December 2009

Graduate Career Advisors @ CaPS

Susan Molnar and Lorna MacEachern are available to meet with you to discuss your career options and job search strategies.

To book an appointment, call 514-398-3304, x0321.

Grad Advising & CV Drop-In

Advising and CV Drop-In for graduate students is held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 15h00-16h30 and Fridays from 10h00-11h30 and does not require an appointment, but space is limited. First come, first served.

Support Group for Doctoral Students

The Support Group, which was formed last year, is now open to new members. Meetings are held every second week at the Counselling Service, 3600 McTavish 4th floor.

Group discussions address students' concerns about motivation, time management, balancing doctoral work and personal life, relationship with supervisors, preparing to defend, future career plans etc. Particularly useful for students looking for support, encouragement, ideas, and a sense of connectedness.

Limited space available. For more information or to register please call 514-398-3601.

Become of a fan of CaPS

Become a fan of the McGill Career Planning Service (CaPS) on Facebook to stay informed about the latest CaPS events!

Job Finding Club in January

Work with fourteen other students all looking to find a job. You will have each other for support, with the assistance of the CaPS facilitator, Janice Tester, and career advisors. It is a two-week intensive program designed to empower you to find work in your field and in a job you will love.

There is no administrative fee to participate. The only cost to the student is for the purchase of the Job Search Handbook ($8).

You need to apply and we consider people on a first-come-first-served basis.  You will register at the CaPS reception by filling out an application form and submitting your CV. After which, we will contact you for a selection interview with an advisor. 

The dates of the next Job Finding Clubs are:

January 18th to 29th, 2010

Are you ready for this wonderful opportunity?  Check out the program on our website for full details and/or come to our office.

Contact me

If you have any suggestions about how we can better serve you, don't hesitate to contact me.

Susan Molnar, M.Ed.
Graduate Career Advisor
(514) 398-3304 x0759
susan.molnar@mcgill.ca

Welcome to the last CaPSScoop of the decade

The first snow fall this week brings with it the reality of winter. The CaPS office remains open to serve you until December 23rd. Check out the upcoming events below that might be of interest to you.

Next week is also our annual CEGEP panel discussion. This is your chance to hear first-hand from human resource professionals from 6 local CEGEPs.

All of us at CaPS wish you happy holidays and a happy New Year.

Also in this issue:

Thinking about teaching at CEGEP?
Labour Market Information for December
Are you looking for a career in research outside of academia?
How to Make Your Application Stand Out
Strategies for Success in Trying Times
Workshops & Events
Contact Us

Thinking about teaching at CEGEP? Come to a panel discussion on Dec. 7th

Then consider coming to this panel discussion with human resource professionals and faculty from 6 local CEGEPS: Dawson College, Vanier College, John Abbott College, Champlain College College Lionel Groulx, and Cegep Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu.

The panel will take place on Monday, December 7 from 12h - 13h30 in the Thomson House Ballroom.

Hear what they have to say about the CEGEP system, what they look for when hiring new teachers & how they evaluate them, current trends in labour market, what it is really like teaching in your 1st year and other positions available in a CEGEP.

Please register for this event on myFuture. Click on the "Events" tab, then the "Workshops" tab and keyword search "CEGEP."

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Labour Market Information for December

by Vanessa Franco, CaPS Career Resource Consultant

This monthly bulletin aims to inform you of major news and trends in the regional, domestic and North American labour markets. Your feedback is welcome.

The good news:

• Le Québec sort de la récession
  La Presse Affaires, 27 October 2009
  Thanks to growth in the service sector over the summer, Québec’s economy is no longer in recession.

• Economy shows steady signs it's in recovery
  Edmonton Journal, 20 November 2009
  Key economic indicators suggest that Canada’s economy is recovering.

• Industrie minière: investissements records au Québec
  La Presse Affaires, 24 November 2009
  Despite the recession, Québec’s mining industry saw a 24% increase in investments from 2007 to 2008.

The bad news:

• Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey - October 2009
  The unemployment rate increased, with a large decline in part-time jobs. The largest losses were in Alberta and B.C, with all losses occurring among adult women and youth.

• Employment quality in Canada "nose dived" in last six months: CIBC World Markets Inc.
  CIBC World Markets, Inc., 2 November 2009
  Despite an increase in the number of jobs over the past six months, job quality has declined, say CIBC economists.

• 'Reality check' for Canadian labour market: Surprise loss of 43,200 jobs last month
  The Gazette, 7 November 2009
  Canada lost over 43,000 jobs in October, an unexpected decline after two consecutive months of growth.

• Hidden jobless cloud economic picture (VPN required)
  The Globe and Mail, 27 October 2009
  A lack of data on the number of unemployed who have exhausted their Employment Insurance frustrates economists and public policymakers.

Other news:

• Culture à Montréal: des retombées de 12 milliards
  La Presse Affaires, 22 November 2009
  The cultural sector contributes 6% to the Greater Montreal GDP. Nevertheless, salaries stagnate below the Montreal average.

• Foreign workers not filling labour gap: jobs promised newcomers never materialize despite changes to federal department: auditor-general
  Vancouver Sun, 4 November 2009
  Despite changes made to the immigration system in 2008, there has been no improvement in filling the labour market’s needs.

• Immigrant cherche désespérément du travail
  La Presse Affaires, 22 November 2009
  The average unemployment rate for immigrants is still much higher than for other Canadians, despite provincial government initiatives to encourage immigration and the hiring of immigrants.

