Friday, May 04, 2007

Choosing A New Career In Your 30's

You may be wondering if a new career is what you need to get yourself more prepared for your future. Your 20’s were rough enough. You had to go to college or just start a new job. It may have been a lot of bouncing around for you to get the type of job that you really wanted. Perhaps you had multiple careers at the same time and maybe you couldn’t figure out which one was for you. Now that you are in your 30’s you are probably looking for a career that’s going to make you happy and something that will be more rewarding and fulfilling. You have to understand that your spirit will continue to grow and change no matter what age you are at. You also have to shake the old time mentality which said that you had to choose just one career and stick with it until you retired. That old mentality was great when companies were not firing people that had too many years invested in the company and actually gave you a pension. Today’s work place is entirely different. Many companies are laying off workers that spend too much time in their company because they are obviously paying them too much money. Many companies today would rather let go of a good employee that makes big bucks because they want to replace them with a cheaper employee.

Today’s work force is entirely different than what it was in the 1950’s. The older generation seems to have given their workers pensions, yearly pay raises and retirement packages. Today’s businesses usually want to give the worker little pay, no benefits and actually fire you or “lay you off” when you are making to much money. The best way to secure a financial future is to make you extremely unique. You can do this in several ways.

You must first understand yourself completely and ask yourself, “what am I good at?” Once you figure out that question, you can learn to understand that what you are good at can be expanded on. If you are a musician that plays a piano and you are good at it, it may be wise of you to see if you can play another instrument just as good. The reason for this is because you will make yourself twice as marketable because you are not easy replaceable. The more knowledgeable you are in any profession, the more that you will be sought after. Every company wants to make good money. They may decide to hire you based on the fact that they can make more money with you because they know that you have knowledge in certain areas that others do not. The more marketable of a person you are, the more job security that you will get. Make sure that you have mastered your job no matter what it is. Ask your friends to test you in what you know because they are often our best critics. If your friend would hire you to do something, then a job would also.

In today’s work force, don’t worry about changing careers because most companies will not be loyal to you anyway. They are usually looking for workers that are willing to do the job at a cheap price. What you have to do is find a company that is willing to pay you what you think you deserve. Don’t worry about holding that job for life because it most likely won’t happen. You have to live for today and save some money for tomorrow. Don’t try to find job security because it’s just not there in today’s modern day society.
You may be wondering if a new career is what you need to get yourself more prepared for your future. Your 20’s were rough enough. You had to go to college or just start a new job. It may have been a lot of bouncing around for you to get the type of job that you really wanted. Perhaps you had multiple careers at the same time and maybe you couldn’t figure out which one was for you. Now that you are in your 30’s you are probably looking for a career that’s going to make you happy and something that will be more rewarding and fulfilling. You have to understand that your spirit will continue to grow and change no matter what age you are at. You also have to shake the old time mentality which said that you had to choose just one career and stick with it until you retired. That old mentality was great when companies were not firing people that had too many years invested in the company and actually gave you a pension. Today’s work place is entirely different. Many companies are laying off workers that spend too much time in their company because they are obviously paying them too much money. Many companies today would rather let go of a good employee that makes big bucks because they want to replace them with a cheaper employee.

Today’s work force is entirely different than what it was in the 1950’s. The older generation seems to have given their workers pensions, yearly pay raises and retirement packages. Today’s businesses usually want to give the worker little pay, no benefits and actually fire you or “lay you off” when you are making to much money. The best way to secure a financial future is to make you extremely unique. You can do this in several ways.

You must first understand yourself completely and ask yourself, “what am I good at?” Once you figure out that question, you can learn to understand that what you are good at can be expanded on. If you are a musician that plays a piano and you are good at it, it may be wise of you to see if you can play another instrument just as good. The reason for this is because you will make yourself twice as marketable because you are not easy replaceable. The more knowledgeable you are in any profession, the more that you will be sought after. Every company wants to make good money. They may decide to hire you based on the fact that they can make more money with you because they know that you have knowledge in certain areas that others do not. The more marketable of a person you are, the more job security that you will get. Make sure that you have mastered your job no matter what it is. Ask your friends to test you in what you know because they are often our best critics. If your friend would hire you to do something, then a job would also.

In today’s work force, don’t worry about changing careers because most companies will not be loyal to you anyway. They are usually looking for workers that are willing to do the job at a cheap price. What you have to do is find a company that is willing to pay you what you think you deserve. Don’t worry about holding that job for life because it most likely won’t happen. You have to live for today and save some money for tomorrow. Don’t try to find job security because it’s just not there in today’s modern day society.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 3:15 AM

More Employers Embracing the Concept of Telecommuting

Just a few short years ago, telecommuting was a rare benefit for a select few. Employers were reluctant to give up the belief that employees needed watching, and that working from home really meant a day of watching soap operas, devouring chocolates, and catching up on the laundry. The traditional 9-to-5 in the office was the accepted standard for assuring that employees were where they were supposed to be and doing what they were supposed to do. For most, proof of productivity was measured by hours in the office, rather than by results.

However, with the help of laptops, PDAs, and high-speed internet, the practice of measuring productivity with time seems to be taking a few hits. More and more employers have begun to realize the benefits of telecommuting: lower overhead, less infrastructure, more productive employees, and greater retention. Some who already had programs in place for a few are expanding the programs they have to include more employees. Large employers such as the federal government are setting new standards for telecommuting by embracing the concept rather than rejecting it. There's even a new term for it now that covers not just those working from home, but those working on the road, or from satellite or client offices — "telework."

The government leads the way
Telework is viewed favorably enough that the federal government, through its Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the General Services Administration (GSA), conducts an annual survey of its own agencies to ensure that telework opportunities are offered to employees as appropriate, and that the number of employees allowed to telework continues to rise. Telework Centers are maintained as satellite office space for teleworkers, and there are extensive policies governing the use of telework as a work option. Both agencies joined together to create a joint website dedicated to their telework programs. The willingness of the OPM and the GSA to accept and utilize teleworking seems to be successful, too - the number of federal employees allowed to telework at least part time has increased by nearly 40 percent since the surveys began in 2001.

The federal government is often the forerunner in adopting new insights on the American workforce, and with the Fed setting the pace for making telework an acceptable means of conducting business, it's logical to conclude that the American workplace as a whole may adopt the same outlook. For some industries, it could mean a whole new definition of what it means to "go to work."

Telework isn't for everyone
As appealing as it may sound, however, there are those who find telework to be less than they had hoped for. Interestingly enough, this dissatisfaction isn't coming from the employers, but from employees who find themselves lonely and feeling disconnected from the office culture. Granted, it's not a majority, but for some, telework brings a sense of feeling "left out," perhaps to the extent of missing opportunities for advancement, or to influence the opinions of others with a viable presence in the office. For a few, they just miss the structure of an office and find working at home to be more distracting than inspiring. Some employers willingly welcome these folks back into the fold, while others address this by providing resources, support, and training to their telework forces that help them adapt to working from home, enable them to make better use of technology, and learn how to interact effectively and productively in an electronic environment.

The changing workplace
Today, there are more than 12 million Americans who telework full-time, and another 10 million who telework part-time. However, given the diverse nature of the workplace, telework won't be an option for many types of businesses but certainly, it's becoming a much more viable option for jobs that entail computer work, thinking, or perhaps working with numbers. You won't see manufacturers sending their product assemblers home to put things together, but you may see their accountants working at home a few days a month…or a week. Telework isn't such a foreign concept anymore. It may have once been thought of as an ineffective approach to managing work/life balance, but modern workplaces now know that happy, less-stressed employees means employees that stay longer and get more done — and cost them less in the long run.
Just a few short years ago, telecommuting was a rare benefit for a select few. Employers were reluctant to give up the belief that employees needed watching, and that working from home really meant a day of watching soap operas, devouring chocolates, and catching up on the laundry. The traditional 9-to-5 in the office was the accepted standard for assuring that employees were where they were supposed to be and doing what they were supposed to do. For most, proof of productivity was measured by hours in the office, rather than by results.

