Posted on Thursday, December 14th, 2017
As a co-op student at Algonquin College, you’ll be asked to create a co-op-specific resume before beginning your job hunt. Because the Co-op Department spends a lot of time talking with employers about the things they look for on co-op resumes, we’ve been able to identify the best way to layout your resume for success (you can find the guidelines for this in your Coop1000 modules on Blackboard).
Because we review all your resumes before okaying you to look at jobs, we see a lot of the same mistakes made over and over. And in the interest of helping you build the best resume you can, we’re sharing those top mistakes—and how you can fix them. Read on!
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Posted on Thursday, December 7th, 2017
It’s chilly outside, the holidays are approaching, and life is super busy—that’s right, it’s winter again! For those of us who work in offices, winter comes with its own set of unique challenges and difficulties. When you spend winter working in an office, it can sometimes start to feel like everyone around you is sick, and you haven’t seen the sun in a month. In that kind of environment, it’s really easy to forget to take special steps to stay healthy during the coldest part of the year.
Luckily, there are some very easy steps you can take during the winter to make sure you stay healthy, strong, and motivated through the whole season.
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Posted on Thursday, November 30th, 2017
When you first start a co-op term, there will be a lot to learn. A new organization, new coworkers, and brand-new tasks mean that you’ll spend your first month or so getting oriented and comfortable with your role.
But as time goes on through your work term, you’ll start to find opportunities to really prove your worth to your coworkers, supervisors, and organization. The benefits of taking advantage of these opportunities are huge—in co-op, it could mean the difference between being hired permanently after your work term, or not.
So how do you go above and beyond at work, and prove that you’re a super valuable member of your team? Here are some strategies to do just that.
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Posted on Thursday, November 30th, 2017
You’ve written a killer resume, crafted a successful cover letter, and applied to a great job. Your hard work has paid off, and the employer has called you to set up a job interview.
The job interview is your first real opportunity to meet with HR or hiring managers at the organization you want to work for. It’s the first time you get to really talk with them and share your achievements, and their first chance to assess your experience and personality for the job. A lot is riding on an interview—so it’s really easy to get nervous about them.
But being nervous during an interview isn’t necessarily a good thing. Being nervous can mean having shaky hands, stumbling over your words, or being unable to think clearly. It can make your interview much more difficult. Luckily, there are tons of ways of dealing with nervousness, so you can walk into the interview room calm, composed, and confident. Here are some ways to combat interview nervousness.
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Posted on Tuesday, November 28th, 2017
Look, we get it—writing resumes is hard. You’re putting together a document that lists your work history and experiences in the hopes that it will be good enough to land you a new job. Often, you’re doing so without having any relevant experience to the job you’re applying to, which adds a whole new level of stress and confusion.
And then there are the job descriptions. A list of the places you’ve worked and the tasks you did while you were there. As students, this often means describing retail, service industry, or food service jobs. How can you possibly make those job descriptions relevant?
Luckily, we have great news for you: there is an easy way of writing job descriptions. There’s even a formula. And today, we’re going to share it with you.
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