ClickNSmart Team

When attending multiple career fairs at California State University Long Beach (CSULB) and University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), I found out about the following information:
* What a graduating student can expect from the job market
* Which college degrees present the most job opportunities in the current time.

If you are a high school graduate and/or a college freshman, who is deciding what college degree you want to pursue, then you may want to consider the following 5 college degrees that are currently highly sought  in the workplace:

• Health Care Degree

Desirable degree : Nursing, Physical Therapy, and Pharmacy.

• Business Administration Degree

Desirable degree : Business Administration and Marketing

• Computer Science Degree

Desirable degree : Computer Science, Technology Support, and Information Technology and System

• Accounting/Finance Degree

Desirable degree : Accounting and Finance

• Engineering Degree

Desirable degree : Biomedical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering.

Note that the above 5 degrees are not in any particular order. If you would like to find out more about a specific demand of each of the degree above, please feel free to find out more at:

The US Bureau Labor Statistics: http://www.bls.gov/oco/

We hope that this article can be beneficial for you.
Written by ClickNSmart Team

ClickNSmart Team

A cover letter should accompany each resume. It is used to support what you mentioned in the resume. A cover letter has a life expectancy of about 8 seconds. In this short amount of time, you must achieve the certain goal.

Goals of the Cover Letter:
- Clearly mention your skills and knowledge
- Explain how these credentials can make the best contribution to company
- Persuade the reader to continue on your resume

Rules for Cover Letter:
- Target the message
- Relate your skills and experiences to the specific position in the company

Focus on what you have to offer:
- Describe how your experiences, knowledge, and accomplishment
can benefit the company
- Write clearly to the point
- Check your letter for grammar error
- Use the same font that you used for the resume

Send your letter to specific person:
- Make sure you have the correct spelling name and title
- If you don’t know the person’s name, use “To Whom it May Concern”

Do not forget to sign your Cover Letter

Written by ClickNSmart Team

ClickNSmart Team

Resume is a powerful marketing tool to drive an interview. The objective is to communicate what makes you stand out as a job candidate. Your resume must be concise, appealing, and informative.

Why create a resume?
Good resume is the first step to get an interview. Your resume should summarize your skill, work experience, research experience, education, and accomplishment. Most employers spend 15 to 30 seconds on average to review your resume.

3 steps to empower your resume:
1) Take a stock of what you offer
such as : technical skills, personal abilities/attributes, accomplishments
and education (GPA)
2) Take an advantage of your skills.
such as : leadership, communication skills, computer, and team work
3) Take an advantage of your experiences
such as: internships, volunteer activities, research projects, and work
experiences.

Recruiters will be looking forward for your :
1) responsibility
2) strong interpersonal skills
3) ability to meet deadlines and handle high pressure situations

You must present yourself to catch the recruiter’s attention in about few seconds

Written by ClickNSmart Team

ClickNSmart Team

Variation earning distributions among engineers is extremely important. When we choose a major, we should care not only the growth employment but also the average starting salary.

Based on the National Association of Colleges and Employers 2009-2010 ( retrieved from www.bls.gov), the table below presents the average starting salary for bachelor degree among engineering specialty.

The update result 2009-2010 from the National Association of Colleges and Employers shows that even though Chemical Engineering has the lowest job growth (what kind of Engineers are demand), but Chemical Engineering degree commands the highest salary among all engineering degrees.

Written by ClickNSmart Team

ClickNSmart Team

The economy today is different than the past. In the past times, an engineering graduate could easily get a job. However, nowadays Engineering graduates are tough to get hired. Therefore, It is important for those of you that are still attending college to choose a specific engineering degree that are in demand today.

Below are the tables that show the growth in employment and job outlook by Engineering Specialty, based on United Stated Department of Labor 2009-2010 (www.bls.gov).

From this update data 2010, Biomedical engineering has the highest job growth, whereas Chemical Engineering and Electrical Engineering are tied as the lowest employment growth among all fields of engineering.
Now that you have this information, it is important to carefully choose what kind of engineering degree that you ought to pursue for your future career.

