University at Buffalo (UB)
Welcome to the Design Space
This collection of resources is designed for UB faculty and staff to easily implement career preparation within the academic curriculum or on-campus job and internship work. These include on-demand learning, lesson outlines, and recommended assignments to reinforce student learning outcomes, plus tools, templates, and blog resources that can be shared with students to offer opportunities for self-guided career design.
Assigning career readiness work as part of the public health curriculum.
“Career core competencies fit really naturally into my coursework. Students learn how to apply course theories to their future work, and how to talk about that knowledge in an interview. In teaching, we care about transparency—and these resources underscore why we’re learning what we’re learning.”
- Jessica Kruger, PhD, MCHES
Learn why Jessica embeds career readiness directly into her curriculum >>
These self-guided activities, tools, and downloads are available 24/7 for students to start applying what they’re learning in your classes or work-study into meaningful strides down their career path.
These are resources that faculty and staff can recommend to students who have questions about starting their job or internship search, or who want to dive deeper into hands-on applications of the learning webinars you’ve already shown them.
What Employers Want + How to Show You Have It
To find a job or internship, students have to know what employers are looking for. Not just the specific requirements for the job but what skills employers are looking for too.
Before students can start exploring majors or careers, they must discover what interests them. That's how they can begin designing a life they love after college.
Roadtrip Nation
Roadtrip Nation is empowering stories that give students the confidence and tools to find careers that matter to them.
PathwayU
Take different assessments based on your interests to find the right major and career path for you. They only take a few minutes, and you can retake them at any time. All you need to do is log into or sign up for your Connect-a-Bull account.
Digital Challenge Cards
Students can use the Digital Challenge Cards to explore majors or careers by sorting the challenges they might want to solve.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
Career readiness is essentially how prepared a student is before entering the workforce. There are eight career readiness competencies, each of which can be demonstrated in various ways. Below you'll find activities and tools that can help students find the skills they'll excel in and how they might show them in an interview.
PathwayU
Take different assessments based on your interests to find the right major and career path for you. They only take a few minutes, and you can retake them at any time. All you need to do is log into or sign up for your Connect-a-Bull account.
🔁 What Employers Want + How to Show You Have It
To find a job or internship, students will have to know what employers are looking for, not just the specific requirements for the job but what skills employers are looking for too. This activity will help students identify the eight skills employers want.
Big Interview
Students can practice their interview style at home by creating a practice interview session using Big Interview, the online video interviewing tool. You can also use this tool to have students record responses as an assignment or a way for virtual interviewing.
*This online tool is free when registering with your UB email address.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
Help students show their future employers that they can do the job or internship better than the rest.
Big Interview
VMock provides personalized feedback on resumes using algorithms and guidance from the Career Design Center to help maximize a student's resume in 15-seconds or less.
Coursera
Enroll in our How to Write a Resume course, an online course that guides you through creating an eye-catching resume, letting your professional strengths shine.
*This course is free when students sign up using their @buffalo.edu email.
Resume Samples + Templates
Writing a great resume is crucial in a student's job or internship search. Have students get started by downloading our resume samples and template for inspiration on how to write theirs.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
80% of jobs or internships are found by connecting with professionals and alumni. Below you'll find tools and activities to help students grow their professional network.
🔁 How to Find Your People
Students' networks are much larger than they think. This activity will help students find people that are already in their network and how to make more connections.
🔁 About Those Elevator Conversations
This activity will help give students the confidence to start a conversation and "pitch" themselves to a new professional friend.
Career Communities
Students can be supported by a network of like-minded community members, UB alumni and mentors sharing advice, inspiration, motivation and ideas for their career journey.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
Whether students are looking for full-time or part-time opportunities, on-campus or off-campus, you can help them throughout their search.
Job Search Plan
Navigating job/internship opportunities can be challenging, but it's all about the plan!
Bullseye powered by Handshake
Help students complete their Bullseye powered by Handshake profile to get personalized recommendations that match their interests and skills. It also helps them get noticed by recruiters who can message them about their desired roles.
Interstride
Students can find US and global opportunities along with visa and immigration support, webinars, workshops and tools to help them stay on track.
Job Market Stats
Use real-life employment data from across the country to help inform students' career decision-making.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
An interview is a student's moment to be confident and tell an employer why they can do the job or internship better than the rest, and you can help them prepare and get the job or internship they want.
🔁 What Employers Want + How to Show You Have It
To find a job or internship, students will have to know what employers are looking for, not just the specific requirements for the job but what skills employers are looking for too. This activity will help students identify the eight skills employers want.
Big Interview
Students can practice their interview style at home by creating a practice interview session using Big Interview, the online video interviewing tool. You can also use this tool to have students record responses as an assignment or a way for virtual interviewing.
*This online tool is free when registering with your UB email address.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
When evaluating a job offer, students should consider many factors besides salary! Here are some activities and tools that can help students negotiate.
Job Market Stats
Use real-life employment data from across the country to help inform students' career decision-making.
Career Design Studio
In the Career Design Studio, students will find inspiration, resources and tools all together to help them design their life after college.
✏️ MORE TOOLS
Browse and download from a collection of samples and templates that will help with resumes, cover letters, networking and interview prep; some are for faculty and staff and others for students.
For Faculty
Considering the course work of your class, will your students develop any of the eight NACE Career Readiness Competencies? Insert the syllabus statement in your syllabus, indicating the NACE Competency/Competencies your students will develop in your class.
For Students
For Faculty & Staff
Writing a letter of reference for a student
For students with little or no professional experience, professors and co-op or internship supervisors become likely candidates to write letters of reference on the student's behalf.