Working World | Careers in International Education, Exchange, and Development

Jun18200912:09 pm

Careers in visa issues, immigration, and global mobility (or, how to use your law degree for something international)

I spent much of the past two days immersed in the numbingly-detailed yet vitally-important world of visas, immigration, and global mobility at the American Council on International Personnel’s (ACIP) 2009 sympoisum. The aspect of the conference that struck me the most (other than realizing that the business of employment-related mobility and visas issues is big and incredibly complex) was that 90% of the people there were lawyers. Lawyers working on issues of immigration, global mobility, and visa regulation; lawyers working for nonprofits like ACIP, for subcommittees on the Hill (such as the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, and Border Security and the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law), for corporations (like Intel, Walt Disney, Marriott, and Oracle, all of which rely heavily on skilled foreign workers, and thus rely on skilled lawyers to help get these workers into the country quickly and properly), and for law firms themselves. There were also a host of folks working for the government…

The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (otherwise referred to as, awesomely, ICE)
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

…as well as many working for universities across the country on visa and immigration related issues (i.e., the issues that surround bringing scholars and researchers from other countries to their schools).

The point of this post being three-fold: 1) to highlight the incredibly long names that many Hill and government offices have; 2) to highlight the areas of visas, immigration (and immigration reform), and global mobility as often overlooked but extremely robust areas in which one can engage in interesting international work; and 3) to point out that lawyers can use their law degrees to engage in meaningful work in the international arena. Certainly the skills obtained with a law degree can be used in any number of international jobs (example: a colleague in DC, formerly a divorce lawyer, now works as a lobbyist for the Armenian National Committee of America). But the incedibly complex, detailed, and legalistic nature of visas, immigration, and global mobility policy is tailor-made for a lawyer.

1 response so far | Categories: The World at Work

Jun1620095:28 am

Don’t sabotage your job search

by Mark Overmann

CNN throws us a bone with 25 ways not to. These are solid, practical tips, many of which have been discussed here in some form (including, most recently, #7: the generic cover letter). Of particular interest:

#1—”Assuming you’ll never need to look for another job”: We tend to think that once we’ve gotten a job, it’s the end of something: the end of a search or a process. Which is true to some degree, but in reality your job search is never over: it’s a “continuous journey.” I don’t mean to suggest that you need to think about your departure as soon as you’ve landed a job, but it’s valuable to think about the progress of your career in an active way, even if you feel secure in your current job.

#16—”Thinking the interview starts and ends in a meeting room”: As Sherry says, “you’re always on.”

#24—”Assuming you got the job”: But also, assuming you didn’t get the job. You never know what’s taking them so long to get back to you, or what’s going into their decision making process. Have faith.

Hat tip: GG

No responses yet | Categories: Career Resources

Jun1520097:56 am

A hardship post is different than a dangerous one

by Mark Overmann

James Fallows ponders the seeming incongruity of an FSO post in Shanghai warranting nearly half as much hardship pay as posts in cities like Kabul and Baghdad. Doesn’t seem like serving in a major, booming city like Shanghai is quite as “hard” as serving in a war zone, Fallows thinks. A commenter writes in, though, to inform him that hardship doesn’t mean danger:

I’d like to point out that the hardship differential is not designed to compensate Foreign Service Officers for dangerous duty. The hardship differential is paid for a variety of reasons: if the duty location is heavily polluted, or if it is very isolated, or if it is in a very poor area and amenities are hard to come by, and so forth…

Hardship pay is separate from danger pay, which is paid for tours where life and limb are risked.

No responses yet | Categories: The World at Work

Jun11200910:20 am

The potential trap that could be social networking (!), ctd.

by Mark Overmann

We all know that everything on the Internets is fair game. It’s becoming more and more common for a potential employer to Google you to see if they can uncover anything (especially something unseemly or unsightly) that didn’t come across in the interview. So it falls on you, the interviewee, to make sure your social networking sites are scrubbed of anything dubious and/or set at the highest levels of privacy.

The anecdotal evidence I’ve heard of employers Googling potential employees is all pretty low key, though—just simple searches that, if they don’t lead to anything juicy right away, are usually over as quickly as they started. If you privatized your Facebook page to keep non-friends out, most employers aren’t going to go the trouble to find a way in. True, I’ve heard stories of more high level trickery, of employers going on the sly and looking for alternate ways into your digital profile (like NFL teams creating fake Facebook profiles in order to research potential draft picks), but I’d never heard of anything like this happening in normal life. Until recently.

