2017 Job Fair Fall

Job Fair Thursday • August 24, 2017 9am to 1pm Skagit Publishing 1215 Anderson Road Mount Vernon

Participating Employers:

• Catholic Community Services • • American Tugs • Manpower • PeaceHealth • • Skagit Transit • T-Mobile •

CONTENTS GET THE JOB: BASIC SKILLS: Perfect Your People Skills................ 2 MARKETING YOURSELF: Resume Dos and Don’ts..... 4 MAKING AN IMPRESSION: Ace Your Interview............................... 4 INVESTING IN YOUR FUTURE: Expand Your Education............................. 5 TRAINING: Continue to Learn..................................... 6 INDUSTRY PROFILE: Nursing Careers................... 7

SKAGIT PUBLISHING 1215 Anderson Rd., Mount Vernon, WA 98274 P: 360.424.3251 • F: 360.424.5300 ©Skagit Publishing, LLC 2017 • All rights reserved.

Jeanette Lockwood, Classified Manager P: 360.424.4567 Ext. 2219 classified@skagitpublishing.com 2

get the job | basic skills

Perfect Your People Skills N

etworking is an invaluable professional skill. A recent survey by the Adler Hiring Group reveals that 85 percent of all jobs are filled through networking in some capacity. It can not only help your chances of landing a job but can increase your contacts and improve your business.

Always be ready to network This means even if you already have a job.

Meet people after work or at happy hours.

Many job openings are never advertised; instead they are filled through word-ofmouth or personal recommendations.

Set goals of how many people you will meet each week or month. This is a great place to start. Once you get your networking skills down, don’t get too caught up in the “numbers” part of building relationships, but rather the engagement aspect of this valuable skill.

When you meet someone new, allow yourself to be in the moment and let go of thoughts of what the relationship can do for you. An authentic interaction is much more engaging and likely to turn into a lasting connection — and is much more fun.

Practice Your Elevator Pitch Being able to sell Skagit Valley Herald Job Fair

yourself in a short window of time is an invaluable skill. This should include who you are, what you do and why it matters. Be sure to practice your pitch so that it feels natural and unrushed.

You should come off as relaxed and confident. You never know who you might run into.

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Nurture Current Relationships Don’t let your current connections fall to the wayside as you strive to meet new people. Be sure to send an email or pick up the phone and set up a time to meet or talk.

Remember that your current relationships have value and you want to be sure your name is always fresh in

their minds if they hear of a new opportunity.

Build Social Capital At Work Get to know the people you work with.

While you don’t need to be friends with your co-workers, it is important to be friendly.

Kindness has a way of finding its way back to you. goskagit.com

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get the job | marketing yourself

get the job | making an impression

Resume Dos and Don’ts P

utting together a resume is always a difficult task. Use the following dos and don’ts as a guide to craft a resume that will grab attention and get interviews.

DO highlight your most relevant experience. This means tailoring your resume to each position you apply for and highlighting skill sets you have employed in previous positions.

DON’T stress out if it feels you don’t have any direct, relevant experience. Focus on your skills. Show how they directly relate to the position for which you are applying. If you are fresh out of college, don’t forget to list relevant coursework or additional projects that pertain to the job.

DO consider strategic phrasing. Think of keywords and phrases that application tracking systems will pick up on. These systems are often the gatekeeper between your resume and a hiring manager.

DO use bullet points and quantify your achievements. This is an easy way to illustrate your successes.

Be sure to list any leadership experience.

DO highlight volunteer work or community service. Recruiters look for candidates who take initiative and 4

propose new ideas. If you’ve done a significant amount of service, this shows recruiters that you are dedicated to your community and are willing to take on responsibility even when you aren’t asked to.

DON’T include random hobbies. This is your professional resume, not a personal ad. If it is not related to work in some fashion or does not directly demonstrate a professional skill, lose it.

DO tell the truth.

Lies always find a way of coming out, and then you will be seen as an untrustworthy candidate.

DON’T “overcrowd” your resume. Some resume professionals encourage you to keep your resume to one page, while others assert that focusing on

listing your accomplishments is more important than page length. Remember there is no hard and fast rule other than to make your resume concise and easy to read. A recent college graduate is not likely to have a two-page resume, and a senior executive with more than 20 years of experience will not be able to keep their resume to one page without severely undercutting their professional achievements.

DON’T forget to spell-check. Spelling mistakes are elementary.

DO have someone you trust proofread your resume before you send it out. The more eyes that see your resume, the stronger your resume will be.

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Ace Your Interview ongratulations! You’ve worked hard on your resume and cover letter, and garnered an interview. Now it is time to prep.

