Is your Voicemail affecting your Job Prospects?

By Robert, Ticket Counselor 

Are you hurting your chances of employment without even knowing it?

Recruiters call many people every day and have to make quick judgments on the suitability of candidates. Every day at ERS we make outbound calls to our tickets holders and hear the variety of voice mail messages our ticket holders have set up.  Some of them make us laugh, but some of them give us pause for thought and make us wonder:

What would I think if I was phoning this person to set up an interview or offer them a job?

Now I am not a recruiter – so I decided to see what recruiters I know had to say on the subject, and our observations were correct.  I contacted a colleague who works for a local hospital, and was advised that the voice mail message that was played could make them quickly rethink their position on a candidate.

From our own experiences here in the ERS call center we came up with a list of examples of bad voicemails that we had heard while calling out to our clients:

•  “Comedy” Voice messages with Cartoon Voices.
•  Rapping / Signing - Keep it for the shower or the American Idol Audition tape. :)
•  Cursing - no one wants to hire you if you hit them with an F-Bomb!
•  Long, rambling messages. 
•  Preaching – your voice mail probably isn’t the best place to spread the good word.

Examples of good voice mails should be fairly common sense.

•  Keep it Short and to the point.
•  Keep it Clean.
•  Make sure it’s understandable – play it back to yourself.
•  Would you want to hear that message if you were calling someone to work for you?

My recruiter colleague also asked me to remind you all to think about your email address too:

That “hilarious” email you have for your friends to send you stuff is probably not the best one to use when you are sending in resumes.  There are plenty of free email services so you can always set up a 2^nd professional email address so recruiters aren’t put off before they even get a look at your resume.

Special Accommodations Case Study

By Tripp, Senior Ticket Counselor

For individuals with disabilities, a special accommodation can make all the difference between being able to gain employment in a particular job, or not being able to pursue the job at all.  At ERS it is our goal to make sure that individuals in the Ticket to Work program are able to effectively utilize their skills and work experiences in employment positions that are a good match for them by providing Ticket Holders with job accommodation planning and career/job placement counseling. 

For example, Jacqueline of South Carolina pursued and obtained an employment opportunity last fall with a national retailer.  After a few months of employment, the employer decided that Jacqueline’s skills and work experience would make for a good fit in other positions within the store, such as a cashier, however because she is legally blind, it was difficult for her to transition into other positions that required strong visual acuity. 

Jacqueline spoke to a counselor at ERS about job accommodation planning and inquired about how to obtain a special accommodation so that she is able to further her employment as a cashier.  She had found that using a magnifying glass at home aided her in being able to read and see certain objects, but was not comfortable with using this one and only device at work as well.  The ERS counselor researched assistive devices for individuals with visual impairments and provided her with a catalog of reasonably priced devices and encouraged her to speak with her employer about applying for a special accommodation under the American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA).  Armed with the information provided by ERS and the encouragement to speak to her employer, Jacqueline was successful in obtaining the special accommodation necessary to allow her to continue training and transitioning into the cashiering position. 

Financial Aid for Individuals with Disabilities

By Tripp, Senior Ticket Counselor 

Obtaining an education can be an expensive, yet rewarding adventure.  For many, it provides an opportunity to obtain better employment or simply to fulfill a long held dream.  Once you have gone through the process of standardized testing, applying for schools and programs, and getting accepted, the next, and most important step, is securing the finances to fund your education.  There are many types of financial aid available, including scholarships, grants, and loans.  There are different ways you may qualify for each type of aid, however keep in mind that loans must be paid back.  When applying for financial aid, complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) first.  This application will review your eligibility for federal aid including Pell grants and subsidized or unsubsidized Stafford loans.  Subsidized loans are not charged interest before repayment of the loan begins because the federal government is subsidizing the interest for you during your education.  Unsubsidized loans will accrue interest until the full loan balance is paid.  The interest is capitalized, meaning that you pay interest on any interest that has already been accrued.  One way to minimize how much interest accrues is to pay the interest as it accumulates.  For more information about federal financial aid, visit one of the links below:

U.S. Department of Education - http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/publications/student_guide/index.html

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) – http://fafsa.ed.gov/

Disability.gov – https://www.disability.gov/education/financial_aid

In addition to federal student aid, there are plenty of programs out there providing scholarships, grants, and other loans, that may provide you with additional financial assistance in preparing for school.  One of these resources is an online database known as FastWeb.com.  FastWeb.com is free and requires you to register and build a profile before they can provide you with up to date information on financial programs that you may qualify for.  The site also provides instructions on how to apply or enroll in these programs.  For more information visit FastWeb today at http://www.fastweb.com/.