A friend of mine was in for a few interviews at a market research firm. After her first interview, she received a Facebook friend request from a person who’s name she knew (a high school classmate, she thought) so she accepted. After visiting her new “friend’s” page, however, she realized that this actually wasn’t the person from high school she thought it was. A little digging and she realized it was a person who worked at the company with which she was interviewing and who happened to have the same name as her high school classmate (an odd coincidence, for sure, though their shared name is quite common). Her new Facebook friend was not someone involved with her interview process and actually worked in a different department in the company. He had, however, gone to the same university as her and thus was a member of that school’s Facebook network. So it became clear that her interviewers had asked their colleague to friend her through their shared alma mater network in the hopes that she would (blindly) accept based on that shared school allegiance.

Once she realized what was going on, my friend did a quick scan of her profile for anything dubious—for the most part everything was fine, she thought (a normal, active Facebook page). She figured she was good to go.

Her next thought, though, was, “Maybe I should scrub my page of everything, just to be sure.” But she concluded this wasn’t necessarily a good idea either: “I don’t want to seem too protective or not social,” she said. “It’s a weird line to walk.” A very interesting point. While we don’t want anything embarrassing or disreputable on our Facebook pages for potential employers to see, an argument can also be made that we should strive to seem “normally active” on our pages. What I mean is: as a younger, networked generation moves into positions of greater responsibility, and thus become the ones hiring, it might become important to ensure your Facebook page looks like a “normally active” one—as in, you are active on your page but not obsessively active; you have the typical playful Facebook banter on your wall but nothing too playful (or offensive or odd); you’ve posted some social-looking photos but none showing you passed out in a gutter. It will perhaps become important to think about not just what your Facebook page doesn’t contain, but what it does as well.

As my friend mentioned, Facebook is no longer just a time suck between friends—now it’s also both a public indication of who you are in your personal life and a self-marketing tool, if you want it to be. So while I would say it’s far better to completely hide your Facebook page from the world than give your employers access to embarassing information, it might also be worth considering how you can use your Facebook page to your advantage.

3 responses so far | Categories: The World at Work

Jun10200910:04 am

Caught in a storm without an umbrella

by Sherry L. Mueller

The following is a guest post from a young woman named Lauren Glasser, whom I recently met (the circumstances of our meeting are contained in the post). Enjoy.

I’m not necessarily sure if the myth regarding rain on one’s wedding day reigns true outside the confines of a chapel, however, if events that occurred last week during a torrential downpour in DC are any indication of its transcendence – I’m a believer.

After attending the first government-sponsored TED event at the State Department last Wednesday afternoon, I emerged from the auditorium optimistic about the impending job interview to which I was en route. That optimism was instantly smothered by the pouring rain, which greeted me upon exit. Down in DC for the day from Manhattan, I planned the contents of my bag strategically, leaving no detail unchecked or without consideration…needless to say, I was disheartened by my failure to execute a relatively routine exercise — verify the forecast. Hailing a cab sans umbrella in my newly pressed suit proved to be a sufficient challenge. And just as I was about to call my interview and apologize for my imminent tardiness, it happened. A kind, umbrella-toting stranger motioned for me to join her in the cab she had hailed.

Sharing a cab is a truly generous act…that soon paled in comparison to additional gestures of my cab companion. Sherry Mueller welcomed me into her cab during a tenuous moment of urgency, offered me valuable and constructive interview advice, and proceeded to gift me her umbrella, all before departing at her stop within ten minutes of our chance introduction.

Perhaps I’m just a jaded New Yorker, but Sherry’s random act of kindness and generosity was truly overwhelming, sincere, and deeply appreciated. The impact of my chance meeting only served to solidify my faith in ‘paying it forward.’ Furthermore, after reading up on Sherry’s professional endeavors, the irony of our introduction and its ripple effect emerged. Sherry’s recently published book, Working World, encourages professionals to take an active role in shaping their career paths through extra-curricular initiatives/activities and relationships – a mantra to which I’m a committed disciple. What’s more is that Sherry acknowledges the critical nature of developing relationships that transcend discipline, comfort zone, and age.

