- Do you have an interest in helping
someone who is beginning his/her career or making a career
change?
- With your knowledge and experience, have
you ever felt that you would make a good role model or coach for a
student or fellow alum?
- Looking back to when you were just
starting out, do you wish you had someone to provide you with
guidance specific to your career aspirations?
If you answered "YES" to any of these
questions, then serving as a COACH is for you!
The COACH program is housed on
MonsterTRAK (an Internet site hosting the Career Center's full-time
job postings and On Campus Recruiting Program.) This site is
comprised of alumni from SJU and other colleges, representing
diverse career fields, who have offered to share their career
experiences with students and other alumni. To serve as a COACH, we
ask that you register on this site.
Benefits of Becomming a COACH
Often, the best, most inspiring advice
comes from listening to the personal experiences of others.
Communicating with a professional can provide realistic information
about career options, job responsibilities, and employment
conditions. This program is:
- A fulfilling way to assist SJU students
and fellow alumni who need career information and
advice
- Your chance to become a role model for
others regarding their career
- A great way to "give back" to the
University
What to Expect as a
COACH
St. John's
students and alumni, who have registered, search a site for a list
of COACHes and may contact you according to the method you indicate
when you register. One meeting
with your protégé may be sufficient to answer questions or, a
relationship may develop allowing you to address concerns by
listening and offering advice.
As a COACH, you
will be able to set your own limit as far as involvement. Also, a
member of the Career Center may contact you to ask if you would
like to share your expertise before a group of
students.
Meeting with your Protégé
COACHes usually invite their protégé's to
meet at their place of employment, either for an hour visit or a
day of job shadowing. If such a visit is not possible, meetings
have taken place on the SJU campus, or at a restaurant or coffee
shop. As
protégé's will be conducting an informational interview with you,
they are likely to ask questions about your career field,
organization and past experiences including:
- Types of
positions most often found in your career field and the job
outlook
- Education and
skills needed to perform the job
- Pros and cons of
the field
- Description of
present position and related responsibilities
- Description of
typical career path from entry level to top
management
- Other: Resume
critique, job-seeking tactics, and names of other professionals in
the field
Suggestions for your Meeting
- Give your protégé
an indication of what your job involves in general and on a daily
basis
- Give an overview
of the hiring practices in your field. Please suggest areas where
the protégé's background/training may be lacking (e.g.,
internships, courses, skills)
- Suggest alternate
paths to reaching your position or entering this
field
- The protégé will
be aware that the purpose of this program is not to ask you for a
job. However, if you are aware of job opportunities, please feel
free to mention them
- Mention anything
that you believe will help to improve the protégé's prospects
during the job search and interviewing process
How to Register to Become a
COACH
- Go to MonsterTRAK
- ClickStudents/Alums
- Click
on NY State
- Scroll down and
select St. John's University and hit Click
Here(If prompted, type in "storm" as the college
password)
- Select
COACH
- Click
Register
- Choose
St. John's University (or St. John's University,
MBA Program - or both)
- Create your
profile
If you have any
questions or concerns about your participation, or if it would be
more convenient for The Career Center to enter this information for
you, please contact us at coach@stjohns.edu or
(718) 990-6375.
Mentoring Resources
The Art of Mentoring: Lead, follow and
get out of the way. Shirley Peddy. Learning Connections,
1999.
Mentoring. Gordon F. Shea. Crisp
Publications, 1997.
Mentoring: Confidence in finding a mentor
and becoming one. Bobb Biehl. Broadman & Holman Publishers,
1997.