How to: Find a Job

Cal Poly is in session. Students swarm through campus and file in and out of classes. They're thinking about the next chapter reading they have tonight, their next class, their new dorm, their senior project, how to get to the gym, what's for dinner tonight? Where's the nearest bathroom? Kate and I know things can get a bit chaotic as a student navigating the ins and outs of college life.

At cal Poly.

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On CP one oh one Learned by Listening, presented by KCPR ninety one point three. Hi Mustang, I'm Kate lopensk a fourth year journalism student.

And I'm Emma Hughes, a fourth year English student here at cal Poly, and.

We're here to share our tell all guide on how to survive and thrive at cal Poly.

San Luis Obispo. So grab a notebook. You may want to write this down.

Welcome back to another episode of CP one and one. And I'm so excited about this one because I feel like it's going to be our most useful episode to date.

Totally Today, we'll be talking about how to find a job on campus, in slow and anywhere else you may be interested in working. The job hunt can be an intimidating process, but with our expertise on finding a job and with the help and advice of a career services will help walk you through this daunting task.

Today, we're going to talk about how we got our jobs, different types of jobs that you can get, interview tips, and how to stand out while you're applying. We also have a special guest, a career counselor, who will offer some professional insight on finding a job.

As two girlies who love to shop and spend, we understand the desire for money to fuel our consumerist addictions. So bad, so bad, but also you know, to be able to eat and live or have like an apartment to live in and not to mention just this need to build our resumes.

So that's why we want to share our insight on how to find the right job for you to put a little extra money in the bank or get some valuable work experience.

So, Emma, what do you do for work? What I do?

Let's see, I mean I'm currently working three jobs, but they're all actually through cal Poly. So I am teaching a class here in the English one thirty four class professor. Yes, and I do want to be a teacher. So it's like perfect right up my alley, giving me that work experience that I want building my resume, but also getting money in the bank, like you said, So I'm doing that. I'm also a TA for one of my professors, so grading, lots and lots of grading. But that is also good

I admire you so much for working at the children's center because it seems like like it seems like a job.

You know.

I have stuck with these kiddo's for over a year now, and we're in the throes of potty training, which is its own you know, source of challenges. But no more diapers for me. But Kate, I'm curious to hear about what you do for work.

Yeah, I mean, I work low key, like five jobs, but I wanted to focus more so on the one that's really paying me right now because a lot of my jobs are actually more so for resume building and work experience a lot of my ed M work and all that stuff.

It's not paid, oh yeah, but but we let's do it.

We're working on love Yeah, I get free and mission to events and everything like that.

So I'm not complaining. But right now I work at Sunday car Wash.

Lovely go get.

Yeah. No, literally everyone sings that to my face every single time I tell them that I work at the car wash. I want to talk a little bit about how, like how I got the job, because I feel like this is something that a lot of students are interested in, just like this kind of like.

Retail esque work.

Yeah.

So I saw on LinkedIn that they were hiring for a position that it was higher up. It wasn't like a member of like the hospitality team, which is what I wanted to do, just like customer service and like greeting customers and all that stuff. But I saw that they were looking so I just sent an email to the address on their website and immediately they got back to me and we set up an interview time and

I love that, so I encourage you.

To just send the email if you find the address, and just go for it, because I might as.

Well try totally. I mean, the way that I was able to find, like my job was through since they were through cal Poly. I mean some of them are different, but more specifically the Children's Center. It was like I went on the cow Poly website and looked up what jobs they had, and I saw the Children's Center and I was like, that is right up my alley. I

I mean, gotta love job recruitment websites, right, so I.

Love also for like being a TA. That was something like my professor just specifically like asked me. Yeah, so it would also recommend to like our faithful listeners out there just working on those relationships with like the people in your life, because my professor specifically asked me to work with them and be their TA. And that was something like I wasn't in the market for a job. I wasn't looking, but it was an opportunity that was given to me through those working relationships.

Absolutely, and we're going to circle back to how to actually find jobs later on, but right now, let's get into what kind of jobs you can get more specifically in Slow but also you know, outside of Slow because we're both kind of on that post grad job right now and it's really really scary. But yeah, first off, let's just talk about on campus jobs. This is what you're doing, yes, yeah, so you found that through cal Poly, and like there's so many different places you can work

Yeah, so I did a research project over the summer. So it's like that was another opportunity to just work with a professor. But there's so many of those that are available for all majors in all colleges, and you just get a nice little stipend and it just goes directly towards your tuition, or you can choose to just get a check and then you're like you use it for tuition.