I look forward to encouraging my peers and colleagues to seek out the ‘Sherry’s’ in their own world and not only as an exercise in cognizance enrichment – it’s important to be aware of, engage, and learn from those available resources. You never know when you’ll get caught in a storm without an umbrella.

2 responses so far | Categories: Sherry and Mark

Jun920093:43 pm

This probably won’t get you an interview

by Mark Overmann

I’m a proponent of well-crafted, solid, specific cover letters. This, which I received as a blind job inquiry, is not one of them:

Dear Hiring Manager:

If you could design the next team member for your organization, would the following meet your toughest requirements?

A [well-known university] educated attorney with a proven record of success at responsible levels,

A counsel with a gift for pulling together rock solid answers serving the most demanding clients so well, they use them with confidence…and remember who gave them the resulting advantages, and

A leader who helps people elevate compliance and regulation from being burdens to becoming tools that help them succeed.

You’ve just read the Readers’ Digest version of my resume. You’ll find the details on the next pages and my pledge of value—three value added capabilities you’ll see me demonstrate from day one—right at the top of the first page. Backing them up are over a half dozen examples of problems solved.

However, words on paper are no substitute for hearing more about your special needs and the mission essential 2009-2010 goals of the organization.

I look forward to speaking with you in person.

Sincerely,

Enthusiastic yet misguided job seeker

4 responses so far | Categories: The World at Work

Jun920091:15 pm

Thoughts on how to leave a job

by Mark Overmann

Transitions in your career are inevitable. You’ll not only have to negotiate and navigate the details of accepting and starting a new job, but necessity also demands that you bow out of your current position with grace, humility, and professionalism. Following up on a request from a reader, my thoughts on how to best leave a job (and I’d love to hear more, as all situations are different and may require unique steps and strategies):

—If your departure is most likely imminent, but you still haven’t completely decided you’re leaving, don’t mention it until you’re 100% sure. Don’t say anything to your coworkers (unless you trust them to keep a lid on it) and certainly don’t tell your boss. This may seem obvious but I mention it because when I was once considering leaving a job, I thought about telling my boss before I’d made the final decision. A new opportunity had popped up unexpectedly, one that I was pretty sure I couldn’t pass up, but I really valued my relationship with my old boss and didn’t want him to think that I was bailing on him. So I thought that cluing him into to my decision-making process would be an honorable thing to do. I was promptly talked out of this, which was for the best, I think.

—When you are ready to go, tell your boss/supervisor immediately and in person. Do it early in the day so you don’t spend all day thinking about it. Have your intended “departure strategy” thought out and ready for discussion (i.e., “my last day will be…”), but be flexible if you can.

—Once you’ve told the boss, tell everyone else in person too. If you work in a small office, this won’t be a challenge (at least logistically). If you work in a larger office and it’s not feasible to tell everyone in person, consider a different strategy: I’m a proponent of making sure everyone hears it from you, so you may wish to tell a select number of colleagues (those to whom you are closer/have worked with closely) in person, and then send emails to the rest. I would recommend avoiding the mass email if possible and instead composing one message that can be copied over and over again into individual emails to each of your coworkers. This is a small but effective personal touch that will make the email notification of your departure seem less distant or cold. (I’d prepare the emails before you tell anyone of your departure, so once you’ve told your boss and others in person, you can fire the messages out immediately.)

—Submit an official resignation letter to your boss, with your last day noted in it. Most organizations require this, others may not ask. But it’s probably best to do one regardless. I suggest not bringing the letter into the meeting with the boss when you inform him/her of your departure—I’d prefer to keep that meeting more personal and less formal, and dropping a resignation letter on the desk seems very stiff and formal. Instead, submit the letter later, after you’ve hashed out the details of your departure in person.

—As best you can, get your work in order for your successor. If time permits, leave a position “guide” behind, outlining the general nature of the job as you experienced it, the projects that are currently underway, and a list of important contacts that your successor should be in touch with. (Depending on the situation and your relationship with the organization, you might also wish to make yourself available, on a limited basis, for questions and for some in-person training of your successor. But I should also stress that you want to be very careful about how much you make yourself available in this way and, if you’re worried in any way that such an offer might be taken advantage of, it’s probably best to avoid it altogether.)

—Make sure loose ends are tied up. For example, if your organization owes you any money, such as a reimbursement for travel, get that taken care of before you leave. If you can’t, take copies of paperwork and documentation with you for proof down the road.

