Focus Your Search
Earning a graduate degree takes time, hard work and dedication—with the hope that, at the end, students will find a clear path to a fulfilling position. But things are never as simple as they seem. In today's economy, there are unique obstacles to job search success, especially if graduate students have not adequately prepared for the process. Reflect on "What's Driving Your Search" in order to FOCUS YOUR SEARCH when targeting the most beneficial resources based on your unique situation (ex. discipline, career interests and goals, location). Several categories of resources are listed below to help you find people, places (employers), postings, professional organizations, and more!
Planning Your Job Search
Stay Organized
PLANNING TOOLS AND STRATEGIES
Manage your connections and opportunities by utilizing a systematic approach that works best for you. This can be done through an Excel file or other methods that best fit your approach. See an example "Job Tracker" Excel File with several tabs that utilize different approaches such as the LAMP Method (From "The 2-Hour Job Search"). Additional planning resources are below:
- Job Search Planners - Several examples and a "Build Your Own" option
- Calendarpedia - Templates based on days, weeks, months, and years to keep you organized. Multiple options in a variety of formats (Example Career Planners)
- Workona - Organize your online search tabs and documents into workspaces (Example Layout)
CRITERIA AND CAREER KEYWORDS
Make sure to keep track of what's driving your job search (ex. pay, location, industry...) to develop criteria and your "Career Keywords" (ex. Human Resources, Training & Development) when targeting resources and strategies to use. Example resources are below:
- "I want to live in Chicago" - Consider using a "Location-Based" resource such as Going Global
- "I need more professional connections in nonprofit careers" - Networking resources such as LinkedIn and Irish Compass can help
- "I want to find jobs in Human Resources" - Look into "Industry-Specific" resources such as SHRM
- "I am not sure how to find what I want. I don't know what words to use. I don't know what's driving my search." - You may want to utilize careers assessments and resources to explore options before diving into the job search process (ex. Imagine Ph.D. and My IDP)
Conduct a Comprehensive Search
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The "Big 3" Career Resources: Some resources are so comprehensive, that other online tools may serve in a more supplemental role. Consider the resources below no matter what careers you pursue:
- ♣ Handshake: Notre Dame's main career management system that includes employer information, job postings, events, student messaging, and more
- ♣ Irish Compass: Connect with alumni who have opted in to support ND students and alumni with a wide variety of career development topics, including job search
- ♣ LinkedIn: The most comprehensive career resource available. Search for people, jobs, employers, schools, groups, and more based on any topic (User Guide)
- Combine Resources: Utilize resources that can work well together or fill in gaps. For example, when looking for contacts you can leverage alumni on Notre Dame's mentor platform Irish Compass, discover emails and more in-depth information in the ND Alumni Association Directory, find how people are connected on LinkedIn, and search for emails of contacts in Career Shift.
Understand and Promote Your Qualifications
Knowing what you want, what you have to offer, and being able to articulate your values, interests, personality, and skills to employers are crucial components to a successful job search:
- Reflecting on Your Experiences and Qualifications: Utilize career exploration/assessment tools to help you intentionally reflect on your best-fit opportunities, prepare applications, and be confident in interviews. Examples include ♣ PathwayU, Imagine Ph.D. and My IDP.
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Skills and Competencies: In addition to researching job descriptions and employer culture, consider how your qualifications fit within general hiring trends and trends specific to career paths:
- Overall - Ph.D. Academic to Workplace Skills, "Comprehensively Qualified", "Career Readiness" competencies (NACE - National Association of Colleges and Employers), and the "T-Shaped" and Key-Shaped Professional.
- Specific Career Paths - Professional Competency Areas for Student Affairs Educators, Nonprofit Leadership Alliance Competencies, Federal Government (OPM)
Leverage Career Outcomes
Research where others in your field/discipline and Notre Dame alumni have secured employment to assess viable options. This can be done through a variety of resources:
- Your academic department/program and/or college placement data (ex. ND Political Science and College of Arts & Letters)
- Campus Career Services Office outcomes information often referred to as "First Destination" data (ex. ND 2010-17 Top Hiring Employers)
- Data from other schools (ex. University of Toronto 10,000 Ph.D. Project)
- Professional Organizations (ex. American Historical Association - Where Historians Work and American Political Science Association, and Modern Language Association Connected Academics)
- Employers who have given H1B Sponsorship to ND international students (last 5 years)
- Find and connect with alumni through resources such as the Alumni Association Directory, Irish Compass, and LinkedIn
Resources
Notre Dame
Job boards, networking, mentoring and career resources for Notre Dame students and alumni:
- ♣ Handshake: Employer information, job postings, events, and more from those who want to hire Notre Dame students
- ♣ Irish Compass: Connect with alumni who have opted in to support ND students and alumni with a wide variety of career development topics, including job search. Includes a job board exclusively for graduate level students
- Notre Dame Alumni Directory: Discover information you can't find anywhere else through Notre Dame's largest directory
- Notre Dame Alumni Clubs - Connect with alumni across the globe by city, state, and country
- Global Gateways - More than launching pads for our faculty and students. They allow for rich collaborations with local universities, research centers, governments, churches, and grassroots organizations
- Gain experience through involvement with Centers and Institutes (ex. NDIAS Fellowship), campus jobs, and programs such as LASER (Leadership Advancing Socially Engaged Research) and 3MT.
