Career Assessment Skills (Take the

Lead)

Table of Contents
Read: How to Navigate This Course

Module Introduction: Outline Your Job Search Plan

Watch: What is a Career Roadmap?
Watch: Why Plan for a Job Search?
Watch: Create an Action Plan
Activity: Complete Your Job Search Workbook
Quiz: Module 1 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Outline Your Job Search Plan
Supplemental Reading List
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Outline Your Job Search Plan

Module Introduction: Complete a Career Assessment

Watch: What is a Career Self-Assessment?
Watch: Visualization Exercise
Watch: Career Self-Assessment Tools
Activity: Complete the Career Assessment Workbook
Quiz: Module 2 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Complete a Career Assessment
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Complete a Career Assessment

Module Introduction: Explore Your Target Career Paths

Watch: Target Career Paths
Watch: Interviewing a Role Model

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 Activity: Complete the Explore Your Target Career Paths Workbook
Quiz: Module 3 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Explore Your Target Career Paths
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Explore Your Target Career Paths

Module Introduction: Practice Networking

Watch: The Benefits of Networking
Activity: Examine the Fundamentals of Networking
Watch: Best Practices for Networking
Activity: Complete the Practice Networking Workbook
Quiz: Module 4 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Practice Networking
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Practice Networking

Module Introduction: Create Your Personal Brand

Watch: What is a "Personal Brand"?
Watch: Your Personal Marketing Materials
Activity: Complete the Create Your Personal Brand Workbook
Quiz: Module 5 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Create Your Personal Brand
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Create Your Personal Brand

Module Introduction: Improve Your Résumé

Watch: Résumé Fundamentals
Watch: Best Practices for Résumés
Activity: Complete the Improve Your Résumé Workbook
Quiz: Module 6 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Improve Your Résumé
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Improve Your Résumé

Module Introduction: Use LinkedIn

Watch: Getting the Most Out of LinkedIn

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 Watch: LinkedIn Best Practices
Activity: Complete the Use LinkedIn Effectively Workbook
Quiz: Module 7 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Use LinkedIn
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Use LinkedIn

Module Introduction: Interview for Success

Watch: Types of Interviews
Watch: Interviewing Best Practices
Watch: Good and Bad Examples
Activity: Complete the Interview for Success Workbook
Quiz: Module 8 Quiz
Module Wrap-up: Interview for Success
Reflect, Share, and Apply — Interview for Success

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Homepage
Video Transcript
The most important step in the career development process is the career self-
assessment. So you may think you know yourself well but it's important to link your
interests, your values, and your skills to a career that match your profile. I'll introduce
some tools that can help you assess your interests, your values, and your skills and
connect those to some potential careers and in addition walk you through a
visualization exercise that will help you create an image in your mind of a career that
you will end up in and love.

What you'll do

Create a concrete plan of action to help guide your job search efforts
Explore different career self-assessment tools to think critically about your goals,
strengths, and capabilities
Examine different career paths and make informed decisions about the roles
that might be the best fit for you
Practice the skills needed for successful networking
Develop a personal brand and create personalized marketing materials
Draft a résumé that reflects your unique combination of skills and experience
Develop your marketing materials by creating a LinkedIn profile
Explore best practices for interviews

Course Description

Having a career that aligns with your specific skills, talents, and
interests can not only lead to professional success and personal
satisfaction but can also empower you to make significant
contributions to your field. This course will provide you with the
guidance and tools needed for success.
After creating a plan and thinking critically about your goals, strengths, and
capabilities, you will be able to effectively explore targeted career paths. You will also
practice some strategic steps towards achieving your goals, including networking,

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creating a personal brand, and improving your résumé. You will discover how to
leverage LinkedIn and identify best practices for an interview that will help you stand
out.

Laurie Sedgwick
Coordinator, Office of Career Services
Harvard Divinity School

Laurie Sedgwick has over 20 years of experience advising both

undergraduate and graduate students at Cornell University as the
Director of Career Management. In 2019, Ms. Sedgwick took a leap of
faith, accepting a new role as Coordinator in the Office of Career Services at Harvard
Divinity School, where she is also participating in graduate studies herself.
Ms. Sedgwick has experience as an executive search consultant and program
manager for a biotech startup, and she was the director of human resources for a
nonprofit. She also had a six-year career with the U.S. Army Signal Corps as a
parachutist, jumpmaster, platoon leader, and company commander. Ms. Sedgwick
received a B.A. in English Literature from Michigan State University. She is an
Executive Coach and is MBTI certified. Ms. Sedgwick's areas of advising concentration
are self-assessment, career exploration, and Executive MBA alumni advising.

© 2024 Cornell University

Read: How to Navigate This Course
This course contains many different kinds of learning opportunities as well as quizzes
you must complete. Please review this page carefully so that you will understand the
requirements and how to get the most of the course.
Course navigation

Once you have begun your course, use the Next and Previous buttons to move
between pages in the course. This will help ensure you are proceeding through the
course in the intended order and that you don't miss anything.
When you need to step away from the course, make a note of where you left off.
After you return the course, you can use the menu on the left to jump back in at
the same location.
Active learning

As you work your way through the videos and text-based materials in this course, you
will periodically encounter opportunities to engage in active learning, where you think
about and apply what you have learned so far. These opportunities take two forms:
Activity: This is a self-guided exercise that is aimed at helping you reinforce
important learning. Follow the instructions to complete each activity.
Reflect, Share, and Apply: This is a set of questions based on key concepts and
topics from the course. You will engage with these questions in one of two ways:
1. You and your peers will discuss the questions and learn from one another in
person during guided live discussion sessions.
2. You will reflect on the questions on your own and record your answers for future
reference.
Your local learning coordinator will let you know which approach you will take for the
"Reflect, Share, and Apply" questions. If they are organizing live discussion sessions,
they will also give you information about the location and schedule for those events.
Quizzes

To successfully complete the course, you must take and earn 100% on all of the
multiple-choice quizzes in the course. There is a quiz at the end of each module,

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 and there may be other quizzes as well. You can keep track of your progress on the
quizzes by selecting Grades from Course Shortcuts in the menu on the left.
Ready to get started?

If you feel that you understand the course navigation and requirements, click Next to
get started. You can return to this page and review the information at any time by
navigating to it from the menu on the left.
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Module Introduction: Outline Your Job Search Plan

The first step in finding your ideal career is making a concrete plan of
action for yourself. In this module, you will delve into the concept of a
career roadmap and how it can help you successfully land a position
that fits your skills, talents, interests, and capabilities. You will
complete a job search workbook, in which you reflect on the
teachings of the module and apply them to your own circumstances, ending up with
a plan of action that will guide your job search efforts.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: What is a Career Roadmap?
When seeking a career, it can be very easy to get lost or overwhelmed with the
meandering characteristics of the search. Ms. Sedgwick describes how to use a career
roadmap to keep your goals organized and your job hunt focused.

