Chinese Ye, 12, enters European Tour record books

Chinese Ye, 12, enters European Tour record books - Twelve-year-old Ye Wocheng became the youngest golfer to qualify for a European Tour event when the Chinese schoolboy survived a late wobble to grab a place at the Volvo China Open on Wednesday.

Ye's two round two-under-par total of 142 at the Western China qualifier earned him a spot at the May 2-5 European and OneAsia Tour event and his participation will see him better the mark of his compatriot Guan Tianlang, who competed last year as a 13-year-old.

The amateur who lives in the industrial city of Donggaun in Guangdong province and is a member of the local Hillview Golf Club had his father caddying for him as he belied his age and lack of experience to claim one of the three places on offer.

After shooting an opening four-under 68 on Tuesday, Ye raced to the turn in his second round leading the field on seven-under after four birdies on Wednesday, but the pressure began to tell on a tumultuous back nine.

Shots were dropped at the 11th and 14th before he appeared to settle down with a birdie two at the 15th only to rack up a horror eight at the par five 16th.

His opening 27 holes had, however, provided an ample cushion and he could even afford to drop another shot on the last hole and claim the third and final place with two shots to spare.

Eighteen-year-old Li Xinyang and Jin Da Xing finished joint first on five-under 139 at the Wolong Valley Country Club with no other player finishing under par.

The 19th edition of the Volvo China Open will take place at the Tianjin Binhai Lake Golf Club in north-east China. ( Reuters )

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Do you hate your job? Feeling like you're stuck in a work rut?

See how the right certificate program could prepare you to pursue new opportunities - Do you hate your job? Feeling like you're stuck in a work rut?

If you want to get a fresh career start in a different field, consider the quick preparation that a certificate program could offer. Many could be completed in one year or less - depending on your course load and program, - making it a smart, time-efficient option if you want to prepare to transition to a new career quickly.

Whether you want to transition to a career in culinary arts, health care, design, or law, a certificate program could help you gain relevant skills.

Keep reading to see eight certificate options.

#1: Medical Billing and Coding Certificate

Education time: About six months to one year, on average.*

As a medical biller and coder, you would get to interact with doctors and other health care professionals to clarify diagnoses. Also part of this profession: collecting and organizing patient health information. To help prepare for this career, look into medical billing and coding certificate programs.

Average earning potential: The average annual wage for medical billers and coders is $33,880. The highest ten percent in this occupation average at $51,510.**

#2: Medical Assisting Certificate

Education time: About one year, on average.*

Medical assistants help with the day-to-day tasks in the doctor's office, often scheduling appointments and taking patient's medical histories. If you want to get into this career, now is a great time. The U.S. Department of Labor ranked medical assistants as one of the fastest growing occupations from 2008-2018. To help prepare for this type of work, consider enrolling in a medical assisting certificate program.

Average earning potential: Medical assistants have a mean annual wage of $29,450, with top earners averaging at $39,970.**

#3: Paralegal Certificate.

Education time: About nine months to one year, on average.*

If you already have a bachelor's degree, a paralegal certificate program could help you prepare for this career. Paralegals help lawyers by drafting legal documents, investigating cases, and providing assistance during trials.

Average earning potential: Paralegals have an average annual income of $50,080. The top ten percent average at $75,700.*

#4: Culinary Arts Certificate

Education time: About one year, on average.*

Want to prepare food for a living? Consider earning a culinary arts certificate. As a chef, you could oversee daily food preparation and service. You might also supervise kitchen staff and even create menus.

Average earning potential: Chefs have an average annual wage of $44,240. The top ten percent have an average annual salary of more than $69,560.**

#5: Dental Assisting Certificate

Education time: About one year, on average.*

As a dental assistant, your responsibilities could include sterilizing equipment, updating patient dental records, and assisting dentists during procedures. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, dental assisting is another fast-growing occupation, making it a good time to start preparing to pursue this career.

