1:1 Career Advising

Doctoral students currently enrolled and Postdocs working at University of Maryland, College Park may seek 1:1 appointments with Dr. Yi Hao, Program Director of Career and Professional Development.

There are two types of 1:1 career advising appointments you can seek: (1) career advising appointment (length: 40 minutes); (2) application review & mock interview. Both appointments can be about careers in and outside of academia (length: 45 minutes). 

We have many resources available on how to create a CV/resume, write a cover letter, or any additional material you need to complete your application materials, through Beyond the Professoriate. Since resumes/cover letters should be tailored to specific positions, please leverage the videos to create a draft and schedule an “application review” below to receive targeted feedback.

Topics to discuss include PhD career pathways, skills/competencies, job search (for international and domestic students), networking strategies, interview preparation, negotiation, and offer evaluation. 
If you are exploring career options, please complete a self-assessment following the instructions, and bring your assessment results and any additional questions you have to the session.

Job Application Review 

To make full use of this appointment session, please send a position description (e.g., a job/internship/fellowship posting) along with your draft materials -- resume/CV and/or cover letter in Word format (strongly preferred, or via Google Doc) at least 1 business day before the scheduled appointment. For an appointment on Monday, materials must be received by the prior Friday, 3 pm (ET).

Suggestions/edits with be shared with you based on your materials. If it is a faculty/postdoc position, please prioritize 1-2 documents in the limited time we have (especially when you have multiple long documents to discuss your research goals, teaching philosophy, or diversity statement). You are welcome to schedule follow-up appointments to go through other materials.

Mock Interview

Please share the position description and your final application materials at least 1 business day before the scheduled appointment. For an appointment on Monday, materials must be received by the prior Friday, 3 pm (ET).

Based on the type of position, 5-6 questions will be drafted. We will use 20-25 minutes to practice and the rest of time to discuss feedback.

If you'd like to practice your job talk for faculty/postdoc positions, you can also choose "mock interview" category, and I will extend the meeting time to an hour. 

To find a date that works for you, please visit Dr. Yi Hao’s appointment page (she also links it in her email signature, if you need quick access). 

Please also use your UMD email address when scheduling an appointment. The appointment is default to a virtual meeting over Zoom. If you'd like to meet in person, please note it in your appointment request. 

You may make up to FOUR (4) appointments per semester with Dr. Hao, and no more than an appointment per week.

Career advising sessions are most productive when you come with your set of questions.

For appointments intended for application reviews or mock interviews, failure to submit documents on time may result in appointment cancellation.

If you are late by 15 minutes or more, please reschedule your appointment. 

• You may cancel an appointment up to 24 hours in advance by responding to the Google calendar invite. If there is an emergency and you need to cancel less than 24 hours in advance, please email Dr. Hao (yihao@umd.edu).
• If you are a “no-show” to TWO consultations (i.e., you miss the consultation without advance notice or cancel with less than 24-hour notice) in a semester, your future requests within the same semester will be denied.

PhD students on campus can access 1:1 non-academic career consultations through Handshake. 

• For ENGR PhD students, please choose “Engineering Career Services Appointments” -> “ENGR Doctoral Career Advising.”
• For all other disciplines, please choose “University Career Center Appointments” -> “Doctoral Career Advising.”

The Graduate School Writing Center, run by Dr. Linda Macri, also provides 1:1 consultations on writing/oral communication. You can also go to scheduled weekly write-ins to get brief, one-on-one consultations. Dr. Macri is a great resource for those interested in faculty careers or seeking advice on academic writing, research communication, and more. Please take advantage of the full services offered by the Writing Center.

If you have recently graduated, depending on your college/school, career services may be able to provide you with further assistance. 

If you have graduated more than 1 year ago, alumni can access 1:1 career consultations through Handshake: please choose “University Career Center Appointments” -> “Alumni Career Advising.”

You can always check career resources made available through the Alumni Association.