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For Degree-Seeking Students

Individual Career Coaching

Degree-seeking CPS students are eligible to receive individual career coaching from a masters-level counselor. Career guidance includes interest assessment, resume and cover letter review, job search, interview preparation and building your network. Visit Handshake to make an appointment.

Resume Workshop for Experienced Professionals

Has it been a while since you brushed up your resume? Learn how to think like a recruiter when updating it. Review the basic rules of resume writing, plus cover tips to customize it so each line of it stands out to the hiring manager. This recorded workshop, developed by Villanova’s Career Management team, will demonstrate, section-by-section, practical suggestions to enhance your resume and review best practices for cover letter writing.

Virtual Resume Review Tool

We are pleased to announce the latest addition to our service offerings, ResumeAI.

With ResumeAI, you can receive immediate feedback on your resume writing - and immediate coaching on improving. You get guidance on Readability, Credibility, ATS Fit, and more. ResumeAI Feedback can also be used as a complement to human assessments from staff members and/or other mentors.

The Villanova Career Center recommends using ResumeAI to score your resume before coming in for an appointment. While ResumeAI is not a substitute for an in-person resume review, it will help you better understand what aspects of your resume may need attention and how to correctly format a resume.

Resume Checklist for Busy CPS Students

Short on time? Review this Resume Checklist for Experienced Professionals and update your resume in no time!

Cover Letter Writing

Cover Letter Workshop

A well-written cover letter can make your application stand out from the crowd. Hear from Villanova’s Career Management Coach on tips to write an effective cover letter. This session primarily covers a deep dive into resume writing; the cover letter best practices are toward the end at 41:15 minutes along.

Cover Letter Checklist

Short on time? Use this Cover Letter Checklist to get your cover letter ready for your next career step!

Sample Cover Letter for Experienced Professionals

Interviewing Workshop for Experienced Professionals

So, you’ve landed the interview? Great news! Now, learn how to land the position by brushing up on your interview skills. This presentation will cover the stages of the interview which start long before the phone screen. Learn how to properly research the employer, prepare to communicate your examples and evaluate transferrable skills and resources Villanova offers you for practicing these skills. Lastly, learn about critical follow-up steps that were once deemed optional.

Prepare and Practice Interviewing Online

The Villanova University Career Center is pleased to offer a training system that features a new and innovative way to help students prepare more effectively for job interviews.

Big Interview is an online system that combines training and practice to help improve interview techniques and build confidence. Check out this demonstration to get the most from the resource

Through Big Interview, CPS students have at their disposal a variety of tools including:

  • Challenging, virtual mock interviews for all experience levels and dozens of industries
  • A database of thousands of interview questions with tips on how to answer them
  • The ability to rate and share interview answers for feedback
  • A comprehensive video training curriculum covering all aspects of landing a job
  • A step-by-step interview Answer Builder for crafting answers to behavioral questions

To Register:

  1. Go to villanova.biginterview.com and click "Register" in the upper right-hand corner.
  2. Complete the registration process using your Villanova email addressIf you use another email address (Gmail, Ymail, etc.), your access will not be approved.
  3. After registering, you'll receive a confirmation email at your Villanova email address. Click "Verify" in the email, and you'll be able to start using Big Interview!

Interviewing Checklist for Experienced Professionals

Short on time? Check out this Interviewing Checklist for Experienced Professionals for quick and easy steps to prepare for your next interview!

Virtual Interview Backgrounds

Interviewing Resources and Tips

Join the Nova Network

The Nova Network is Villanova’s social and professional network and home to nearly 20,000 alumni, students, faculty and staff. CPS students may search the community by company, city, or industry of interest and directly connect for a networking meeting.

Visit novanetwork.villanova.edu, choose “Villanova login” for the quickest access and choose College of Professional Studies upon registration.

Nova Network houses on-demand workshops and checklists on best practices on resume writing, LinkedIn, interviewing, offer negotiation and more. These are tailored to the experienced professional. CPS students may also choose from 45+ groups in industry, region or experiential communities to connect with Villanovans and stay current. Learn more about Groups.

