Searching for a Summer Job: Top Five Tips

It's that dreaded time of year again- time to tidy up your resume and send it out in the hopes of finding a job for the upcoming summer. As a third year engineering student, there is a lot of pressure to find a "real" engineering summer position, in order to get some experience working as an engineer before graduation next year. It wouldn't hurt to have some extra cash as well. Finding a summer job, however, isn't as easy as it may seem.

For one thing, there are very few summer positions available compared to the number of applicants applying for the jobs, making the process of applying extremely competitive. The other issue that I am finding is that at this point in life, it is very difficult to distinguish myself from other applicants: I haven't had many jobs, and my engineering education thus far is basically equivalent to other third year engineers. In this way, the summer job search is a fairly even playing field, making it all that much harder to be successful in finding a summer job.

But don't give up hope just yet. There are some things you can do to help improve your chances of getting a summer job and make your application stand out from the crowd. Although they may take some time and effort, I can guarantee that they will be worth it.

Top five job search tips:



1.   Visit your school's Career Services website

      I can pretty much guarantee that every University will offer career advice, whether it is through  visiting a website, speaking with career counselors, or attending designated workshops.  These resources can provide useful information on writing resumes and cover letters, succeeding in interviews and may even post jobs that you may consider applying to.

2.   Create or update your LinkedIn profile

     While potential employers probably won't seek out your LinkedIn profile, LinkedIn can be very useful in searching for job opportunities. For example, I am part of a Queen's Engineering group, an alumni group for my high school and a Chemical Engineering group on the site.  Employers regularly post job opportunities on these groups, making them a good resource to use in the job search.

3.   Attend job fairs

      Job fairs are an extremely easy venue in which to begin networking with potential future employers,  hand out your resume, and find out more about companies that you may want to apply to. I would advise wearing business casual clothing, bringing a few copies of your resume with you and preparing a few questions to ask potential employers before attending a job fair.

4.   Before applying for a job, do some research

      Make sure to do research on the available position, as well as the company itself, before applying. Knowing exactly what the employer wants from a potential employee and showing interest in the company will help make your application stand out from the rest.

5.   Customize your resume and cover letter for each job you apply to

      Most employers would agree that there is nothing worse than receiving a resume and cover letter from a job applicant that is extremely generic. These documents should show your potential employer that you are very interested in the available position. Make use of the research you completed in step 4, and write about how your skills and experiences would contribute to the position and the job as a whole.