However, with the help of laptops, PDAs, and high-speed internet, the practice of measuring productivity with time seems to be taking a few hits. More and more employers have begun to realize the benefits of telecommuting: lower overhead, less infrastructure, more productive employees, and greater retention. Some who already had programs in place for a few are expanding the programs they have to include more employees. Large employers such as the federal government are setting new standards for telecommuting by embracing the concept rather than rejecting it. There's even a new term for it now that covers not just those working from home, but those working on the road, or from satellite or client offices — "telework."

The government leads the way
Telework is viewed favorably enough that the federal government, through its Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the General Services Administration (GSA), conducts an annual survey of its own agencies to ensure that telework opportunities are offered to employees as appropriate, and that the number of employees allowed to telework continues to rise. Telework Centers are maintained as satellite office space for teleworkers, and there are extensive policies governing the use of telework as a work option. Both agencies joined together to create a joint website dedicated to their telework programs. The willingness of the OPM and the GSA to accept and utilize teleworking seems to be successful, too - the number of federal employees allowed to telework at least part time has increased by nearly 40 percent since the surveys began in 2001.

The federal government is often the forerunner in adopting new insights on the American workforce, and with the Fed setting the pace for making telework an acceptable means of conducting business, it's logical to conclude that the American workplace as a whole may adopt the same outlook. For some industries, it could mean a whole new definition of what it means to "go to work."

Telework isn't for everyone
As appealing as it may sound, however, there are those who find telework to be less than they had hoped for. Interestingly enough, this dissatisfaction isn't coming from the employers, but from employees who find themselves lonely and feeling disconnected from the office culture. Granted, it's not a majority, but for some, telework brings a sense of feeling "left out," perhaps to the extent of missing opportunities for advancement, or to influence the opinions of others with a viable presence in the office. For a few, they just miss the structure of an office and find working at home to be more distracting than inspiring. Some employers willingly welcome these folks back into the fold, while others address this by providing resources, support, and training to their telework forces that help them adapt to working from home, enable them to make better use of technology, and learn how to interact effectively and productively in an electronic environment.

The changing workplace
Today, there are more than 12 million Americans who telework full-time, and another 10 million who telework part-time. However, given the diverse nature of the workplace, telework won't be an option for many types of businesses but certainly, it's becoming a much more viable option for jobs that entail computer work, thinking, or perhaps working with numbers. You won't see manufacturers sending their product assemblers home to put things together, but you may see their accountants working at home a few days a month…or a week. Telework isn't such a foreign concept anymore. It may have once been thought of as an ineffective approach to managing work/life balance, but modern workplaces now know that happy, less-stressed employees means employees that stay longer and get more done — and cost them less in the long run.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 3:14 AM

What You Need to Know About Careers in Media

When you are thinking about a career in media, you may be only thinking about the person who anchors the morning news; however, there are many more careers in media that are less obvious, but very challenging and rewarding as well. Media and the right and want to know is very important in this day, and this had made work in the media business competitive and in high demand. While working in this field is not easy, with looming deadlines and odd hours, it is a great career to consider. Various Media Careers

There are many different careers available in the media industry, and some are very high profile, while others blend into the background. One of the most prolific careers in media is as a news analyst or a news anchor. This career involves taking the news from various sources and interpreting, examining, and even broadcasting this news. Usually within this type of job there are specialties, such as Sports and Weather. Reporters have very similar jobs; however, they are usually out doing the footwork and finding the stories that anchors use on the news.

Behind the scenes of the media industry are some very important people. There are excellent careers as video technicians, audio technicians, sound engineers, radio operators, and broadcast technicians as well. While they are not as visible as reporters and news anchors, without these careers the rest would be a flop. These careers are very important and are highly technical as well, so they are in great demand.

Another career in media that many people overlook is a career as a writer. Writers often write script for newscasts and other types of news broadcasting, and they often write newspaper articles, magazine articles, and even books as well. There are great media careers in editing as well, since someone has to edit the writing of these writers. A few other careers in the media industry include photographers, announcers, translators, public relations specialists, and video camera editors.

Needed Education

The education that is needed for jobs in the media industry is dependent on your specific career, but most of these jobs do require that you have a bachelor's degree. The various technicians in this field will need to have specialized training to deal with the very technical equipment that is used in media broadcasting today. Reporters, anchors, and correspondents usually need to have a degree in either communications or journalism, although at times employers will consider those who have other majors in college as well. Writers usually are required to have a degree in literature, journalism, communications, or English. One of the most important qualifications that employers look for in this field is experience such as activities and internships in the field of your choice.

Possible Salaries

How much you make in the media industry is also going to depend on what specific media career that you have chosen. The salary spectrum is quite diverse with many average paying jobs, and a few jobs that pay extremely well. Writers and editors can usually expect to make between $25,000 and $60,000 each year, with a few making more than $100,000. Reporters and correspondents generally will make between $20,000 and $50,000 each year, while news anchors and analysts are higher paid and usually make between $25,000 and $70,000, with the occasional anchor making in excess of $100,000 per year. Various technicians, such as sound, video, and broadcast technicians usually can expect to make between $20,000 and $50,000 depending on their experience and the company that they work for.

Excellent Employers

No matter what type of career you choose in the media industry, you want to work for an employer that is fair, offering a good salary and great benefits. There are many great companies that you can work for in this industry, and a few in the United States include CBS, Fox News, National CineMedia, and Cumulus Broadcasting. Not only are there great employers in the United States, but there are many excellent ones in Canada as well if you live or want to work in Canada. Some excellent employers to consider in the country of Canada include Hollywood Canada Communications, CBC Radio Canada, World Vision Canada, and TeleToon Canada Inc.
When you are thinking about a career in media, you may be only thinking about the person who anchors the morning news; however, there are many more careers in media that are less obvious, but very challenging and rewarding as well. Media and the right and want to know is very important in this day, and this had made work in the media business competitive and in high demand. While working in this field is not easy, with looming deadlines and odd hours, it is a great career to consider. Various Media Careers

There are many different careers available in the media industry, and some are very high profile, while others blend into the background. One of the most prolific careers in media is as a news analyst or a news anchor. This career involves taking the news from various sources and interpreting, examining, and even broadcasting this news. Usually within this type of job there are specialties, such as Sports and Weather. Reporters have very similar jobs; however, they are usually out doing the footwork and finding the stories that anchors use on the news.

Behind the scenes of the media industry are some very important people. There are excellent careers as video technicians, audio technicians, sound engineers, radio operators, and broadcast technicians as well. While they are not as visible as reporters and news anchors, without these careers the rest would be a flop. These careers are very important and are highly technical as well, so they are in great demand.

Another career in media that many people overlook is a career as a writer. Writers often write script for newscasts and other types of news broadcasting, and they often write newspaper articles, magazine articles, and even books as well. There are great media careers in editing as well, since someone has to edit the writing of these writers. A few other careers in the media industry include photographers, announcers, translators, public relations specialists, and video camera editors.

Needed Education

The education that is needed for jobs in the media industry is dependent on your specific career, but most of these jobs do require that you have a bachelor's degree. The various technicians in this field will need to have specialized training to deal with the very technical equipment that is used in media broadcasting today. Reporters, anchors, and correspondents usually need to have a degree in either communications or journalism, although at times employers will consider those who have other majors in college as well. Writers usually are required to have a degree in literature, journalism, communications, or English. One of the most important qualifications that employers look for in this field is experience such as activities and internships in the field of your choice.

Possible Salaries

How much you make in the media industry is also going to depend on what specific media career that you have chosen. The salary spectrum is quite diverse with many average paying jobs, and a few jobs that pay extremely well. Writers and editors can usually expect to make between $25,000 and $60,000 each year, with a few making more than $100,000. Reporters and correspondents generally will make between $20,000 and $50,000 each year, while news anchors and analysts are higher paid and usually make between $25,000 and $70,000, with the occasional anchor making in excess of $100,000 per year. Various technicians, such as sound, video, and broadcast technicians usually can expect to make between $20,000 and $50,000 depending on their experience and the company that they work for.