Employer/Organization Directories
Find employers and organizations across the globe by a variety of criteria in every career field and industry:
DIRECTORIES WITH ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS (ex. jobs, networking...)
- LinkedIn: One of the most comprehensive career tools available. The site allows users to search for employers and organizations in any industry across the globe while viewing employees, alumni and discovering how people are connected
- ♣ Career Shift: Discover employers and contact information of employees in every industry
- ♣ Going Global: Employers across the globe, including those looking to hire international students
- The Org: Includes organizational charts and staffing updates for organizations
OVERALL DIRECTORIES
- ♣ Reference USA: Search for over 53 million organizations in every industry based on a variety of in-depth criteria. Search by specific codes such as SIC (Standard Industrial Classification) and NAICS (North American Industry Classification System)
- Buzzfile: Find employers based on area of study and industry
- Yellowpages: The original source to find and connect with local organizations
CAREER PATH-SPECIFIC DIRECTORY EXAMPLES
Higher Education
- Carnegie Classification System: United States higher education directory that allows users to search for schools based on a variety of criteria such as research activity, size, culture, location and more. Search by specific codes such as IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System)
- HigherEd 360 Directory and Higher Ed Jobs Institutional Profiles
- World Higher Education Database: Provides up-to-date, authoritative and comprehensive information on global higher education systems, credentials and over 18,400 higher education institutions in 196 countries and territories
- World University Rankings (Times Higher Education): Search for schools across the globe
Nonprofits/NGO
- ♣ Guidestar: Non-profit focused directory that allows users to search by location, cause area (NTEE - National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities) and more
- WANGO: World Association of Non-Government Organizations
- Open Think Tank Directory
Industry/Discipline
Discover job boards and career resources specific to industries and career fields. A few examples are provided below. Utilize keyword searches online to find other resources specific to your area of study and career interests:
OVERALL
- ♣ "What Can I do With this Major?": Broad brush of information for career fields and occupations that categorizes professional organizations and job boards by area of study
- ♣ Hesburgh Library Career Resources: Resources organized by career path
- Professional Association Finder (Career One Stop)
- Job boards by Disciplines and Industries
HIGHER EDUCATION EXAMPLES
- Job Boards (Faculty and Staff): Higheredjobs.com; Higher Education Resource Consortium; Chronicle of Higher Education; Academic Keys; Student Affairs Jobs
- Professional Organizations (Student Affairs): NASPA and ACPA (Overall); NACE and NCDA (Topic-Specific); MCEEA (Location and Topic Specific)
- Academia/Faculty: ♣ Academic Job Search Module (hosted in Sakai), ♣ National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity, Chronicle of Higher Education Community
Location
Leverage resources by city/town, region, state and country to discover resources and opportunities:
LOCAL EXAMPLES
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Indiana - South Bend Regional Chamber ; City of South Bend ; Work for Indiana ; Indiana Career Ready ; Hoosiers by the Numbers
- South Bend Opportunity; enFocus (internships and fellowships) - Attracts and develops talent to spark innovation.
- Michigan - Pure MI Talent Connect ; Hello West MI
ND REGIONAL EXAMPLES
- The ND Regional Engagement Team, currently based in California, DC, and Houston is a growing team of professionals which will expand to strategic industry markets in the coming years. Connect with them to learn about resources and build connections with alumni and other professionals.
GLOBAL EXAMPLES
- ♣ Going Global: City and country career guides across the globe that include job boards, networking opportunities, culture-specific strategies, employers and more
- Global Jobs - NGO's, Think Tanks, Government, Private Sector
General Job Boards
A broad brush of job postings that can be filtered by a variety of criteria. These resources can be helpful if you are open to exploring a variety of career options.
- LinkUp - Verified, up-to-date job listings directly from employer websites
- Indeed
- Simply Hired
- Google Job Search
- Career Builder
- Monster
- Zip Recruiter
Employer Review Sites
Get an inside look at employers and organizations in regard to culture, salary, interviews and more:
OVERALL
- Glassdoor: Search millions of jobs and get the inside scoop on employers in every industry through employee reviews, personalized salary tools, interview insights and more
- ♣ Vault Career Insider: Research thousands of companies through profile pages, rankings, survey data and employer reviews. Get advice on interviews, cover letters, resumes, networking and more
- ♣ Handshake: Notre Dame's main career management system allows you to view student user comments on what it is like to interview with, and work for, different employers.
