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The Career Expert

The Career Expert

The Career Center

Library Career Center


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.  Check out our page on Facebook.

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.

Job Clubs with Career Counselors

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.

Résumé Assistance

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.

Resources

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

  • CAREER COUNSELOR:  James Hansen,
    M.S., Counseling; Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, (LPCC)
  • CAREER COUNSELOR:  N. Maureen Paulett
    M.Ed., Rehabilitation Counseling, Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, (CRC)
  • CAREER COUNSELOR:  Elizabeth Wilson,
    M.Ed., Rehabilitation Counseling, Certified Rehabilitation Counselor, (CRC)
    Certified Family Life Educator, (CFLE)
  • LIBRARIAN:  Bonnie Easton,
    Master in Library Science (M.L.S.)
  • PUBLIC SERVICES ASSISTANT:  Anthony Furino

Contact us

Latest WebLog

The Career Information Expert Blog

Job Scams-Again

 Permanent link

 

Yes, I have blogged about job scams several times, but I worry about you.  Remember what Mom taught us?  If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.  Well, this advice we should follow.  A recent article in Monster's newsletter talks about an assortment of schemes that kpb scammers are using today.

  1. Money-laundering scams.  The job offers as much as $2000 a day to process checks for foreign nationals.  They will then ask for your bank account number and personal information.  The end result is they use your account to launder money and you are responsible.  You could end up in jail for 20 years.
  2. Reshipping scams.  A company asks you to reship items.  You actually are receiving stolen goods–frequently consumer electronics.  You may end up paying the shipping charges and even the cost of the goods purchased online with stolen credit cards.
  3. Pre-pay/Work at home scams.  Don't fall for the "be your own boss" or "make money quickly" gimmicks.  You will be asked to put up your own money first and then never hear from the company again.  Check out the website Rat Race Rebellion for more legitimate possibilities to work at home.

How do you protect yourself?

  • If the company isn't even bothering with a phone interview, it probably is not legitimate.  Is it an actual job offer, or is it just an email offer?  Try to check out the company to make sure it has a real street address and phone number that you can contact before replying to them.
  • Never put your social security or national ID number, credit card number, bank account number or any type of sensitive personal identification data in your resume.  Make sure it is a legitimate company with a legitimate job posting even if they say it's just a "routine background check." 
  • Do not engage in any transaction in which you requested to transfer or exchange currency or funds to a prospective employer.  Do not put up any money up-front.
  • Be cautious when dealing with individuals/companies from outside your own country.

 

Posted by JOBMAINT at 11/20/2009 10:20 AM
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Career Paths for You!

Jobs for the Future

A new book titled 200 Best Jobs for Renewing America just arrived on our shelves.  It covers the best jobs in green technology, healthcare, and information technology.  As author Laurence Shatkin, Ph.D., explains, this is a time when we are being faced with all kinds of challenges.  The jobs he lists are those that will offer the best pay and the most opportunities in the six industries that are likely to grow as we dig out of this recession.  The industries he lists are Education, Infrastructure, Health Care, Information and Telecommunication Technologies, Green Technologies, and Advanced Manufacturing. 

The top 10 jobs in all renewable industries are:

  1. Computer Software Engineers, Applications
  2. Computer Systems Analysts
  3. Computer Software Engineers, Systems Software
  4. Network Systems & Data Communications Analysts
  5. Registered Nurses
  6. Network & Computer Systems Administrators
  7. Health Specialties Teachers
  8. Physicians & Surgeons
  9. Computer & Information Systems Managers
  10. Physical Therapists

Career Search

Networking and Other Stuff

Internet Your Way to a New Job-- Book cover and link to catalog

Internet Your Way to a New Job

by Alison Doyle

Career expert shows you how to find a job online.

Check Out

Job-Hunter's Survival Guide-- Book cover and link to catalog

Job-Hunter's Survival Guide

by Richard N. Bolles

Find work when there are no jobs.

Check Out

Leave Your Nose Ring at Home-- Book cover and link to catalog

Leave Your Nose Ring at Home

by Joe Swinger

Help in making a powerful first impression

Check Out

My Workbook-- Book cover and link to catalog

My Workbook

by Zelda Freud

Find a job and survive your first year in the workplace.

Check Out

Sams Teach Yourself LinkedIn in 10 Minutes-- Book cover and link to catalog

Sams Teach Yourself LinkedIn in 10 Minutes

by Patrice-Anne Rutledge

Tips and shortcuts to using LinkedIn

Check Out

See All Books

Workshops, Job Clubs & Job Fairs 

 

Career Center Workshops

2010 Winter Quarter Workshops now added.

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 required.  Please plan to join us! 

Career Counselor Beth Wilson will be conducting six Resume Clinics this fall.  Three will be at our tech center in the Maple Heights Branch and three at our Parma Ridge Branch tech center.  Join her to learn how to use the Microsoft Word 2007 resume templates and walk away with a ready-to-use resume.  Register online or with the branch because space is limited.