You need to make a great first impression, show off your intellectual assets and leave a lasting impression with the company.

Preparing for an interview also is important because it will help you relax more during the actual interview, which will keep nervous habits at bay.

Anticipate questions At this point, you should already be very familiar with the company you are hoping to join. Begin thinking about the types of questions you might be asked. There are some questions that are standard in most interviews, but others might be more company-specific.

Consider how you might answer quesAugust 2017

tions, but be cautious of practicing your answers too much.

This can lead to answers sounding scripted. You want to be prepared but engaged. Sounding as if you are reading scripted lines does not speak well to those “great communication skills” you mentioned in your cover letter.

Prepare Your Own Questions Typically near the end of an interview, recruiters or hiring managers will ask if you have any questions for them. Smart candidates always have at least one question.

You can always inquire about information that did or did not come up during the interview.

Preparing a more general question also is

a good idea. Don’t be afraid to ask a question that gets the interviewer’s take on things, such as, “What do you feel is the most crucial quality for success in this job?”

Send A Thank You Note Send a note after the interview thanking the hiring team for their consideration. Make sure the note is concise — just a few sentences.

This is your last opportunity to get your name in front of the hiring committee and leave a positive impression. This not only shows initiative, but also grace and good manners. This small touch will make you stand out from other applicants who might not have taken the time to do so. goskagit.com

get the job | investing in your future $1.4 trillion in student loan debt. This is approximately $620 billion more than the total national credit card debt, according to Student Loan Hero.

• More students are having to take on debt than ever before to pay for their education. In fact, in 2012, 71 percent of students graduating from four-year universities had student loans.

• According to The College Board, the 10-year historical yearly rate of tuition increase is approximately 5 percent. This figure is substantially higher than both the general rate of inflation and the average increase in personal income.

Expand Your Education E

ducation is one of the most crucial investments we can make in ourselves.

Not only is education a vital human right but according to the Global Partnership for Education, education can promote gender equality and world peace.

Education also makes a dramatic difference in our professional success. Take a look at the following facts and figures to understand the cost and investment of education.

Historical Trends • The United States Census Bureau first began collecting data on education in 1940.

• In 1940, one-fourth of the population aged 25 and older had earned a high school diploma. By 1967, this number jumped to more than 50 per-

cent. By 2015, more than 88 percent of the U.S. population had earned a high school diploma.

• The percentage of adults who hold a bachelor’s degree or higher also has increased in this time. In 1940, only 5 percent of the population had earned a college degree. By 2015, this number increased to 33 percent — more than five times the number of people in a 75-year period.

Rising Costs • Forty-four million Americans owe a combined

Education Matters • Your education still plays a central role in finding and landing a job. According to research conducted by the Brookings Institution — a nonprofit public policy organization — a person with only a high school diploma is twice as likely to make less than $40,000 per year than someone with a college degree.

• Conversely, a person with a college degree is almost nine times as likely to make more than $100,000 than someone with a high school diploma.

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Give us call at 360-466-9277

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Licensed driver for five years, with a clean driving record An interest in working with people

We are currently looking for people to join our team.

Carpenters, Composite Technicians, System Installers.

All you need is a good attitude and love to work with your hands, and a work ethic to match.

Skagit Valley Herald Job Fair

August 2017

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get the job | training

Continue to Learn

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our education does not begin or end with a college degree. It is important to continue to develop your skills and learn new ones.

Some fields require continuing education for practitioners on a yearly basis. Even if your industry has no such requirement, it’s always a good idea to expand your skill set and stay informed of trends.

Never Stop Learning Not only does learning something new help stimulate the brain and improve focus, but it does wonders for self-esteem. Give yourself a confidence boost and beef up your skill set at the same time.

This could be as simple as performing practice interviews with a trusted colleague. Interviews can be stressful requirements of landing any job, but the more you practice talking with someone about yourself the better you become.

Check Out Skillshare Skillshare is an online learning community where you can take — or teach — a class on just about anything. The premise behind the platform was to “close the professional skills gap” and offer high-quality learning in concentrated classes outside the university structure.

They have classes in design, business, technology, photography and so much more. This is a great place to learn a new skill or hone a forgotten one.

Expand your professional network Learning a new skill is also a great way to expand your professional network.

Most skills will require you to be social in some capacity and meet new people.

Take this opportunity to build new relationships. You never know when small talk will lead to your next potential boss or business partner.

Attend industry conferences Industry conferences bring you together with people in your field, which makes them a great place not only to network but also to learn about new advancements, technologies or approaches taking hold in your industry.

While making connections is an essential component of attending conferences, don’t forget to listen to the people you’re talking to.