Excellent Employers

No matter what type of career you choose in the media industry, you want to work for an employer that is fair, offering a good salary and great benefits. There are many great companies that you can work for in this industry, and a few in the United States include CBS, Fox News, National CineMedia, and Cumulus Broadcasting. Not only are there great employers in the United States, but there are many excellent ones in Canada as well if you live or want to work in Canada. Some excellent employers to consider in the country of Canada include Hollywood Canada Communications, CBC Radio Canada, World Vision Canada, and TeleToon Canada Inc.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 3:14 AM

Things To Do With Your Criminal Justice Degree

A lot of students considering a civil service career think that a criminal justice degree is only good for being a law enforcement officer or, in combination with a legal degree, a criminal lawyer. Here are a whole range of criminal justice career choices that many degree-holders overlook, but are well worth consideration:

Social Work/ Personal Cases
These may include child support and child protective services, missing persons, domestic violence and spousal or elderly abuse. Domestic legal social work is often identified as having extreme pros and cons to it. On the one hand, you're working to make everyone's home life better. On the other, the work can be stressful when confronting a perpetrator or heart-wrenching when confronting a victim. Social workers will work with law enforcement officers to assess a domestic situation, monitor a case to ensure that the desires of the court are carried out, and make further recommendations to the court for the disposal of cases.

Criminal Investigators and Special Agents
Also known as "the Feds". Working in federal investigations is a whole new ball game compared to municipal police work. As for special agents, these are not limited to the FBI; nearly every federal agency has some type of special agent. These include the Department of Homeland Security, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division, the United States Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the National Park Service. Special agent work is a way to combine a criminal justice career with many other fields of government work and specialty interests.

Immigration and Customs Inspectors
These are the public servants who control access of persons and property into and out of the United States. Quite a high-profile job lately, with today's concerns over terrorism. A challenging job, with being able to speak multiple languages fluently a big plus (in some cases a requirement). Sometimes your biggest concern will not be stopping a terrorist, but preventing a confused, but innocent person from being mistaken for one! In addition, you maybe on the spot to check or clear visiting diplomats and dignitaries from other lands.

Police Detectives
This is usually an after-the-fact officer. The law enforcement officer does the arresting; you just solve the crimes. Be aware that it's hardly the glamorous job Hollywood movies would have you believe; your reality will be day-to-day mundane tasks such as collecting forensic evidence, checking background records, interviewing witnesses, and testifying in court. Police detectives are of course categorized into many department specialties. Robbery and burglary alone accounts for a very large portion of police detective work.

Correctional Officers and Jailers
Well, that's pretty self-explanatory, isn't it? You'll be responsible for the care, custody, and control of inmates, whether they have been arrested and are awaiting trial or have been convicted of a crime and sentenced to serve time in jail. A prison or jail is a controlled environment which in many ways is a microcosm of a society, with it's own challenges to face. While the controlled environment of the jail or prison will seem a more secure niche, unexpected surprises can develop - particularly in the intake zone. And when things get out of hand in a prison, they tend to escalate quickly.

Homeland Security
Responsible to prevent, detect, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism. Currently a high-profile job to say the least, and not for the faint of heart, but you can count on lots of federal support during this time of national crisis. You'll be working with other federal agencies as well, such as the FBI and CIA, military counter-intelligence, and the NSA. The specialties with the Department of Homeland Security include collecting and sorting data on potential threats, surveillance, investigation, and assessing and alerting other agencies to potential threats.

Private Detective/ Investigator
The number-one most mythologized profession, misrepresented in movies and television about equally with spies. As opposed to the high drama and dangerous intrigue portrayed in fiction, your typical jobs as a private investigator might include tracking cheating spouses, gathering evidence for private attorneys in civil cases, or investigating spurious claims for an insurance company. Leave your Magnum, your Porche, and your nubile blond mistresses home - but always carry a notepad and pen.

Criminal Intelligence
Well away from any street work, the criminal intelligence agent works behind the scenes, gathering data on gang members, fugitives, and organized crime and logging it into databases where it will be accessible to officers and detectives in the field. This is often an under-recognized profession but obviously essential; when the officer types a gang member's name into the computer in his patrol car and discovers the identities of the other five members of that gang, a criminal intelligence worker at the base made this possible.

Computer Crime
Not a specific specialty just yet, but dealing with the cyber-side of criminal justice is one of the most in-demand fields as the number of computers in society grows each year. You'll of course need to combine your criminal justice degree with a computer science degree. Crimes committed through or with a computer may include fraud, offensive content, harassment and hate groups, drug trafficking, and cyberterrorism. If you imagined computer viruses or email scams were perpetrated by individual kids, think again: Computer fraud and data theft is actually an international organized crime operation and a multi-billion dollar per year industry! Police departments also need forensic data analysts on hand to find and recover evidence which may be on a suspect's computer and may have been encrypted or deleted. In the future, a special department may be created within the criminal justice system to deal with this special category, as currently many police departments have to outsource their computer-related work.

This list hardly scratches the surface of every career opportunity available in the criminal justice field, but should provide a broad sample of what's out there. Far from regular street police work, there are career opportunities to satisfy every interest and skill set.
A lot of students considering a civil service career think that a criminal justice degree is only good for being a law enforcement officer or, in combination with a legal degree, a criminal lawyer. Here are a whole range of criminal justice career choices that many degree-holders overlook, but are well worth consideration:

Social Work/ Personal Cases
These may include child support and child protective services, missing persons, domestic violence and spousal or elderly abuse. Domestic legal social work is often identified as having extreme pros and cons to it. On the one hand, you're working to make everyone's home life better. On the other, the work can be stressful when confronting a perpetrator or heart-wrenching when confronting a victim. Social workers will work with law enforcement officers to assess a domestic situation, monitor a case to ensure that the desires of the court are carried out, and make further recommendations to the court for the disposal of cases.

Criminal Investigators and Special Agents
Also known as "the Feds". Working in federal investigations is a whole new ball game compared to municipal police work. As for special agents, these are not limited to the FBI; nearly every federal agency has some type of special agent. These include the Department of Homeland Security, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division, the United States Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the National Park Service. Special agent work is a way to combine a criminal justice career with many other fields of government work and specialty interests.

Immigration and Customs Inspectors
These are the public servants who control access of persons and property into and out of the United States. Quite a high-profile job lately, with today's concerns over terrorism. A challenging job, with being able to speak multiple languages fluently a big plus (in some cases a requirement). Sometimes your biggest concern will not be stopping a terrorist, but preventing a confused, but innocent person from being mistaken for one! In addition, you maybe on the spot to check or clear visiting diplomats and dignitaries from other lands.

Police Detectives
This is usually an after-the-fact officer. The law enforcement officer does the arresting; you just solve the crimes. Be aware that it's hardly the glamorous job Hollywood movies would have you believe; your reality will be day-to-day mundane tasks such as collecting forensic evidence, checking background records, interviewing witnesses, and testifying in court. Police detectives are of course categorized into many department specialties. Robbery and burglary alone accounts for a very large portion of police detective work.

Correctional Officers and Jailers
Well, that's pretty self-explanatory, isn't it? You'll be responsible for the care, custody, and control of inmates, whether they have been arrested and are awaiting trial or have been convicted of a crime and sentenced to serve time in jail. A prison or jail is a controlled environment which in many ways is a microcosm of a society, with it's own challenges to face. While the controlled environment of the jail or prison will seem a more secure niche, unexpected surprises can develop - particularly in the intake zone. And when things get out of hand in a prison, they tend to escalate quickly.

Homeland Security
Responsible to prevent, detect, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism. Currently a high-profile job to say the least, and not for the faint of heart, but you can count on lots of federal support during this time of national crisis. You'll be working with other federal agencies as well, such as the FBI and CIA, military counter-intelligence, and the NSA. The specialties with the Department of Homeland Security include collecting and sorting data on potential threats, surveillance, investigation, and assessing and alerting other agencies to potential threats.

Private Detective/ Investigator
The number-one most mythologized profession, misrepresented in movies and television about equally with spies. As opposed to the high drama and dangerous intrigue portrayed in fiction, your typical jobs as a private investigator might include tracking cheating spouses, gathering evidence for private attorneys in civil cases, or investigating spurious claims for an insurance company. Leave your Magnum, your Porche, and your nubile blond mistresses home - but always carry a notepad and pen.

