Surviving
Your Post-doctoral Job Hunt
Part III: Build a Professional Network
to
Uncover Hidden Employment Opportunities
by John T. Carlsen, Psy.D.
What gets in the way of starting your post-doctoral job hunt?
Maybe you just started your internship a few months
back. . . and have only now
begun to settle into your routine. Your dissertation hangs somewhere between proposal and
defense. You have a challenging caseload and plenty of responsibility to keep
you occupied. For now, you feel content simply to focus on managing
what is right in front of you. The prospect of thinking about your
post-doctoral job hunt now seems too overwhelming even to contemplate.
Or, you finished your internship a short while
ago and are hard at work
finishing your dissertation. You have sent out a few (or several) resumes and continue to
check out the job listings on your state association’s website.
Unfortunately, you have not had much luck in hearing back from prospective
employers. Yet, because you have no trust fund and your partner or spouse has
grown tired of the whole family, you feel desperate to find stable employment
over the next few months in order to keep the peace.
So, when - and how - should you get started?
Recognize the Importance of Building a Professional Network
Actually, whether you
are currently an intern or a recent graduate, there is no time like the
present to start developing this job-hunting skill. If you are like most current interns, you feel tempted to focus exclusively
on what is right in front of you and leave the future in the hands of fate ("I'll
deal with finding a job when the time gets closer."). You might know yourself as
someone who prefers to wait until the last minute to get things done. You say
that you need the pressure of deadlines to motivate yourself in trying to
finish - or even start - a new project.
On the other hand, if you are like most recent
graduates, you are kicking yourself for not having started this
job-hunting process sooner. After all, in glancing over the employment ads in The
Monitor or your local newspaper, you have probably come to realize that
finding employment in this profession differs dramatically from the ways you
have looked for jobs in the past: A professional job hunt takes place at a
much higher level of complexity than simply filling out applications or
answering classified ads. And, contrary to your hopes, no formally-structured arrangement
exists - like that of applying for practicum and internship training - that
will help you in finding your post-doctoral internship/job.
Essentially, you are on your own for this one.
The fact is, few structured post-doctoral positions
even exist. Those that are available are
publicized either in classified ads or announcements on graduate school bulletin boards.
Most other advertised positions, however, including academic or research positions, will
not count toward meeting your state licensing requirement for post-doctoral
supervised clinical work. In general, post-doctoral employment consists of a
standard clinical position in an agency that has clinical supervision
available from a licensed psychologist on staff.
Unfortunately, when you move on to
internship, you began the separation from your school and became an employee
of your new training site - at least for your internship year. Thus, unless
your school offers post-graduate job placement services, its role in your
career is largely complete, aside from scheduling your dissertation defense
and graduation ceremony. They might offer a seminar on writing resumes
and CV's or interviewing skills, but little else. Your greatest hope for
assistance from your graduate school is from providing you with contact
information for alumni as you build your professional network.
Moreover, few internship supervisors have the time or the inclination to
help you find another job after you complete their training program. So,
unlike in years past, you are very unlikely to have supervisors who take
initiative in helping your to find a post-doctoral job, unless a full-time
position opens in the agency where you completed internship. As I stated
earlier, you are essentially on your own for this one..
But, fear not.
Regardless of how you have found jobs before, you can develop the skills
you need to succeed in this phase of your career. By building a professional
network to assist you in uncovering job possibilities, you increase these
chances significantly And, by beginning the process of building it right now,
you will dramatically increase your chances of early success. If you are still
completing your internship, you can get a head start in this process by
starting it long before finishing this year.
Even if you have already completed your internship or graduated, you will
still benefit from investing the time necessary to make this process work.
After all, your post-doctoral job hunt is only the first of many positions you
will have during your career. If you learn to build and cultivate this network, you will be able to use it
for years to come.
So, how can you get started?
Set
aside the time to Creating your Professional Network
The first step in using this strategy involves
coming to terms with the fact that most professional
position openings are never advertised publicly. Employers in this field
rarely have either the time or the energy to solicit applicants for their open
jobs. Instead, they want to fill their open positions as soon as
possible. So, they generally rely on word-of-mouth referrals and recommendations from their
colleagues. Can you become part of this referral stream? If so,
what do you have to do?
In short, you can begin by assembling
a list of contacts who will keep you in mind when hearing
about these openings. That is, you must learn to use the power of networking. The two
most basic principles of networking are:
- You never know who might know the next person you want to know.
- You never know who could lead you to a job contact or who knows someone
else who could help you find one.
As a result, you owe it to yourself to create this network carefully and maintain it strategically. After all,
you have no idea when it might become especially helpful, within the next few
days or far in the
future. You can start by assembling a master list that includes everyone you
know who might support you in your job hunt. Using several vertical
columns, record the names,
mailing addresses, telephone numbers, and email addresses of all of the people
you have known throughout your years of school, including college if you
majored in psychology or social work. If you did some volunteer work,
especially in a related area such as providing suicide or crisis hotline
intervention or advocacy for under-served people, be sure to include the names
of these supervisors and fellow volunteers. Make this list as exhaustive and
inclusive as
possible to ensure that you do not inadvertently leave out anyone with potential value for
your job hunt.
In the final column of this master list, add notes about each person
describing the kind(s) of relationship(s) you have shared and their areas of
interest/expertise. This list will also help you to think of the other kinds of
contacts they might have - and help you to see how they could also help you
expand the number of your contacts in the future. This listing represents all
of your "hot" contacts because they have "heated up" to you and your performance quality over the years
that they have known
you. Thus, they are the most likely to keep you in mind when they hear about job openings
and to recommend you when a colleague asks about your qualifications and reputation.
Above all, do not set your criteria too low or narrowly in deciding whom to include in
your network. Often, people underestimate the value of these clerical and other
paraprofessional employees. People in these groups generally know the most
about exactly how their organizations run, what the agency's priorities are,
who has the power to make hiring decisions, what if any impending changes in personnel,
which staff are key
players are. . . and how to contact and deal with them effectively. It never
hurts - and often helps - to have these people on your side. Also, whenever you have the chance to meet and talk with professionals in
psychology, make a point of asking them where they did their post-doctoral
training and how they found their positions. Also, ask for any suggestions
they might have for your job hunt. When you return home, immediately add this
information to your master list as well. Nothing functions so well as an
up-to-date networking file.
For now, your first priority is simply setting aside some time
so you can start assembling and maintaining
your own network and adding to it whenever you come across new contacts. Get in
the habit of asking for business cards or names and phone numbers whenever you
are with others who have some professional connection to mental health, both students and professionals,
both in
and outside the field of psychology.
Gradually, through creating this networking tool, you will
also develop an increased clarity about both your employment goals and the support that surrounds you in
helping you to find work. Watch how, as you increase your awareness, you
become alert to more of the opportunities around you. You will probably be
amazed at how many possibilities fall right into your lap, alternatives that
have been floating all around you but that you overlooked as you remained
pre-occupied with your anxiety and negative thoughts about your ability to
find work.
Finally, as you pay increased attention to these possibilities,
take the initiative to follow-up with them. Notice also how frequently you
have the opportunity to return the favor of helping others to network in
pursuing their own goals. The more you connect yourself to your network, the
more you will see how reciprocal the relationships become.
And, the more you will start to believe in the
unequalled power of professional networking
John T. Carlsen, Psy.D. is
a licensed clinical psychologist who trains and supervises psychology interns
and externs. He offers personal coaching and training resources for graduate
students applying for internships and post-doctoral jobs. Click here
to learn more about how to write
effective applications and prepare for interviews. Click here
to submit comments, questions, or suggestions for future newsletter topics.