Average earning potential: Dental assistants make $34,000, on average. The top ten percent in this profession average at more than $47,070.**

#6: Ultrasound Technician Certificate

Education time: About one year, on average.*

If you're already working in the health care field and want to increase your marketability, an ultrasound technician certificate could help. As an ultrasound technician or medical sonographer, you could work with patients during scans and analyze the results for doctors.

Average earning potential: Diagnostic medical sonographers have an average yearly income of $63,640. Top earners in this field average at $85,950.**

#7: Graphic Design Certificate

Education time: About one year, on average.*

Graphic designers create visual solutions to get their client's messages out through print or electronic media. If you already have a bachelor's degree but want to transition to a more creative career, a graphic design certificate could help you gain valuable skills.

Average earning potential: Graphic designers have an average yearly income of $47,820. The top ten percent average at $76,450.**

#8: Pharmacy Technician Certificate

Education time: About six months to one year, on average.*

Pharmacy technicians often process prescription requests and pour, weigh, measure, and mix medications under the direction of a pharmacist. If you want to pursue this career, consider completing a pharmacy technician program. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, employees prefer to hire those with formal preparation and certification.

Average earning potential: The average annual salary for pharmacy technicians is $28,940. The top ten percent can average at more than $40,160 a year.** ( yahoo.net)

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Job Hunting in a Tight Market

Job Hunting in a Tight Market. There are many unanswered questions about today's job market: Will the economy get worse before it gets better? Will companies lay off more people? Can I still find a new job?

Any answer is, of course, an educated guess at best. Yet, you shouldn't assume that tight budgets and slowed job growth -- if they continue -- mean everyone is tied to their current jobs forever. People will still leave jobs and others will come in to replace them.

Retirements, career switches, births, relocations -- the many reasons workers have left jobs in the past will continue through 2009. You should expect a little more competition for these open positions, but your job search shouldn't stop.

The same rules apply

The way you conduct a job search isn't going to change dramatically this year. If you're currently employed and plan to change jobs soon, don't up and quit without a plan. You don't want to find yourself jobless with no prospects if you can help it -- regardless of the economy. Employed or not, be aggressive in your tactics.

"The market is tougher: There are fewer jobs, more candidates and hiring authorities are being more careful," says Tony Beshara, author of "Acing the Interview." "So a candidate has to really distinguish himself or herself even more from the competition. He or she [must] go above and beyond the average interview."

Job hunting is about getting noticed by employers. You don't want to blend in with every other person who responds to a job posting or walks into an interview. That's as true now as it was a decade ago. If you're a good employee, you'll be a good addition to the team -- but they'll never know that if you're just another faceless name in a pile of résumés.

To stay ahead of the pack, Beshara encourages you to research the hiring manager online -- use a search engine and social networking sites. If you have mutual contacts, drop their names during conversation so you become memorable. If you're lucky enough to get an interview, be just as prepared.

"Carry a portfolio of reports you have written demonstrating your skills or a 30-60-90 day plan as to what you would do the first 90 days of your employment. Do extra research on the company and the person you are interviewing, and maybe speak to their customers and find out how they are perceived," Beshara suggests.

No room for error

Because companies don't have the budgets they had a year or two ago, they can't afford to waste time or money on finding a replacement who's anything less than perfect -- or at least close to perfect. Many employers aren't replacing vacation positions that aren't vital to operations. If they're willing to spend on a new hire, they want a qualified candidate who will stick around for a while. They also know that they have many job seekers for far fewer positions. The pressure is on you to be the best potential employee they'll come across in the hiring process.

"Everything, and I mean everything, in your interview matters -- your dress, your speech, your manners -- and employers can be very unforgiving in this market, especially when they still have plenty of candidates to choose from," Beshara warns. "It simply takes lots more practice and, since you can expect fewer interviews in the current market, practice really makes a difference."

A résumé with typos or unprofessional attire in an interview rarely bodes well for a job seeker. In 2009 such a misstep is guaranteed to get your name crossed off the list of potential candidates. Here are some things to consider during your 2009 job hunt.

