Programs and Services
The following Programs & Services are available through the Career Center:
"Lifeline" Weekly Bulletin
The Lifeline is published via email each Monday, and is used to announce all pertinent information concerning upcoming workshops, seminars, information sessions, campus interview dates, and other Career Center events. Recent career-related job openings are also highlighted each week. To receive the Lifeline in your email, please sign up.
Computerized Assessment Programs
- SIGI-3 (Pronounced "Siggy"): This user-friendly self-assessment program suggests possible career fields and occupations that might be of interest to you, based on your values, interests, and skills. It also provides you with the latest statistical information on other occupations of your choice, including frequently used job titles, salary information, and educational requirements. It also gives you information on how to prepare yourself to pursue each occupation, in terms of academic and professional experience.
- The Strong Interest Inventory (SII): This assessment program suggests career fields and occupations for you to pursue based on your responses to a series of questions, which interpret your personal goals and interests. It generates a thorough report explaining the different statistical models, and how you fit into that model.
- The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI): This assessment program aids you in better understanding your personality, how you interact with other personalities, and how your personality affects your "fit" into your particular career field. It also generates a report, placing you into a specific category along the MBTI "grid".
All of our assessment programs are administered through a web-based interface and are very user-friendly. Call or come by the office to schedule an appointment to take one of the assessments. Note: After taking any assessment, a follow-up conference is required with our Career Counselor to have your results interpreted.
Resume Referral & Employment Opportunities
The Career Center has partnered with the National Association of Colleges & Employers (NACE), to provide our on-line CareerLinX recruitment system, powered by Symplicity©. This system allows all students and alumni to register their resumes to our internet database; those resumes are automatically converted to searchable PDF files. Students and alumni can also browse and apply for specific employment opportunities that are posted by employers. Registration for this service is free to all students and alumni.
Likewise, recruiters can also register for CareerLinX, where they can post job opportunities for students and alumni to review, and can browse the resumes of qualified CBU candidates in the system. Registration for employers is also free.
Job Fairs & Graduate School Fairs
The Career Center hosts Job Fair events on campus each academic year. Admission is free to all CBU students and alumni. Each event welcomes recruiters representing a wide variety of industries. Some events are specific to a particular academic school (Business, Arts, Engineering, Science), or to a particular range of employment (full-time, part-time, internships). Some events are open to all majors and all employment types. A list of companies scheduled to attend will appear in the Lifeline Bulletin in advance of each event, along with the academic majors each company is seeking.
A Graduate School Fair is co-hosted with other local colleges on the campus of the University Of Memphis, usually during the fall semester. This event welcomes approximately 100 graduate and professional programs from around the country, representing a wide variety of interests. Check the Lifeline Bulletin for dates and details as they become available.
Career Lab Resources
The Career Lab houses hundreds of resources geared to assist you in all phases of your career development. Resources include:
- Books and handouts on a variety of career topics (resume writing, interviewing, job search skills, and more)
- Magazines (Newsweek, Memphis Business Journal, Business Week, Entrepreneur, and more)
- Graduate School Resources, including the Peterson’s Guides
- Company research literature (brochures, annual reports, videos)
- The latest edition of the NACE Salary Survey
- Multimedia resources (DVDs, CD-ROMs, videos, including previous Career Center workshops)
A directory of all resources is located in the lab to assist you in identifying and locating exactly what you need. A small computer lab is adjacent to the Career Lab, which students can utilize to conduct on-line company research, type resumes and cover letters, and take assessments.
Campus Interviews
Campus interviews arranged through the Career Center give students the opportunity to interview with major companies, government agencies, and school systems. Our office arranges hundreds of individual interviews each year with dozens of organizations. Most of these interviews are conducted for full-time positions, and focus primarily on graduating seniors. Some campus interviews geared toward internships are occasionally held for sophomores and juniors as well. Seniors should attend an orientation meeting and participate in sign-up procedures to be eligible. Details on campus interviews are published in the Lifeline Bulletin as they are scheduled by employers.
The Career Center provides a variety of books, videos, handouts, and packets to assist you in adequately preparing for interviews. Students should prepare for a campus interview just as they would for any other interview, including appropriate research and professional dress.
Campus Interview Policies: The Career Center uses a points system to track students who cancel or miss interviews:
- Canceling an interview within 72 hours = 1 point
- Canceling an interview within 24 hours = 2 points
- No-Showing an interview entirely = 5 points
Any accumulation of points totaling five or more will result in loss of that student’s interview privileges for the rest of the semester. No-showing an interview is not only unprofessional, but also potentially keeps another candidate from interviewing at that time. No-shows will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Student Career Advisors
The Student Career Advisor program has been developed to give students an opportunity to speak with members of their peer group on career issues. SCA participants are student counselors, specifically trained by the Career Center staff, to assist students in various stages of their career development process; they also assist with various programs and workshops conducted the Career Center. The SCA Program is offered to upper classmen in good standing, for three hours of course credit, usually during the spring semester. If you are interested in becoming a Student Career Advisor, contact the Career Center during the registration period for spring classes.
Workshops & Seminars
Each year, the Career Center conducts a wide variety of workshops and seminars; topics include:
- Choosing A College Major
- Resume Writing
- Interviewing Skills
- Behavioral Interviewing
- Job Search Strategies
- Professional Image In The Workplace
- Planning For Graduate School
- Balancing Career & Family
- Conflict Resolution
- Career Transition
- Negotiating Salary
Workshop dates, times, and locations are advertised in The Lifeline bulletin at least two weeks prior to the event, and are also posted on the Career Center website.