Video Transcript
So, what is a career road-map? A career road-map is a structure or a path for you to
follow in order to reach your career goal. I find that many job seekers hesitate even
initiating a search, because they don't know where to start or what the steps are. So
they're paralyzed by not knowing. So, a career road-map should have critical
characteristics. One, a goal in mind. You need to know where you're going. I think
there's a saying that "if you don't know where you're going, any road will take you
there." So having a goal in mind is very important. You can have multiple goals that
run in parallel, but no more than three to four target companies or functions that
you're seeking or that you're striving for. So having a goal in mind is important to
move you forward. And then secondly, you need a commitment to dedicate time to
your search. That is another downfall that I find with many career seekers, is that
there's an unrealistic commitment to achieving a career goal without actually
dedicating time to get where they're going. So, committing time in whether it's your
daily schedule or your weekly schedule to the job search and performing the
functions that you need to do to get to where you're going to achieve your goal.
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Watch: Why Plan for a Job Search?
What are you selling? What skills are you offering the job market? These questions
and others help you create a plan while searching for a job. Ms. Sedgwick provides
some focused questions to help you make sense of your goals and explains why
planning during your early job search is crucial.

Video Transcript
So, why plan for a job search? I see many job seekers who are paralyzed by not
knowing how to begin or what the processes is for seeking a job. So, having a plan is
critical. I also see many job seekers. Make the number one error in job search and
that's applying to jobs without being prepared, without knowing what you're selling,
what's your value proposition - what are you offering to the marketplace - or what
your benchmarks are. And benchmarks are those factors against which you're going
to be measuring or assessing opportunities that you come across. So, what are your
benchmarks? They're your key interests, what types of work activities are you most
interested in doing in your job day to day, what are your values, what's most important
to you at this step in your career? So, is it career advancement, is it work-life balance, is
it financial gain? What are your values, that's important to know. And then finally,
what are your skills, what skills are you offering to the marketplace? Having a plan also
will allow you to search most efficiently. The job search unfortunately is not an efficient
process. It's a process that you need to be patient about. Unfortunately it's not, an
exact science either; A plus B does not necessarily equal C. But there are things that
you can do. One, having a plan for your job search will help you move the process
along more efficiently. It'll help you rule out options that aren't a fit and then also
pursue with greater intent those options that are a fit for you. And then ultimately, you
want to end up in the right place, and having a plan for your job search will help you
do that.
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Watch: Create an Action Plan
Once you realize your career goals, you have to make steps towards realizing these
goals. This can be done by creating an action plan. In this video, Ms. Sedgwick outlines
what an action plan is, why it's important, and how to create one.

Video Transcript
So let's talk about creating an action plan. What is an action plan? It's a step by step
plan for achieving your career goals. And I can't emphasize this step more. It's
important to start out knowing where you want to go so that you do end up in the
right place. The last thing that you want to do is change a job, transition a job, end up
in a job that was not a good fit. So you need an action plan to be efficient and effective
in promoting yourself, presenting yourself to the workplace, and then ultimately
ending up in the right job. How do you create one? You start with knowing yourself, an
absolutely critical step, knowing yourself, what you're selling. Develop your value
proposition. What are you selling to the marketplace? And then create your marketing
materials, and then get out there and sell.
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Activity: Complete Your Job Search Workbook
Now you will create your own action  Download the Tool
plan. Download the workbook from
This Job Search Workbook can
this page and work through the
guide your efforts.
self-reflective questions to outline
your job search action plan. Save
the workbook; you may want to expand on your answers as you proceed through your
job search and learn more about what you do and don't want from a position. If you
have a job search partner, you may choose to discuss the questions and your answers
together.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

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Quiz: Module 1 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Outline Your Job Search Plan

As you have seen, the first step in finding your ideal career is making a concrete plan
of action for yourself. In this module, you heard from Ms. Sedgwick about what a
career roadmap is and how it can help you successfully land a position that fits your
skills, talents, interests, and capabilities. You also completed a job search workbook in
which you reflected on the teachings of the module and applied them to your own
circumstances. You now have in hand a plan of action that will guide your job search
efforts.
Back to Table of Contents

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Supplemental Reading List
These readings are supplemental to the module and recommended by Ms. Sedgwick.
"The unwritten rules of the highly effective job search: Land a job you love using the
methods top career professionals teach their private clients." Pierson, O. (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2006)
"The 2-hour job search: Using technology to get the right job faster." Dalton, S.
(Berkeley: Ten Speed Press, 2012).
"Finding your element: How to discover your talents and passions and transform your
life." Robinson, K., & Aronica, L. (London: Penguin Books, 2014)
"Never eat alone: And other secrets to success, one relationship at a time." Ferrazzi, K.,
& Raz, T. (New York: Currency, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, 2014)
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Reflect, Share, and Apply — Outline Your Job Search Plan
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
Looking back on the initial during discussion or to answer the
stages of your job search plan, questions on your own.
what strategies or approaches
have proven most effective in aligning your efforts with your career goals?
As you reflect on the overall structure of your job search plan, what adjustments or
refinements do you believe are necessary to enhance its efficiency and increase
your chances of securing the desired opportunities?
Share some key components of your job search plan that you believe are crucial for
success. How have these elements shaped your approach in navigating the job
market?
In outlining your job search plan, are there any specific insights, strategies, or
resources you've discovered that you would recommend sharing with others who
are also actively engaged in their job search?
How do you plan to apply the milestones and timelines outlined in your job search
plan to stay on track and consistently progress toward your employment goals?
In practical terms, how will you apply the networking strategies and tailored
approaches detailed in your job search plan to actively seek and secure
opportunities within your targeted industries or roles?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Introduction: Complete a Career Assessment

In this module, you will examine a number of career self-assessment

tools using multiple strategies to think about your goals, strengths,
and capabilities. This clear-eyed self-assessment is a critical
foundational step in your career journey. You will complete a
worksheet that will help you capture your self-assessment results,
and you will apply those results in determining some career targets.
Back to Table of Contents

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Watch: What is a Career Self-Assessment?
What tasks and work activities do you most enjoy doing on a day-to-day basis? The
answer to that question is an example of the information you can gather from a career
self-assessment, which is critical in terms of knowing yourself and your values. In this
video, Ms. Sedgwick discusses this idea and explains how to utilize it to find your best
career fit.