• Résumés
  The incessant warning to avoid typos probably gets annoying and seems like redundant advice, but hiring managers repeatedly cite typographical errors as a top pet peeve. Think about it this way: You can't control whether the hiring manager ever picks up your résumé, whether your personality clicks with his or hers and whether you ultimately get the job. Conversely, your résumé is your creation. You went out of your way to type it up and send it to the company. What kind of message are you sending if you don't take responsibility for one of the few factors entirely within your control?


• Interviews
  The interview is a two-way street, where you need to sell yourself to the hiring manager and he or she needs to sell the company to you. Let the company do its part and focus on yours. You always want to prove to the employer that you're looking for longevity -- in a competitive job market, it's vital. Explain that a position where you can learn, grow and be a team member for longer than a few months is your ideal situation. If the hiring manager gets the feeling that you're desperate to find any job just to earn a paycheck, you'll be out the door before you set your bag down. Employers don't want to spend the money training someone they'll be replacing in four months.


• Don't get lazy
  Browse job boards, search the classifieds, walk around the neighborhood -- look for jobs wherever you can. Some employers don't want to spend a lot of money advertising a job opening, so reach out to companies that might not have a job opening listed, as they might be quietly searching for new employees.


• Network
  Your connections, both social and professional, are invaluable resources during a job hunt. Even friends of friends you've only met at a cocktail party are worth touching base with during a job hunt. When you let people know that you're looking for a new job, they'll keep you in mind if they run across an open position at their workplaces or if they hear about one at a friend's company. You can cover more ground than if you search alone. ( msn.com )

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Six Ways to Expand Your Job Search to a Different City

Six Ways to Expand Your Job Search to a Different City. Every day, more and more people are searching for work. And every day, there are fewer and fewer jobs available -- or so it seems.

If your job search is coming up short, it might be time to start exploring other options. Expanding the job search to another city, for example, is one thing many job seekers don't think about when trying to land a new gig. While it's not ideal to have a longer commute or to pack up and move altogether, the stark truth is that some cities just don't have the same opportunities as others.

So how do you go about landing a job in a new locale? Here are some ways to broaden your job search to a different city:

1. Target your search

The first step in broadening the scope of your job search is determining where you want to look. You won't do yourself any good if you search all jobs in every location. Try two things: First, search for the type of work you're interested in and see what cities come up first in your results. On CareerBuilder.com, for instance, if you search for "nursing," Phoenix, Dallas and Houston are listed as the cities with the most job postings for that keyword.

Or, if you know what city you'd like to work in, but are open to any line of work, search for jobs by location. If you know you want to move to Indianapolis, for example, use that as the starting point for your search. Your results will show you the industries with the most job postings, which you can narrow down yourself.

2. Expand your network

By now you know that when it comes to finding a job, it's not what you know, but who you know. But what happens when you want to relocate and you don't know anyone where you are job searching?

If you don't know anyone in the city where you are job hunting, turn to your social and professional networks for help. Clue your network in on where you are searching for work and ask anyone and everyone you know if they have any leads for you. Chances are that someone you know has friends or family in the area; or a contact of yours might have an old boss who relocated to the place you're looking. Perhaps someone you know knows someone else who can help you -- you get the picture. The point is, everyone in your network has a network of their own so don't be afraid to turn to them for help.

3. Update your résumé

The fastest way to get eliminated for job consideration in another city is by not having a local address on your résumé. List your current address as your permanent residence but also include a local address of a friend or acquaintance until you get one of your own. Don't know anyone in the area where you're moving? Rather than listing a local address, include your targeted moving date on your résumé to let employers know you are serious about making the move.

4. Utilize your cover letter

Your cover letter is the perfect place to discuss your plans to relocate. Explain why you are looking for work outside your current area, when you plan to move and any days you'll be visiting the area before relocating. Tell them you'll be in town for X amount of time and you hope you'll be able to meet with them during that period.

