St. Paul Campus Career Center
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Career Resources for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) Students

Choosing to be Out in the Workplace
You may need or want to decide whether, when and how to be out in your job search and in your workplace. These decisions are personal ones; only you know the right answers and approach for your situation, values and beliefs. A few tips to help you with this decision:

  1. Talk to professionals you trust, who have experience with coming-out decision-making.
  2. Be aware of the laws of the cities, states and countries in which you’re applying. Some interview questions and workplace behaviors are illegal. For state and federal policies related to GLBT people on the job, see the Lambda Legal Defense Web Site.

Finding Job Openings
In addition to using online job search tools and networking as a job search strategy, a great strategy is to target organizations that are known to be GLBT friendly and inquire about opportunities directly. There are several ways to research the GLBT-friendliness of an organization:

  1. Read companies’ diversity statements and human resources policies on their web sites.
  2. Look to see if the organization supports GLBT “affiliation groups” for employees and/or has GLBT-friendly benefits and workplace cultures.
  3. Note which organizations advertise job openings on GLBT-related sites.
  4. Review the Human Rights Campaign Foundation Corporate Equality Index which rates organizations based on how their policies and practices support and protect GLBT individuals and families.

For additional job search suggestions, check out our GLBT Job Search Online Workshop.

Connecting with GLBTA professionals
As mentioned in the Networking Made Easy section of our web site, talking to professionals is a great way to find opportunities and learn about organizations. Meeting with local GLBT professionals can be a great way to build your network and gain advice on your job search. Below are a few places to find GLBTA friendly contacts:

GLBTA Mentor Program
Sign up to be connected with a professional who can help you with your goals.

Quorum, Twin Cities GLBT Chamber of Commerce
Member directory allows you to find professionals by industry area.

GLBT Professional and Student Associations
View a national listing of organizations created by the Human Rights Campaign.

Additional GLBT Resources (pdf)

Need more information than what you find here? Contact the St. Paul Campus Career Center at 612-624-2710 for an appointment.