Video Transcript
What is career self-assessment? This is my personal favorite and the most critical step
in your journey. Some folks will know their interests and values well and where they
match to a particular or particular functions; for most it's not so clear. So it's critical to
understand your interests, so interests are what types of work activities do you find
yourself enjoying most at work? What are the kinds of things you want to be doing
day-to-day? Second, what's important to you in your vocation? So in this next step, is it
important to have work life balance, financial gain? Do you want to be able to see a
pathway to the top? Rank order your values: What's important to you? And then
finally What skills, qualities, and characteristics are you offering an employer? This
career self-assessment phase is absolutely critical as a foundation upon which to start
your career search because it will get you started off in the right direction. Know
yourself first, your interests, what are you interested in doing at work? What are your
values? What's important to you? And then skills, what are you good at? What are you
offering to the marketplace?
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Watch: Visualization Exercise
Sometimes it can be difficult to understand what you really want and to contextualize
your goals in a conscious way. Ms. Sedgwick discusses a useful exercise for visualizing
your true interests and values that, although you may not be aware of it, are driving
your motivation and career goals.

Video Transcript
Visualization exercise. This exercise taps your subconscious to get at your true
interests and values that we may not be completely in touch with. So how are we
going to do this? You want to find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed.
Prepare to set aside about half an hour for some quiet contemplation and
visualization, followed by a stream of consciousness writing. So, here we go. Sit quietly,
close your eyes, and imagine yourself at some point in the future. Some see the near
future, a year or two out, and some see a more distant five or ten years out future
depending on whatever's coming clearer to you. Imagine waking up in the morning.
What are you waking up to? What do your surroundings look like? This is the start of
your day. What does that look like? Are you going to exercise class or are you getting
into the shower to get ready for your work day? You have breakfast and then, are you
heading to an office? Are you heading to the airport to go off to a business meeting or
a client site? Or are you heading down a hallway to your home office? Walk yourself
through an entire day and let your imagination guide your fantasy. Try to imagine it in
as much detail as possible. Once you've watched yourself through your entire day, that
ends with getting ready for bed and going to sleep, immediately open up your eyes
and write down in as much detail everything that you imagined.
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Watch: Career Self-Assessment Tools
The tools being discussed here position you to identify what sort of careers or interests
you might focus on, based on your personality and values.

Video Transcript
You might find it helpful to access some self-assessment tools that help give you an
idea of your interests, your values, your skills, and some careers that might match your
interest, values, and skills. So [Link] for instance has a great article that lists
about 10 career self-assessment sites that are free. If you just google "career self-
assessment," you'll access that. One of the other ideas is you can check back with your
university career center. They may be able to give you access to some career self-
assessment tools that you can tap into. If you're interested in business careers, there's
a tool called Career Leader. There would be costs associated with that, but again if you
go to [Link], there's an assessment tool there that assesses your interests,
your values, and skills and it shows how you match up against about 27 different
business careers based on your profile. And then there's the Myers-Briggs which is a
personality assessment, but there's also associated books to the Myers-Briggs test
that show based on your personality assessment, what are some great careers that
are consistent with who you are.
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Activity: Complete the Career Assessment Workbook
Download the workbook from this  Download the Tool
page and complete it. It will guide
This Career Assessment workbook
you through completing one or
can guide your efforts
more online career self-
assessments and debriefing your
experience in writing. It will also guide your efforts in completing a visualization
exercise and writing about your reactions to it. If you have a job search partner, you
may choose to discuss the questions and your answers together.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 2 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Complete a Career Assessment

In this module, you examined a number of career self-assessment tools, using

multiple strategies to think about your goals, strengths, and capabilities. This clear-
eyed self-assessment is a critical foundational step in your career journey. You also
completed a worksheet so that you can capture your self-assessment results and
apply those results in determining some career targets.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Reflect, Share, and Apply — Complete a Career Assessment
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
Upon completing the career during discussion or to answer the
assessment, what surprising questions on your own.
discoveries or realizations about
your skills, interests, or values have emerged, and how do you anticipate
integrating these findings into your career planning?
Reflecting on the insights gained from the career assessment, how have your
perceptions of certain career paths or industries evolved, and in what ways will this
newfound self-awareness impact your future career decisions?
What specific aspects of your career assessment results do you feel comfortable
sharing, and how do you think your experiences could offer valuable insights or
guidance to others undergoing similar assessments?
In completing your career assessment, are there any key strategies or approaches
that you found particularly helpful in extracting meaningful insights? How would
you share these methods with peers or colleagues who are considering a similar
assessment?
How do you plan to apply the recommendations and insights gained from your
career assessment to make informed decisions regarding skill development,
training, or potential career shifts?
In practical terms, how will you implement the identified strengths and
preferences from your career assessment to enhance your current job
performance or explore new opportunities aligned with your professional
aspirations?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.

© 2024 Cornell University

You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
Back to Table of Contents

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Module Introduction: Explore Your Target Career Paths

In this module, you will identify career paths that interest you and
identify some individuals in similar roles that you think you might
like to pursue. Using LinkedIn or your personal network, you will
review their backgrounds and take notes on their career paths, and
you'll request an informational interview with one of those people.
This will be a chance for you to use questions that are provided to you to ask them
about their career decision making at key junctures in their journey. Finally, you will
summarize your findings in the workbook that is part of this module. This
investigation and exploration will help you make informed decisions about the roles
that would be the best fit for you.
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Watch: Target Career Paths
Narrowing down your search takes some effort. Ms. Sedgwick provides you with some
pointers to get started choosing career paths and how to narrow down your search
when making these initial career path decisions.

Video Transcript
Target career path. So, at this step you want to identify, I would say one to five - no
more than five - career paths that you'll begin to investigate. And how will you
investigate them? You'll investigate them two ways. One is by doing research on the
web. There are a lot of tools out there that can help you research particular career
paths, whether it's a hoovers, wetfeet or [Link], even googling. So do your research
on the web and then get out there and talk to people. Once you feel like you have
enough information about a particular career path or function to ask informed
questions, then get out there and talk to people who are actually in those roles. So
your list may change either contract or expand depending on your research. You may
find out about careers you weren't aware of, and you may begin ultimately to narrow
and that's the goal: to begin to narrow your target careers to be more efficient in your
search. And that's perfectly fine. So use your career self-assessment results as your
benchmark against which you're measuring target career paths that you're seeking.
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Watch: Interviewing a Role Model
Once you've narrowed down your career paths, you're going to want to hear
personalized accounts from people who are currently in the field you are interested in.
Their experiences can help give you a better idea about your own goals and how it
aligns with your target career path. Now you will examine the kinds of questions you
should ask in order to gain a clearer vision of the career you're thinking about.