5. Register with a local staffing firm

Staffing firms are extremely helpful in your job search -- especially when you're conducting it from hundreds of miles away. Many recruitment agencies have offices in cities nationwide and therefore, have knowledge about hundreds of job openings you might not know about otherwise. Register with a local staffing firm and let them know the other cities where you are interested in working. Your representative will be privy to the job markets in other cities and can share your résumé with colleagues in other places.

6. Plan a visit

It's very hard to score a job from afar, so make plans to visit the area where you're relocating and set up an interview while you are there. If you can give employers a time frame of when you'll be available to meet in person, they'll be more likely to take your application seriously.

Keep in mind that before you're asked for face time, it's likely that a hiring manager will want to talk to you over the phone for an initial screening. When this happens, choose a quiet place and have a copy of your résumé handy, plus the job description and any details you can disclose about your move.

Although a long-distance job search can be trying, expanding the scope provides you with new opportunities, new contacts and will hopefully move your career in the right direction. ( msn.com )

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What Are Green-Collar Jobs?

What Are Green-Collar Jobs?. Industries for the future. Recently, we've heard a lot about green-collar business initiatives and jobs, or jobs created by a shift to a more energy-conscious, energy-efficient society.

Many major political players are all talking about the green-collar movement and pledging the creation millions of new jobs, job training for current and future workers, and the identification of green industries of the future.

President Barack Obama -- "We've also got to do more to create the green jobs that are jobs of the future. My energy plan will put $150 billion over 10 years into establishing a green energy sector that will create up to 5 million new jobs over the next two decades."

Republican Sen. John McCain -- "We have the opportunity to apply America's technological supremacy to capture the export markets for advanced energy technologies, reaping the capital investment and good jobs it will provide."

This stronger focus on energy diversity and efficiency means more jobs: opportunities in sustainable energy sources like wind and solar, ethanol production, green building, hazardous waste removal, recycling and consumer goods; jobs in research and development, construction, manufacturing, technology, operations and sales.

Perhaps one of the greatest strides in this movement is the Green Jobs Act, part of the 2007 energy bill, which Congress passed and former President Bush signed in late 2007.

"This innovative proposal -- green-jobs -- will make $125 million a year available across the country to begin training workers for jobs in the clean energy sector," remarked Rep. John Tierney, D-Mass., who co-wrote the Green Jobs Act. "Thirty-five thousand people per year can benefit from vocational education that will provide for them secure employment in this country."

The availability of green-collar jobs will cross boards of workers at all skill levels, says Jerome Ringo, president of the Apollo Alliance, which promotes clean energy and energy efficiency policies and initiatives. "Whether your field is technical, you're a skilled or unskilled worker, you were laid off ... the economic benefits from green jobs spread from the highly educated to the noneducated."

The act also provides funding for green-collar training particularly targeted to individuals in need of updated skills; military veterans; unemployed individuals; individuals seeking employment pathways out of poverty; and formerly incarcerated, nonviolent offenders.

According to the act, energy efficiency and renewable energy industries covered under the term green collar"include:

• energy-efficient building, construction and retrofits;
• renewable electric power;
• energy-efficient and advanced drivetrain vehicles;
• biofuels;
• deconstruction and materials use;
• energy efficiency assessment industry serving the residential, commercial or industrial sectors; and
• manufacturers that produce sustainable products using environmentally sustainable processes and materials.

"New technologies require new skills," said Rachel Gragg, federal policy director for The Workforce Alliance. "Adopting clean energy practices is critical to our nation's well-being, but these efforts won't succeed if we don't invest in the people who will actually do this work. We need people to install millions of solar panels, build and maintain alternative energy plants, make buildings more energy efficient, and maintain and repair hybrid vehicles."