Occupational highlight:

• Lawyers and Québec Notaries (NOC code 4112)
  Lawyers and Québec notaries advise clients on legal matters, represent clients before administration boards and draw up legal documents such as contracts and wills. Lawyers also plead cases, represent clients before tribunals and conduct prosecutions in courts of law. Articling students are included in this group. For 2006-2008, unemployment was very low. Trends for 2008-2012 predict a 1.1% growth rate and the outlook is good. This profession is slightly vulnerable to recession. Currently there are more graduates than the market can accommodate. In 2006, approximately 43% of lawyers and notaries were self-employed.

  For a more complete occupational profile, including interviews with practitioners, visit Career Cruising http://www.careercruising.com/Default.aspx . Contact us mailto:caps.library@mcgill.ca for the username and password or login to myFuture https://csm-caps.mcgill.ca/students/ and search for Career Cruising under Documents - Career Resources.

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Are you looking for a career in research outside of academia?

The following articles on RESEARCH CAREERS OUTSIDE ACADEMIA  have been compiled by Vanessa Franco, CAPS Resource Consultant and MLIS McGill graduate.

Did you know we have over 3000 books in our collection that we lend out overnight?

Vanessa can offer the following job search services to you including helping you find information about funding, internships and volunteer opportunities, occupational profiles, & salaries.  She is available for consultation at caps.library@mcgill.ca or in person between 10-5 Monday through Friday.

• A new Montreal-based sustainable urban planning think tank was announced in October 2009.

• This article from the University of London covers the possibilities for research careers outside of academia, from scientific institutes to publishing to the civil service (opens as a PDF).

• Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics – ‘Where Can I Work?’ This page has a detailed list of organisations.

• The American Psychological Association has a series of articles profiling scientific psychologists who work outside of academia.

• University Affairs – Explore ‘other’ career paths in your field with these links.

• Science Careers from Science Magazine contains many articles, plus a jobs database. Many of the posted jobs are in academia, but not all.

• Finding Your Way Into Policy Careers in Europe - For scientists with wanderlust, see this great article, which includes a list of resources.
  

• From the Chronicle ‘Advice’ series, Leaving the Bench for a Corporate Perch describes research careers in industry.
  

• Careers for Scientists in Patent Law - ‘Wanted: Scientists, especially in chemistry, biology, engineering, and computer science, who are interested in working with cutting-edge researchers in universities, large research corporations, and technology start-ups. Candidates must love -- and we mean really love -- to write.’

• Careers For Ph.D.'s in the Nonprofit World – discusses grant writing, working for foundations, etc.

• University Affairs - Doctor who? Marketing your transferable skills for employment beyond academia. The article lists and discusses several transferable skills.

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How to Make Your Application Stand Out

by Rob Jenkins, The Chronicle of Higher Education

In preparing composition students for our state's writing-proficiency exam, I always begin by explaining how their work will be evaluated. I've found that knowing what raters are looking for helps students better understand how to prepare their essays.

I'd like to apply that same approach to another sort of proficiency exam: the job application. Having served on many search committees at two-year colleges, I have a pretty good idea how applications are evaluated. My objective is to help you understand the process, too, so you can craft your documents accordingly.

[continue reading this article]

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Strategies for Success in Trying Times

by Career Sense Blog (University Affairs)

I’m in Syracuse right now, attending a conference of career advisors who specialize in graduate students. The conference opened up with a presentation by Julie Miller Vick (senior associate director of Career Services at the University of Pennsylvania and Jennifer Furlong (associate director, graduate student career development at Columbia University). You may know them better as columnists for The Chronicle of Higher Education’s CV Doctor and Career Talk.

They have just launched what has been described as ‘the bible’ of tips and advice for academic searchers transparently titled, “The Academic Job Search Handbook”. This is the fourth edition of the invaluable resource. If you are ever going to buy a book on the topic, this would be a good one to invest in. Check out your career centre and ask them to get a copy of this edition, if all they have is the third.

[continue reading this article]

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Workshops and Events

Registration for all of the following workshops is available through myFuture. Click on the "Workshops/Events" tab and select the "Workshops" tab.

• Building Community and Facing Challenges: Strategies for Students and Faculty of Colour
  December 4, 2009, 10h00-12h00: Education, Room 433

  Anthony Stewart, (Associate Professor of English at Dalhousie University, and author of You Must be a Basketball Player: Rethinking Integration in the University) will discuss his experiences and reflections on life as a black professor in a predominantly white academic setting. Dr. Stewart's presentation will be followed by a moderated discussion on the challenges that racialized people and people of colour (can expect to) face in academia, and on how to build communities and systems of support around these challenges. The presentation and discussion are open to all, but space is limited, so RSVP soon!
  
  Sponsored by the Education Graduate Student’s Society and SEDE.
  
  Seating is limited; Please RSVP to Sarah Malik [sarah (dot) malik (at) mcgill (dot) ca, 514-398-2176].

• Effective Job Applications for a Career Outside Academia (Module 3)
  January 13, 2010, 15h00-16h00: Brown, Room 5001

  This workshop will help you to prepare your non-academic CV and cover letter.

• MMI Practice Session for Medical School Applications
  January 14, 2010, 10h00-15h00: Brown, Room 2200

  During this 1/2 hour session, students will go through 3 scenarios similar to those used during the MMI (multiple mini interview). In addition to experiencing what an MMI is really like, students will also receive feedback for each scenario and additional documents to help them better prepare for future medical school interviews.
  
  As space is limited, priority will be given to students who did not have the opportunity to participate in the 2009 Mock MMI Days.

• One Stop Shop: Everything You Need to Get Your Job Search Started
  January 15, 2010, 13h00-16h00: Brown, Room 5001

  This intensive workshop covers the essentials of preparing for a career outside academia. Topics include job search strategies, self assessment, networking, CV writing, and interviewing.

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