Criminal Intelligence
Well away from any street work, the criminal intelligence agent works behind the scenes, gathering data on gang members, fugitives, and organized crime and logging it into databases where it will be accessible to officers and detectives in the field. This is often an under-recognized profession but obviously essential; when the officer types a gang member's name into the computer in his patrol car and discovers the identities of the other five members of that gang, a criminal intelligence worker at the base made this possible.

Computer Crime
Not a specific specialty just yet, but dealing with the cyber-side of criminal justice is one of the most in-demand fields as the number of computers in society grows each year. You'll of course need to combine your criminal justice degree with a computer science degree. Crimes committed through or with a computer may include fraud, offensive content, harassment and hate groups, drug trafficking, and cyberterrorism. If you imagined computer viruses or email scams were perpetrated by individual kids, think again: Computer fraud and data theft is actually an international organized crime operation and a multi-billion dollar per year industry! Police departments also need forensic data analysts on hand to find and recover evidence which may be on a suspect's computer and may have been encrypted or deleted. In the future, a special department may be created within the criminal justice system to deal with this special category, as currently many police departments have to outsource their computer-related work.

This list hardly scratches the surface of every career opportunity available in the criminal justice field, but should provide a broad sample of what's out there. Far from regular street police work, there are career opportunities to satisfy every interest and skill set.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 3:13 AM

Things To Do With Your Criminal Justice Degree

A lot of students considering a civil service career think that a criminal justice degree is only good for being a law enforcement officer or, in combination with a legal degree, a criminal lawyer. Here are a whole range of criminal justice career choices that many degree-holders overlook, but are well worth consideration:

Social Work/ Personal Cases
These may include child support and child protective services, missing persons, domestic violence and spousal or elderly abuse. Domestic legal social work is often identified as having extreme pros and cons to it. On the one hand, you're working to make everyone's home life better. On the other, the work can be stressful when confronting a perpetrator or heart-wrenching when confronting a victim. Social workers will work with law enforcement officers to assess a domestic situation, monitor a case to ensure that the desires of the court are carried out, and make further recommendations to the court for the disposal of cases.

Criminal Investigators and Special Agents
Also known as "the Feds". Working in federal investigations is a whole new ball game compared to municipal police work. As for special agents, these are not limited to the FBI; nearly every federal agency has some type of special agent. These include the Department of Homeland Security, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division, the United States Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the National Park Service. Special agent work is a way to combine a criminal justice career with many other fields of government work and specialty interests.

Immigration and Customs Inspectors
These are the public servants who control access of persons and property into and out of the United States. Quite a high-profile job lately, with today's concerns over terrorism. A challenging job, with being able to speak multiple languages fluently a big plus (in some cases a requirement). Sometimes your biggest concern will not be stopping a terrorist, but preventing a confused, but innocent person from being mistaken for one! In addition, you maybe on the spot to check or clear visiting diplomats and dignitaries from other lands.

Police Detectives
This is usually an after-the-fact officer. The law enforcement officer does the arresting; you just solve the crimes. Be aware that it's hardly the glamorous job Hollywood movies would have you believe; your reality will be day-to-day mundane tasks such as collecting forensic evidence, checking background records, interviewing witnesses, and testifying in court. Police detectives are of course categorized into many department specialties. Robbery and burglary alone accounts for a very large portion of police detective work.

Correctional Officers and Jailers
Well, that's pretty self-explanatory, isn't it? You'll be responsible for the care, custody, and control of inmates, whether they have been arrested and are awaiting trial or have been convicted of a crime and sentenced to serve time in jail. A prison or jail is a controlled environment which in many ways is a microcosm of a society, with it's own challenges to face. While the controlled environment of the jail or prison will seem a more secure niche, unexpected surprises can develop - particularly in the intake zone. And when things get out of hand in a prison, they tend to escalate quickly.

Homeland Security
Responsible to prevent, detect, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism. Currently a high-profile job to say the least, and not for the faint of heart, but you can count on lots of federal support during this time of national crisis. You'll be working with other federal agencies as well, such as the FBI and CIA, military counter-intelligence, and the NSA. The specialties with the Department of Homeland Security include collecting and sorting data on potential threats, surveillance, investigation, and assessing and alerting other agencies to potential threats.

Private Detective/ Investigator
The number-one most mythologized profession, misrepresented in movies and television about equally with spies. As opposed to the high drama and dangerous intrigue portrayed in fiction, your typical jobs as a private investigator might include tracking cheating spouses, gathering evidence for private attorneys in civil cases, or investigating spurious claims for an insurance company. Leave your Magnum, your Porche, and your nubile blond mistresses home - but always carry a notepad and pen.

Criminal Intelligence
Well away from any street work, the criminal intelligence agent works behind the scenes, gathering data on gang members, fugitives, and organized crime and logging it into databases where it will be accessible to officers and detectives in the field. This is often an under-recognized profession but obviously essential; when the officer types a gang member's name into the computer in his patrol car and discovers the identities of the other five members of that gang, a criminal intelligence worker at the base made this possible.

Computer Crime
Not a specific specialty just yet, but dealing with the cyber-side of criminal justice is one of the most in-demand fields as the number of computers in society grows each year. You'll of course need to combine your criminal justice degree with a computer science degree. Crimes committed through or with a computer may include fraud, offensive content, harassment and hate groups, drug trafficking, and cyberterrorism. If you imagined computer viruses or email scams were perpetrated by individual kids, think again: Computer fraud and data theft is actually an international organized crime operation and a multi-billion dollar per year industry! Police departments also need forensic data analysts on hand to find and recover evidence which may be on a suspect's computer and may have been encrypted or deleted. In the future, a special department may be created within the criminal justice system to deal with this special category, as currently many police departments have to outsource their computer-related work.

This list hardly scratches the surface of every career opportunity available in the criminal justice field, but should provide a broad sample of what's out there. Far from regular street police work, there are career opportunities to satisfy every interest and skill set.
A lot of students considering a civil service career think that a criminal justice degree is only good for being a law enforcement officer or, in combination with a legal degree, a criminal lawyer. Here are a whole range of criminal justice career choices that many degree-holders overlook, but are well worth consideration:

Social Work/ Personal Cases
These may include child support and child protective services, missing persons, domestic violence and spousal or elderly abuse. Domestic legal social work is often identified as having extreme pros and cons to it. On the one hand, you're working to make everyone's home life better. On the other, the work can be stressful when confronting a perpetrator or heart-wrenching when confronting a victim. Social workers will work with law enforcement officers to assess a domestic situation, monitor a case to ensure that the desires of the court are carried out, and make further recommendations to the court for the disposal of cases.

Criminal Investigators and Special Agents
Also known as "the Feds". Working in federal investigations is a whole new ball game compared to municipal police work. As for special agents, these are not limited to the FBI; nearly every federal agency has some type of special agent. These include the Department of Homeland Security, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division, the United States Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the National Park Service. Special agent work is a way to combine a criminal justice career with many other fields of government work and specialty interests.

Immigration and Customs Inspectors
These are the public servants who control access of persons and property into and out of the United States. Quite a high-profile job lately, with today's concerns over terrorism. A challenging job, with being able to speak multiple languages fluently a big plus (in some cases a requirement). Sometimes your biggest concern will not be stopping a terrorist, but preventing a confused, but innocent person from being mistaken for one! In addition, you maybe on the spot to check or clear visiting diplomats and dignitaries from other lands.

Police Detectives
This is usually an after-the-fact officer. The law enforcement officer does the arresting; you just solve the crimes. Be aware that it's hardly the glamorous job Hollywood movies would have you believe; your reality will be day-to-day mundane tasks such as collecting forensic evidence, checking background records, interviewing witnesses, and testifying in court. Police detectives are of course categorized into many department specialties. Robbery and burglary alone accounts for a very large portion of police detective work.

Correctional Officers and Jailers
Well, that's pretty self-explanatory, isn't it? You'll be responsible for the care, custody, and control of inmates, whether they have been arrested and are awaiting trial or have been convicted of a crime and sentenced to serve time in jail. A prison or jail is a controlled environment which in many ways is a microcosm of a society, with it's own challenges to face. While the controlled environment of the jail or prison will seem a more secure niche, unexpected surprises can develop - particularly in the intake zone. And when things get out of hand in a prison, they tend to escalate quickly.