Talk about productivity, I mean like if you're doing something for your major while also making it Yeah, yeah, not bank for seve, just making stipend, yes.

No, but it's nice because you get it in like a lump sum. It's just I love seeing it. I'm like, that was like gorgeous.

I'm just laughing that you use the term lump sum lumps Okay. And then also we have freelance work as well. This is kind of what I do. So one of the jobs that I have right now is through this travel company called smart Trip. I'm trying to get a full time job with them after I graduate.

Okay, So sending thoughts in prayers for Kay please.

And pretty much what I'm doing is I'm trying to get people who are studying abroad to use my promo code whenever they purchase a trip through Smart Trips and then I get commissioned off of that.

And also just creating your own business. Yeah, like I know it seems really scary, but there's so many like cow poly students who have like a side hustle business. Like I know someone who makes cookies and cupcakes and just sells them. I know people who like do haircuts, and it's like something as simple as just having like an Instagram account to be like contact me for this and I'll I'll give you like goods.

Like absolutely.

I feel like the best example is probably Thrifty Beaches because that was started by a student just selling like thrifted clothes on Dexter Lawn and now they have headquarters in downtown Slow right.

Well that's another thing, just Dexter Lawn in general, like if you just go, I mean, I don't know the logistics of how you can get a booth set up there, but people be booth and all the time and selling things. So it's today yeah, oh gorgeous.

So for up and up stuff, I mean yeah, So there's lots of different things you can do.

There's also just off campus jobs like food service, retail and just like paid internships. So there's definitely like so many opportunities and different avenues you can go when looking for a job.

Yeah, okay, so now let's get into how to actually find these jobs, because honestly, that's the most difficult part totally just like you don't even.

Know where to start.

So I mean, for Sunday, like I said, I saw it on LinkedIn and then I just like found the email address and just went for that. And then I actually had an internship I think two summers ago that I got through my through the Journalism Department's Career Fair. Oh so those yes, these employers like eat up cal Poly.

Students, so they do they're doing you guys are.

Just yeah, you really be out here doing the work you are doing it become prepared.

So yeah, I got an internship at a PR firm and that totally helped my career growth and I actually got like some tangible work experience to put on my resume.

So that was great for summer jobs and stuff like that. When I've worked.

Retail, like they'll just be stores that I really like and I'll just walk in and be like, hey, are you guys hiring?

Right?

Like I know it can be like a little scary, but I mean it's worth it.

We'll just ask.

Yeah. The worst they can say is no, and it's not you, it's them. Yeah, yeah, exactly.

I've been rejected so many times that sounds so sad.

No, Yeah, I mean I totally agree with that. Just like asking around and seeing, you know, if people need help or like any services that you can offer them, like I touched on earlier, Like I just looked at Indeed, I looked at the cow Poly jobs. I know there's Handshake out there that you can like go to, and there's I even think there's like something called cow Poly Connect,

For that, exactly.

Like literally just send your resume out to a bunch of places that excite you. You can DM people on social media, like Ema said, there's different websites like LinkedIn, indeed, Handshake, et cetera. And then just it's all about who you know.

Yeah. Yeah, Networking definitely is a big My major.

Yeah, my major also sends out like a weekly newsletter with job opportunities, and I know that a lot of other majors also do that, so yeah, I like scroll.

Every week I get a different email about a different job opportunity. So yeah, Also just check your emails.

So which I know can be really hard, but I.

Know I don't even want to get into my email like.

List, guess how many I have in my box right now?

How many?

Seven?

What I'm a really diligent like email shop, I have seven thousand.

Different ties of people in this world. Like, yeah, I like when you said seven. I was like, oh my god, me too, because.

I thought you've meant seven thousand. We maybe I'll pay you to go through my email.

Okay, so let's go into interview tips because we've both successfully secured jobs.

I don't know how, but we did it.

You listen to this podcast, you're like, they have jobs or no, I feel that. I feel that, But surprisingly we do.

What has worked for you in the past, what what has made you feel confident? Like, have you gotten any feedback from past employers?

Being human honestly works in your favor When you're like interviewing, like being confident in who you are and then being able to, you know, sound natural when speaking. And I know it's so hard because for the most part you're nervous, like when you're the people who are interviewing you, like if you can relate to them, like find something that you both like you share a belief or value system or anything like that, and you somehow work that into

Absolutely.