Video Transcript
So informational interviews. Once you've identified a few or one particular career path
that you believe are a good fit, you want to get out there and speak with folks who are
in those roles. So first, be prepared to ask informed questions. Make the best use of
that time with them. You don't want to ask them questions that you can find out the
answer to on the web. So, show genuine interest in the function that they're in, in their
company in what they do in their day-to-day. So do your research first so that you can
make the best use of their time. So what do you want to talk about? You want to focus
on asking them about their day-to-day activities and what they spend time on. So you
can ask them things like what qualities and personality does it take to be successful in
their role? What's their particular career path? How did they get to the position that
they're in now, and what do they see coming down the pike for them in the future?
And then, what do they love about what they do? And then maybe there's some
things that they're not all that crazy about doing. It's important to understand
thoroughly what an individual in that role you may be targeting does on a day-to-day
basis. And finally, always send a thank you, and that individual may be a great person
that you can stay connected with and keep in your network going forward.
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Activity: Complete the Explore Your Target Career Paths
Workbook
Download the Explore Your Target  Download the Tool
Career Paths workbook from this
This Explore Your Target Career
page and complete it now. It will
Paths workbook can guide your
take you through the steps
efforts.
necessary to identify people who
are in the job roles and careers you
think you'd like to pursue, and it will assist in asking them questions about how they
achieved those roles and what their work life is like. If you have a job search partner,
you may choose to discuss the questions and your answers together.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the lesson and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 3 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Explore Your Target Career Paths

In this module, you identified career paths that interest you as well as some
individuals in similar roles that you think you might like to pursue. Using LinkedIn or
your personal network, you reviewed their backgrounds, took notes on their career
paths, and requested an informational interview with one of those people. By asking
them about their career decision making at key junctures and summarizing your
findings in the workbook that's part of this module, you are now better positioned to
make informed decisions about the roles and careers that would be the best fit for
you.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Reflect, Share, and Apply — Explore Your Target Career Paths
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
As you explore your target career during discussion or to answer the
paths, what aspects resonate questions on your own.
most with your personal and
professional aspirations, and how do these align with your long-term goals?
What unexpected insights or considerations have emerged that might reshape
your initial perceptions or preferences in terms of potential career choices?
In the process of exploring your target career paths, have you encountered any
unique challenges or opportunities that you believe others could benefit from
learning about? How would you share these experiences to contribute to a
collective understanding of various career options?
How will you apply the knowledge and insights gained from your exploration of
target career paths to tailor your skill development and professional experiences
for a more targeted and successful career transition?
In practical terms, how will you incorporate the lessons learned about your target
career paths into your networking, job search, and professional development
strategies to enhance your chances of success in those specific fields?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Introduction: Practice Networking

For a lot of people, networking feels uncomfortably strange and new.

If you have social anxieties or insecurities about your readiness to
move beyond your current job role and position, it may be stressful
to think about networking. In this module, you will position yourself
to embrace a positive and forward-thinking view of networking,
which is not only critical but can also be very enriching and enjoyable.
Recommended reading to accompany this module is the book Highly Effective
Networking by Orville Pierson. You will have an opportunity to journal about what you
learned and identify what — if any — anxieties you have about networking. You will
also use LinkedIn to practice using one or more of the skills examined here, and you
will complete a workbook that will guide your efforts at networking.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: The Benefits of Networking
As you continue on your career search journey, you will have to move beyond your
existing close circle of friends and family and extend yourself into the wider world. Ms.
Sedgwick explains why networking can be a useful skill and how it can impact your
job search for the better.

Video Transcript
Let's talk about the benefits of networking. 80 plus percent of jobs are filled through
the networking process. Think about it: If an opportunity comes open within your
company what's the first thing you're going to do? You're going to ask yourself if you
know anybody who might be great for that role. Remember also people hire people,
not resumes or LinkedIn profiles. And the best networkers that I know never had to
ask for a job or apply for a job because they were top of mind when an opening came
available in their friends' or their network person's company. Also networking helps
keep you up to date on your industry and your function so you're knowledgeable
about what's going on in your industry and in the function that you're interested in
and targeting.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Activity: Examine the Fundamentals of Networking
Now you will download and  Download the Tool
complete the Examine the
Use this helpful Examine the
Fundamentals of Networking
Fundamentals of Networking now.
workbook which Ms. Sedgwick has
designed to guide you in your
exploration of networking. You will reflect on building rapport through finding
common interests with those in your network. You will also discover tactics for
following up with contacts in your network.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Best Practices for Networking
Now that you know why networking is important, how should you go about it,
particularly if you aren't the type of person who generally enjoys networking? Ms.
Sedgwick provides you with some tips for the networking process to help you develop
your skills.

Video Transcript
Let's talk about some best practices for networking. And before I go through some of
these best practices, let me say to you that I've worked with many individuals that
really dislike or are intimidated by the process, or the idea of networking but through
practice, they actually end up enjoying it at the end of the day. So, networking for
most of us is not a natural skill. But I can guarantee you that it's something that you
can develop and get better at with practice. So, what are some best practices for
networking? First of all it's a process. The first thing that you want to do when you're
reaching out to an individual is develop a rapport with them. Make conversation
enjoyable for the other person: ask them about themselves, ask them about their
career path. You want to develop a rapport because you want them to take a liking to
you so that they have a vested interest in working with you, answering your questions,
and maybe being an advocate for you. So, identify some common interests. The web
and LinkedIn and Facebook make it so easy these days to do your homework on an
individual. So not in a scary, stalky way, but have enough information that you can
generate a good conversation about some common interests. So, take interest in that
individual, ask questions, never ask for a job, and stay in touch with the individual.
So, after you've had a conversation with somebody by phone, maybe you've met them
up for coffee, follow up with them. Let them know how you're doing. A great way to
follow up is to send them an article or send them information about an event that
they might be interested in, based on the conversation that you had. So, one of the
things you're going to find through the networking process is that some people you're
going to connect with, some people you're going to hit it off with, and then other
people you're not. Don't lose heart. For the people that you don't hit it off with,
perfectly natural, move on and find individuals that you do feel like you can develop a

© 2024 Cornell University

rapport with. So, some of the ways you can keep in touch with folks again is letting
them know what your process has been, what your status has been, have you gotten
interviews, have you reached out with people they might be interested in getting
connected with them. So, be a resource for them as well. Again, sending them an
article letting them know about a speaker or a book that you've come across that they
might be interested in as well. And ultimately, follow up with them to let them know
what your progress is. And particularly if they're helping you with your job search and
identifying opportunities or helping you with an interview, follow up with them and
let them know how that worked out for you.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Activity: Complete the Practice Networking Workbook
Now you will download and  Download the Tool
complete the Practice Networking
Use this helpful Practice
workbook, which Laurie Sedgwick
Networking workbook now.
has designed to guide your practice
with building and using your
professional network. You will define "networking" in your own words, consider how
you will keep yourself motivated, and prepare for the conversations you will have
about yourself with those in your professional network. If you have a job search
partner, you may choose to discuss your results together.
Note: You have the option to work either in the survey here directly or to download the
tool above and save it for future use.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.

