According to Scotland’s The Herald newspaper, green jobs aren’t just on the rise in the U.S., but in the U.K. as well. The British company Centrica recently announced plans to create 1,500 new green jobs, from engineering positions to green collar assignments. Jobs will include energy efficiency advisers and wind farm installers. On Monday, I posted about four recession-proof careers and working for green industries definitely made the list. According to economic experts, as many as three to five million new green jobs will be created in the U.S. over the next decade. If you are in...

TGIF dear readers! The blogosphere has been a buzz this week with job search news and advice. Here’s a look at some of what I’ve been reading this week. If you’ve read a job-related article or blog post this week that you want to share, please do so in the comments section! >> The Keys to Landing a Job This Summer @ The Campus Buzz Yes, it’s still cold outside, but if you’re in the market for a summer job, now is the time to find it. Especially given the dire news that summer job opportunities (like the rest of the job market) are a bit dried up this yea...

With the job market continuing to tank, a growing number of recent college graduates are looking to volunteer opportunities rather than paid employment. Especially popular are overseas volunteer opportunities. According to this article from the Lexington Herald Leader, the Peace Corps has received 16 percent more applications this year than last year. Americans are also doubling up on their application to Canada’s largest volunteer international development group, CUSO-Voluntary Service Overseas. The article points out that volunteering at home is also up. Teach for America, the natio...

Dear JobMonkey, My husband has worked for one of the Big 3 auto manufacturers for the last 14 years. He got his first job out of high school and has worked his way up the ladder. Then in December, he was laid off. He didn’t even get a real severance package. Until September, I had been a stay at home mom to our three kids, but thankfully we saw the writing on the wall and I was able to get a job outside the home. Unfortunately I don’t earn nearly as much as my husband did and I don’t have health insurance benefits with my job. So to say we are struggling would be an understat...

Common wisdom might tell us that cruising and the tourist industry in general is in serious trouble these days. According to this article from Time Magazine, it’s true that the cruising industry is swimming upstream, but they are fighting hard to stay afloat. (Okay, no more water analogies, I promise!) The Time piece reports that Royal Caribbean saw a 98% drop in 2008 fourth-quarter earnings and that onboard traffic during the winter months (typically the busiest season of the year) is down on some lines by 25%. That’s the bad news. The good news is that lines are enticing would...

Wow, it’s Wednesday already. If this is your first time joining us, welcome to Hot Jobs! Every Wednesday, I post three of the most recent job opportunities listed in JobMonkey’s job center. If you are looking for a job, the job center should be your first stop. The job center features job openings from around the country and the world — updated daily and completely free to job seekers. This week, I have a real menagerie of gigs, including a casino job, an account executive, and a diesel truck and trailer mechanic. #1. Poker Dealer Job, Silver Dollar Casinos, Renton, WA Cas...

Newsweek online has a great piece this week about ten recession-proof careers.  Here’s a look at four of the job fields that are still hiring (Halleluyah!) and links to corresponding sections about these career options from JobMonkey. 1) Security Jobs with the Defense Department and America’s Homeland Security are on the rise. According to a 2007 report, there will be more 80,000 new jobs in these fields in the next two years. If you include local crime fighting in these figures, I’m guessing the numbers will be even higher — much higher — since the recently pa...

CNN Money is reporting that graduate students are finding that summer jobs and internships, once a main stream to full-time employment, have all but dried up. According to the article, on-campus recruiting is down more than 10% this winter. Whereas summer job and internship offers are typically made in the fall, employers are now holding back due to economic concerns. “[Employers] don’t know what’s happening six months from now,” said Pamela Bierman Mittman, the assistant dean of career services at New York University’s Stern School of Business, “this year t...

Dear JobMonkey, I read your letter from a nursing student a few weeks ago (If you missed it, check out the nursing cover letter) question here. I guess I have a similar question. I keep hearing about having a cover letter template, but I can’t quite figure out what that means. I end up rewriting my cover letter for every job application. And considering that I hear back from some few of them in the first place, it’s starting to feel like a waste of time. So, how do I write a cover letter template? Thanks, Frustrated Cover Letter Writer Dear Frustrated, I’m sorry to hear tha...

Hello friends! My apologies for getting a very late start on our Reader’s Mail and Link Love. My Internet went down on Thursday and finally got fixed last night. It’s amazing how dependent I have become on my friendly wireless access. Here’s a quick look at some of the great stuff I’ve been reading this week. I hope you have enjoying your weekend and can fit in some time for some bloggy love. >> How to Talk to a Friend Who’s Been Laid Off @ The Brazen Careerist Penelope always has good things to say, but I think this post is especially validating for thos...