Yeah.

I mean I feel like being vulnerable has also worked for me in the past because I feel like a very common question that's asked is like think of a time where you faced adversity or like a tough time in your life, and how did you overcome it. Yeah, so, like I haven't been afraid to like dig deep with my possible future employer.

And then there's also some more like surface.

Level things that you wouldn't necessarily think about but are actually very important on the day of the interview, Like, for example, I cannot wear clothes that I know I'm gonna.

Be fidgeting with.

Yeah, like I need to be wearing something super comfortable that's like both professional looking and also like I know I'm not gonna have to like pick at it right, Yeah, because.

I completely agree, And especially if I'm wearing a dress or a skirt, just like even how I'm gonna be sitting in the chair like legs crossed, but not over the knee because you don't want to accidentally flash anyone. Things like that.

Also, like the one thing that my dad told me is like when an employer asks do you have any other questions for me? Or is there anything else you'd like to know, you need to have an answer.

Yeah, I can't agree.

I'm good I don't.

Given those questions, it shows you're interested in the job, Like it's showing that you value the time. Also, like, yeah, even though the interview is more to see if you're qualified for the job, it's also an opportunity for you to see if this company or this organization fits in with your own personal like values, morals things like that, like are you gonna fit in there? This is your chance to ask Yeah totally. And part of that too, I think is doing research on what the company or

Yeah, Okay, but let's now get into how we've stood out in pools of other competition, et cetera. We'll get more professional details about this from the career counselor, but like I'm curious to know, like, how do you think you've been able to make yourself stand out against other applicants?

I think having work experience that is reflective of what I want to do long term. That way, every job I'm going into, I have proof of why I am qualified to do this job because I have done similar work in the past. Having intention with the jobs that you are choosing to work really can go a long way, and really matters to your employer.

That's a great tip.

I feel like I'm personally more so all over the place when it comes to my jobs, but I know that I like my thing that I try to do is just always bring passion to the table. I convey like a genuine care for the purpose of the job, and that just immediately attracts employers. I always try to bring like unique ideas to the table, and like it.

Yeah. Well, and no matter what job you get or work experience you're like having, it's going to transfer to your next job in some capacity. No matter what work you're actually doing, there's a skill there, there's a lesson there to be learned. So it's all it's all transferable.

Now we have Jade Moreno from cal Poly Career Services to just give us a little bit more of a sophisticated and educated kind of information about how to find a job and just some good career tips overall, Hi, what is your name and what is your position within Career Services?

Hi, my name is Jade Moreno. I'm a career counselor at Career Services. I serve as a lead career counselor for the College of Architecture and Environmental Design And I'm also a generalist.

What kinds of services does the cow poly Career Center or the cow Poly Career Services provide?

Think of us as basically anything career related. So resumes, mock interviews, you help with applying for CRAD school cover letters, maybe you've never written one before, finding an on campus job, internship, full time job search. Maybe you just want a network and talk to people who are doing work that you're interested in. So anything career related is what I would describe is what our center does to support students.

Whenever I hear the word resume, immediately my heart's like poo bom, boom boom, because I'm like, is mine right? I don't know if like what this should look like? So just real quick, like how long should a resume be? And like what font size like should you be using when you're creating a resume?

Yeah?

Really good questions I first want to start with. Resumes are very subjective, but a general rule I would say is take as an undergrad to keep it one page. Definitely print it out to see if you can read it, Like have different people look at it, because I've looked at some and I'm like, WHOA, that's tiny font I can't really readin. Yeah, as you're progressing here at cal Poly, start taking off the high school. They really want to know what you're doing at cal Poly outside of your classes.

Kind of side question to that, what's the difference between a resume and a CV, and like when and where should you be using resume versus CV? Yeah, good question.

So resumes, as I mentioned, undergrad typically one page, but a CV there's no length. You can have a couple pages and you can put everything. It's usually to more for like academic positions, research positions. So you'll see that on grad school applications we'll say resume or CV, so it's more academic related, but people use those words interchangeably, but resumes think of it as one page. Cvs are usually more extensive and there's no page length, and usually for more academic positions.

Okay, so I mean you're already diving into some really good topics that I feel like a student would really want to know more about. So where can students find you? And like, how do they make an appointment with career services?