Leverage LinkedIn

Did you know 90 percent of recruiters regularly use LinkedIn? Is your profile standing out to them? In a recorded webinar delivered by Villanova’s Career Management Coach, you will discover best practices for building or revising a standout profile. Designed for experienced students and professionals like you, tips were shared on how to make connections, engage in groups, be found by relevant employers, and network your way to continued success on LinkedIn.

Short on time? Check out our checklist on leveraging LinkedIn.

Networking Best Practices

Networking Checklist

If you’re wondering where else to make connections, how to deepen professional relationships and eager to learn best practices for engaging in impactful networking conversations, Villanova has a practical checklist for you.

Social Media Best Practices

Job Seeking Resources & Industry Success

Are you anticipating a career transition? There are so many resources, search engines and sources of information out there. This presentation delivered by Villanova’s Career Management Coach, will help you navigate your way through the job search and share Villanova’s trusted and vetted resources with you to ensure you are preparing for continued career success through an ever-changing market. Industries thriving under current conditions will be discussed for consideration.

Handshake is Villanova’s go-to resource for jobs and more

This mobile career management platform intuitively connects you to relevant opportunities based on your profile, interests and search activity. Through Handshake, you can apply for positions, explore companies and connections and sign up for career fairs and workshops all in one place.

On-Campus Recruiting Guidelines

Trusted External Job Search Engine

Looking for jobs in a few different locations? Want to find contact information for people who work at employers of interest? Through Villanova, you have access to search internship and job listings as well as company and people profiles from all around the web in one place with CareerShift. With CareerShift, you can:

  • Search, select and store job listings from all job boards and all company job postings.
  • Get up-to-date contact information, including e-mail addresses, for millions of companies.
  • Create personal marketing campaigns, including unlimited resumes and cover letters easily, and save them to access, print or e-mail.

We often recommend using CareerShift in conjunction with accessing the opportunities and resources available in Handshake. Check it out and talk with a career counselor about how you can incorporate this tool into your search.

For more information on CareerShift, please watch our walkthrough video.

Offer Negotiation and Salary Negotiation Workshops

The final phase of a job search can be both exciting and intimidating. Both you and your new employer want to land on an agreement that is mutually beneficial and sustainable. This presentation will cover negotiation considerations for compensation, benefits, sign-on bonuses and more. In this recorded webinar presented by Villanova’s Career Management Coach, we take a deep dive into all the elements of a job offer that you can consider for a negotiation with your new employer.

For professionals ascertaining their worth in the marketplace from a compensation standpoint, we offer a recorded presentation by Dr. Joyce Russell, Dean Emeritus of the Villanova School of Business.

November is Dedicated to the Professional Development of CPS students, alumni and graduate students of Villanova University

Each year, the Career Management team partners with Villanova University’s Alumni Relations team to offer 40+ events to enhance the career satisfaction and development of experienced Villanovans. Programming is uniquely Villanovan and ranges from industry expert panel discussions, to career coaching sessions, to regional networking events. Check out the latest Nova Network November details. We hope you will join us next November.

Villanova on The Hill offers students a weeklong immersive experience that explores all aspects of the policymaking and political ecosystem of Washington DC, and how individuals from a variety of backgrounds, and in a broad range of professions, make it work.

The Villanova in The Valley student immersion program is a weeklong experience that exposes students to Silicon Valley and San Francisco, the center of global innovation and entrepreneurship.

Villanova on Set is a weeklong immersive experience designed to expose Villanova students to the various facets of the Hollywood television and film industry.

Villanova at the Agency is a four-day-long immersion program that takes place at the end of May in New York City, the heart of the public relations and advertising industry.

Learn More About Our Immersion Programs

The resources above are customized to CPS students who already have professional experience. However, a great place to reference basics is our Career Readiness website for undergraduate students.