Please complete this activity in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 4 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Practice Networking

There are important reasons to take your networking efforts seriously, even if
networking doesn't come naturally to you. In this module, you took steps to embrace a
positive and forward-thinking view of networking, which is not only critical but can
also be very enriching and enjoyable. You had an opportunity to journal about what
you learned and identify any anxieties you may have about networking. You also used
LinkedIn to practice one or more of the skills examined here, and you completed a
workbook designed to guide your efforts in networking.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Reflect, Share, and Apply — Practice Networking
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
What valuable insights or during discussion or to answer the
connections have you gained questions on your own.
from practicing networking, and
how do you plan to leverage them to accomplish your career goals?
As you practice networking, what aspects of your communication and relationship-
building skills have you observed evolving, and in what ways do you see these
improvements contributing to your overall professional development?
Can you share some successful networking strategies or tips that have proven
effective for you during your recent practice sessions? How do you think these
insights could benefit others seeking to enhance their networking skills?
In your recent networking experiences, are there any specific challenges you've
encountered? How have you navigated or overcome them? Sharing your
experiences could provide valuable insights for others facing similar situations.
How do you plan to apply the lessons learned from your practice networking
sessions to enhance your real-world networking efforts, particularly in terms of
building meaningful connections and fostering professional relationships?
In practical terms, how will you integrate the feedback received from your practice
networking into your ongoing networking strategy? What specific adjustments or
improvements do you foresee making to optimize your networking effectiveness?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Introduction: Create Your Personal Brand

In this module, you will work on reviewing your personal marketing

materials — your résumé, LinkedIn profile, and cover letter — with an
eye toward making sure they describe what’s unique and valuable
about you. You will craft your personal brand and test it out on
someone who knows you well. Developing a brand that serves well
will require you to review and revise it over multiple iterations until you’re confident
that your personal marketing materials would stand out from anyone else who has
similar qualifications on paper.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: What is a "Personal Brand"?
What identifiers do people associate with you? This is a question that relates to your
personal brand. Ms. Sedgwick discusses the concept of personal brand, and what
things to consider when preparing to offer yourself and your skills to the broad job
market.

Video Transcript
Let's talk about what is a personal brand. So, your personal brand is the way that
people identify you externally, out there in the marketplace. So, some examples of a
brand that you can label or identify with would be, let's say Volvo, known for safety,
correct? So, think about yourself as a personal brand: What identifiers would people
associate with you? People want to understand you, and you want to make it simple
for them to understand you. Make this easy by communicating your brand in your
LinkedIn profile, your resume, and any correspondence that goes out from you. You
want to be able to communicate a consistent message about who you are and what
you represent. So, help people quickly understand what you're good at, what your key
qualities are, and what your superpowers are. So, what sets you apart? And that might
be a combination of what you're good at, your skills, and your values. Give that some
thought in developing your personal brand.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Your Personal Marketing Materials
Ms. Sedgwick goes over your must-have personal marketing materials that will help
you brand yourself during your job hunt.

Video Transcript
Let's talk about your personal marketing materials. These marketing materials consist
of your LinkedIn profile, your online presence - so, if anybody Google's you, what shows
up - your resume, a cover letter that you may send out, and then any other
correspondence or email that you send out. These you should refer to as your personal
marketing materials that represent you and your brand.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Activity: Complete the Create Your Personal Brand Workbook
Now you will download and  Download the Tool
complete the Create Your Personal
Use this helpful Create Your
Brand Workbook, which Ms.
Personal Brand workbook to guide
Sedgwick has designed to help you
your efforts.
make sure your personal marketing
materials (your résumé, your
LinkedIn profile, and your cover letter) describe what’s unique and valuable about you.
You will take steps to create your personal brand and you will test it out on someone
who knows you well. You will also have a chance to review and revise it over multiple
iterations until you’re confident that your personal marketing materials would stand
out from anyone else who has similar qualifications on paper. If you have a job search
partner, you may choose to discuss your results together.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 5 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Create Your Personal Brand

In this module, you had a chance to review your personal marketing materials — your
résumé, LinkedIn profile, and cover letter — to make sure they describe what’s unique
and valuable about you. You crafted your personal brand and tested it out on
someone who knows you well. As you have discovered, developing a brand that serves
you well will require you to review and revise it over multiple iterations until you’re
confident that your personal marketing materials will stand out from anyone else who
has similar qualifications on paper.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Reflect, Share, and Apply — Create Your Personal Brand
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
What stood out to you about during discussion or to answer the
your personal brand after you questions on your own.
completed the Personal Brand
Workbook in this course?
Identify the key strengths within your personal brand. Additionally, pinpoint areas
that might require further refinement to enhance your brand and help you stand
out.
Share an example of a professional who you believe has successfully built and
promoted their personal brand. What stands out to you about their brand?
Share examples of the marketing materials you use to represent both yourself and
your brand effectively.
Which platforms do you plan to take advantage of for the promotion of your
personal brand?
As your career shifts, what steps will you take to ensure that your personal brand
remains relevant?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Introduction: Improve Your Résumé

Whole books have been devoted to the subject of writing résumés

and for good reason: They really are that important. At the same
time, there's no magic to it. You can follow the steps as outlined by
Ms. Sedgwick and draft a résumé (or multiple résumés, tailored to
match different job roles) that accurately reflects who you are.
In this module, you will examine the fundamentals of good résumé writing. You will
complete a workbook that will guide your efforts in drafting a résumé that reflects you
and your unique combination of experience, skills, and strengths.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Résumé Fundamentals
Are résumés really that important? In a word, yes, and you'll see why. When done well,
they're a marketing tool, and can be much more than a chronological laundry list of
the past jobs you've held. In this video, Ms. Sedgwick provides you with the essential
tips for crafting a professional and effective résumé.