Yeah, there's a couple different ways, so it depends on the student's preference. Maybe you're I don't know a PCV and you don't want to walk that far, so you can schedule a virtual far Well, we're located by the football stadium, so okay, it's a little far a walk, so if you don't want to walk, you can schedule a virtual appointment, or you can in person. And then another thing, you can just hop into our virtual drop in hours Monday through Friday. So the zoom link is

It sounds like you offer one on one meetings, but I know you guys do workshops as well, don't you. Can you just kind of explain the different spaces where you can access these resources.

I think going to our workshops is a great way to learn a new skill. I recommend that students take advantage of these workshops sooner than later, like don't wait till your senior year, because you can learn new skills related to your resume, learn all about the grad school process, maybe salary negotiation. So you can come to these workshops. Basically you'll come in in person. A lot of them are in person, some of them are over zoom, so if you can always listen in and we definitely get

Yeah. I remember I went to a career fair for my first time ever last year as a third year, and it was actually really fun and like productive. What about on the interview side of that, if you have any suggestions, I know Kate and I talked about it.

Yeah, knowing the job description really well because you want to tailor your responses to that position. Sometimes students are like, well I want to learn, I want to grow. Yes, that'll happen, but focus on their needs how you can help them. You know, ask intentional questions. So do you prepare a couple questions that you do want to ask. It's better to have questions rather than saying no, I don't.

Be it'll come off as a red flag.

If you're like, no, don't have any questions, They'll be like, what, they're not interested in us, So you want to demonstrate some interest. Another tip that I'd recommend is learning how to use the car technique or the star technique.

You guys heard of that, No I have not that, Like, tell me more, Yeah, I've been doing something in all my interviews that I don't know about.

It's a great way to frame your responses. So we have an awesome interviewing guidebook on our website. You can google and find it there. But it's a way to frame your responses when I when I coach students with interviews that really helps them, they're like, Okay, I can give my answers in this kind of formula. So CAR stands for challenge, A stands for action, and are as a result. So whenever possible, try to frame your answers in that way, because you're going to give a concrete example.

I'm so yeah, that's such a good tip. I hate that up.

We've talked about like LinkedIn, indeed, all those online platforms we talked about, career affairs, We've talked about just like Google, searching, word of mouth, all of that. But do you have any other tips of like how to just get that process starting, because it can be really scary sometimes.

Absolutely. I remember feeling that when I was a senior, like Meek, I'm graduating soon. It's coming up, like I'm going to be in the real world, and like I need a job.

Student loans are on my mind, terrifying.

Generally, what I'd recommend is have multiple approaches when you're searching for a job, not just one job board, like talk to your peers, talk to your faculty too. If there's other job boards you can use. Definitely how Poly's job board musting jobs, It's on your portal. There's filters you can filter by location. It's helpful to know your

Okay, so we've kind of flown through all of these, So before we wrap up, are there any other things that you'd like to add?

I really want students to know that we're a welcoming place, even if you're not even entirely sure what question to ask, and you put in your appointment note, like just want to connect and say hi. That's a great way to start it. We're really good at asking questions making you feel welcome. You don't have to have a perfect question to meet with us to just get connected, and like, I just want to learn more and talk about my interests.

You don't have to do that alone.

To connect with us. To make an appointment, you're essentially going to log into Mustang Jobs, click on the career counseling tab and you can schedule there, and you also can find our virtual drop in zoom link and our hours. All that information is on our homepage. It'll say meet with a career counselor on the bottom right.

Yeah, well that was great, Thank you. I didn't realize, like even just the word career what that all could encompass. Yeah, same, and like you should, like even just talking about major, like I guess major and career kind of becomes anonymous when you're here. So it was really cool and very very informative. So thank you so much for meeting with us today and sharing all your lovely advice and expertise.

You're very welcome.

Thank you, Jade, Thank you.

I mean, we are absolutely not qualified to talk on all of those topics. It was really nice having someone from career Services here today.

Well that's all the time we have for today. One last piece of advice. Stop listening to this fabulous CP one on one episode and go and get a job. We believe. Don't be lazy, but we believe in you. Go check out indeed LinkedIn handshake Cowpoly and go find yourself a lovely little job.

Anyways, we'll be back with more tips and tricks next time on CP one on one learn by listening. You can find us on any preferred streaming platform for the next.

Episode, and to keep up to date with CP one on one and all KCPR podcasts, follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Spotify, TikTok, or Facebook at KCPR nine.

One three or check us out on KCPR dot org or slash podcast. Signing off, I'm Katelepensky.

And I'm Emma Hughes. Thanks for keeping up with all things cow Poly.