Job Search Support in Health Care

Student Services team members can support students with their job and internship searches. This includes helping with identifying where to search for internships and jobs, networking with alumni and industry professionals, and using websites such as Handshake, and LinkedIn.

A few things you can do now to prepare for your search:

Professional Identity & Accessibility

• Make sure your voicemail is set up with a professional message. Check your voicemails and emails regularly for employers trying to contact you.
• Ensure your email is professional (e.g. john.smith@gmail.com)

Gather your professional documents (resume, cover letter, clinical logs, etc.) and review them for updates and errors.

• Make a “Credential Folder.” This should include scanned copies of your BLS/CPR card, immunization records, background clearances, and unofficial transcripts. Having these ready will accelerate the onboarding process.

Practice interviewing to develop and fine-tune your interviewing skills so that you're ready when employers reach out to interview you.

• Prepare 3–5 "Clinical Win" stories using the STAR method. Focus on a time you noticed a change in a patient’s status (Nursing) or successfully modified a treatment cue for a frustrated client (SLP).

Audit your social media sites and update your content to ensure you're presenting a professional image that is consistent with your brand.

• Ensure there are no photos from your clinical rotations that show patient faces, hospital logos, or confidential charts in the background. Even a "celebratory" post-shift photo can be a HIPAA violation if a patient’s name is visible on a whiteboard behind you.

Complete a skills assessment of yourself to understand your most marketable skills and assess the skills employers are looking for.

• Distinguish between your Technical Skills (e.g., Trach care, EMR proficiency like Epic/Cerner, specific diagnostic batteries) and your Interpersonal Skills (e.g., de-escalation, family education, interdisciplinary collaboration).

Reference Readiness: Reach out to your Clinical Preceptors or Site Supervisors now. In healthcare, a recommendation from a working clinician who has seen you handle a full patient load carries significantly more weight than a purely academic reference.

Where to Find Jobs

There are many tools and resources available for job seekers to help find positions during your job search. These are a few resources for you, but it's important to use a variety of options to find the types of positions you are looking for.

• Handshake - Search hundreds of positions posted by employers who are interested in recruiting Pepperdine students. You can also find many virtual employer information sessions that you can register to attend.
• Job Search Academy by Indeed + Pepperdine University - The Job Search Academy is a free, virtual career development program brought to you by Indeed and Pepperdine University to help you excel in your job search. The Academy focuses on mastering the 5 key areas of the job search so you feel confident every step of the way–because everyone deserves better work.
• Off-Campus Events and Job Fairs - Stay abreast of recruitment events that are happening in your local area, or in the area you want to work. These events may be open to the public or may be hosted by an outside organization.\
• Job Search Sites - There are many general and industry-specific job sites to search for open positions. Use a few different sites and use key words to maximize the amount of relevant positions you can find.
• Employer Websites - Go directly to the sites of employers you're interested in, and search for open positions. Many employer sites will also let you set up job alerts that will notify you when relevant positions are posted.
• LinkedIn - Search open positions and set up job alerts to be notified when new jobs are posted.