Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Before Your Job Interview...


By: Felix O. Sanchez


You have just received a phone call from an employer in regards to a job interview, but are you really ready for it? In order to be fully prepared, you must do major research about the organization including years of operation, plans for the next 5 to 10 years, services they provide involving the community, company goals, and vision. You must also plan how to get to the employer’s location by using different modes of transportation and, if possible, take a trip there the day before your interview to get familiar with the area. Preparing the questions you will ask the employer, more likely at the end of the interview, will certainly help you to ace it - - - - not waste it. Another important part is to work on your business attire so that you could make an impact the very moment the interviewer lays eyes on you for the first time. Finally, you must practice, practice, and practice. Arrange a mock interview with a friend, or relative to build up your level of confidence and expectations. By doing so, you will show how seriously you are taking the interviewing process and the employer’s time.


Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Career Services’ Workshops

By Dominic Sheppard


Workshops encourage cooperation and motivation among the participants and although the term workshop sometimes intimidates participants, at SBI-NYC we promote and host interactive workshops that are known for achieving positive results... Preparation of our graduates for the workforce. The real world!!! Once in a group setting most people tend to open up and share their experience as well as hear other people’s point of view. Participants are able to build on the ideas of others while learning from our sessions and our graduates have been successful in spring boarding their career onto the right path after attending a few of these workshops. Each workshop coordinated by Career Services is tailored to the needs of our students and graduates. Some of the workshops we host are Resume Writing, Interview Preparation and Job Search Techniques. There are also special circumstances that allow us to customize a training session with the partnership of an employer such as a clinic or company seeking medical personnel. Our Career Services team is equipped with the talent and resources to develop workshops to meet the needs of our students and graduates.


Our most recent workshop was a combination of a Clinical Review and our Interview Preparation where we worked closely with Dr. Peerzade to prepare our Medical Assistant graduates for an opportunity with a company that needed candidates to assist with Health Screenings. Companies like this visit our campus regularly and either hire candidates on the spot or select a group for another interview at their site. This is why we implore a professional attitude from our students and graduates at all times. Once you have been enrolled you have made the choice to be a medical professional and our ongoing workshops will assist in preparing you for employment.


Besides working in accord with Dr. Mohammed Peerzade, our Assistant Dean, we have also coupled our resources and efforts with Geneva-Marie Louis and Maria Merida our Pharmacy Technician and Medical Billing and Coding Program Directors respectively to provide a continuous series of workshops for our students and graduates. We look forward to seeing you at our upcoming workshops.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

How to Network and Find a Job in the Medical Field

By Michael Franzese


Today’s job market can be very challenging in finding employment. Most companies are turning away from the simple job application from CareerBuilder, Indeed and Monster. The key to today’s job market is being prepared from the beginning to the end in order to successfully find employment and that begins with networking.

There are many websites people use today to advance themselves in their career and to stay ahead of the curve in finding employment opportunities. Below are some good sites to use to find Doctors/Medical Offices/Clinics in your area and the field you are most interested in.

Websites for networking:
  • www.doctorsdig.com
  • www.bookofdoctors.com
  • www.queensmd.org/qms/index.asp
  • www.clinicalsociety.org/index.htm
  • www.doctors.at
These are just a few of the many websites people use to find and network with Doctors throughout the five boroughs.

Another good way to network to find contacts in larger offices is through LinkedIn (www.LinkedIn.com) LinkedIn is a professional networking site designed for people to meet and network with people in all industries. There are many groups focused on health-care in the state of New York that would be good to join to meet other medical professionals. My advice is to create a profile and join as many groups as you can find. Here are some great groups.

LinkedIn Groups:
  • Health Care and Medical Positions Networking Group
  • Healthcare Leaders of New York (HLNY)
  • Medical Billing & Coding Forum
  • The Association of Healthcare Human Resources Administrators of Greater New York (AHHRA)
In all, these methods take time, hard work and perseverance. You will hear many negative responses from people you contact but it can take only one positive response to find that next job.

Best of luck in your career search!!