----start---- 10/27/98 professional foundations wilson this course is aka "Me-101" make sure to look at the course schedule carefully. course requirements: to get a B: 1. create a budget for your first full year after graduation 2. create a resume to get an A: 1 & 2 3. four year plan, starting with senior year, covering personal, professional, and financial goals turn stuff in by 12/18. to have resume and budget edited and reviewed by wilson you must: -sign attendance log 6 out of 7 times -shut up in class in return, you get a 146 pg handout, which you should use. he's suggesting you also take the law and ethics course Why veterinarians fail: this is not in your notes: 1. lack of personal resiliency -too many insecurities -overly sensitive to criticism 2. incapable of planning things well 3. too self-reliant or arrogant -one very arrogant vet in this area is in big trouble with the state board 4. unable to get along with people (all animals have a person attached) Skill sets and characteristics desired by veterinary employers: -information taken from AAAVMCs 15th symposium on veterinary medical education 1. communication skills -oral one on one -oral to an audience -written -interpersonal skills - ability to make someone feel good about themselves, and anxious to assist. -good listening skills 2. understanding of team building and teamwork -can utilize art of persuasion -ability to negotiate 3. problem solving ability -dissecting problems into parts -contemplating solutions -reassembling parts 4. computer skills and confidence (buzzword - informatics) 5. leadership skills -personal integrity and high ethical standards (always tell the truth) -aptitude for and ability to establish (social, professional) networks -consensus and coalition builder -capable of leading by example -sufficient vision to see the big picture 6. emotional stability and resilience -physical and emotional strength -ability to withstand criticism and grow with it -willingness to take risks 7. intellectual and cultural sensitivity -knowledge of and sensitivity to political and social issues (animal welfare and ecology) -non judgemental attitudes -compassion for animals (this is what differentiates us from others) -appreciation of and ability to work with people 8. willingness and eagerness to work hard -VMDs work long hours, often w/o breaks -especially first few years -avg US worker worked 46 hrs/week in 1998 -avg family worked 6.2 wks more in 1996 tha 1989 9. business and management skills -knowledge of personal and business economics -uderstanding biz mgmt principles 10. life long learning desire, skills, and commitment 11. technical veterinary skills -understand concepts of biology -enjoy broadbased, multispecies understanding of vet med -possess more narrow based, species specific skills 12. income generation capabilities for business -time management skills -be able to delegate tasks in a manner that generates revenues for the practice and employee. JAVMA Salary and Benefits Data 2 yrs ago, salary offers for new penn grads were about 38000-42000, now most b/w 40000 and 48000. One new grad last year got 54000 in private practice, one got 65000 in industry. one got 75000 in southern cal. with luck, when we graduate, there may be higher salaries for new grad vets than ever! woo! pp 1-6 of handout nat'l avg was 34,500/yr for private practice new grads this includes a lot of low budget areas, though. p 3. female v male, benefits, etc nationwide, 67% offered health insurance; here, 92% p 5. years since graduation - discouraging - smaall animal exclusive grads making about $50,000 max. but % based income can help. Resume: pp 7-35 as you start thinking about graduation, you need to develop a goal. first your goal was to get into vet school. now it is to get out. what next? boards, CCT, etc. make a plan. do it now. first: focus on using your right brain. your right brain is your creative brain - your dream side. start with 6 Ws: 1. what - what do you want to do? (small animal medicine) 2. where - where do you want to go? (around here :)) consider family factors :) wilson's rule: first year after you get married, you move 350 miles from either set of parents, establish friendships independent of preexisting ones. consider experiential/educational factors - where do you get the best experience - low fee, high volume practice? where do you get best education? crappy paying internship :) money - where do you make the most money? last year, several students took jobs several thousand below what they wanted, b/c of great experience/education opportunities, location, etc. security - where do you have job security? personal security? 3. when -(soon) those students who take their time, and wait it out, get the best paying jobs. do not rush into taking the first job. but...now, people are learning that as new grads hold back, practicioners start to worry. the supply/demand thing is scaring practicioners...if you can afford to take time off after graduation, do it. do not get pressured into starting the day after graduation. 4. why - why do you want a job? (to pay off loans, to have fun) 5. with whom - 6. which one to take- ok, so, having figured out some of that stuff... personal goal in fourth year - could be - not work til july 1st. consider yourself as a new product - you're about ready to finish school...what do you need? packaging, marketing plan. first thing in the marketing plan is the resume. black letters on white paper, green letters on red paper, what? a bad resume gets you little. remember - a degree is just the start. after that, it's less simple. there are a lot of career choices. you may require two resumes. ---break--- hopefully my n key will not break again during this lecture. if it does, don't blame me! during break, there were some questions that came up. some of these will be brought up later.keep in mind, if you apply for an internship, they ask for a CV but often they really want a resume. a resume is more complete tha a CV. dammit - it broke. i will have to cut and paste n's into this later. JAVMA is the best sourcse of job information available to you. in june of 1993, about 18-20 pgs of ads...this year, more like 40 pp/mo. so JAVMA is a great source. check it out. there are a number of internship programs. if you're interested in the military...some people like that, very competitive and selective. looking into industry or research - you can often use a headhunter. these people target specific types of jobs, try to match jobs with their clients. interested in small animal epidemiology - talk to dr glickman at purdue. moving on, to page 20 of the handout: synopsis of resume styles: chronological: standard for young people functional: for 40+ students combination: for those who have had separate careers cover letter will describe what you plan to do in general. style: NAME IN BOLD 16 or 18 point font temporary address permanent address and phone/email and phone/email Career objective: short term +/- long term (example: to be associate in good practice with opportuity to become owner) Education: most recent school first. no need to list every school. space is critical here. Veterinary work experience: dates either left justified or right justified. not blended into text. underline title/position, or use bold text name of employer, city, and state; phone #, zip, name of supervisor - not needed. most recent goes first! use action verbs, and mix "ing" verbs with "ed" verbs see p 19 for list of action verbs. limit to 4 or 5 jobs, possibly 6 or 7. the word "I" does not belong in a resume. describe a position - full time vs part time/volunteer volunteer positions - stipulate total # hours definitions: duties: things you did for your boss, things for which you were paid, such as: -placed caths, processed rads, scheduled appts, balanced day sheet responsibilities: independent tasks: -developed a new record keeping system -implemented new system -trained people marketable skills developed: skills and abilities that will help you produce income for the practice, or improve its efficiency. "developed communicaation skills and ability to remain cool under pressure" - as a waitress, cab driver, tech support person... "operated and maintained a variety of lab equipment" include technical, business, and communication skills here. experiences gained: opportunities to be exposed to important tasks, without time to become proficient achievements in workplace: special recognition, promotion (SCAVMA service award?) related work experience: service industry: bartender, waitress, blackjack dealer, receptionist; construction: carpentry, electrician, handyman; Computer: word processing skills, spreadsheets, data analysis, programming research experience: find something you did that can be applied to the job for which you are applying "learned about clotting cascade" memberships, leadership positions, student gov't, fraternities, volunteer groups. ok to be a member, better to have had leadership position (VP alpha psi 1997-98) show leadership skills if possible. practicioner's impressions: memberships/activities show you have extroversion and initiative, communication skills, ability to sell, be productive, make money for your boss. additional spoken languages honors, accomplishments: significant ones vet school awards publications professional interests: repro, surgery, etc. personal interests: icebreakers. list 3-4 hobbies or whatever references - do not put "available upon request". list names and phone numbers, addresses. talk to them before listing them. at least one vet ----end