Career Planning

Cornell Career Services(CCS) built the Career Development Kit. This resource is aligned with the career developmental process to help you discover how to get the most out of your experience at Cornell and to consider what’s possible for you after you graduate. To create a plan and manage your career, you’ll develop a focus for your career path then take specific steps towards that career.

Your should plan to have a strong draft of your resume completed before orientation, so start working on it now. Employers have requested a consistent resume format, so be sure to use the correct MPS program template for your program:

• • MPS – Management Resume Template (Word)
  • MPS – Management Accounting Specialization Template (Word)

What to Include

Heading: Name, email address, and preferred telephone number.

• • For your email address, use your Cornell email unless there is a good reason to do otherwise; for example, if you are sending your resume to Google, use your Gmail address for your resume.

Education. List institutions and degrees in reverse chronological order, including the month and year you graduated or expect to graduate. If space allows, and these are notable, also include:

• • majors, minors, concentrations
  • honors and awards
  • named scholarships
  • GMAT score (only if 700 or above)
  • special programs and/or study abroad experiences

Work experience. Jobs held are listed in reverse chronological order. Include name of company, job title, and years held.

• • For companies that are not well-known, add a short description including industry, size, and target market.
  • Convey achievements in concise descriptive statements using strong past-tense verbs; for a list of verbs to try, review Indeed.com’s article, “139 Action Verbs to Make Your Resume Stand Out.”
  • Demonstrate results, not just tasks and responsibilities.
  • Quantify results as much as possible.
  • Write for the reader by identifying skills useful in the position for which you’re applying and citing examples of achievements that demonstrate those skills.
  • If you are a career switcher, make sure the reader understands the significance of your accomplishments and can imagine you transferring your skills; avoid excess jargon and overly technical terminology.
  • Languages, including level of proficiency
  • Professional affiliations
  • Professional certifications and year acquired
  • Community service
  • Athletic and/or artistic interests
  • Hobbies that you can discuss knowledgeably

Please see the Johnson Getting Down to Business Workbook for information and resume examples.

Networking can help you gather information about a job function, industry, or geographic area. It can give you an understanding of an organization’s culture and the skills required for a certain job. It can help give you a competitive edge in interviews, enabling you to carry on a deeper conversation because you know more about a position or company. See our Johnson Getting Down to Business Workbook (pdf) for best practices for networking, sample outreach emails, and how to conduct informational interviews.

Now take time to connect with undergraduate friends and classmates, reach out to alums, and begin to research the industry in which you are interested.

Make sure your searchable public online persona reflects how you would like to be seen as a professional. This means Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social networks—set anything you would not want a potential employer seeing to private or better yet, delete it.

LinkedIn is one of the most powerful tools you can use to connect, research, network, and find the career you’re looking for. It is critical that you learn to use the platform and become a LinkedIn savant. Being able to utilize LinkedIn can have a significant impact on your ability to successfully land the position you want post-graduation.

If you’ve never used LinkedIn or just want to learn new tips and tricks to become more effective check out LinkedIn Learning’s “Rock Your LinkedIn Profile” and “Optimize your LinkedIn profile for recruiters” videos.  All Cornell students have free LinkedIn learning accounts.

Key LinkedIn Tips

• Include a work-appropriate photo
• Reach out to classmates, professors, coaches, internship employers, and colleagues, as well as anyone you have worked with in a formal or informal capacity to connect.
  • Don’t be shy, you need connections and you never know which one is going to be the one that gets you the conversation that leads to a job.
  • It’s important to customize your LinkedIn connection invitations; don’t just use LinkedIn’s standard template. For ideas, read “Want People to Accept Your LinkedIn Requests? Use These 10 Templates.”

• Solicit recommendations if you have work or volunteer experience. This might include an internship employer, a work-study supervisor, a volunteer job colleague or supervisor, etc.
• Join groups and follow companies that spark your interest. Here are some Cornell groups we recommend you follow:
  • Cornell University Alumni Network 
  • Cornell University Job Connection
  • Cornell Johnson  

Invest in comfortable black and/or neutral colored dress shoes and a good suit. Work with a tailor or sales associate to confirm that your suit fits you correctly; this is far more important than the brand of the suit.

Most employers still require business formal attire for interviews and many banks even expect students to be dressed up for briefings. Check out these professional dress tips covering female, male, and gender neutral stylings.

Make sure you leave your current employer or undergraduate institution on good terms. Write thank you notes to your mentors and others who have supported you. You never know when you may need a reference or referral.

Books

• The 2-Hour Job Search by Steve Dalton
• The MBA Guide to Networking Like a RockStar by Jaymin Patel (It’s not just for MBAs–it’s very relevant to MPS – Management students)
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck
• Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain
• The Culture Map: Breaking Through the Invisible Boundaries of Business by Erin Meyer
• Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
• Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi

Periodicals

• The Wall Street Journal
• Bloomberg Businessweek

• The International Advantage: Get Noticed, Get Hired! by Marcelo Barros
• Power Ties by Dan Beaudry