Facilitating job searches free of charge

By Matt Weafer
Messenger-Inquirer

Searching for a job is stressful, especially if you’re unemployed or working at a job you can’t stand. And the longer you search for a job, the more stress weighs on you.

The Green River Area Development District Career Center is designed to assist job seekers, helping to craft the perfect resume and prepare them for an interview.

Michelle Drake, GRADD employment specialist, said, “The Owensboro Career Center is the hub if you’re looking for work.”

The Career Center not only provides a daily listing of jobs available in the Owensboro area, it also provides daily services to hone your job search, free of charge.

These services are available in a classroom setting or independently in the computer lab lobby.

When searching for a job, composing the perfect resume is often a challenge for many people.

“A resume should provide a picture of what work skills you can provide employers,” Drake said. “Employers don’t want to know what your hobbies are. They don’t want to know things personal in nature bout your family situation.”

The Career Center can help job-seekers construct a clear, professional resume with software on the computer or in person.

Unlike an application, which is cut and dry, she said, resumes offer the opportunity to promote yourself and your work experiences.

“It’s a perfect time to toot your own horn,” she said. “When you’re talking about a resume, you can talk about some of the changes you made and some of the improvements you made at your previous employer.”

And anytime an employer asks for a resume, send a cover letter as well. Cover letters allow job-seekers to respond directly to employers, relating job requirements and qualifications back to the resume as proof of what you can offer a company.

The Career Center also teaches job-seekers to completely fill out applications.

“You really need to be very thorough and make sure you have the address of former employers and supervisors’ names and be able to quickly describe what you did at that job,” Drake said. And more importantly, list the correct dates of employment. “Most employers are checking to see that you did really work during these times.”

The next step in the job hunt is the interview. The Career Center offers classes to teach how to dress, behave and answer questions during interview.

During mock interviews, GRADD employees ask questions an employer may ask and they help guide job-seekers to clear, appropriate answers.

The main points Drake teaches are be on time, dress appropriately, be honest and sell yourself.

Drake said men should wear a suit or at least a pair of clean, pressed slacks with a shirt and tie, and women should dress conservatively — dresses and skirts reaching below the knees and no revealing tops.

But more importantly, answer questions, honestly, confidently and positively.

“It’s not the time to be negative about any work situation you may have had in the past,” she said. “If you were fired, be honest. Say you were terminated, and if they ask for an explanation, explain.”

She also emphasized that job-seekers review their resume prior to an interview.

“The employer remembers what you said you have to offer on your resume,” she said. “Review your resume so that you are positive and that you are concentrating on what assets you have to offer this employer.”

Mock interview software and resume building software are available on the computers in the Career Center free of charge, as well.

Career assessment is available to help guide job hunters to the career for which they are best suited.

The daily job listings are also available online at www.oet.ky.gov.

GRADD offers a job bank at www.greenriverworks.com to post resumes.

Visit the Career Center at 121 E 2nd St. The Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, which helps disabled people find new careers, and the Owensboro Office of Employment and Training are also located in the same building. Applications to jobs on the daily list are available through the Office of Employment and Training.

GRADD Career Center is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Office of Employment closes on Fridays at noon, therefore applications for specific jobs are not available after noon on Friday.

For more information, contact GRADD Career Center at (270) 687-7297.