Career Strategies for the New Year

Happy New Year!

While any time is a good time for setting new goals and habits, the start of a new year always presents a great opportunity to implement new resolutions.

One easy-to-implement resolution, whether you’re interning or working in a full-time role, is to keep a regular journal of your personal and professional accomplishments. This is not only an effective way to track your progress toward your goals but also to tangibly reflect on your successes, challenges, and growth and identify next steps.

You can use the traditional pen-to-paper method or try one of the many free journaling apps available. Journal entries are most useful when they include:

  • Specific details about a situation, project, or challenge you faced (including who, what, and when)
  • Skills you used or actions you took to address it
  • Results you achieved or impact you had

Sound familiar? These are the core elements of resumes and interviews. They’re also great to discuss in performance reviews. Not sure where to start? Schedule an appointment with the career team today!

FREE Access to Premium Resource Site for International Opportunities

The Office of Career Services and Leadership Management is excited to announce its new partnership with Impactpool (previously UNjobfinder), a comprehensive career platform devoted to providing the best possible support to people who want to pursue a career within mission-driven organizations. Through the Academic Partnership Program, CSSW students and alumni may now access premium features of their site for FREE!

Impactpool’s resources include a robust database of opportunities from hundreds of international organizations, such as those within the United Nations Systems and influential Intergovernmental and Non-Governmental organizations around the world, and online career content, including articles, webinars, news, podcasts, and guides that provide a wealth of information and insight on different career pathways and hiring processes.

You can claim your free “Impactpool Fellowship” account by going to our Impactpool page: https://www.impactpool.org/academic-institutions/columbia_university_ssw

Tips for Maximizing Your New Connections After a Networking Event

Did you recently attend a networking event? Making connections is just the first step; now it’s time to follow up! See below for simple tips on building and growing your network.

Tips For Maximizing Your New Connections

  1. Send personalized thank you notes to the people you met, highlighting a specific tip you appreciated or insight you gained.
  2. Connect with them on LinkedIn, making sure to customize your request. Note that some people prefer to keep their connections closed.
  3. If the people you spoke with offered to meet or chat again for one-on-one conversations, follow up on their offer with suggestions for potential dates, times, and locations that would accommodate their schedule.
  4. Keep in touch and update them on any developments resulting from their support. If you find articles or resources that may be of interest to them, pass them along! Remember, networking is a two-way street. The more you invest, the more you’ll get back.