Career Specialist Bonnie Easton will be introducing a new workshop on Online Job Applications for those of you who are having trouble with those pesky forms.  No two applications are alike.  We'll show you how to upload your resume as well as how to copy and paste your resume into an application.  Join us at the Maple Heights Branch on November 18 at 1:45 p.m.  Register because space is limited.  More of the online job application classes will be coming in the Winter 2010 quarter.

 

Basic Computer Skills for Job Hunters

  • Brooklyn Branch
    7:00 - 8:45 p.m./Wednesday/January 13
  • Independence Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Wednesday/March 3

Behavior-Based Interviewing Techniques

  • Independence Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Thursday/December 3
  • Mayfield Branch
    6:30 - 8:30p.m./Thursday/December 10
  • North Olmsted
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Tuesday/January 26

 

Career Planning

  • Brecksville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Wednesday/February 24

  • Parma Snow Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Tuesday/March 2

  • Strongsville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Tursday/March 4

 

Internet Job Search

  • Maple Heights Branch
    10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m./Saturday/January 23
  • Parma Ridge Branch
    7:00 - 8:30 p.m./Thursday/March 18

 

Networking

  • North Olmsted Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Tuesday/January 19
  • Brecksville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./March 3
  • Parma Snow Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Monday/March 22

 

The New Job Search

  • Fairview Park Branch
    6:45 - 8:45 p.m./Monday/December 7
  • Brecksville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Wednesday/February 17
  • Garfield Heights Branch
    7:00 - 8:30 p.m./Thursday/February 17

 

Online Job Applications

  • Parma Ridge Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Thursday/January 14
  • Maple Heights Branch
    1:45 - 3:15 p.m./Wednesday/January 20
  • Parma Ridge Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Thursday/February 11
  • Strongsville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Thursday/Marcdh 18
  • Maple Heights Branch
    1:45 - 3:15 p.m./Tuesday/March 23

 

Over 50 & Out of Work

  • Parma Ridge Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Tuesday/December 8
  • North Royalton Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Monday/January 4
  • Middleburg Heights Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Monday/February 15
  • Fairview Park Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Monday/March 16

 

Resumes & Cover Letters

  • North Olmsted Branch
    6:30 - 8:30 p.m./Tuesday/January 12
  • Strongsville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Thursday/March 11

 

Resume Clinics

  • Parma Ridge Branch
    1:15 - 3:15 p.m./Tuesday/December 15
  • Maple Heights Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Wednesday/December 30

Social Networking & Your Job Search

  • Fairview Park Branch
    7:00 - 8:30 p.m./Monday/December 14
  • Independence Branch
    7:00 - 8:45 p.m./Wednesday/February 3
  • Strongsville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Thursday/March 25

 

Your Resume & Job Search Strategy

  • Brecksville Branch
    1:30 - 3:30 p.m./Wednesday/March 10

 

View all Career Events

 

 JOB CLUBS & NETWORKING GROUPS

Our Career Counselors facilitate several Job Clubs at different library branches:

Brooklyn Branch
1st & 3rd Tuesday afternoon 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.
6 sessions from January 5 to March 16
Career Counselor Elizabeth Wilson

Beachwood Branch
2nd & 4th Monday mornings 9:30 - 11:00 a.m.
Career Counselor N. Maureen Paulett

North Olmsted Branch
2nd & 4th Wednesday afternoons 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

Fairview Park Branch
Every Thursday 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.


Join the members from all job clubs on LinkedIn for the latest job search tips and news.

 

NEO-EXEC 
Helpful websites and Northeast Ohio Job Clubs for executives and professionals.

Job Club Listing for Northeast Ohio

CAREER FAIRS

 

 

Survival Guide

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:

 

 Bureau of Apprenticeship & Training
 Cleveland Scholarship Program
 Cuyahoga Community College
 Employment Connection 
 First Call for Help
 Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland
 Cuyahoga County Public Library Career Center
 Bureau of Vocational Rehabilitation
 Ohio Department of Jobs & Family Services
 Unemployment Compensation
 Senior Employment Center

If you need further information about the guide, contact Cuyahoga County Public Library's Career Center at 216-475-2225.

    Online SURVIVAL GUIDE here 

Premium Research Services

The Find EngineStop searching and start
finding! Search through our
premium subscription-only
online resource databases related to Careers.

 

Company Research

Check out the Fortune Magazine list of Best Companies to Work For in 2009!

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 determine what the corporate culture of the organization is.  Will you like working here?  Do they have a sound financial future?
  • To give yourself a competitive edge in the interview process.  If you do a little homework about the company and the industry, you will impress prospective employers.  You will want to know the size of the company and whether it is public or private, products and services offered, the target market, a general company history, its main competitors, and financial information (if the company is public).

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:

  • Business and Company Resource Center
  • Business Source Premier
  • Dun & Bradstreet Million Dollar Database Premier
  • Mergent Online
  • ReferenceUSA Employers
  • Standard & Poor's Net Advantage

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:

 

Personal Inventories

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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