A few months into her new marketing role, Kim sent an email to her JVS Career Counselor Sandra Saltzman, thanking her for her guidance, encouragement and expertise during her 1.5-year job search.

“There was no way I could have gotten as far as I did in my job search without your wisdom and your belief in me,” Kim wrote. “I’m deeply grateful.”

Kim expressed her gratitude to Sandra and JVS, as well as a JCFS senior-level networking group she belonged to while she looked for employment.

“When you’re looking for a job, you can’t do it alone,” she said. "I don’t care where you are in your career. You can’t do it alone.”

One moment during career coaching stands out for Kim: after she implemented Sandra’s suggestions to improve her cover letter, she received a call from an internal recruiter for a senior marketing role at a large nonprofit.

“I later learned through networking that there were over 700 applicants, and the reason they reached out to me was only because of that cover letter,” she said. “That’s the impact of Sandra’s advice.”

Sandra also supplied Kim with resources and arranged for mock interviews, and also advised Kim to create more LinkedIn content, which boosted her visibility and led to several interviews. When she learned that Kim had stopped applying for jobs online, Sandra pointed out that she was removing herself from the market and she urged her to continue.

Kim began applying online again and was soon landing more interviews. Today, several months in a position where she is thriving, Kim reflects on her employment journey with gratitude.

“I absolutely couldn’t have done it alone,” she said.