After completing the self-assessment of your goals and skills, begin looking at a variety of employers that hire your major. Look at the employers that recruit at ISU, employers that are located in areas that you would like to live, and employers in industries that interest you. Use CyHire, company websites, social media sites, internet searches for companies in particular industries, and other sources to identify employers. The goal at this point is to develop a long list of employers that hire your major and you would consider for employment. Be sure to include some smaller employers and those that don’t have strong name recognition since they will likely have fewer applicants for positions so your chances of being the best candidate and getting hired is greater. It’s also recommended that you think broadly about the types of industries that require your major. For example, companies that manufacture agricultural equipment are often interested in hiring Aerospace Engineering majors.
Step 3: Identify Preliminary Target Employers and Industries
Once you have your list of preliminary target employers, you will use it to help guide your research and networking. As you learn more about the employers and their employment opportunities, begin to identify your main interests and your secondary interests, and remove any company that you want to eliminate from further consideration from your list.
Sources of Information
CyHire should be your primary source of information because all companies that recruit ISU engineers must post their employment opportunities in CyHire. They will also use CyHire to promote their on-campus information sessions, and there is a company profile section that provides useful background information. See the CyHire page for additional information on using this useful tool. To identify companies that may not recruit at ISU, use a federal (USAJobs.gov) or state (State of Iowa) job board, or a national job aggregator such as Indeed or LinkedIn.