Career Center Upgrades and Your Job Search Are a Winning Combination
CAREER CENTER UPGRADES AND YOUR JOB SEARCH ARE A WINNING COMBINATION
For the AAN’s Neurology Career Center, now in the seventh year since replacing the old Dendrite, every year has brought growth and change. 2017 was no different, but with one highly surprising addition. Despite an ever-challenging labor market, improvements to the site’s job applications feature yielded a four-fold increase in candidate responses in just one year.
For Career Services Senior Manager Amy Schoch, the uptick in candidate responses to Career Center job postings is very gratifying since it confirms the Career Center remains a relevant member program. Having the AAN membership embrace the changes by making even more use of the Career Center lets her know the Academy is making good choices in serving members’ career needs. “We have always been the leader in online job postings for neurology,” Schoch explained. “But since we upgraded software last year, candidates are applying to four times more positions. There are not necessarily more candidates. What’s changed is that each candidate can apply for jobs more easily, so they’re checking out more opportunities than they were before.”
Variety paired with exclusivity is one reason the AAN job postings are so valued by the membership. There are openings nationwide and covering the range of work settings—from private practice and hospital positions to academia and industry. As Schoch noted, “This is not Monster or Indeed, it’s not even a general medical site. Job seekers will only find neurology exclusive jobs on the site, which means the
search is efficient for our members. They don’t have to wade through unrelated positions to find a match for their training and interests.”
One-click Access to Jobs
To appreciate the ease with which you can utilize the Career Center’s job postings, you need only visit Careers.AAN.com. Here you will
find hundreds of opportunities, to which can be applied in just one or two clicks. Schoch notes that visitors to the site now have two easy options for connecting with employers. All available jobs display with a green “Apply Now” button. From there, the job seeker can select one of two options: to complete a brief application online or use a dialog box to send an email to the employer stating their interest in the position. The second option is particularly appealing for those protective of their personal data or who have questions about the position. As Schoch noted, “We’ve tried to eliminate as many barriers as possible for job seekers. The software built-ins are easy to use and make this a time-efficient process.”
But what if you’re too busy to peruse the site for job openings? No problem: Now you can set up an alert sending appropriate jobs to your email box as soon as they are posted. Schoch said this is just another feature designed to respect members’ time while providing immediate access to open positions.
Members-only Benefits
Too busy to search for that perfect first job or the next career move? No need to search daily or weekly. AAN members can create a Job Alert through the Neurology Career Center. The Job Alert is an automated email sent to the job seeker announcing a new posting to the site matching their individual interests. Once the job search is complete, the Job Alert can be disabled. To access, AAN members just need to visit Careers.AAN.com, generate an initial search by location, specialty, etc., and then save the search to create the Job Alert.
Are you looking for specific advice for contracts, interview skills, or how to transition to a new job? The Neurology Career Center boasts a comprehensive selection of articles written specifically for the AAN membership on a wide range of career topics. Examples of recent features include profiles on current job seekers, a day in the life of a VA doctor, ideas for choosing a practice setting, gender equity in neurology, and the importance of contract negotiations. Each article is drawn directly from the advice and experiences of AAN members, applied to career issues faced by today’s neurologists. As Schoch noted, “It’s not canned, generic content. We ensure that it’s relevant for what neurologists are going through in their careers. We don’t want to waste our members’ time with articles that don’t apply to them.” Although the articles are searchable by topic on the internet, the entire selection can be found by going directly to AAN.com/careers on the Career Center website.
AAN Junior members have access to a unique Career Center resource to help with first-time contract negotiations. The Salary Calculator Tool at AAN.com/salarycalculator is based on the data collected from the AAN’s Neurology Compensation and Productivity Survey. Residents and fellows can use the tool to determine a potential salary for their first job in practice based on factors like specialty, payment model, and location.
While most job seeker resources offered through the Career Center are available as free member benefits, others are available at a discount. A private and confidential CV Review is available to both first-time job seekers and seasoned members looking to refresh their current CV. To access, members can visit AAN.com/AANStore/cv-review-personalized-service. Members preparing for interviews or struggling with a career transition can purchase a 30-minute session with a personal coach at AAN.com/AANStore/career-coaching-session.
Something for Everyone
As you can see, there’s something for everyone at the Neurology Career Center, whether you are a practicing neurologist in the field, or a resident or fellow seeking your first job. If you still wonder if visiting the Career Center will benefit you, listen to these final comments from Amy Schoch: “When I travel to the Annual Meeting and other events for the AAN, members make a point of stopping to tell us how they used the resources on the site and found their new job."
