Department of Career Services
American Chemical Society
1155 Sixteenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Contact Person:
Karen Dyson
Department of Career Services
Membership Division
American Chemical Society
1155 Sixteenth Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 872-4432; (202) 872-4529 - Fax
k_dyson@acs.org
PROGRAM BACKGROUND
The Board Task Force on Employment Assistance believes that locally-based career services are essential to the achievement of the Society's objective to "...provide programs and activities to facilitate the career development of chemical professionals." To this end, the Local Section Career Program was established to aid in the development and maintenance of local services that would provide members with employment and career assistance.
OBJECTIVES
I. Training. Provide local section volunteers with training, encouragement, and support materials. Utilize existing data provided by local sections.
A. Identify and train local section member-volunteers. Volunteers could be selected from existing employment committees or identified to establish employment committees. Volunteers attend a training workshop.
B. Solicit volunteers to share information on local employment outlook/situation.
C. Train volunteers on how to develop and implement career assistance and employer network programs.
II. Career Assistance. Provide members with career and employment information and assistance.
A. Encourage Career Consultants to participate more actively in local section activities.
B. Help local sections connect with the many services, programs, and materials that are available through ACS Career Services, Career Education, and Membership.
C. Refer local sections to resources available through local public libraries. Assist sections in setting up a "chemistry career corner" at these libraries.
D. Suggest that local sections be principle contributor to "Employer Mailing List." The local section would be named in the "List" as contact for further information on these employers. In the future, sections could access this information online.
E. Create an environment for sharing of job availability between local sections.
lll. EmpIoyer Network. Enhance local professional networking opportunities with chemical professionals and employers.
A. Network with employer contacts to develop an alliance where employers would look to local sections to identify talent and learn of career workshops which could benefit downsized employees.
B. Expand local section involvement in planning and implementing the Regional Employment Clearing House.
C. Encourage local sections to team with neighboring sections in running job fairs.
D. Publish a local directory of local talent to mail to employers.
IV. Alliances. Develop an alliance between local sections, industry representatives, and other professional societies to keep abreast of changes occurring in industry.
A. Meet with ACS governance groups with oversight in these areas to begin aligning common goals and create an action plan for achieving individual milestones.
B. Meet with ACS governance groups with oversight in specialty areas such as women chemists and younger chemists to gain insight into career issues affecting these groups.
C. Plug into network of scientific and non-scientific professional societies.
V. Publicity. Develop a plan to publicize sections' employment related activities through the media.
A. Local Sections could include in monthly newsletters, an employment box that would provide updates on employment in the chemical industry.
B. Identify an avenue to publicly highlight local section employment programs. A contact name and address for each section listed would be included.
Vl. Electronic Access. Provide avenues for all groups involved to communicate via electronic mediums. TO BE DEFINED.
Career Program RESOURCES.
Career Opportunities: