Career Services Benefit Students

CAREER SERVICES BENEFIT STUDENTS By Bill Sullivan The Star Ledger Marketing Staff Reprinted with permission from The Star Ledger. Roxana Molina’s resume speaks for itself. Human resource managers would easily recognize the firms where she’s gained her professional experience–Merrill Lynch, Siemens Corp., and the new job she started recently at Ernst & Young. In the corporate environment, she prides herself on being confident, comfortable and prepared. And one other piece of information on Molina’s resume also might stand out: She graduated from college just a month ago. The Fall 2003 Saint Peter’s College graduate is just one of many success stories that come to a gainful conclusion each year at New Jersey colleges and universities-thanks in part to the career services that these schools offer. Molina and other highly motivated students are gaining a distinct advantage in the post-graduation job search by availing themselves of the various career-related resources-including internships, career fairs, cover letter and resume-writing assistance, and interview workshops-that colleges offer as early as freshman year, or even earlier in some cases. “Our office’s mission is to help students prepare for all aspects of the job search, starting in freshman year and up to senior year,” said Enzo Fonzo, director of career services at Saint Peter’s. “We take them through the process and help them refine their resume-writing skills so they can articulate experience, skills and interests to a potential employer. We help them with their interview skills-employers are looking for students with good verbal and communication skills. “We have a tremendous cooperative education program, and we work hard to help students get professional-level experience that is relevant to their major-give them a smoother career path as they graduate and transition into the world of work,” he adds. Molina, a first-generation college graduate who holds a degree in accounting with a minor in business law from Saint Peter’s, tapped into the Career Services program as a freshman and quickly gained extended internships with Merrill Lynch and Siemens. “They’re very approachable,” said Molina of the Office of Career Services. “You can get a lot of help with your resume, internships, interviews. The interview workshop is a great way to prepare for interviews, because they give you various questions that are commonly asked-I’ve been asked some of them on interviews.” When it comes to career services, the operative word is “early.” Despite ambitious efforts to attract more students to career services initiatives as underclassmen, collegians tend to procrastinate when it comes to developing their professional skills. Therefore, career services personnel generally don’t wait for the students to make the first move. It’s not uncommon today for career services representatives to make presentations at college open houses, in student centers, at campus organization meetings, and at student orientation sessions. Any opportunity to get the word out is utilized. “Starting in their freshman year, we talk to students about the importance of developing a good career development plan,” said Teri Corso, director of career services at Bloomfield College. “We discuss the importance of keeping their G.P.A. up, and about the importance of getting internships early and often during their college years. It’s a fact that most people obtain their jobs through networking, and one of the best ways to network is to have two or three internships in college, so you can explore your career options.” At Berkeley College, students are required to take a Placement Seminar course-which covers resume writing, cover letter preparation, interviewing techniques and job search skills-and participate in an internship in their field of study. The course culminates with the preparation of a student portfolio to be presented on job interviews. The Career Services Department’s efforts to foster relationships both with its students and the business community have resulted in a remarkable 96 percent employment rate. “Our students benefit from the many programs we run to help them develop industry expertise, job search savvy and confidence,” said Burt Slatas, vice-president, career services and alumni relations. “These events include on-campus speakers from various industries, internship forums, alumni panel and roundtable discussions, and Career Days and job fairs both for full- and part-time positions. Once a year Berkeley runs a five-campus major job fair, which was attended last year by over 700 students.” In addition to resume-friendly experience, internships provide students with a valuable lesson in customer relations and adapting to the corporate atmosphere. “When you come to college, you don’t know that professional way of working with people until you have an internship,” said Samira Halabi, a senior accounting major with a finance minor at Saint Peter’s, who is presently interning at J.P. Morgan in Jersey City. “With an internship, you step into (the professional environment) slowly-answering phones and e-mails, learning to deal with clients. Now, when I have to deal with clients, I feel I’m prepared. I’m more confident in my skills.” “The feedback we receive from employers about our students is extremely positive,” said Slatas. “They are well-prepared, motived and enthusiastic.” Among the corporations that Berkeley College has a working relationship with are MBNA, Commerce Bank, Pfizer Inc., Escada, Any Systems.com, and the New Jersey Nets and Devils, he said. Armed with a solid resume and freshly honed job-searching skills, today’s college seniors can find career opportunities down a variety of avenues. At Bloomfield College, students attend popular career fairs on and off campus, interact with professional representatives who set up presentations in public areas on campus, and learn of job opportunities and post their resumes on a Web-based service called College Central. “We encourage students to register for College Central immediately,” Corso said, “and one way we help students become engaged in this is by opening College Central up to employers looking for full-time, part-time employment, internship and volunteer opportunities, as well as our own on-campus employment. So a freshman knows, if he or she wants an on-campus job, get that resume on College Central.” Fonzo said Saint Peter’s strives to take full advantage of its Jersey City location, establishing ongoing relationships with firms along the Jersey City waterfront and neighboring business districts, including New York City. The school’s most recent career fair attracted 30 employers from a variety of sectors and more than 400 students. “We have a great location. Students have access toNew York City via public transportation, the Jersey City waterfront and Hoboken,” said Fonzo. “As the economy basically starts to turn around, we’re seeing a big need in these areas. Goldman Sachs, which will be relocating to Hudson Street (in Jersey City) in 2004, recently made its first appearance on our campus. There’s been great interest in the financial community at the waterfront.” As 2004 begins with the promise of a modest economic and job market recovery, career services representatives expect the new year to bring more opportunity for their students. “All the professional association surveys are telling us the job market is going to be better, with moderate rates of growth,” Corso said. “We know there are certain occupations where there is going to be growth-for example, we have a school of nursing here, and we just can’t provide enough space for the hospitals at our career fairs.”