Looking for a job or internship?

We are here to help with exploring career options, seeking internships, preparing resumes and cover letters, preparing for interviews, and negotiating with employers.

Policies

• Who We Serve
• International Students and Visa Status
• Former Students
• Job Postings
• Recruiting Calendar
• Career Services & Funding Opportunities Email List
• Exit Survey

Interviews

• Getting Your Resume to the Recruiters
• The On-Campus Interview Selection Process
• Interview Schedule Sheets
• Missed Interviews
• Interview Do's and Don't's
• If You Have Been Pre-Selected

Resumes

• Resume Review Workshops
• List of Power and Action Words
• Company Info Sessions
• Resume Do's and Don't's
• Resume and Interview Resources
• Computer Resources

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Policies

Who We Serve

Career Services for the Department of Geological Sciences are available to all current Jackson School students in good standing who are looking for full-time or part-time jobs, including summer internships. The services are also available to recent graduates for two long semesters after their degree is awarded. We also send out resumes of current JSG Postdoctoral Fellows.

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International Students and Visa Status

It is up to individual companies to determine whether they will interview international students who do not have visas to work in the United States. All international students are required to put their visa status and country of origin on their resume. Check here for more information about work regulations for international students.

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Former Students

Former students who are more than two long semesters past graduation may submit a resume with a current contact address to be placed on file in the Career Services office.

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Job Postings

The Career Service office posts announcements about available full-time jobs and internships to the geo_opportunities email list (see below) and this website. The Career Service office also posts announcements of upcoming company visits, job openings, and funding and research opportunities on several bulletin boards in the Jackson Geosciences Building (JGB). The board for undergraduates is located across from GEO/JGB 2.318. The board for graduate students is located outside GEO/JGB 5.306.

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Recruiting Calendar

The Career Services office will post recruiting schedules, including the assigned rooms, to the JSG calendar, located at http://www.calendarwiz.com/jsgcalendar. Select Recruiting Schedule from the pull-down Category menu.

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Career Services & Funding Opportunities Email List

All current JSG students will be placed on the geo_opportunities email list. If you are a current student, membership on this list is required.

Once you are a subscriber, you will receive e-mail notifications of recruiting events, employment opportunities, and academic and research funding opportunities.

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Exit Survey

All students are asked to fill out an exit survey at the end of each long semester if they wish to participate in recruiting activities during the next long semester. Surveys should be turned in to the Career Services office via reply e-mail. There is a link to the JSG Student Recruiting Activity Survey 2008 (pdf format) on the Department website or contact Maurine Riess (mriess@jsg.utexas.edu) for a copy.

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Interviews

Resumes received by the deadline each semester will be e-mailed to the companies scheduled to visit that semester. The deadline for submitting resumes to the Career Services office will usually fall before the 12th class day of that semester. Resumes submitted to the Career Services office after the deadline will not be e-mailed to any company. If you did not turn in your resume in time, you can attend information sessions to talk with the recruiters in person. If they are interested in interviewing you, they will make time for you in the schedule. You must be a student in good standing with the Jackson School of Geosciences or your resume will not be emailed to any company.

If you are sending resumes to companies outside of our on-campus recruiting process, a cover letter is essential. Visit the online Cover Letter Power Point Presentation (pdf format) for help on how to construct an effective cover letter.

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Companies usually choose one of two types of interview sign-up methods:

• Pre-select (most common)
• Open sign-up
• Bid System

Pre-select Interviews. After reviewing all of the resumes emailed to them by the Career Services office, a company will select the students they wish to interview. Students pre-selected to interview will be notified via e-mail from the Career Services office or directly from the recruiter. If you receive notice that you have been pre-selected, you may select a suitable time slot from the interview schedule sheet in GEO Room 2.120.

If you have been pre-selected for an interview and do not wish to interview with that company or are unable to interview due to scheduling conflicts, you must notify the recruiter via e-mail with an explanation of why you are declining their invitation to interview you and you must provide a copy of that e-mail to Maurine Riess (mriess@jsg.utexas.edu). If you do not notify the interviewer on that communication you will not be allowed to participate in recruiting in the next long semester.

Open Sign-up. In this situation, a company will interview any qualified student who signs up for an interview. Companies may specify graduate students only, or only students who can work in the United States. Approximately two weeks before the interview date, the interview schedule sheet will be available in GEO Room 2.120 for all interested and qualified students to sign up in a suitable time slot.

Bid System. If there are more students interested in a company than there are interview slots, the Placement Office will use a bid system. Rules for the bid system will be distributed at that time.

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Interview Schedule Sheets

Separate interview sign-up sheets for each company can be found in GEO 2.120. They are generally available about two weeks before each company visit. Interview times are set by each company. If no time slots meet your schedule, you will need to get in touch with the recruiters to try and schedule another time to meet with them. Names of students who are not in good standing with the Jackson School, who have not been pre-selected, or who are not qualified based on criteria specified by a company will be removed from interview schedules. The location of the room where the interviews will take place will be clearly marked on all interview schedule sheets. It is your responsibility to write down the time and location of all of your interviews.

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Missed Interviews

You are expected to show up for ALL interviews that you have scheduled. If for any reason you cannot keep the appointment, please advise the Career Services office as soon as possible before your scheduled interview. If you fail to appear for a scheduled interview without prior notice to the Career Services office, you will no longer be allowed to interview that semester. To be reinstated, you must write a letter of apology to the recruiter meet with the Associate Chair of the Department.

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Do:

• Bring a copy of your resume and your transcript to every interview.
• Dress in business attire and be on time for your interview.
• Check the Recruiting Schedule/Calendar for information about each interview by clicking on the company name on the calendar day of the interview.
• Attend as many information sessions as you can.

• Ask the recruiter for a business card, and write him/her a thank-you letter afterwards. E-mail is acceptable for this, but write the message as a business letter with proper greeting and salutation.

• View the online Interview Workshop Power Point presentation here - pdf.

Don’t:

• Sign up for back-to-back interviews; schedules can change without warning.
• Interview with a company unless you have some interest in them; insincerity is easily spotted.

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Resumes

All students wishing to participate in recruiting activities should plan to attend resume and interview workshops that are offered each spring. New graduate students must participate in a mandatory resume review process during the orientation week preceding the start of classes. Resumes that are submitted after the deadline or that are not submitted in the proper digital format will not be distributed to the companies. You can view a PowerPoint presentation (pdf format)of the Resume Workshop here.

Resumes must be submitted to the Career Services office in digital format (Word, RTF, or PDF) by the deadline for that semester.

Resumes MUST have the following filename format:

All three components of this file name will help the Career Services office get your resume to the right companies.

We send the resumes out in three groups: BA/BS, MA/MS, and PhD. Please include your expected degree in the file name so we can put your resume in the correct folder.

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Do:

• Your resume should show the recruiter that you have the ability to work independently as well as in a team environment.

• You should demonstrate a broad base of fundamental geological knowledge.

• Education and experience rank above extracurricular activities, but may be included if volunteer work is the best example of your work ethic.

Don’t:

• Include information about your race, marital status, your SSN, or your photo.

• Don’t allow any grammatical or typographical errors.

• Don’t put your entire life history into your resume. Take the time to craft a useful, brief, yet informative document.

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Professional society directories are a useful source of names, addresses, and affiliations. Company websites can give you a feel for company corporate structure and activities. The List of Recruiters page includes links to many of the companies that recruit on-campus each year.

Info Sessions offered by each company during the recruiting seasons offer an up-to-date picture of their technical activities. You are strongly encouraged to attend as many Info Sessions as you can, especially if you will be interviewing with that company. Info Sessions may be scheduled over the noon hour or in the evening, and may be located in the JGB building or at a local restaurant.

Need help writing your resume? A list of power/action verbs can be found here (pdf format)to assist you in writing the experience and accomplishment sections of your resume. There are many fine web resources on resume writing, but much of the work researching has been done for you. Visit the Resume Workshop, Interview Workshop or Cover Letter Writing Workshop before you spend much time web-searching. Career Services is here to assist you. You may also come by JGB 2.114D for personalized one-on-one help with your career search needs.

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Computer Resources

There are computers available for Jackson School undergraduates in the Undergraduate Computer Lab in GEO/JGB 3.326, and for graduate students in the Graduate Computer Lab in GEO/JGB Room 6.320B. Please contact Ty Lehman if you need an account. Please see Nicole Evans (mne@mail.utexas.edu) for access to the rooms.

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