Here are just some of the green areas employers will be hiring for in the coming years:

• Hybrid car manufacturing
• Energy retrofittng
• Food production using organic and/or sustainably grown agricultural products
• Furniture making from environmentally certified and recycled wood
• Green building
• Waste composting
• Hauling and reuse of construction and demolition materials and debris
• Hazardous materials cleanup
• Green landscaping
• Manufacturing of green products (like wind turbine blades and solar panels)
• Reuse and production of products made from recycled, nontoxic materials
• Solar installation and maintenance
• Retrofitting to increase water efficiency and conservation
• Whole home performance (i.e: heating, ventilating and airconditioning; attic insulation; weatherization; etc.)

( msn.com )

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Do Employers Care?

High School Diplomas vs. GEDs : Do Employers Care?. For most Americans, school is a large part of your life. From the time you turn five until the time you're 18, you've probably spent thousands of hours in a classroom. Although the common path is to move from elementary school to high school and then decide what to do next, many students take a different route.

As anyone knows, life often has its own idea about how your plans should go. Some students leave school because they need to help with the bills, they start a family or school doesn't seem like the right option for them at the time. Whatever the case, they can always return to high school or they can earn their GED_®, which stands for General Educational Development.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 12.8 million people over 15 have a GED, which proves that a significant amount of people are opting to take a different path. This large number of people with GEDs also means that more employers are faced with job seekers with backgrounds that don't fit the traditional model. Still, plenty of people are left wondering whether or not their decision to opt for a GED will come back to haunt them.

How can a GED impact your career?

Brett Yardley, a marketing and communications specialist for MAU Workforce Solutions, has helped recruit many job seekers, including many who have GEDs. In his experience, many employers focus on whether or not you made the effort to complete your education at all.

"The biggest difference is degree -- GED or high school diploma -- versus no degree," Yardley explains. Employers want to know they're hiring someone who can complete a goal they've set for themselves. "In our experience with trade skills and labor positions, GEDs are typically considered an equivalent of a high school diploma and rarely have any impact on job seekers. Years of relevant experience or technical skills usually become the deciding factor. Proof of the degree is all that's required. It's when a job seeker doesn't have a GED or a high school diploma that employers move on to the next applicant."

The case isn't quite the same when you move from the labor positions into specialty areas.

"Job seekers for professional [or] specialty positions rarely, if ever, show GEDs," Yardley says. "A GED may raise questions in the mind of hiring managers for this type of work due to the perceived stigma that GEDs are somehow less than high school diplomas," Yardley explains. "In our experience, if individuals with GEDs are applying for professional type work, they leave any references to their GED off their résumé. At this level, bachelor degrees and above are typically the deciding factors, with high school diplomas and GEDs as more of an afterthought."

The good and bad of a GED

A GED can mean two different things to employers, depending on the context, says Maya Frost, author of "The New Global Student: Skip the SAT, Save Thousands on Tuition, and Get a Truly International Education."

"What matters most is not whether you earn a GED or high school diploma but whether you use the GED as a way to advance or to catch up," Frost says. "The GED can be a very powerful tool as part of a strategy to begin college early. For those who want to blast forward, veering off the SAT/AP/GPA path and taking the GED at 16 may be the smartest move they can make."

That doesn't necessarily bode poorly for anyone who earns a GED for any reason other than to jump start college. It does mean, however, that employers are always looking for job candidates with ambition and commitment.

"[Workers] who earn a GED after the age of 18 are viewed far less favorably by employers. Unless you have a few college courses or exceptionally relevant experience under your belt, a GED may be seen as an indication of a lack of ability or follow-through," Frost warns.

Therein lies the trick for anyone with a GED. If you can continue your education in any capacity, you'll have the ability to frame your educational narrative and not let employers make their own assumptions.

Career adviser Megan Pittsley decided to forgo the usual four years of high school in order to start her college career early. Now, she not only has an associate degree, but she also has a successful career and has nearly completed her bachelor's degree.

"In my experience as a job seeker, recruiter and career adviser, I would say that as long as you continue to further your education beyond high school, it doesn't matter whether you formally graduated or received a GED," she says.

You don't have to earn a bachelor's or even an associate degree to show that you're serious about your education. You can take relevant courses that will help your work or get an appropriate certification. Whether it's a foreign language course or a public speaking seminar, you can show that you possess a serious commitment to education, and therefore a future employer. ( msn.com )

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Are You Employable?

Are You Employable?. Excerpted from "Career Building: Your Total Handbook for Finding a Job and Making It Work"

Here's the bottom line: You have to get a job, you have to go to work and someday, you'll probably have to change jobs. "CAREER BUILDING: Your Total Handbook for Finding a Job and Making It Work" (Collins Business) is a one-stop guide for navigating all those times in your career.

For some people, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" is a guiding principle. And if you've found one job, you can certainly find another. You know all you need to know about job hunting, right?

If you find your job hunt isn't giving you anything but a stress headache, maybe it's time for a refresher. Ask yourself these questions:

Is my résumé targeted?

Just because you're applying for multiple jobs, don't assume the same résumé works for every position. Each job posting will stress different qualities over others, so rework each résumé to highlight the experience and skills that correspond to that particular employer. Your résumé will prove not only that you're qualified for the job but that you also pay attention to detail.

Am I networking?

We've said it once; we'll say it again -- networking is crucial. Think about this: There is only one of you and there are thousands of job openings. The more people know you're looking for a job, the better your chances of finding one are. You can never be sure who will know of an available position. Networking can also connect you to a hiring manager, directly or indirectly, giving you the edge over other candidates.

Do I know something about the companies I'm applying to?

"Tell me what you know about the company" or "Why would you fit in well here?" have become staple interview questions, so don't be caught off guard. Shrugging your shoulders and saying, "I don't know" isn't going to score you points. Look at the company's Web site and read press releases and newspaper articles to see what's going on with your prospective future boss. In addition to preparing for the interview, you'll learn whether the company and its culture are a right fit for you.

Am I targeting my job search?

Sending out several résumés is key to finding a job, but you also need to be selective about the jobs to which you're applying. While you don't need to possess every single skill listed on a posting, you should at least be qualified for the position and prove that you have transferable skills. Your targeted résumé will help prove you're a serious candidate and have the right qualifications for the position. If you're spending time applying for jobs you're not qualified for, you're wasting valuable time you could be devoting to a position that's a better fit. If you recognize where your strengths lie and what transferable skills you possess, you'll see better results than if you apply to any posting you come across.

Has someone else evaluated my résumé and interview technique?

Seedback is critical to job hunting. Ask someone else to read your résumé and review it as if they were hiring for the job. Friends or colleagues can provide objective points of view to help you revise your résumé.

Your interview skills need the same attention. Are your answers succinct or too short? Thorough or rambling? What you think you're saying isn't necessarily what others hear, so find this out now rather than in the interview. If you don't think that a colleague or friend can offer constructive feedback, make an appointment with an interview coach.

How am I presenting myself?

Employers are assessing your presentation before you even show up for an interview. Your e-mails and phone conversations with hiring managers or recruiters should also send a professional message. Don't send emails written in all capital letters and/or using three exclamation points -- it's bad netiquette in personal correspondence, but it's even worse in business. Put the same thought into your outgoing voice mail message. Don't try to be funny by playing 30 seconds of your favorite song or talking with a mouthful of food. Hiring managers might hang up instead of ask you to call them back. Give a normal, casual greeting, or use one of the preprogrammed options that come with most accounts.

If a recruiter calls you, don't try to hold a conversation with your TV blaring in the background or your child screaming on your lap. If you're asked whether it's a good time to talk, you can be honest and say you're in the middle of something. Then ask if he or she can call you back in 15 minutes or find another day that's convenient for both of you. You'll be prepared to answer all the recruiter's questions and won't be distracted.

Your goal is to find a better job than you had, right? So you have to conduct a better search this time around. Put the effort in and you'll see the results. ( msn.com )

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