Quest for a Job

So, you’ve explored career pathways, you’ve honed skills employers want, graduation is around the corner and now it’s time to jump into the job search! On this page, you will find resources around:

A great place to start with advice on all job search topics is Indeed Job Search Academy, a free, virtual career development program brought to you by Indeed + Northwest University to help you excel in your job search. The Academy offers five sessions that students can complete on their own time: Job Search, Resume Writing, Interview Prep, Offer Evaluation, and Career Direction. No account creation or log-in is required.

Indeed Job Search Academy also offers live webinars regularly and posts recordings of past webinars that cover a wide range of helpful career topics: such as networking, AI, social media, salary negotiation, and more!

Resumes

It is an unavoidable truth of our culture that a resume is still one of the most significant components when applying for jobs. A job candidate can spend hours to carefully refine a resume, yet employers only look at a resume for 6 to 7 seconds on average! Therefore, it is vital to be deliberate about how you format and what you include, to spellcheck, and to get feedback from others.

If you have never created a resume before and are not sure where to start, check out the Resume Templates available in our Handshake resource.

Check out our suggested resume templates!

Here are a few DOs and DO NOTs that we recommend as you start, but for more ideas and advice we always recommend meeting with NU Career Services!

Resume Do’s:

  • Have someone review your resume before you send it out!
  • Put your most relevant things at the top of your resume. If education prepares you, list it first. If experience is your best preparation, list that.
  • List in reverse chronological order, starting with most recent to oldest.
  • Details matter! Make sure your bullets are all the same size, spelling is correct, and fonts are the same.
  • Use present tense for current jobs and past tense for previous jobs.
  • Tailor each resume to each job using specific words (but not exact phrases) from the job description.
  • Consider adding extracurricular involvement – volunteering, student leadership, side hustles, or certifications.
  • Be honest.

              Resume Don’t’s:

  • Don’t be too wordy. You want it to look concise and pleasing to the eye.
  • Don’t list references – there will be an opportunity to provide that later, or on the application.
  • Do not include your street address. No one is sending you mail, and they don’t need to know where you live!
  • Don’t go over two pages; one page or almost one page is fine, especially if you are just starting out. 
  • Don’t send to employers as a Word doc – save and send as a PDF.
  • Build in a program that can spellcheck, like Google Docs or Word.
  • Don’t add your photo, this is in general an outdated style and is not ATS-friendly. 
  • Don’t just use the same verbs, mix it up!

COVER LETTERS

Some job applications may require a cover letter alongside your resume – even if they don’t, it is a great way to show you are truly interested in the job, and to stand out among the competition.

Get the 101 on Cover Letters in only 2 minutes!
Check out the Cover Letter resource on Handshake!

Applying for jobs

  • Look on job boards that are reputable and well-known, such as LinkedIn, Handshake, Indeed, Glassdoor, Monster, or USAJobs. You can also look on job boards that are specific to your desired career industry: such as Idealist.org for nonprofit and social-impact work, ASME for writing and editing roles, or HealtheCareers for nursing and medical roles. You can find more career-specific boards at the website What Can I Do With This Major.
  • Don’t forget to check out NU JobSearch, where companies are specifically looking to recruit NU students and alumni for open positions.
  • Utilize your network to discover which companies might be hiring – and which companies have a healthy work environment! Connections are a powerful way to find openings even before they’re posted. If you don’t have an immediate connection in a field or at a company, try asking others if they know someone (even friends of friends are happy to help out). You can also find NU alumni to contact by searching on the Northwest University’s LinkedIn page.
  • Review the job description carefully and tailor your resume and cover letter to match.

Interviews

Once you land an opportunity to meet an employer in person or over video, preparing for interview questions will be a powerful tool to present your skills with confidence. You can find some great resources to plan for what interview questions might be asked and prepare strong answers on Indeed and Google:

Interview Prep
with Indeed

Interview Warmup
with Google

Request a Mock Interview with NU Career Services

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