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Searching for a new job or career? Our Career Center's free career counseling services can help.
The Career Center, based in Cuyahoga County Public Library's Maple Heights Branch and formerly known as InfoPLACE, is a nationally recognized Adult Career Planning Resource Center. The Career Counselors are available to meet with job seekers at the Maple Heights Branch and a few of our other branches. Call (216) 475-2225 for other locations. In operation since 1976, its comprehensive service is on the cutting edge of meeting the needs of adults in career transition or job search in a turbulent time. We provide guidance to adults in career decision-making, constructing effective résumés, job searching strategies, interview preparation, and education and training. Please call (216) 475-2225 for an appointment with a counselor if you would like assistance with making a career change, career decision/testing, or preparation for an upcoming interview. Call for locations. If you would like a counselor to review your résumé and cover letter before you send it to prospective employers, you may email it or drop it off at our office. We can help you with online job searching on a first come-first serve basis.
Our Career Counselors facilitate several job clubs in branches of the Cuyahoga County Public Library. Join them for support and networking opportunities with job search tips. They are open to all who are out of work or changing careers.
Cuyahoga County Public Library also offers Optimal Resume, a résumé program which will aid you in producing a professional-looking résumé. To begin, enter the access code cuyac into the blank line and click on continue. Fill out your User Profile that will be the heading of your résumé and follow the directions about choosing section headings to create a great résumé.
Do you need information on how to put together your resume? Try our new Career Center booklet titled Writing an Effective Resume.
Access the Job Hunting Resources: A Selected List of Books, Websites & Agencies pamphlet to find recommended sources to help you in your job search.
More about the Career Center
Contact us
Finally! You got an offer. Now what? Should you accept it? Here are some factors to consider:
•Say thank you and be enthusiastic about working for the company. Tell them you need a little time to read over their offer before accepting. Set a time limit– "I'll get back to you by 3:00 tomorrow" for example. Do you have to submit to a drug screening or a background check?
•How much bargaining power do you have? If you are currently employed, you have more bargaining power than someone who is unemployed. Do you have time to keep looking if this isn't quite the right fit for you? Are you still collecting unemployment or severance? Do you see youself at this company long-term? Are you aware of who the other candidates are? They may have someone else who can step into the job as well as you can.
•Look at the big picture. Consider factors like chance for growth and advancement, amount of challenge there is in the job, the salary and whether it is competitive in the market, the benefits package, the length of the commute, and any other intangible items that might apply. Do they offer child care? What is the company culture? Are you eligible for a bonus? Do they cover expenses you need covered (uniforms, tools, travel, etc.)
• Find a win-win soltuion. You need to come to a compromise that will benefit both you and the organization.
•Justify your request. Don't give personal reasons like your mortgage payments of debts you need to pay. Show you have the skills and the abilities to help them raise revenue or solve their problems.
A couple of websites for checking on salaries for an assortment of jobs are:
Salary.com
Indeed.com
This website has some good general information for you on hiring practices of organizations in the state of Ohio. They offer some general information on what companies are allowed to ask about and what they are not, what should included in an employee handbook, employee safety, wrongful termination and sexual harassment.
NEW BOOKS!
by Michael Farr
List of major jobs with the most openings.
Check Out
by heather Krasna
How to find a career in public service
by Catherine Jewell
Advice for career changers
by
An insider's guide to careers in fashion.
by Roy Cohen
Practical advice for anyone entering the financial industry
by John E. Nelson
How to plan a prosperous, heatlhy, and happy future.
The Career Center staff has some exciting workshops that we think will be really helpful to all of you job hunters and career changers out there. Registration is requested. Please plan to join us! Be prepared for hiring this year.
If you're thinking of starting your own business, the library is offering lots of great workshops run by experts in some of our local business groups. Check out our brochure, Smart Business at Your Library, for a listing of our Fall offerings.
The Summer Career Workshops brochure is now available at all Cuyahoga County Public Library branches.
Parma Heights Branch 7:00/Thursday/September 9
Berea Branch 7:00 p.m./Monday/September 27
North Royalton Branch 7:00 p.m./Monday/October 4
Brook Park Branch 7:00 p.m./Tuesday/October 12
Parma Snow Branch 7:00 p.m./Thursday/November 18
View all Career Events
Our Career Counselors facilitate several Job Clubs at different library branches:
Beachwood Branch 2nd & 4th Monday mornings 9:30 - 11:00 a.m. Career Counselor N. Maureen Paulett
Fairview Park Branch Every Thursday afternoon 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. Career Counselor Jim Hansen
Maple Heights Branch Every Thursday morning 9:30 - 11:00 a.m. Career Counselor Jim Hansen
North Olmsted Branch Every Tuesday afternoon 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. Career Counselor Jim Hansen
Join a group for helpful tips on résumés, job search strategies and interviewing while sharing your experiences with others in a supportive atmosphere.
NEO-EXEC Helpful websites and Northeast Ohio Job Clubs for executives and professionals.
Job Club Listing for Northeast Ohio
Cleveland Hires
Doubletree Hotel Cleveland South 6200 Quarry Lane Independence, OH 44131 Friday, August 20/11:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Recruit Military - Opportunity EXPO
Progressive Field (Home of the Cleveland Indians) 2401 Ontario Street Cleveland, OH 44115 Thursday, October 14/11:00 a.m. - 3:p.m.
Cleveland's Biggest Career Fair in Partnership w/AARP
I-X Center 1 I-X Center Drive Cleveland, OH 44135 Friday, October 15/9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
COSE Small Business Conference
I-X Center 1 I-X Center Drive Cleveland, OH 44135 Wednesday & Thursday October 21 & 22 216.592.2222cosesbc@cose.org
C.S.U. Career Services Center Fall Career Fair
Cleveland State University Woodling Gym/Physical Education Bldg. 2451 Euclid Avenue Cleveland, OH 44115 Friday, October 22/9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
The Survival Guide is a referral source for those facing unemployment and underemployment problems. It is a compilation of agencies in Greater Cleveland offering career counseling, job search instruction, placement and training, legal and financial assistance, and special services to people with disabilities and veterans.
Some of the major agencies offering assistance to dislocated and underemployed workers in the Cleveland area are:
If you need further information about the guide, contact Cuyahoga County Public Library's Career Center at 216-475-2225.
Online SURVIVAL GUIDE here
Stop searching and start finding! Search through our premium subscription-only online resource databases related to Careers.
An important step in the job search process is finding information about the organizations for which you want to work. The Cuyahoga County Public Library provides database resources with reliable, up-to-date directories of companies giving the address, telephone number, financial data (if the company is public), type of business, chief officers of the company, and, perhaps, magazine articles about the company. Your major purposes in checking out the companies to which you are applying are:
To find these databases, check out the Premium Career Electronic Resources under Online Resources on the Career Information Page. The suggested electronic resources for company research are:
Check out the Company Research link under Online Resources above on this page for websites with company information.
Other sources for finding best companies to work for are:
Print off one of the inventories and answer the questions to help you assess your strengths. If you have questions on interpretation, call the Career Center (216.475.2225) to make an appointment with a career counselor.
Adult Balanced Life Enhancement Inventory Provides a framework for achieving meaning and balance in your adult life.
Adult Reinvestment for Retirement/Occupational Well-Being Helps you to answer the question of how to spend your time in your retirement.
Core Adult Career Transition Inventory Aids you in deciding what the next step in your career should be. Should you look for a job in the same field or are your ready for a career change?
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