Student Summer Jobs

The dead of winter seems an odd time to be thinking about summer jobs but employers are! The Ontario Summer Jobs program just closed its applications for employers to get subsidies last week and the federal government is gearing up for its Federal Summer Work Experience Program. 

This year you should anticipate more student hiring than in the past since it is Canada's 150th birthday and the government plans to throw the country a party. All national parks will be free this year, which will spike the numbers of families and people planning trips to see the majestic beauty of our country. Ottawa will also undoubtedly see more students hired as everything from locks to museums will all see more Canadians visiting the national capital. The Federal Summer Work Experience Program (FSWEP) launches in January and you want to have your resume in early as government departments will look to hire in April. 

To apply to the FSWEP inventory, you must be:

1. enrolled as a full-time secondary or post-secondary student in a recognized institution and currently be recognized as having “full-time student status” by that academic institution;
2. returning to full-time studies for your next academic term; and
3. able to meet the minimum age requirement to work in the province or territory where the job is located.

HELPFUL HINTS

Pick a good location- FSWEP jobs are for all over the country but there are some areas that get high volume of applicants, generally where post-secondary institutions are located. Select smaller centres in order to have your chances of being selected increase. As an example remote or small place like Chafey's Locks are less likely to have as many applications as Ottawa (with two universities and multiple colleges). 

Keywords reign- Understand that the public service resourcing system is an applicant tracking system. It uses keywords to select qualified candidates. Think about what words are used in the industry you are looking to get in to. If you don't know what words to use, read the website of the department you are interested in, it should have words they use commonly.  

Say yes- Answer as many questions as you can with yes. Willing to work part-time? Yes. Willing to work evenings? Yes. Willing to travel in small planes? Yes. A manager wants someone who is going to be able to be flexible, so demonstrate that by saying yes.  Plus if you say no and the manager has requested the person be willing to work evenings, your resume will never be seen. It could be that they only need you  to work Canada Day evening, or one weekend, the reality is you don't know. Saying yes and getting good job experience and a good reference is worth any minor inconvenience. 

Network- While the system will randomly generate a list for a manager, the manager can also request certain files. If there is a department you want to work for, start now, finding a contact. Can't find a contact? Write a blog post about a cool idea or something that department might like and tweet it to them. Add people from that department to those you follow on Twitter. Make sure people know your name. 

FSWEP is incredibly competitive, but with a good resume, key words and choice locations you may find yourself working for the government this summer. 

As always questions are welcome.