Manpower now Hiring

CUSTOMER CARE CAREERS WITH THE

Manpower is now hiring for the Largest Food Manufacturer in Anacortes.

We are currently hiring for Production Workers, Sanitation Workers, Quality Assurance, Forklift Operators and Lumpers.

Entry Level Positions:

Skilled Labor Positions:

• Warehouse Production Line Worker: $12.00 Day Shift-15 positions (5:50am-4:30pm) • Warehouse Production Line Worker: $12.00 Nights-25 positions (3:30pm-2:00am)

• Warehouse/Sanitation: 13.55 graveyard • Quality Assurance: $15.00 day/night • Forklift Operators: $14.22-$15.44 day/night

APPLY NOW AT UNCARRIERCAREERS.COM/SVH

All applicants must be able to: o Work in a fast-paced and physically demanding environment o Ability to stand for long periods of time up to 8-10 hours o Ability to bend, stoop, reach, lift, push, pull up to 50-60lbs o Follow written and verbal instructions o Provide proof of eligibility to work in the U.S. o Background checks and drug screens required for many of our positions

To get started now please create an account with Manpower by going to www.manpowerjobs.com then contact Manpower at (360) 671-1977 1657987

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Skagit Valley Herald Job Fair

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We offer competitive wages, steady work and Free College Tuition while you work for Manpower.

August 2017

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get the job | industry profile

Nursing Careers A

ccording to the American Nurses Association, there are more than 3.1 million registered nurses in the United States. Our need for more nurses in only increasing.

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that by 2024, there will be approximately 439,000 new nursing jobs created. If we factor in the number of nurses who will be leaving the field during this time, nurses can expect there to be more than 1 million jobs that will need to be filled.

This makes nursing one of the fastest-growing sectors of the healthcare field.

Nursing will always be a necessary role in the health care system. Nurses not only provide bedside care but enter leadership roles, advocate for patients and specialize in specific areas. Get ready to work hard in this field.

Becoming a nurse requires a degree, licensing

and continuing education to stay up to date on the latest advancements in the industry.

Levels Of Nursing There are many levels of nursing and opportunities for advancement. Each nursing path is different and requires a similar but different set of skills. The following are just a sampling of the duties required at each nursing level: Certified nursing assistant (CNA): Assist in daily nursing tasks such as cleaning rooms,

answering patient calls, feeding and bathing.

Licensed practical nurse (LPN): Provide basic care, such as dressing wounds and changing bandages, under supervision.

Registered nurse (RN): Coordinate patient care, assist with exams and surgeries and administers medications.

Nurse practitioner (NP): Coordinate patient care, perform diagnostic testing and prescribe medications.

A Diverse Field The nursing field is expanding every day through advancements in technology and an increased demand due to an aging baby boomer population. Specialties are a great way to hone your skill set, and there are many from which to choose.

Travel nurses go where they are needed, and are compensated well. Virtual nurses can work from home and provide care through medical websites and over the telephone, while nurse midwives play a crucial role in women’s healthcare. Consider where your strengths lie and what you hope to gain from your career; chances are, there’s a specialty for that.

Home Care aides-CatHoliC Community serviCes (WHatCom/skagit)

Catholic Community Services is the largest private multi-service provider in Washington State and has been in business for over 75 years providing social services to those in need.

From our Mission Statement: “...We believe the elderly should be able to live with security and dignity...”

Our goal is to help our clients maintain their independence through services such as personal care, transfer assistance, ambulation, companionship, light housekeeping, meal preparation, med reminders, transportation, and other non-medical tasks. Experience working with seniors and/or the disabled is strongly encouraged.

Requirements:

• Must be 18 years of age or older • Must be able to pass federal background check and have a good driving record • Must have reliable vehicle, current driver’s license, and auto liability insurance

Compensation: Starting wage will be $14.10-$15.80 per hour (depending upon experience and certification) • Additional pay for weekend and holiday work, nurse delegated care, and client specific care needs • Paid leave • Milage and travel time reimbursement • Paid certification/exam fees • Excellent medical/dental/vision benefits, even for part time work

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Contact: Catholic Community Services via phone @ 1-800-219-0335 or 360-738-6163 In person @ the Bellingham Office: 1742 Iowa St., Bellingham, WA 98229 or Via EMAIL at Jobs-LTCBellingham@ccsww.org

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If you are interested and meet the above requirements:

Skagit Valley Herald Job Fair

August 2017

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New Club Members Receive:

FREE-PLAY

Excludes Employees

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Skagit Valley Herald Job Fair August 24th, 9 am – 1 pm

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