Written by ClickNSmart Team

ClickNSmart Team

“In this tough economy time, what’s the best college major that will get you the most job opportunities?” asked many freshmen entering college this year. Some of you may have dreams to become an engineer, a medical doctor, or a lawyer, and it’s definitely good to go ahead and pursue your dreams. However, if you are unsure about what you want to do after graduating from college, then choosing to major in Business Administration is going to be a safe bet. Why?

Here’s Why?
1) Business majors are always in demand, in particular: Accounting majors and Marketing majors;

2) All businesses (from small to big) will probably hire business graduates as: administrative assistant, accountant, marketing assistant, management assistant, public relation, and other business-related jobs;

3) While the entry-level salary for business graduates on average is lower than the entry-level salary for engineering graduates, but the job opportunities for business majors are wider as compared to engineering majors;

4) Majoring in Business can give you all the necessary skills to become a self-employed entrepreneur;

5) Business students acquire both quantitative and communication skills - the top two skills, which many employers look for when hiring new employees.

If you ask me, which concentration should I take if I am majoring in business? I would recommend either an Accounting or Marketing concentration. In addition, as business students you should also join professional groups such as: Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Business Society, American Marketing Association, and so on. Most business students get job offers before they graduate from networking.

This article is written by Jefery Kusnadi, an MBA student with 4.0 GPA from California State University Long Beach.

ClickNSmart Team

Many of my classmates and undergraduate friends ask me: “Bunga, How did you find a research adviser? I am interested to do research, but I don’t know where and what to start with.”

If that sounds like you, then I would like to share few tips based on my previous experience doing 1 year of undergraduate research at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA):

1) Start by searching in the department website for any faculty members;

2) Find out about their research interests and see if you are interested in any of them;

3) Once you find the research area that you want, e-mail the professor to set up an appointment to meet and discuss about your interest in doing research with the professor;

4) Before meeting face-to-face with the professor, read again the professor’s research interest so that you can impress him/ her to clearly show your interest;

5) Send him/her a thank you note by e-mail after the meeting and don’t forget to leave your contact information.

6) Follow up with the professor again if after 1 week, you have not heard back from him/ her.

These are very practical tips for those of you looking to find an undergraduate research opportunities. Also notice that I make no mention of any specific major, because the tips above are applicable regardless the academic majors.

Written by ClickNSmart Team

ClickNSmartTeam

Business major is a top choice almost for everyone. In this bad economy, the demand for business major graduates is always higher than any other major. Business is not as straightforward as many people believe; the business curriculum in general focuses more on the analytical and the critical thinking part, which are both important skill in addition to the soft communication skill . Business knowledge is a key element for your future success. There are more opportunities by majoring in business. Business majors can choose various concentrations, such as: Finance, Accounting, Marketing, Human Resources, and  General Management.

Here’s are the average salaries for these majors, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistic (www.bls.gov)

~ Median Annual Earning ~

• Management Analyst : $68,050
• Accountant : $54,630
• Economist :$77,010
• Financial Analyst : $66,590
• Human Resources : $42,420
• Marketing research Analyst : $58,829

Management Analyst : Salaries for management analysts vary based on experiences, location, and expertise.

Economist : has the highest median annual salary, but the starting salary for bachelor’s degree was $35,752 in 2007. For master’s degree has an annual salary of $43,731. And for Ph.D, the salary starts at $52,912

Human Resources : has the lowest annual salary compared with other business fields. For human resources position with a high school degree, the average annual salary begins $26,685

Nowadays, many people are getting an additional business degree on the top of their technical degrees (science or engineering degree) in order to be competitive in the job market. Therefore, I would strongly recommend adding some business knowledge, either through traditional brick and mortar schools or through distance learning (online) business degree program that many universities offer.

Written by ClickNSmart

ClickNSmartTeam

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Earning a degree in engineering is one of students’ proud. Nowadays, engineering major become one of the most favorite majors in various universities in USA, Europe and Asia . Many students study hard so they can get in to the University with Engineering degree. Based on recent survey conducted by students in the Department of Statistics at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), many people think that an engineering student is relatively smarter compared to students with other majors. Of course, they have to study hard ( no doubt ); feel free to argue about this.

In addition, companies generally pays high salary for engineering majors. Here’s the salary survey report for engineering jobs (updated 9 November 2008):

Q : Which engineering major pays the best and  the least with a bachelor degree?

A: I would agree that Chemical Engineering has highest paid. Civil Engineering has the lowest salary.

Q: Which engineering major has the most job opportunity?

A: I would say Electrical Engineering offers more universal opportunities. Most of companies look for EE degree, because almost every technology company, and even in biotechnology companies need engineers with electrical engineering background. Even though the entry level pay is not as high as chemical engineers, but electrical engineers with 10 or more years of experiencs can surpass the equivalent earnings of engineers in the other field

Q: Which one is the hardest and easiest degree?

A: Although all engineering majors is hard, but Electrical Engineering is the hardest major i would say. And the easiest major is Civil Engineering and Industrial Engineering (based on the student survey)

Overall :

Chemical Engineering has the highest paid with a bachelor degree. However, when you choose a major, do not only based your decision solely on the highest salary; however,  you should also consider other factors such as : job opportunities in the market, work load, and your passion.

If you want to complain about your major, this is your chance. Feel Free to argue and leave comments.

Written by ClickNSmart

ClickNSmart

Many students start to think after they finish undergraduate program “Master Vs PhD ? What’s the difference?”

1) In terms of knowledge and time

Master Degree : they teach you a specific knowledge in a specialized field. A master’s program usually takes you about 1 or 2 years, sometimes 3 years to complete depending on your field and your adviser. Pursue their life to get more knowledge or a better job.

PhD Degree: they teach you an extensive knowledge in a specialized
field. For PhD, it usually takes you about 4-6 years depends on your field of research and how tough your adviser is. Pursue their life as a professor or researcher.

2) In terms of the Program (taking courses are required for both)

You have an option between Thesis or Comprehensive Test

Master Degree:If you choose thesis, usually it takes longer to finish the program (about 2-3 years). Again this depends on your adviser. Some advisers only require their students to publish 1 research paper, others require their students to publish 2-3 research papers. However, if you choose to take comprehensive test, it only takes you about a year to graduate. But Remember, the test is extremely hard. You have to really know the material well. The professor will test you whether you really understand the Concept or not; Some people fail the test.

PhD Degree:First you choose your advisor and write a dissertation proposal. Then you need to take preliminary test to demonstrate you qualification to continue with Doctoral Degree. After completed test, you more focus on writing your dissertation. The dissertation has to be well published. Usually PhD requires you to publish 4 or more research paper. After you finally done, you require to defend your work in front of your committee (professor) called a dissertation defense. most of them pass their dissertation defense.

3) In terms of Financial Aid

Master Degree: usually you need to pay your own tuition. The program does not offer as much aid to master’s students. However, you can be a teacher assistance and get paid.

PhD Degree: financial Aid is available for students. The schools pay  for your tuition. Also they get more money to be a teacher assistance. The most important for PhD is be of publishable quality.

4) In terms of Career Options

Master Degree: People usually choose to go for a Master degree with a goal that they would like to go out in the industry and gain more advanced knowledge in a particular field; for example, people seeking an MBA degree to gain business knowledge needed to become a manager in a company or start their own businesses.

PhD Degree: I would say that do not apply for PhD unless you are absolutely clear on “Why you need a PhD?” As I mentioned above, a PhD education requires relatively long time and lots of dedication. Therefore, unless you really need a PhD education to advance in your choice of career, then you should not go for PhD. Do not apply for PhD program just because you like to go to school; this is wrong reason. What is next after PhD? Ask yourself this question and try to find a definite answer that suits your career goal, before deciding to apply for PhD.

Hope this article helps.

Written by ClickNSmart