—Take with you whatever you might need for the future: contacts, business cards, examples of work you’ve done, etc. Document your work in the position as soon as possible, so you remember what it is you did (how extensively is up to you, but at least enough to flesh out your resume).

—Let your former coworkers who you’d like to keep in touch with on a professional basis know this. No need to promise them anything, but if you’d really like to stay in touch with them professionally, it’s good to put that on the table. Then make sure to follow up once you’ve gotten settled into your new job.

And now just as I’m finishing this post, I see that Alanna’s posted some suggestions on how to leave a job you hate. A key there, as Alanna notes, is resisting the temptation to vent as you walk out the door.

Any other suggestions on how to leave a job? Things to avoid? Horror stories?

No responses yet | Categories: Career Resources

Jun920099:07 am

Language fellowships for graduate students…

by Mark Overmann

…are available via FLAS (Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships), a Department of Education-sponsored program that provides fellowship allocations to IHEs (institutions of higher education) to assist grad students in foreign language and area or international studies. The IHE applies for the FLAS allocation, then you the grad student apply to your IHE for a summer or year-long fellowship. Check eligibility requirements on the website and talk to your school to see if they are FLAS-enabled.

[The Department of Ed also sponsors an Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Program, but it looks like this is more of an institutional foreign language instruction capacity building program than a vehicle for awarding individual grants.]

UPDATE: A September 2008 report from the Department of Ed on the effectiveness of four of its grad fellowship programs, including FLAS. A summary of points on how FLAS fellowships affected participants’ careers:

—Nearly all fellows (92 percent) worked after completing their fellowships, and a majority of fellows (71 percent) worked in jobs that involved expertise they had gained through their FLAS-supported study. Nearly all fellows who reported working in a related job considered that job to be part of a career they were pursuing.

—Among fellows who had held at least one job related to the field they had studied with FLAS support, three-quarters of fellows worked in education, one-fifth in a U.S. private sector job, and one-fifth in foreign or international jobs. About one in nine worked for the military or other Government positions.

—Of fellows who had worked for pay since completing the fellowship, 68 percent worked in a job in which teaching was a major responsibility. These fellows had taught for an average of 3 years at the time of the survey, and 86 percent of them had taught in a field related to the FLAS-supported study.

—FLAS fellows believed that FLAS was very helpful in their degree completion and at least somewhat helpful in obtaining employment in a desired field. Over one-half reported that receiving a FLAS fellowship influenced their occupation and career choices.

1 response so far | Categories: Career Resources

Jun820094:20 pm

Friend Hillary

by Mark Overmann

Or sort of. The State Department has a careers page on Facebook, including a careers in foreign affairs group.

Hat tip: DiploPundit

No responses yet | Categories: Career Resources

Jun820093:10 pm

The pursuit of happiness

by Mark Overmann

“Happiness, like peace or passion, comes most when it isn’t pursued,” writes Pico Iyer in a “Happy Days” dispatch from yesterday’s Times. (In a roundabout way, it’s Iyer who’s responsible for me being where I am and doing what I do: his May 2002 essay in Time on the necessity of travel was the inspiration for my graduate school application essay, which began the series of fortuitous accidents that has led me to this point. So thanks, Pico.)

Iyer’s an established journalist and travel writer now, but what does he remember of his life and career at age 29, an age I’m about to turn in a matter of days?

I’m not sure I knew the details of all these lives when I was 29, but I did begin to guess that happiness lies less in our circumstances than in what we make of them, in every sense. “There is nothing either good or bad,” I had heard in high school, from Hamlet, “but thinking makes it so.”

Iyer doesn’t ask us to take the same road or approach to life or career as he did—he only implores that we look for our peace and passion not by struggling for certainty, but rather by listening to ourselves.

No responses yet | Categories: The World at Work

Jun820091:30 pm

America’s first global citizens

by Mark Overmann

Pollster John Zogby says that college students and young professionals are “more globally aware and less concerned about material wealth than were their predecessors.” A growing proportion are “earning less than they did in their last job,” but are happier and more spiritually fulfilled because of it:

Zogby, who is president and chief executive officer of the marketing and research firm Zogby International and has been conducting polls for more than 20 years, said college administrators should keep in mind the priorities of “America’s first global citizens” — those now 18 to 30 years old. Fifty-six percent of people in that age group, he said, have passports and have traveled abroad: “They are as likely to say they are citizens of the planet Earth as they are to say they are citizens of the United States.”

