2013 RANGELAND CAREERS

It’s about Your Future and the impact you will make on the destiny of natural resources in the world.  Are you the one who fill the shoes of the old guard and lead the way in the next decades?
“History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.”  Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)

WORKFORCE CHALLENGE

A joint report of the UDSI – BLM and USDA USFS entitled “Discover – Knowledge Management”, issued in 2005, stated that “Over the next five to eight years, approximately 50 to 80 percent of the employees in the USDA Forest Service (FS) and USDI Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will be eligible to retire.”  The demand for students and young professionals with majors in range science and management and related disciplines remains high.  But, the supply of graduating and graduates in these fields appear to be decreasing.  The Society for Range Management (SRM) is concerned in meeting the workforce objectives and goals so that management of these lands is well stewarded for the coming generations.  The Society is addressing this issue by providing an impetus and avenues such as an annual job fair and student recruitment event to remedy this challenge.

The Society is extending an invitation to all prospective job seekers for permanent and temporary employment and employers at the Society for Range Management’s 66th Annual Meeting, Technical Training, and Tradeshow in Oklahoma City, OK.  The 2013 SRM Job Fair will take place on Sunday, February 3, 2013 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and the Student Recruitment Event will continue through Thursday, February 7, 2013.

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES ROOM (formerly EMPLOYMENT ROOM)
This room is available Sunday, February 3, through Thursday February 7, 2013, 8:00 a.m.to 10:00 p.m. and is where professional job announcements, graduate school opportunities, internships and seasonal vacancy postings, representing the diversified membership of SRM are posted for meeting attendee viewing.  This room will be centrally located in efforts to facilitate all interested parties for the entire week.

Career Development Workshops
In addition to the successful Student Employment Workshop (now called the Rangeland Employment Workshop), where you can ask questions on how to really succeed in the job market, SRM is planning to host additional career development workshops.  All workshops will be one to two hours in length and will be offered concurrently with the 2013 Rangeland Job Fair on Sunday afternoon, February 3, 2013 from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.  Top professionals from both the private and public sectors of rangeland management have volunteered to guide these workshops to benefit SRM members.

Rangeland Employment Workshop - 1:00PM - 3:00PM
Facilitators:
Ingrid Drieling, USFS, North Zone Salmon-Challis N.F., Leadore, ID
Jack Alexander, Synergy Resource Solutions, Inc., Belgrade, MT

Employers are looking for ethical, motivated, hard working persons who can think, solve problems, communicate effectively (all modes), work effectively on a team, and have good leadership skills.  Yes, they want certain specific technical knowledge and skills, but they generally assume that a person has ample technical ability so that they can train them in the specific technical components of their job.

At this workshop each participant will be asked to bring a specific job application along with a cover letter and their resume that they developed for that specific job.  The workshop will help students analyze their materials with discussions on how they may improve it. Further discussions will concentrate on the process of evaluating job announcements, gathering information, preparing check lists, and then writing the resume and cover letter, submitting the application, follow-up, and preparing for the interview.

Also at this workshop you can ask the questions on how to really succeed in the job market.  This is a confidential and discreet workshop.  You can ask the hard questions without potential employers present. Expect to get honest, straight-forward answers on what employers are really looking for.

Did you know that the average time spent on a resume by a future employer is 20 seconds?  At this workshop a team of experienced range professionals will offer critical real life resume assessments with usable suggestions to help you learn how to become one of the people that gets 20 minutes of a future employer's time rather than 20 seconds.

Potential employees that attend this workshop will also learn about appropriate interview attire, the importance of networking, and having a business card.  Attendees will also find out why people that serve on committees as students typically get job offers when they graduate.

Opportunities for Graduate School Workshop 3:00PM – 4:00PM
Facilitators:
John Tanaka, Department Head and Professor, Renewable Resources, University of Wyoming
Megan Dominquez, Assistant Professor, Extension Range Specialist, Dept. of Ecosystem Science and Management, Texas AgriLife Extension Service

Many undergraduate students, as well as younger range professionals, find themselves unsure whether they should pursue or continue a job in the profession, or whether they would be better off earning a graduate degree.  Although the answer will vary for each person, this workshop will offer viewpoints addressing the question from various angles.  In fact, the workshop will focus on three important questions: How do I choose the right path for me:  Graduate school or professional experience?  If I choose graduate school, how do I find the right program and faculty advisor?  What information should I ask for as I make my decision?  These questions will be addressed by a panel of speakers who will make brief presentations and field questions from the audience.  Included on the panel will be university professors and current or recent graduate students.  The target audience is college undergraduate students who are just beginning to think about what might happen after graduation, current masters students contemplating a PhD, and working professionals contemplating a return to graduate school.

Recruitment and Hiring Within Government Agencies - 4:00PM - 6:00PM
Facilitators:
Marc A. Pointel, BLM, Tonopah, NV
James L. Lowe, USFS, Washington, DC
Dennis Thompson, NRCS, Washington, DC
Other Federal and State Agencies, TBA

Several federal agencies plan to be present at the annual SRM RANGELAND JOB FAIR to circulate current and available job outreach notices.  Several of these agencies (USFS, BLM and NRCS) have successfully provided tentative offers to federal job applicants at the Society for Range Management annual meetings in past years. During the 2013 SRM annual meeting the NEW student hiring authorities for the Pathways Programs will be utilized. Updated information can be found on the SRM website at http://www.opm.gov/HiringReform/Pathways/.

In addition, individual agencies will have about 30 minutes during this workshop to explain the agency hiring process to interested participants.  Human Resource and/or Range Specialists from different agencies will be present to explain the hiring process from vacancy search to selection.  Details will be covered regarding registration with the different on-line application sites, inputting quality, easy-to-read resumes and tips for strong responses to the vacancy questions.  They will discuss the OPM classification series specific to rangeland management positions, how to interpret mandatory qualification requirements, and desired attributes of highly qualified applicants.

Good grades are important but field experience and communication skills are even more important.  The intent of this workshop is for interested participants to walk away with a good general knowledge of the federal agency hiring process and perhaps remove some of the mystique and intimidation that may exist.

“The important work of moving the world forward does not wait to be done by perfect men.”
George Eliot (1819 - 1880)