REPOST: CAREER DEVELOPMENT & RELATIONSHIP MANAGER

Unit/Project Description:
As the largest Faculty, with almost 8,000 undergraduate students, enrolled in 100+ undergraduate, programs, and 215+ faculty members, the Faculty of Science is an integral part of McMaster University. 

The Science Career and Co-operative Education (SCCE) office fully supports 13 undergraduate cooperative education programs, a comprehensive suite of career education and advising services, delivered in a variety of methods, to meet the needs of current students, graduates, community members, and employers. SCCE supports the success of undergraduate and graduate students in the areas of career and professional development, work integrated learning and experiential education through diverse academic initiatives across eight academic units within Science. 

Structured around three core service pillars (career, cooperative education and experiential education), we aim to empower students to understand labour market trends, develop viable career plans and transition to successful careers in science and beyond.

We are embarking on an exciting new project, entitled The Actuarial Career Test Drive Program. In collaboration with employer partners, faculty, students and staff, we will be developing Industry Projects, Case Competitions and Internships for our students in the Actuarial and Financial Math and The Math and Statistics programs. 

We are looking for someone with demonstrated achievements in Work-Integrated Learning. We are especially interested in applications from individuals who have proven abilities to set, track and achieve project metrics. Our ideal candidate is someone who thrives on building new partnerships between students and employers and who is as excited as we are about expanding our Work-Integrated Learning options for our students.

Job Summary:
Responsible for planning, organizing and coordinating career development placements. Promotes student development, success and retention, and encourages career achievement by conducting interviews with students dealing with career choice, educational direction and goal progress.

Purpose and Key Functions: 

• Identify, develop, and cultivate strategic employer relationships in the business community.  
• Interview students to assess suitability and make decisions on admittance to the program.  
• Interview employer partners to understand recruitment needs.  
• Provide individual coaching services and guidance in developing self-marketing and branding tools including, but not limited to, job search strategies, resume critiques, preparation of cover letters and personal statements, interview skills, networking, portfolio development, and negotiation skills.   
• Conduct mock interviews by creating specific questions that are relevant to the field of employment students are pursuing, and then provide constructive feedback to students.
• Conduct post-work placement interviews with students to discuss experiences and future goals.
• Write career and skill development materials, and design interview tools.
• Write a variety of documents including, but not limited to, reference letters, correspondence and workshop plans.
• Create, implement and maintain policies and procedures related to the program and career services offered.
• Facilitate or lead career development workshops.
• Coordinate and accompany students on site visits and discuss work objectives.
• Create promotional materials to market program to potential applicants, visitors, and representatives from other institutions at fairs and open house events.
• Plan and coordinate costs, logistics and resources, including catering and audio visual equipment, for career events, information sessions, workshops and speaker presentations.
• Calculate travel expenses for attendance at site visits, seminars, conferences and professional development.
• Gather, compile, and analyze information identifying labour market data, trends, and job opportunities.
• Review current labour markets and research current trends within professional careers and employment requirements including skill level and comparable salaries offered.
• Request participation and invite employers to post-employment opportunities within the department.
• Act as a liaison between faculty, staff and students to ensure the timely communication of information and adherence to policies and procedures.
• Participate in meetings with students to discuss and provide guidance regarding individual career options.
• Assemble and distribute materials and packages.  
• Understand and stay current on employment legislation and government mandates. 

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in a related field.
• Requires 4 years of relevant experience.

Supervision:

• Provide direction to others in how to carry out work tasks.
• Ensures adherence to quality standards and procedures for short-term staff and volunteers.

Assets:
The following are considered assets and may be given preference:

• Educational background in Science.
• Knowledge of cooperative education program/processes and prior experience facilitating co-op student placements. 
• Experience in a career setting and/or detailed understanding of career options in the various disciplines within Science, including knowledge of relevant graduate and professional programs, is highly desirable.
• Knowledge of the ORBIS/OscarPlus database system and Microsoft Office.
• Knowledge of cooperative education programs/processes.
• Prior experience facilitating co-op student placements and developing employment opportunities for students.
• Experience in a career setting and/or detailed understanding of career options in the various disciplines within Science.
• Career Development Practitioner (CDP) or equivalent certification.

Additional Information:

• Some evening and weekend work required.