…Instead of focusing on material wealth and professional status, people in their 20s and early 30s are more likely to seek a rewarding and spiritually-fulfilling life, he said.

True, globalism and altruism are defining characteristics of the jobs and careers many young people are seeking. But are comparisons to previous generations on the points of materialism and ambition—that millenials are “less” materalistic and “more” driven by altruism in their professional life—productive, necessary, or even true?

For sure, we should recognize the desire of young professionals to be globally aware, to work past national and cultural boundaries, and to pursue careers that are fulfilling and give back in some way—these are aspirations to be encouraged. But we probably shouldn’t fawn over the inherent goodness of the millenial and his or her career choices—most millenials have good intentions, but we’re selfish too. Necessarily selfish, in my view. We may forgo a (more lucrative) career in law for a (less lucrative) career with a nonprofit, but when it comes down to it, we’re all still a little materialistic. We want to do good, yes, to serve a cause, yes; but we also want to be adequately and comfortably compensated for the good work we do. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with wanting both.

[Note: The Chronicle article linked above is subscription only, sorry.]

No responses yet | Categories: The World at Work

Jun520094:49 pm

Final thoughts on NAFSA

by Mark Overmann

A few last thoughts and then I think I’m done discussing last week’s NAFSA conference:

—The Irish universities reception was tamer than I expected (it’s apparently gotten pretty out of hand in the past) but was still a great time—how couldn’t it be with all you can drink Guinness, roving plates of corn beef quesidillas, and lots of happy Irish people?

—I didn’t go through nearly as many business cards as I thought I would (I was actually embarrassed at the number I brought and then had left at the end of the week). I don’t know if this is a result of exaggeration on the part of those who told me to bring a huge stack, or my general crappiness as a flesh-pressing, business-card-flinging networker.

—I saw zero celebrities in downtown LA (even before the Lakers game). I thought I saw Tom Colicchio once, but turned out it was just some bald guy.

—NAFSA is a great resource for career seekers in international education and exchange. Membership and attending both the national and regional conferences are incredibly valuable ways, I’m now convinced, of meeting people in the field and seeing the vast number of international career opportunities that exist (though I recognize that both membership and conferences are expensive). At the very least, though, take advantage of the NAFSA Career Center—it’s free and packed with good stuff.

No responses yet | Categories: Career Resources

Jun520093:26 pm

The Interns descend…

by Mark Overmann

If you’re interning in DC this summer, try to avoid doing this.

3 responses so far | Categories: The World at Work

Jun5200912:09 pm

Dangerous isn’t the same as authentic

by Mark Overmann

I’m genuinely puzzled by Nick Kristof’s bizarre column from this past Saturday’s Times. While the guiding thought behind it—that we should encourage students’ wanderlust and push them to see worlds far outside their own borders—is a good one, didn’t at least one editor read this, scratch his or her head, and consider that Kristof’s 15 tips for avoiding bandits abroad are self-indulgent and silly? And I’m generally a Kristof fan—his China writing, including his column yesterday on the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen, is top-notch. But here he is, either trying to scare travelers into being safe, or shame them into believing that if they haven’t been in a serious bus crash, roofied, or robbed at gunpoint, then they haven’t really had a true experience abroad. Either way, it’s just not productive.

I’m all for self-awareness and keeping it real when you travel—you should absolutely know into what kind of place you are stepping and how to keep yourself safe. I also agree that “authentic interactions with local cultures…enrich a journey and life.” But the kind of authentic interaction most people seek when traveling—and the kind we should probably be encouraging young people to look for—is not catching malaria and getting robbed, the kind of thing that unfortunately does happen but in which I don’t think it’s healthy to revel as deeply as Kristof seems to.

No responses yet | Categories: The World at Work

Jun520098:15 am

2008 ForeWord Career Books of the Year

by Mark Overmann

You’ve probably noticed the little gold seal that’s been floating in the right hand column for the last few months—proof that Working World was a finalist for the 2008 ForeWord Career Book of the Year award. Well, the awards ceremony was last Friday and, well…we didn’t win. But it was an honor just to be a finalist! I know, that’s what we’re supposed to say, but Sherry and I actually mean it. And some great books did win. For sure check them out: