Places to research employers, negotiation how-to’s, and current salary/wages

- Negotiation guide from American Association of University Women various guides/courses on how to be empowered. Quick reference on jobs and salaries as of Oct 2020.
- Salary/wage: PayScale, ZipRecruiter Salary Information, or Salary.com for salary research and their negotiation guide.
- For Not-for-Profit salary research head to Candid.
- MIT living wage calculator.
- NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers) internship hourly rate – HOURLY WAGE RATE FOR INTERNS CONTINUES ITS ASCENT or CURRENT BENCHMARKS (Feb 2022),
- NACE 2022 –SALARY PROJECTIONS FOR CLASS OF 2022 BACHELOR’S GRADS A MIXED BAG
- Search by State and Major for Employers with organizations details- Buzzfile
- Center of Education and the Workforce – reports, data, and figures to dig deeper into your major
Need Career Gear? If you are looking for gently-used work attire, we collected a few local stores in the Champaign-Urbana community. As we go back to in-person career fairs and interviews (the link has 5 levels of examples), it will be important to be prepared for these professional conversations. A gender-neutral guide to what to wear for fairs and interviews might be more helpful. (These organizations are not sponsored or endorsed by campus units.)
- Briella’s Boutique
- Karen’s Kloset
- Carle Auxillary Retail Boutique
- Goodwill
- Salt and Light
- Plato’s Closet
- Twice is Nice Thrift Shop
Need a phone or Zoom interview space close to your classes? We have two private interview rooms for those liberal arts students in need of a quiet place for phone or online interviews. To reserve one of our rooms complete the online scheduling form at least three business days in advance.
Need easy and help to practice interviewing, try this great application for Illinois students (free to you) – Big Interview. Use your netid and campus password to sign-up.
- Engage in a pre-recorded video interview through Big Interview.
- Choose from thousands of general, behavioral, technical, and industry-specific questions.
- Share your interview with a peer, mentor, etc. to receive feedback from friends or family (Optional).
Dreamers & Undocumented Students Employment Assistance for Students, Faculty, Staff, & Employers
DREAMers are DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) or TPS (Temporary Protected Status) students. These students are readily able to secure work legally. Employers/Organizations can proactively recruit and hire DREAMers with DACA – knowing these students are critical to the equitable revitalization of organizations and communities.

Student employment:
- Find a job through a U.S. employer. Your EAD (employment authorization document) and a social security number will allow you US employment. Take full advantage of those documents by finding a job on or off campus. Despite your DACA approval, you are still not eligible for a federal work study. You can take charge of your own job search by searching for open positions outside of work-study (Humanities positions: local & campus while enrolled, internships, and post-graduation).
- Renew your DACA so that you can work in the United States after graduation too. Your DACA is a temporary solution to your absence of legal immigration papers. Renewing your DACA is crucial if you hope to continue working in the United States indefinitely. The USCIS website has resources to help you with your EAD questions and concerns. For more information about renewing your DACA, consult a lawyer or the USCIS official website.
- Become an independent contractor. An independent contractor is a person or business that provides services to another operation as specified the negotiated contract. Independent contractors are not employees; they are freelancers. A contract with a business will state whether the work is paid hourly or with a flat fee, and the freelancer will submit an invoice for his or her services. Unlike employees, independent contractors use their own facilities and supplies such as computers and cars. Businesses often hire independent contractors for special projects in writing and translation services, marketing, graphic design, IT work, and many other fields.
Specific links to resources for supporting student employment:

- Dreamer Program at Illinios and Campus related news
- RSO – I-CAUSE
- Campus Employment Resources
- YouTube link to Income and Career Options for Undocumented Students: How Colleges Can Help
- National Dreamer Progam for current details and other resources
- US Citizenship and Immigration Services: DACA or TPS
- TPS Status Employment information (employment with EAD)
- Campus Allyship Program and campus faculty & staff resources.
- Six initial ways you can be a better ally to undocumented immigrants by SaVonne Anderson on May 15, 2016
- Employer hiring facts from fiction (Employer tool kit)
- Hire and retain DACA-mented DREAMers with work authorization
- Share the success you have had with DREAMers in your workforce with your peers and network via LinkedIn and other social media platforms, e-newsletters, and direct outreach.
- Encourage other businesses to hire and retain DREAMers
- Some Employers Are Still Unsure About Hiring ‘Dreamers‘ by Roy Maurer (February 5, 2020)
No one should go hungry. A recent report found that nearly 38% of students at four-year universities claimed they were food-insecure in the previous 30 days. If you need help or have this concern, you are not alone. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign wants to ensure you have access to nutritious food and assistance to help you solve issues of food insecurity. Our community wants to help with connecting you to many resources.
International Employment Assistance

- INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS: looking for jobs or internships you might look at these options: OPT or CPT. For a list of internationally friendly US companies, click here. For more information about policies around your visa keep current with information from ISSS. For other general resources, go to the Handshake @ Illinois Library.
- More information for International Students
Links to Global postings and other information
- International student-friendly organization at The Career Center
- My Visa Jobs for jobs, internships, and other helpful information
- Lockin China