New Resources!

The library has three new resources!  They have been added to our list of databases.

• Job & Career Accelerator -- interest assessment, career exploration, resume builder and job search platform.
• LearningExpress Library -- practice tests & interactive skill building tutorials. Prepare for the GED, as well as professional certification, licensing, and aptitude tests in civil service, law enforcement, firefighting, EMS, military, real estate,and healthcare. Prepare for college and graduate school admissions tests including the SAT, ACT, GMAT, GRE, LSAT, and MCAT.
• NBC Learn Higher Ed -- thousands of videos, historic newsreels, primary source documents, and  photographs from NBC News.

Please give these resources a try. Find them userful?  Not your cup of tea?  Post a comment and share.  Feedback on the usefulness of any database is appreciated!

Lowest percentage of young workers since WWII!

I just read an article about how we have the lowest percentage of young Americans working since World War II. It was eye opening!

Young people have been conditioned that if you do well in school, go to college, and get a degree or certificate, you will be able to find a great job, make lots of money, and live the American dream. It is very disheartening to graduate and then find a job that pays minimum wage or just above minimum when you just worked your butt off for 4, 5, or 6 years.

Read the article to find out what they say about it. Many people are moving back in with their parents. There were some interesting comments below the article, take a moment and read them. Now is the time to plan for a job. Are they hiring in your field? What can you do with your degree? What are you going to do if you can't find a job?

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/battered-downturn-young-americans-put-off-adulthood-160406776.html

For further reading, see if you can find Adam Shepard's book, Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25, and the Search for the American Dream. I'm sorry to say that the library does not own a copy of the book, but you can get it through interlibrary loan.

Protect Your Future Employment Today

I recently read an article online about a company asking a potential employee to sign a nondisclosure agreement stating that they would not mention their company's name on Twitter, Facebook, etc... I had never heard of this, but I have heard of companies searching their would be employess on those same social networking sites. Check out the following articles, and see if you need to change the settings on your Twitter or Facebook account while you are job searching.

Check these out:
Social Media Guidelines in Your Job Search and Workplace
http://www.theworkbuzz.com/employment-trends/social-media-guidelines/?cobrand=msn&siteid=cbmsnhpbuzz&gt1=23000

Employers Look at Facebook, too
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/06/20/eveningnews/main1734920.shtml