Video Transcript
Résumé fundamentals: You need to be able to design a résumé that clearly shows
your work experience and highlights. No longer than two pages, I'll repeat that no
longer than two pages, pleasing to the eye with plenty of whitespace. And remember
also that your résumé is a hook. You're just whetting their appetite, so, that they want
to call you in for an interview. So, you don't have to include anything and everything
about your work history or background. It also should be your career aspiration, it
should represent your career aspirations not be your career obituary.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Best Practices for Résumés
This video expands upon the essential ideas to building a powerful and effective
résumé. There is no perfect, or standardized way to properly reflect who you are, but
there are some important ideas to keep in mind. Ms. Sedgwick gives you the details
on how to market yourself through your résumé, depending on the job field you are
preparing for.

Video Transcript
Let's talk about some best practices for your résumé. So, first of all design a résumé
that clearly shows your work experience and highlights. So, the last thing that you
want to do is make it difficult for someone to see your work chronology. So, make sure
that it's clear what your work history has been chronologically, make sure that there
are specific sections that people can refer to if they're doing a quick scan. From my
experience, I understand that talent acquisition managers spend anywhere from
three to seven seconds on a résumé. So you want to make sure that your information
is clearly defined and easy to find for the reader. Make sure that there's plenty of
whitespace that when it ends up either on somebody's literal desk or on their desktop,
that it's actually pleasing to the eye, that it doesn't look overwhelming. You should
also use a style and a format that's consistent with the industry that you're targeting.
So for instance, let's say you're targeting opportunities in the financial services
industry, you'll likely want to use a more conservative format of your resume.
In contrast to that, let's say you're applying to jobs in marketing, you may want to
show a little bit of flair and creativity, and that's fine. The great thing about the résumé
- and can also be a downside because it requires some interpretation - is that there is
no standard format, so you can use a format that best presents you in the way and
light you want to be presented. Again, make your work history easy to follow, and this
is really critical. For your bullet points, you want to include bullet points that are less a
review of your job description in your prior work experience, and more your
achievements in the positions that you've held in the past. So, your résumé will be so
much more powerful if, in every position that you've held, that you have a list of
accomplishments versus your work history. Includes your bullet points in a problem,

© 2024 Cornell University

action result format. So, here was the problem, here was the action that I took, that's
where you going to spend the majority of time and text, and then here was the result.
And where you can quantify or provide scope of your accomplishment, even better.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Activity: Complete the Improve Your Résumé Workbook
Now you will get a chance to draft a  Download the Tool
résumé that you believe best
Use this helpful Improve Your
represents your experience and
Résumé workbook to guide your
career highlights based on your
efforts.
career targets and the best
practices identified in this lesson.
You may find it helpful to draft more than one résumé if you think that you need
tailored versions. Download and complete the "Improve Your Résumé" workbook now.
If you have a job search partner, you may choose to discuss this together.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 6 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Improve Your Résumé

You have discovered why résumés are a critical tool in the fundamental personal
marketing toolkit; you will need one that accurately and positively reflects you and
your experience and skills in order to further your career development and job search.
You also now know that there's no magic to it.
In this module, you examined the fundamentals of good résumés. You completed a
workbook that will guide your efforts in drafting a résumé that reflects you and your
unique combination of experience, skills, and strengths. You followed the steps as
outlined by Ms. Sedgwick to craft a résumé that accurately reflects who you are and
what you have to offer the world.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Reflect, Share, and Apply — Improve Your Résumé
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
What key professional attribute during discussion or to answer the
or accomplishment do you questions on your own.
consider most important for a
prospective employer to be aware of? How have you highlighted this aspect in the
résumé you crafted during the course?
Which best practice or practices for formatting and design did you incorporate
when developing your new résumé?
Share the elements in your résumé that you believe will effectively capture an
employer's attention and make a strong impact.
Applying the best practices shared in this course, what next steps will you take to
further ensure that your résumé will distinguish itself and grab the attention of a
prospective employer?
Create another version of your résumé for a different role or industry. How did you
tailor this résumé differently?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Introduction: Use LinkedIn

There are people who consider LinkedIn an afterthought; it's

ubiquitous and necessary but perhaps not worth a great deal of
effort or thoughtful care. Yet if you're savvy about LinkedIn and all
that it has to offer your career journey, you will take advantage of the
opportunity to use this free online tool as part of a comprehensive
and polished portfolio of personal marketing materials. By following the steps
outlined in this module by Ms. Sedgwick and completing the lesson workbook that
will guide your efforts, you can make your LinkedIn profile as polished and meaningful
a representation of yourself as possible.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Getting the Most Out of LinkedIn
Ms. Sedgwick introduces you to LinkedIn and gives you an overview of how to get
started taking advantage of all that the career networking site has to offer.

Video Transcript
So, let's talk about getting the most out of LinkedIn. LinkedIn is the number one
professional networking platform today. Hands down. And it's only becoming more
powerful for your career and your career image every day. So, the first thing is, if you
don't have a professional profile, then create one. And you can create one at no cost.
Second, become an expert in navigating the LinkedIn features. So one of the things
about LinkedIn is there's actually a tutorial future that helps you navigate all of the
different attributes and features of LinkedIn and can show you how to best use and
most effectively use LinkedIn to your benefit, depending on what your goals are. So,
use LinkedIn strategically. And there are a number of ways that you can do that. You
can actually post articles, you can search on individuals by any number of features,
you can read news that's going on, you can follow individuals, for instance. It's
incredibly powerful. So get yourself well-versed in LinkedIn.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: LinkedIn Best Practices
Ms. Sedgwick now discusses the "ins and outs" of how to make the most of your
LinkedIn profile. You want to use it to continue to craft your personal brand and to
incorporate those ideas into your public profile to find the right job match. She shares
expert tips for getting deeper into the career networking process with LinkedIn.

Video Transcript
LinkedIn best practices. So I would say LinkedIn and your profile is almost more
important than your résumé today. It is your external image to any business person or
anybody that wants to search on you and find your profile. So your profile should
reflect your personal brand. Starting with your picture, have a professional picture. Get
a photograph taken. No pictures of you and your family, or your significant other, or
your pet. Make sure that you're representing a professional picture. Your background
image is also an incredible opportunity for you to brand yourself. You might want to
have a city skyline in the background. You might want to have an image of something
that represents you and what your aspirations and passions are. And then in addition,
your headline or add your summary statement. So underneath your name, you have
an opportunity to create a headline for yourself. So your headline might be something
like, "Professional marketing executive with a passion for consumer products." So
making use of that headline. And then your summary statement gives you an
opportunity in the first person to tell anybody who's reading it a little bit about
yourself and what you're passionate about and what your significant
accomplishments have been. So make good use of this summary statement.
You should also have at least 500 connections. Be thoughtful about your connections
though, and develop a rule that's comfortable for you. So I often get asked, "Should I
just accept any request to connect on LinkedIn?" And I say develop a rule for
connecting with individuals that's consistent with who you are and that's comfortable
for you. So for instance for me, I have a rule that unless I know the individual, or
connected to them through one of my connections, or perhaps there is something in
common - like a Cornell connection - then I likely will not connect with them, unless
there's some level of connection there. So another way you can use LinkedIn

© 2024 Cornell University

strategically is joining groups. And in addition to joining groups, you can follow
companies. You can follow industries and also individuals that speak to your interests
and aspirations. All of these things reflect on you and tell the individual who's looking
at your profile a little bit about you, what your aspirations are, and what your brand is.
So be thoughtful about the groups that you join the companies and the individuals
that you follow. And ultimately become an expert in navigating all of the features on
LinkedIn
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© 2024 Cornell University

Activity: Complete the Use LinkedIn Effectively Workbook
Download the workbook from this  Download the Tool
page and use it to guide and refine
Use this Use LinkedIn Effectively
your efforts. Ms. Sedgwick has
workbook to guide your efforts.
designed it to guide your decisions
as you move towards using
LinkedIn more effectively. If you have a job search partner, you may choose to discuss
it together.
IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 7 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

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Module Wrap-up: Use LinkedIn

As you discovered in this module, if you're savvy about LinkedIn and all that it has to
offer you in your career journey, you want to take advantage of the opportunity to use
this free online tool as part of a comprehensive and polished portfolio of personal
marketing materials. You had a chance to follow the steps outlined by Ms. Sedgwick
and you used the module workbook to guide your efforts in refining your LinkedIn
profile. You are now poised to make your LinkedIn profile as polished and meaningful
a representation of yourself as possible.
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Reflect, Share, and Apply — Use LinkedIn
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
What are your career goals? during discussion or to answer the
What strategic steps will you questions on your own.
take in using LinkedIn to help
you achieve those goals?
Share examples of how your LInkedIn account showcases your personal brand.
In setting up your LinkedIn account, which best practices from this course did you
apply to ensure that you have created an effective profile?
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
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Module Introduction: Interview for Success

Most people understand the basics of a job interview: Do your

research, dress appropriately, and bring a crisp résumé. But what
can you do to really stand out? In this module, you will explore
different types of interviews and examine when each is used. You will
identify best practices, see examples of positive and negative
interview behaviors, and conduct three mock interviews with people close to you.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Types of Interviews
You just got called for an interview — what should you expect? Ms. Sedgwick outlines
a variety of different interview types you might encounter depending on your job field
and the goals of the interviewer.

Video Transcript
So you've done your self-assessment. You've identified some target companies, you've
applied, and here you are being called in for an interview. There are a number of
different venues for interviews. You may start out by being called in for a phone
interview. Some companies will do an initial interview by Skype, virtual, in person, one-
on-one, or a group interview. So it's important to be prepared that there could be a
number of different ways or venues that you may be interviewed. In addition, there
are different types of interviews. So I've categorized these into five major buckets. One
is you can end up with a stress interview. And I see these fairly commonly for financial
services or most commonly for, let's say, investment banking interviews. Where the
goal of the interviewer is to stress you out, to see how you respond and how you
perform in an interview. Another type of interview I commonly see is a project
interview. Where you may be put into a room with a number of different candidates
and you're being observed for your performance and behavior and potentially
teamwork and leadership. Another type of interview that you may come across is a
recorded interview. And I'm seeing this is more and more commonly, where you
actually just simply get a link to a particular website. There are questions on the link
that you must respond to and your responses are recorded, and then those recordings
and responses are shared internally to the company in the hiring team.
Very common to consulting interviews is the case interview. I also see more and more
companies using case interviews, for instance, financial services and marketing
companies. And what is a case interview? Case interview is being asked a question
about a particular typically business problem that needs a solution, and you may be
asked to provide and calculate that solution. There's a very particular and specific
approach to case interviews. And then most commonly, you'll come across and you're
probably already familiar with behavioral interviews. Behavioral interview is asking you

© 2024 Cornell University

a question that assesses your past behavior in a particular situation, so that they can
anticipate or predict what your behavior will be in their company. So, an example of a
behavioral interview might be, "Tell me a time that you had to deal with a difficult
client and how did you deal with that particular client?" So familiarizing yourself with
different venues and types of interviews will help you perform at your best so that you
are not surprised.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Interviewing Best Practices
In this video, you are provided with some ideal techniques for acing the interview.
Understand and develop these practices in order to successfully make the most use of
the interviewer's time.

Video Transcript
So here's where the rubber meets the road: interviewing best practices. This is where
you want to be able to close the deal. So, some best practices. Number one, you've got
to practice. You may think, "I know myself, I can go in there and talk about myself and
my experience." Well, you want to make the most use of their time, you want to get it
right, you want to be efficient, and you want to best sell yourself and your
accomplishments and achievements. So, you've got to practice. Number 2 may sound
counter-intuitive, but you've got to be relaxed. You've got to be yourself. You want
them to hire you in your most authentic way. And one way to help yourself be relaxed
when you go into that interview is to practice. Third, what's particularly important is to
develop a rapport with your interviewer. Ultimately, people want to hire people that
they have an affinity for, they like, they feel a connection to. So it's important to
develop a rapport with your interviewer and there's ways you can do that whether it's
having a great warm, firm handshake, keeping eye contact, being a great listener. And
that brings me to my fourth point for best practices and that's listen carefully and
answer the question beneath the question. And what I mean by that, if they ask you a
question about, let's say how you dealt with an angry customer don't get lost in the
story that you're telling. Make sure that you're reminding yourself that they're wanting
to understand how you would deal with an angry customer at their company. So,
listen and answer the question that they're asking beneath the question. Don't get
lost in the story. And that leads me to my fifth point, and that's being brief and
succinct in your responses. Your responses should be no more than two to three
minutes. Allow them to ask for more clarification and if they need it.
If you feel like you haven't had an opportunity to tell the entire story, give a response
and you can say, "I'm happy to provide you with more detail if you'd like that." But
initially keep your responses brief and succinct, tight, and that's where the practice

© 2024 Cornell University

comes in. And then finally, ask for the job. Tell them you would love to work at their
company. Tell them you would love this job; that is one way to differentiate yourself,
ask for the job. Communicate your passion for the role, the company, and the industry.
Companies want to hire people that want to work for them. So, don't be afraid to show
some passion. So practice, be relaxed, be your authentic self in the interview, develop
rapport with your interviewer, listen carefully and answer the questions beneath the
questions that are being asked, be brief and succinct in your responses, and
ultimately, ask for the job. Show your passion.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Watch: Good and Bad Examples
Ms. Sedgwick focuses on behavioral interviewing to give you some examples of good
and bad interview scenarios. These aren't guaranteed outcomes, but it may help you
create a better understanding of what to expect during the interview.

Video Transcript
So, let's go into a little bit more detail on some good and bad examples of
interviewing, and let's keep it simple and focus on behavioral interviewing. So, a
behavioral interview bad example might be somebody who rambles on in answer to a
question. Maybe they ramble on for five or ten minutes, or they don't answer the
question that was asked. They get lost in this story. The response is vague. They get
lost in the detail. So, some ways to avoid getting lost in the detail, maybe becoming
long winded, is maybe make some bullet points for yourself. That's also a great point
about going into an interview. You're more than welcome always in I would say most
cases, to bring yourself a notepad and you're welcome to have your resume there as
well, have some notes, be able to take notes while you're talking as well. So, one of the
ways to assess whether or not you might be a bit too long winded in your responses is
being attuned to your interviewer and the feedback that you're getting from them.
You may be able to tell if they're fidgeting or they're beginning to look at other notes
that you're going on too long. So, bad example of an interview is somebody who goes
on too long.
Some other examples of bad behavioral interview practice would be asking questions
about things like time off, for instance, or the salary. Remember that your focus in that
interview is to sell yourself and your attributes. Being able to sell yourself into the role
and convince them that you are the best qualified candidate for the job. What are
some good qualities or practices in let's say a behavioral interview? One of the things
that I've observed is if you respond to a question by telling the interviewer what you're
going to tell them, and maybe start out your response by saying, "I deal with difficult
customers in this way: I make sure that I rely on three points. One two three. And
that's how I work with difficult customers." So, if you frame your question around a
number of bullet points, or you summarize what you're going to say and then say it,

© 2024 Cornell University

it's more helpful for the individual to remember that particular response to a question.
So, framing your responses to questions and also telling stories and providing detail to
stories to help people develop visual images in their mind to help you become more
memorable. Having said that, it's critical to practice so that you don't go on too long
and that you do remain succinct. So that example of an interview because being too
long winded, not answering the question, being too vague. Good example: being
specific, outlining what you're going to say, and also being able to tell stories and help
them create a visual in their mind, and make yourself memorable.
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© 2024 Cornell University

Activity: Complete the Interview for Success Workbook
Download and complete the  Download the Tool
Interview for Success workbook
Use this helpful Interview for
now. If you have a job search
Success workbook to guide your
partner, you may choose to discuss
efforts
this together.

IMPORTANT INSTRUCTIONS FOR SAVING YOUR WORK:

When you click the link to open a PDF, you will likely be viewing it in a browser
window. Before taking further action, you must save it to your desktop or preferred
storage location. Once you save the file, open it with Adobe Reader to review it, print it
or add content. If you want to make a working copy for this lesson or for other
instances, we recommend you create a new version of the file so you retain your clean
copy. Saving the PDF file locally will enable you to have access to this content after you
complete the course and ensure that you do not lose your work once you close the file
or the browser.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Quiz: Module 8 Quiz
Now you will complete the following quiz to confirm your mastery of the key concepts
presented in this module.
You must achieve a score of 100% on this quiz to complete the course. You may take
it as many times as needed to achieve that score.

Please complete this quiz in the course.

Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Module Wrap-up: Interview for Success

In this module, you applied your new knowledge of best practices to a past
experience, studied examples of good and bad behaviors, completed the "Interview
for Success" workbook, downloaded Ms. Sedgwick’s "Tips for Successful Interviews,"
and even practiced with people in real life. Continuing the practice you have started
will serve you well as you further refine your interviewing skills.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Reflect, Share, and Apply — Interview for Success
Now that you have completed this  Download the Tool
module, take some time to reflect
You can use this worksheet to take
on the following questions.
notes on the ideas that come up
What is the most memorable job during discussion or to answer the
interview experience that you’ve questions on your own.
had? What made it memorable?
Share a best practice that you consider important in preparing for an interview. Are
there specific resources or strategies that you find particularly effective in the
preparation process?
Share a best practice that you have identified for managing nervousness or anxiety
during the course of an interview.
Based on your past experiences with job interviews, what interview advice would
you give to someone who is just starting their career?
Which specific interview tips from this course do you plan to apply to your next job
interview?
Based on the advice in this course, compile a list of at least five pertinent questions
that you could ask a potential employer during an interview.
Download and print the worksheet, or write the questions down on a clean sheet of
paper. If your local learning coordinator has scheduled a discussion session, bring the
worksheet and a pen or pencil with you to the session so you can take notes on key
points and interesting ideas. Otherwise, note your responses to the questions and
keep a copy of your worksheet for future reference.
You will not submit your answers for review or grading. The questions are provided to
help you reflect on and apply what you have learned.
Back to Table of Contents

© 2024 Cornell University

Thank You and Farewell
Congratulations on completing "Career Assessment Skills."
I hope the material covered here has met your
expectations and helped prepare you for landing your
ideal job. By completing this course, you should have the
skills and knowledge you need to create a plan, assess
your goals, develop a personal brand, and confidently
present yourself in networking situations and in a job Laurie Sedgwick
Coordinator, Office of Career Services
interview. Harvard Divinity School

From all of us at Cornell University and eCornell, thank you

for participating in this course.
Sincerely,
Laurie Sedgwick

Before you leave the course

In order to pass this course, you must earn a perfect score on every quiz. Take a
moment to confirm that you have done so.
1. In the left-hand menu, under Course Shortcuts, select Grades.
2. Confirm that you have earned full marks on each quiz. For example, if the quiz has
four questions, a perfect score will show as 4/4.
3. If you have not earned a perfect score on any of the quizzes, click on the quiz name
to take it again.
4. Remember that you can take every quiz as many times as you need to achieve that
score.
After you confirm that you have earned a perfect score on all of the quizzes, click the
Dashboard button in the menu at the top of your screen to return to your Dashboard
and start your next course.

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If this is your last course
Once you have completed all five courses, you can view, download, and print your
credential from the Student Portal. Follow the steps outlined in this video or on this
page. Note: It may take up to 24 hours after completing your last course before
your credential is available.

© 2024 Cornell University