looking for job?
Its anyone have have any idea where to find a job with this economy?
Schools have to take leadership roles in this economy to ensure that their grads have jobs. This takes reaching out to the community to develop relationships so that companies look to the school for staffing. It may require setting goals for staff and alumni to keep a watch for job openings and employment decision makers. It means enforcing the need for students to learn skills and knowledge and become exceptional. Go by the expression -that in tough times it is the tough who succeed. No choice - no giving up. Susan
Hi Susan,
I recently partnered with three of our paralegal graduates to cold call employers. Two reasons: to show them it's not that hard and to introduce both of us to the employer.
It didn't net any jobs at this point but it did result in some great "face time" and a much better relationship with the graduate and understanding of their career desires and abilities.
I agree with your reply Dr. Schulz. The past year was very challenging so efforts of all parties involved in the job search area had to be intensified. 2009 was extremely difficult for job seekers across the board in various industries. My observation was that more experienced people were competing with our entry-level graduates for the same positions. Potential employers were more likely to hire them because they were willing to take the entry level pay due to the desperation of securing employment. Also, many facilities opted not to hire for the better part of 2009 because how the recession was affecting them financially. I encouraged the graduates to sell their transferable skills with confidence all the while acknowledging their lack of experience. I used the same tactic when I was speaking with employers on their behalf. These were challenges and directly affected placement rates. 2010 is here and I'm ready for the challenge and looking forward to a better outcome of placements for our graduates. Any suggestions you have are welcomed.
Thanks Jacqueline. We're working on the challenges and coming up with a focus on community outreach. One career services person MUST be out in the field every day developing and maintaining relationships with employers. We also see the greater value of externships. Some schools we talk with place 55% of their students as a result of their externships.Also the value of Alumni associations. Let us know if you want more information. Susan
The economy makes it rough all around. The best thing to do is some benchmarking in various disciplines to gauge the market value in different demographics.
We can all succomb to using a down economy as an excuse for everything. Or we can be creative and encourage those around us to think differently, out of the box, and reinvent themselves in any number of ways. We feel that a good career services department must do things differently. That means getting out in the community and developing and sustaining relationships with employers. Find out what they want in staff. Prepare your grads. Use externships as much as possible and aim to place students at the extern site. Make career services assignments mandatory. Run career services with a marketing approach. Many ways to beat the down economy. Thanks, Susan