Homeland Security
Responsible to prevent, detect, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism. Currently a high-profile job to say the least, and not for the faint of heart, but you can count on lots of federal support during this time of national crisis. You'll be working with other federal agencies as well, such as the FBI and CIA, military counter-intelligence, and the NSA. The specialties with the Department of Homeland Security include collecting and sorting data on potential threats, surveillance, investigation, and assessing and alerting other agencies to potential threats.

Private Detective/ Investigator
The number-one most mythologized profession, misrepresented in movies and television about equally with spies. As opposed to the high drama and dangerous intrigue portrayed in fiction, your typical jobs as a private investigator might include tracking cheating spouses, gathering evidence for private attorneys in civil cases, or investigating spurious claims for an insurance company. Leave your Magnum, your Porche, and your nubile blond mistresses home - but always carry a notepad and pen.

Criminal Intelligence
Well away from any street work, the criminal intelligence agent works behind the scenes, gathering data on gang members, fugitives, and organized crime and logging it into databases where it will be accessible to officers and detectives in the field. This is often an under-recognized profession but obviously essential; when the officer types a gang member's name into the computer in his patrol car and discovers the identities of the other five members of that gang, a criminal intelligence worker at the base made this possible.

Computer Crime
Not a specific specialty just yet, but dealing with the cyber-side of criminal justice is one of the most in-demand fields as the number of computers in society grows each year. You'll of course need to combine your criminal justice degree with a computer science degree. Crimes committed through or with a computer may include fraud, offensive content, harassment and hate groups, drug trafficking, and cyberterrorism. If you imagined computer viruses or email scams were perpetrated by individual kids, think again: Computer fraud and data theft is actually an international organized crime operation and a multi-billion dollar per year industry! Police departments also need forensic data analysts on hand to find and recover evidence which may be on a suspect's computer and may have been encrypted or deleted. In the future, a special department may be created within the criminal justice system to deal with this special category, as currently many police departments have to outsource their computer-related work.

This list hardly scratches the surface of every career opportunity available in the criminal justice field, but should provide a broad sample of what's out there. Far from regular street police work, there are career opportunities to satisfy every interest and skill set.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 3:13 AM

Forensic Accounting The Detective Breed of Accounting Careers

When you ask people to give you a list of exciting careers, accounting is never near the top. The accounting career field tends to draw the sedentary folks: steady, analytical types who value security above all else. You're basically there to keep the wheels of business turning; a plumber directing the flow of money instead of water.

However, the growing shape of the global business market and the scandals wracking the business world have highlighted the increasing need for a rare breed of accountant; the forensic accountant is either an internal or external auditor who is brought in to investigate the scene of a fraud, bankruptcy, securities scandal, or other conflicted situation and prepare a report identifying what happened. It is called a forensic function primarily because it's results can be used in a court of law.

What's the job like?

There are actually many scenarios in which a forensic accountant might be needed: disputes and litigation, insurance claims, personal injury claims, construction audits, insurance fraud, royalty audits, or Wall Street scandals are some of the specialties in this field. Most accounting firms have a cabinet of forensic accounting specialists. These people are sent in the aftermath of a fraud to assess if the numbers in the books reflect reality, and if not, then identify what's really going on.

A forensic accountant does not have the luxury of being able to disregard anything that doesn't happen on a spreadsheet. They have to take the big picture into account, dealing with the whole reality of the business situation. A forensic accounting procedure will usually include investigating and analyzing financial evidence, using computerized applications to present the financial evidence, delivering the findings in the form of reports, collecting and exhibiting documents, and perhaps testifying in court as an expert witness. In addition to knowledge of accounting, a forensic accountant must also be familiar with legal concepts and procedures.

The two sides of forensic accounting - investigation and litigation support, break down into several smaller steps:

In the investigation, you might review the situation and suggest possible courses of action, assist with the protection and recovery of assets, and work hand-in-hand with private investigators, forensic document examiners, and consultants. People may lie. The books may be cooked. Keep your eyes open!

During litigation support, you may be responsible for providing the documentation necessary to support or refute a claim, presenting the initial assessment of the case identifying areas of loss, assisting with the examination for discovery, reviewing the testimony, reviewing the opposing expert's report, and assist with the settlement discussions and negotiations. Attorneys and witnesses may contradict you. You might have to keep digging deeper into a cover-up. Most of all, you will have to convince one judge and twelve jurors that you're the right person to be testifying about the case.

By no means are forensic accountants confined to an office or a courtroom. There are a wide range of industries which retain the services of a forensic accountant. Matrimonial disputes, in which a divorce proceeding needs mediation to verify the state of disputed assets, is one area you might not expect. Other scenarios might be investigating claims of business negligence, or personal injury claims.

Business economic loss investigations might cover expropriations, product liability claims, trademark and patent infringements and losses stemming from a breach of a non-competition agreement. The growing technology industry is an example of an expanding need for services relating to product liability claims and patent infringements. It's easy to show whether or not a car's defects could lead to an accident, but how would you prove that the bugs in a computer operating system led to the loss of assets when the business which used it was hacked? It's easy to show that a competitor copied your patented design for your camera, but how exactly do you defend a patent on a cursor?

A forensic accountant combines the skills of a record-keeper, paralegal, and a detective rolled into one. To be good at it, you have to have a good dose of curiosity, persistence, creativity, and discretion. You'll need sound professional judgment and confidence that you know your job so well that your knowledge and discoveries will stand up under cross-examination. Companies will live or die and defendants may go to prison based on the work that you do, so you are challenged to be at your best. It is the most challenging of accounting careers.

Some facts about Business Fraud Detection:

Small businesses are the most vulnerable to occupational fraud and abuse. Larger businesses will have a broad number of employees preventing losses and performing internal audits, while smaller companies are more trusting of their own employees.

Surprisingly, the average fraud at a small company nets more money than the average fraud at a large company! This is due to the fact that there are fewer people watching and less control over who has access to the bookkeeping. Put yourself in the place of a start-up entrepreneur: Starting your own business already requires you to work so hard that you might as well be three people already. You won't have the time to check up on every action of everybody you hire when your business is small. You have no choice but to start out with a handful of people you trust, and hope you can go on trusting them!

Companies with fraud hotlines or other ways to report anonymous tips tend to cut their fraud losses by a flat fifty percent. And more frauds are uncovered by anonymous tips than any other source. As a fraud investigation accountant, you may have to rely on the occasional "deep throat". If you have someone tipping you off to a shady practice, you will need to be sure that the information is detailed enough to give you a good lead.

Losses due to an employed perpetrator aged 50 and above are usually much higher than the losses caused by an employee in their 20's or 30's. This is obvious considering that older employees have obtained a higher level of trust and responsibility within a company. In addition, an employee nearing retirement feels that they have less risk, since they may be out the door by the time their fraud is discovered.
When you ask people to give you a list of exciting careers, accounting is never near the top. The accounting career field tends to draw the sedentary folks: steady, analytical types who value security above all else. You're basically there to keep the wheels of business turning; a plumber directing the flow of money instead of water.

However, the growing shape of the global business market and the scandals wracking the business world have highlighted the increasing need for a rare breed of accountant; the forensic accountant is either an internal or external auditor who is brought in to investigate the scene of a fraud, bankruptcy, securities scandal, or other conflicted situation and prepare a report identifying what happened. It is called a forensic function primarily because it's results can be used in a court of law.

What's the job like?

There are actually many scenarios in which a forensic accountant might be needed: disputes and litigation, insurance claims, personal injury claims, construction audits, insurance fraud, royalty audits, or Wall Street scandals are some of the specialties in this field. Most accounting firms have a cabinet of forensic accounting specialists. These people are sent in the aftermath of a fraud to assess if the numbers in the books reflect reality, and if not, then identify what's really going on.

A forensic accountant does not have the luxury of being able to disregard anything that doesn't happen on a spreadsheet. They have to take the big picture into account, dealing with the whole reality of the business situation. A forensic accounting procedure will usually include investigating and analyzing financial evidence, using computerized applications to present the financial evidence, delivering the findings in the form of reports, collecting and exhibiting documents, and perhaps testifying in court as an expert witness. In addition to knowledge of accounting, a forensic accountant must also be familiar with legal concepts and procedures.

