anne Monique Concepcion,
Graduate Assistant

Confidence is Key!

What is confidence?  According to Dictionary.com, confidence as described as:

1. full trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness, or reliability of a person or thing:

2. belief in oneself and one's powers or abilities; self-confidence; self-reliance; assurance:

3. certitude; assurance

As many of our students are about to graduate, I find myself wondering about their levels of self-confidence.  More specifically, I think about how a possible lack of confidence can have a negative impact on their job search.

Have you ever looked at a job description and thought, “I can’t possibly do that job, I am not going to bother to apply.”?  Have you ever been at a professional event and passed up the opportunity to speak with someone influential in your field because you thought to yourself “She wouldn’t want to spend her time here speaking with me, I’m just a student.”?

Having these types of negative thoughts can keep us from getting out there and pursuing our dreams. Now, I am not saying that new grads should apply to CEO positions of Fortune 500 companies.  However, don’t dismiss a position at first glance based on the belief that you are not what the employer is looking for.  Think about your skills, your experiences, your part-time work, extra-curricular activities, volunteer work, coursework, skills, and anything else that you have to offer! Meet with a Career Center counselor to practice showing those things on a resume and discussing them on an interview.

If you are not what an employer is looking for, they will not call you for the position. But don't do that for them by disqualifying yourself right out of the gate.  To quote a known commercial, “Hey, you never know!”

Darlene Johnson,

Senior Associate Director

Transferable Skills

The dictionary defines the word transfer as:

Transfer (v.): to convey from one person, place or situation to another. 

It also defines the word skill as:

Skill (n.): the ability, coming from one's knowledge, practice, etc., to do something well.

In Career Development, the words in the phrase "transferable skills" go hand in hand. What skills have you learned being a Softball Team Captain that you can bring to an advertising agency? What are some skills you bring to the "workforce" table from your many experiences?  Communication, Planning, Delegating, Problem solving, and Teamwork are just a few examples.

Think of one think you learned at your first part-time job and how you apply it to where you work now... and what have you learned in your current position that you know you will be able to use in the future? You never know what will end up being a really valuable experience!

Want to see more about transferable skills? Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE0lFGBK2kM

Lorraine Massiah, Assistant Director