- Employer Ranking Sites: Fortune 500 (largest companies = two-thirds of US economy); Inc. 5000 (fastest-growing US private companies)
CAREER-SPECIFIC (ex. Higher Education)
- College Scorecard: Reviews of US higher education institutions
- National Center for Education Statistics (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System - IPEDS) - Includes Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP)
- World University Rankings: Reviews and rankings of higher education institutions worldwide based on a variety of criteria
Networking
Build meaningful connections and expand your personal and professional network both on and offline:
PROFESSIONAL
- ♣ Irish Compass: Connect with alumni who have opted in to support ND students and alumni with a wide variety of career development topics, including job search. Includes a job board exclusively for graduate-level students
- Notre Dame Alumni Directory: Discover information you can't find anywhere else through Notre Dame's largest directory
- ♣ Handshake: Employer profiles featuring public staff lists and public student profiles from across the United States to connect with those in similar areas of study
- LinkedIn: One of the most comprehensive career tools available. The site allows users to search for employers and organizations in any industry across the globe while viewing employees, alumni and discovering how people are connected
- ♣ Career Shift: Discover employers and contact information of employees in every industry
- Attend Events
- Professional Organizations: Speak with faculty contacts and mentors to learn about organizations specific to your area of study/discipline. Utilize Organization Directories (see above) or resources such as the "Professional Association Finder" and "What Can I Do with This Major?" to discover organizations based on topic and location
- Young Professional Networks: Connect with local professionals often representing a wide range of industries and career field (Ex. South Bend Young Professional Network)
PERSONAL
- Facebook and Twitter: "Like" and "Follow" employers and organizations of interest to find best-fit and to prepare for applications and interviews. Also, consider liking or following community organizations and locations of interest based on where you want to live.
Entrepreneurship/Start-Ups
Do you have an idea for a product or service that you would like to bring to the market? Get started with the resources below:
- Business Model Canvas: A one-page technique to get your idea off the ground
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ND IDEA CENTER:
- Notre Dame McCloskey New Venture: Compete to win more than $400,000 in cash and prizes to launch your start-up
- Submit an Idea to the Center
- Connect with the Team
- Start Up South Bend/Elkhart: Fostering relationships, people, culture and resources supporting a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem across Northern Indiana and Southwest Michigan
- Indiana Small Business Development Center: Created to have a positive and measurable impact on the formation, growth, and sustainability of small businesses in Indiana, and to help Hoosier Entrepreneurs start stronger, grow faster, and work smarter.
Consulting, Freelance, and Remote Work
Work as a consultant for an organization to help solve problems in a variety of areas or complete projects for a variety of employers:
- Notre Dame Graduate Consulting Careers Group: Events, resources, career support and more
- Large Consulting Firms: McKinsey & Company ; Boston Consulting Group ; Bain & Company
- Online Projects: Offer your expertise to solve problems and complete projects for a variety of employers through sites like Mind Sumo and Guru
- Gig Jobs: Part-time and freelance work
- Eloquenti: an online marketplace of freelance proofreaders, editors, and writers
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Remote Work: Get paid from the comforts of your own home
- Hire Academics: Remote jobs for academics
Grants, Fellowships, Post-Docs, and Internships
If you are looking for a shorter-term opportunity to build your experiences and qualifications, consider the resources below:
- Office of Grants and Fellowships (Graduate School): Empowering students to win internal and nationally competitive funding to further support research and professional development endeavors. Helps students identify potential supplemental funding sources and develop competitive applications
- Internal Opportunities
- External Fellowship Databases: Discover opportunities through ♣ Pivot and H-Net
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Post-Doctoral Positions:
- Notre Dame Opportunities: Overall ; 5+1 Program (Arts & Letters Students Only)
- The National Postdoctoral Association – Provides resources for potential and current post-docs and their advisors
- Academic Transfer – An international job search board for universities and government research agencies
- PostDocJobs.com – A site that provides information about jobs, career tips, and work visas
- PhDs.org – Helps graduate students prepare for the changing demands of today’s job market
- "Applying for a Postdoctoral Fellowship," The Chronicle of Higher Ed – Article with advice for first-time post-doc applicants
- Internships and Project Work: Since these experiences are meant for professional development and can lead to full-time employment opportunities, finding and securing internships and project work can be a very similar process to the job search. Developing professional connections to discover opportunities, utilizing job posting sites, and looking into specific employers' internship programs is a great place to start. An internship can serve as a trial run for a full-time position, so consider the experience as an extended interview through which you can showcase why you would be a great addition to the team. There are even micro-internships available through sites such as Parker-Dewey and virtual learning experiences with employers through sites such as Forage ("Pre-skilling" - flipping the traditional script of hire then train, to train then hire). Lastly, Notre Dame's Winter Session featured hundreds of projects from employer partners (2020 List of Projects)