The two sides of forensic accounting - investigation and litigation support, break down into several smaller steps:

In the investigation, you might review the situation and suggest possible courses of action, assist with the protection and recovery of assets, and work hand-in-hand with private investigators, forensic document examiners, and consultants. People may lie. The books may be cooked. Keep your eyes open!

During litigation support, you may be responsible for providing the documentation necessary to support or refute a claim, presenting the initial assessment of the case identifying areas of loss, assisting with the examination for discovery, reviewing the testimony, reviewing the opposing expert's report, and assist with the settlement discussions and negotiations. Attorneys and witnesses may contradict you. You might have to keep digging deeper into a cover-up. Most of all, you will have to convince one judge and twelve jurors that you're the right person to be testifying about the case.

By no means are forensic accountants confined to an office or a courtroom. There are a wide range of industries which retain the services of a forensic accountant. Matrimonial disputes, in which a divorce proceeding needs mediation to verify the state of disputed assets, is one area you might not expect. Other scenarios might be investigating claims of business negligence, or personal injury claims.

Business economic loss investigations might cover expropriations, product liability claims, trademark and patent infringements and losses stemming from a breach of a non-competition agreement. The growing technology industry is an example of an expanding need for services relating to product liability claims and patent infringements. It's easy to show whether or not a car's defects could lead to an accident, but how would you prove that the bugs in a computer operating system led to the loss of assets when the business which used it was hacked? It's easy to show that a competitor copied your patented design for your camera, but how exactly do you defend a patent on a cursor?

A forensic accountant combines the skills of a record-keeper, paralegal, and a detective rolled into one. To be good at it, you have to have a good dose of curiosity, persistence, creativity, and discretion. You'll need sound professional judgment and confidence that you know your job so well that your knowledge and discoveries will stand up under cross-examination. Companies will live or die and defendants may go to prison based on the work that you do, so you are challenged to be at your best. It is the most challenging of accounting careers.

Some facts about Business Fraud Detection:

Small businesses are the most vulnerable to occupational fraud and abuse. Larger businesses will have a broad number of employees preventing losses and performing internal audits, while smaller companies are more trusting of their own employees.

Surprisingly, the average fraud at a small company nets more money than the average fraud at a large company! This is due to the fact that there are fewer people watching and less control over who has access to the bookkeeping. Put yourself in the place of a start-up entrepreneur: Starting your own business already requires you to work so hard that you might as well be three people already. You won't have the time to check up on every action of everybody you hire when your business is small. You have no choice but to start out with a handful of people you trust, and hope you can go on trusting them!

Companies with fraud hotlines or other ways to report anonymous tips tend to cut their fraud losses by a flat fifty percent. And more frauds are uncovered by anonymous tips than any other source. As a fraud investigation accountant, you may have to rely on the occasional "deep throat". If you have someone tipping you off to a shady practice, you will need to be sure that the information is detailed enough to give you a good lead.

Losses due to an employed perpetrator aged 50 and above are usually much higher than the losses caused by an employee in their 20's or 30's. This is obvious considering that older employees have obtained a higher level of trust and responsibility within a company. In addition, an employee nearing retirement feels that they have less risk, since they may be out the door by the time their fraud is discovered.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 3:12 AM

Monday, April 30, 2007

The Importance of "Preparing For a Job Interview"

No doubt you’ll have heard the phase “failing to prepare is preparing to fail”. This is as true for interviews as anything else. Prepare well and you will improve your chances of success.

Research shows that people who prepare well for interviews:

* Feel more relaxed
* Know what the job is about
* Anticipate most of the questions they will be asked
* Have answers prepared for those questions that show them in their best light
* Sell themselves most effectively
* Come out of the interview feeling they did their best


Here is our list of things you need to cover:

* Research the Company and job and make notes. You would be surprised how many people arrive for interviews knowing little and sometimes nothing about the Company or what they will be doing day to day in the job for which they are applying. Not only will you be prepared, but you'll look professional too, right at the start. Ask to refer to your notes in the interview just to show you have prepared!
* Plan your arrival and your clothes/appearance. Do not create a bad first impression. What you say will count for more with most interviewers, but why give them anything to worry about.
* Write down likely questions and suitable answers. This is key. Too many interviewees fail because they do not expect and are therefore not prepared for certain questions.
* List some questions to ask. Even if you have none, ask at least 1. It shows you are genuinely interested and serious about choosing the right position.
No doubt you’ll have heard the phase “failing to prepare is preparing to fail”. This is as true for interviews as anything else. Prepare well and you will improve your chances of success.

Research shows that people who prepare well for interviews:

* Feel more relaxed
* Know what the job is about
* Anticipate most of the questions they will be asked
* Have answers prepared for those questions that show them in their best light
* Sell themselves most effectively
* Come out of the interview feeling they did their best


Here is our list of things you need to cover:

* Research the Company and job and make notes. You would be surprised how many people arrive for interviews knowing little and sometimes nothing about the Company or what they will be doing day to day in the job for which they are applying. Not only will you be prepared, but you'll look professional too, right at the start. Ask to refer to your notes in the interview just to show you have prepared!
* Plan your arrival and your clothes/appearance. Do not create a bad first impression. What you say will count for more with most interviewers, but why give them anything to worry about.
* Write down likely questions and suitable answers. This is key. Too many interviewees fail because they do not expect and are therefore not prepared for certain questions.
* List some questions to ask. Even if you have none, ask at least 1. It shows you are genuinely interested and serious about choosing the right position.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 2:39 AM

Don't Fail to Follow Up

You took the time to carefully craft your resume. You secured an interview. After all the time and effort you have expended in looking for a job, don’t fail to be attentive to the small details. Many people don’t consider the follow up letter to be important. They intend to send one but do not or they assume that a company will call if interested.

The job market is competitive and hiring managers may have spoken with several candidates. After several interviews, the hiring manager may forget key details of your discussion or your strengths. A follow up letter is another opportunity for you to sell yourself and reinforce your value to the organization.

A follow up letter can also help you to recover from any missteps in the interview. Even if the interview went exceptionally well, the follow-up letter can set you apart from other candidates. You should send the follow up letter within 24 hours. Depending on the company culture, this can be done by email or hard copy. If the company does not allow or encourage outside email, you can type or handwrite a thank you note. You can also use this opportunity to add other nice touches – attach an article that addresses a topic you discussed, or pass along information of interest that was uncovered during the interview. Your follow up should indicate:

1) You were attentive. Include details about what you learned in the interview – about the company, or industry.
2) You are excited about the company and want the job.
3) You have the skills/experience to contribute to their goals/outlined major projects.
4) You were listening and understood the importance of the interviewer’s comments.

Quick tips:
1) Mention names of the people that you met and any topics that solicited general interest.
2) Was there a particular topic that seemed to be a bonding moment? Include it in your letter.
3) Express appreciation for the interviewer’s time.
4) Do you want the job? Many fail to make the close. Ask for the job in a professional, positive manner.
5) Show enthusiasm for the company and the job!
6) Don’t be afraid to sound confident (talk about the challenges and how you will meet them; let the interviewer know that you will do well).
7) Even if you do not want the job, you still want an offer so follow the same protocol. At the very least, you have made an important new contact.

Good Phrases to include:
“Upon reflection…”
“I recognize the importance of…”
“Listening to your thoughts on….”

Keep the letter short, less than one page is sufficient. Add this tactic to your job search tool kit and you will not only be successful but well thought of in the process.
You took the time to carefully craft your resume. You secured an interview. After all the time and effort you have expended in looking for a job, don’t fail to be attentive to the small details. Many people don’t consider the follow up letter to be important. They intend to send one but do not or they assume that a company will call if interested.

The job market is competitive and hiring managers may have spoken with several candidates. After several interviews, the hiring manager may forget key details of your discussion or your strengths. A follow up letter is another opportunity for you to sell yourself and reinforce your value to the organization.

A follow up letter can also help you to recover from any missteps in the interview. Even if the interview went exceptionally well, the follow-up letter can set you apart from other candidates. You should send the follow up letter within 24 hours. Depending on the company culture, this can be done by email or hard copy. If the company does not allow or encourage outside email, you can type or handwrite a thank you note. You can also use this opportunity to add other nice touches – attach an article that addresses a topic you discussed, or pass along information of interest that was uncovered during the interview. Your follow up should indicate:

1) You were attentive. Include details about what you learned in the interview – about the company, or industry.
2) You are excited about the company and want the job.
3) You have the skills/experience to contribute to their goals/outlined major projects.
4) You were listening and understood the importance of the interviewer’s comments.

Quick tips:
1) Mention names of the people that you met and any topics that solicited general interest.
2) Was there a particular topic that seemed to be a bonding moment? Include it in your letter.
3) Express appreciation for the interviewer’s time.
4) Do you want the job? Many fail to make the close. Ask for the job in a professional, positive manner.
5) Show enthusiasm for the company and the job!
6) Don’t be afraid to sound confident (talk about the challenges and how you will meet them; let the interviewer know that you will do well).
7) Even if you do not want the job, you still want an offer so follow the same protocol. At the very least, you have made an important new contact.

Good Phrases to include:
“Upon reflection…”
“I recognize the importance of…”
“Listening to your thoughts on….”

Keep the letter short, less than one page is sufficient. Add this tactic to your job search tool kit and you will not only be successful but well thought of in the process.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 2:38 AM

The Power of Networking

In today’s competitive job market, candidates must have a multi-prong search strategy. It is not enough to simply post a resume online, or answer ads in the newspaper. One tactic that is grossly under utilized is networking. With the proliferation of online communication, today’s job seeker has failed to grasp the importance of the personal connection. We sometimes joke about deals made on the golf course, or sales closed over dinner but believe it or not, even in today’s techno environment, this still holds true. A large percentage of jobs are never publicized. They are filled through an internal network. Sometimes jobs are even created based on the strength of a personal contact. So, what can you do to take advantage of this job search tactic?

•Keep your resume updated. Even if you are not in the active job market, be prepared for the opportunity that may come your way through casual contact. You never know whom you might meet in the checkout line, at your child’s soccer game or on an airline flight.

•If you are actively seeking a job, tell people! Spend some time each week, reviewing your contacts. Call or email them letting them know you’re in the job market. Briefly state your skills and your desired position and ASK if they know of anyone who might be looking for someone with your background.

•When you receive a lead from a contact, follow-up and let them know the result. Be sure to thank them for their help.

•Is there a company for which you’d love to work? Contact them! You do not have to wait for a posting or open position. If you do not have a personal contact at the company, do your homework. Find out the name of the hiring manager(s) for your position of interest. There are a number of approaches that you can use: job shadowing, mentoring, take them to lunch or coffee to gain their expertise on the job market. Can’t get to the hiring manager? Try another avenue such as sales representatives.

•Attend organizational meetings. Meetings are a great way to make solid contacts if done properly. Don’t simply go to the meeting armed with business cards. Obtain a list of attendees in advance. Identify the people that you would like to meet – don’t forget those that might supply to your industry. Once you’ve identified your key contacts for the evening, do some upfront research to find out more about them and the company they represent. Armed with your “target” list and background info, you are now prepared to effectively network.

•Follow-up immediately. Once you have made a contact, do follow-up at once. Drop a note in the mail, call and schedule a time to meet for coffee (or tea), or follow-up by email. Include your resume in written correspondence.

•Maintain contacts. Share information, make referrals, and maintain your network even if you are not in the job market. The extra effort is well worth it especially when it leads to you finding the job of your dreams!
In today’s competitive job market, candidates must have a multi-prong search strategy. It is not enough to simply post a resume online, or answer ads in the newspaper. One tactic that is grossly under utilized is networking. With the proliferation of online communication, today’s job seeker has failed to grasp the importance of the personal connection. We sometimes joke about deals made on the golf course, or sales closed over dinner but believe it or not, even in today’s techno environment, this still holds true. A large percentage of jobs are never publicized. They are filled through an internal network. Sometimes jobs are even created based on the strength of a personal contact. So, what can you do to take advantage of this job search tactic?

•Keep your resume updated. Even if you are not in the active job market, be prepared for the opportunity that may come your way through casual contact. You never know whom you might meet in the checkout line, at your child’s soccer game or on an airline flight.

•If you are actively seeking a job, tell people! Spend some time each week, reviewing your contacts. Call or email them letting them know you’re in the job market. Briefly state your skills and your desired position and ASK if they know of anyone who might be looking for someone with your background.

•When you receive a lead from a contact, follow-up and let them know the result. Be sure to thank them for their help.

•Is there a company for which you’d love to work? Contact them! You do not have to wait for a posting or open position. If you do not have a personal contact at the company, do your homework. Find out the name of the hiring manager(s) for your position of interest. There are a number of approaches that you can use: job shadowing, mentoring, take them to lunch or coffee to gain their expertise on the job market. Can’t get to the hiring manager? Try another avenue such as sales representatives.

•Attend organizational meetings. Meetings are a great way to make solid contacts if done properly. Don’t simply go to the meeting armed with business cards. Obtain a list of attendees in advance. Identify the people that you would like to meet – don’t forget those that might supply to your industry. Once you’ve identified your key contacts for the evening, do some upfront research to find out more about them and the company they represent. Armed with your “target” list and background info, you are now prepared to effectively network.

•Follow-up immediately. Once you have made a contact, do follow-up at once. Drop a note in the mail, call and schedule a time to meet for coffee (or tea), or follow-up by email. Include your resume in written correspondence.

•Maintain contacts. Share information, make referrals, and maintain your network even if you are not in the job market. The extra effort is well worth it especially when it leads to you finding the job of your dreams!

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 2:37 AM

Finance Job Interview Tips - Financial Careers Advice

The best bit of advice you can offer anyone going for a finance job interview is to be prepared. The time you put into preparation will have a direct relationship with how well you perform in the interview and how likely you are to get the job.

Firstly, find out as much about the company as you can in advance. The more you know about the potential employer the better. You can never know too much and it will help in two ways. You will show you are an observant individual with an outwardly looking understanding of the industry and the knowledge you have learnt will show you know what you are talking about. Secondly it will also show that you have researched the company. This time commitment of the research also shows how keen you are on the position. Any recruiter is always going to appreciate pro-active candidates who show that they are keen to get the job.

Think in advance what questions they are likely to ask. Many financial job interviews follow a similar pattern, so think ahead about what they might ask. Draw up a mind map using both you CV and the job advertisement to decide topics. You won’t need scripted answers but the more time you have to think about answers the more likely you answer is to be what they are looking for. A few bullet points will give you a head start over the other less well prepared candidates.

Visualise your success. You can never underestimate the power of positive thinking. The worst that can come out of a financial job interview is you don’t get the job. You didn’t have a job when you entered the room so it shouldn’t be the end of the world if you leave the room without it. Understanding this and assuming you will do well can work wonders.

It is impossible to avoid tough questions; though as many financial job interviews are similar there are plenty of things you can bear in mind to avoid any unnecessary heart ache. It’s usually safe to assume the interviewers might adopt a “good cop/bad cop” dynamic even if it isn’t deliberate. By expecting this you can learn to respond to questions in they way the interviewer will expect and show how capable you are of dealing with difficult people.

If you aren’t sure how to answer a tough question, ask a follow up question. It will show a keen-ness to answer the question but buy you a little more thinking time. If you still don’t know the answers they want to hear don’t be afraid to admit it. It can look much worse if you answer incorrectly than admitting you don’t know.

If you are facing a tough round of questioning in your job interview it’s easy to ramble and forget to actually answer the question. So be careful not to lose your thread. If they notice you aren’t actually answering their questions they will think you are at best evasive and at worse out of your depth.

There is plenty to be gained from asking good questions in job interviews, it will show you are interested in the role and show you are curious to learn more. One good question to ask is about what they think the best and worse aspects to the job role. Asking questions like this enable you to gain a better understanding of the role.

Another good and unusual question to ask is about the company’s work culture. It shows you have an understanding of the work environment you feel most comfortable in. Similarly it shows a desire to understand more about the company beyond the jobs description.
The best bit of advice you can offer anyone going for a finance job interview is to be prepared. The time you put into preparation will have a direct relationship with how well you perform in the interview and how likely you are to get the job.

Firstly, find out as much about the company as you can in advance. The more you know about the potential employer the better. You can never know too much and it will help in two ways. You will show you are an observant individual with an outwardly looking understanding of the industry and the knowledge you have learnt will show you know what you are talking about. Secondly it will also show that you have researched the company. This time commitment of the research also shows how keen you are on the position. Any recruiter is always going to appreciate pro-active candidates who show that they are keen to get the job.

Think in advance what questions they are likely to ask. Many financial job interviews follow a similar pattern, so think ahead about what they might ask. Draw up a mind map using both you CV and the job advertisement to decide topics. You won’t need scripted answers but the more time you have to think about answers the more likely you answer is to be what they are looking for. A few bullet points will give you a head start over the other less well prepared candidates.

Visualise your success. You can never underestimate the power of positive thinking. The worst that can come out of a financial job interview is you don’t get the job. You didn’t have a job when you entered the room so it shouldn’t be the end of the world if you leave the room without it. Understanding this and assuming you will do well can work wonders.

It is impossible to avoid tough questions; though as many financial job interviews are similar there are plenty of things you can bear in mind to avoid any unnecessary heart ache. It’s usually safe to assume the interviewers might adopt a “good cop/bad cop” dynamic even if it isn’t deliberate. By expecting this you can learn to respond to questions in they way the interviewer will expect and show how capable you are of dealing with difficult people.

If you aren’t sure how to answer a tough question, ask a follow up question. It will show a keen-ness to answer the question but buy you a little more thinking time. If you still don’t know the answers they want to hear don’t be afraid to admit it. It can look much worse if you answer incorrectly than admitting you don’t know.

If you are facing a tough round of questioning in your job interview it’s easy to ramble and forget to actually answer the question. So be careful not to lose your thread. If they notice you aren’t actually answering their questions they will think you are at best evasive and at worse out of your depth.

There is plenty to be gained from asking good questions in job interviews, it will show you are interested in the role and show you are curious to learn more. One good question to ask is about what they think the best and worse aspects to the job role. Asking questions like this enable you to gain a better understanding of the role.

Another good and unusual question to ask is about the company’s work culture. It shows you have an understanding of the work environment you feel most comfortable in. Similarly it shows a desire to understand more about the company beyond the jobs description.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 2:37 AM

CeMAP Training Syllabus

The CeMAP syllabus is much more wide ranging than most people expect with the broadest syllabus being in the CeMAP 1 exam. CeMAP 1 actually covers most of the financial services industry in a summary form to give the student a general understanding of the industry. This is obviously useful to the CeMAP student who is totally inexperienced in the financial services industry, but it can come as a surprise to people who think that CeMAP training is all about mortgages and nothing else.

The CeMAP 1 syllabus also covers in some depth, the financial services regulatory environment, and how the legal framework for the financial services industry has been developed over time. This includes the impact of the European Union on the regulation of the industry and continues right through to the role of the Financial Services Authority in regulation.

CeMAP training for the module 1 exam will also cover the wide range of benefits that are available for people including a range from those who are unemployed right through to people who are retired. This information may seem strange in a CeMAP exam, but it does give the student a well rounded understanding of the financial market place.

The syllabus for CeMAP 1 also includes the classification of financial assets so that the student can understand the different types of asset that customers may hold and the impact these can have on their financial circumstances.

In total, CeMAP training for the module 1 exam only contains approximately 10% of information relevant to the mortgage industry directly.

CeMAP 2 is the module that is generally mortgage related, although even this module does contain elements that are only loosely connected to mortgages directly. The CeMAP training syllabus for the module 2 exam is broken into 4 units i.e.

Unit 3 which is Mortgage Law, Policy, Practice and Markets.

Unit 4 which covers the Mortgage Application process.

Unit 5 which describes Mortgage Payment Methods.

And Unit 6 which is Mortgage Arrears and Post Completion Matters.

Some examples of the CeMAP 2 syllabus include all of the different mortgage products for example fixed rate, standard variable rate, or discount rate mortgages. Different repayment methods are also described including the use of Pension Plans, ISA’s, and other investment products.

The mortgage application process is covered in great detail in CeMAP training for the Unit 4 exam because this is a major area of activity once the student has qualified. This unit includes such areas as assessing the status of a prospective borrower to ensure that they are eligible to borrow. It also looks at the security for the loan, in this case the property that the mortgage is being considered for. CeMAP training also covers the different types of insurance that the borrower may need, for example life cover, critical illness cover, or even buildings and contents insurance.

CeMAP 3 then takes the CeMAP 2 syllabus and uses case study type questions to explore in more depth the student’s knowledge of the subject. By setting up simulations of real life situations, the CeMAP 3 exam gives a very thorough assessment of the student, and this is a very thought provoking exam.

To conclude, as you can see CeMAP training covers a wide range of topics which is why it is vital to ensure that the student is able to study fully and comprehensively. This means that the knowledge will be complete and the student will have the best prospects for passing the three CeMAP exams. To try and rush through the learning experience is likely to result in gaps in knowledge that can only lead to problems in the future. To find out more about CeMAP training from home simply click on the link. Remember that the syllabus is broad reaching and a comprehensive course will provide you with the knowledge you need to pass the exams.
The CeMAP syllabus is much more wide ranging than most people expect with the broadest syllabus being in the CeMAP 1 exam. CeMAP 1 actually covers most of the financial services industry in a summary form to give the student a general understanding of the industry. This is obviously useful to the CeMAP student who is totally inexperienced in the financial services industry, but it can come as a surprise to people who think that CeMAP training is all about mortgages and nothing else.

The CeMAP 1 syllabus also covers in some depth, the financial services regulatory environment, and how the legal framework for the financial services industry has been developed over time. This includes the impact of the European Union on the regulation of the industry and continues right through to the role of the Financial Services Authority in regulation.

CeMAP training for the module 1 exam will also cover the wide range of benefits that are available for people including a range from those who are unemployed right through to people who are retired. This information may seem strange in a CeMAP exam, but it does give the student a well rounded understanding of the financial market place.

The syllabus for CeMAP 1 also includes the classification of financial assets so that the student can understand the different types of asset that customers may hold and the impact these can have on their financial circumstances.

In total, CeMAP training for the module 1 exam only contains approximately 10% of information relevant to the mortgage industry directly.

CeMAP 2 is the module that is generally mortgage related, although even this module does contain elements that are only loosely connected to mortgages directly. The CeMAP training syllabus for the module 2 exam is broken into 4 units i.e.

Unit 3 which is Mortgage Law, Policy, Practice and Markets.

Unit 4 which covers the Mortgage Application process.

Unit 5 which describes Mortgage Payment Methods.

And Unit 6 which is Mortgage Arrears and Post Completion Matters.

Some examples of the CeMAP 2 syllabus include all of the different mortgage products for example fixed rate, standard variable rate, or discount rate mortgages. Different repayment methods are also described including the use of Pension Plans, ISA’s, and other investment products.

The mortgage application process is covered in great detail in CeMAP training for the Unit 4 exam because this is a major area of activity once the student has qualified. This unit includes such areas as assessing the status of a prospective borrower to ensure that they are eligible to borrow. It also looks at the security for the loan, in this case the property that the mortgage is being considered for. CeMAP training also covers the different types of insurance that the borrower may need, for example life cover, critical illness cover, or even buildings and contents insurance.

CeMAP 3 then takes the CeMAP 2 syllabus and uses case study type questions to explore in more depth the student’s knowledge of the subject. By setting up simulations of real life situations, the CeMAP 3 exam gives a very thorough assessment of the student, and this is a very thought provoking exam.

To conclude, as you can see CeMAP training covers a wide range of topics which is why it is vital to ensure that the student is able to study fully and comprehensively. This means that the knowledge will be complete and the student will have the best prospects for passing the three CeMAP exams. To try and rush through the learning experience is likely to result in gaps in knowledge that can only lead to problems in the future. To find out more about CeMAP training from home simply click on the link. Remember that the syllabus is broad reaching and a comprehensive course will provide you with the knowledge you need to pass the exams.

posted by zzzzzzzzzzz at 2:36 AM