Employer presentations...
Who can you ask to provide employer presentations? Who in your community can you call on to be a guest speaker about the industries for which you train? What do you have to do to approach these people to be part of your Placement Department?
Our college has a Program Advisory Committee who meets twice a year to review books, classes, and changes. A few of these PAC members have come in to talk to various classes on employment opportunities, professional attitudes, and how the student's studies will help in the 'real world'. Outside of that, it's a matter of asking people at every Chamber of Commerce meeting and so forth, hoping to find someone not too busy.
Bringing employers and people from your industry into a school is a challenge. Sounds like you are on the right track by going to chamber meetings. Maybe there are other professional organizations to network. Also what about contacting employers of your grads? Establish relationships so they will want to visit your school. Sometimes folks on PAC get tired out. It's good to have a pool of employers to call on.
Susan
Our program specific placement department holds two job fairs per year and requires all students to attend. Current and potential employers, both local and regional, are invited to these job fairs. It is mandatory for all students to attend. This allows for networking to begin early on in their schooling so that they can see the wide variety of options available to them in the specific industry. The placement department contacts potential employers weekly to let them know about the college, students/graduates and the job fairs. Regional employers visit the school on a quarterly basis, to not only see the facility but also to interview pending graduates and graduates.
Additionally, the college has a program specific outreach coordinator. This coordinator handles field trips for the program. Most of the employers in the area are not able to come to speak to classes on a regular basis, however, field trips to their businesses are welcomed. This provides the student with an opportunity to see their career choice in action.
Finally, the college has a program specific advisory board that meets twice per year. The majority of the advisory board members employ students and graduates from the program and are truly able to speak to the further development of the program.
Hi Suzanne
Wow! Sounds like you are doing everything right. A real model placement department. You say that students are required to attend the job fairs. Great. What kind of preparation does the student get priorto attending? Are there workshops or briefing sessions so they are prepared?
You mention that your placement department contacts employers weekly. That is the key, isn't it? It takes constant follow up to get a good source of industry reps. I like the idea of field trips. Wondering if they are formalized or depend on the coordinator or people at the host site. Specifically, are there learning objectives spelled out?
Re your advisory board - can you provide us with examples of what changes and enhancements they have suggested that were implemented by the school.
Thanks for your very comprehensive response. Lots of great implementable ideas.
Susan
Hi Susan,
Job fair preparation begins in the student's first quarter with the course entitled career focus. Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to assess their goals, strengths and weaknesses; become more familiar with the college environment; be more effective with time management; be familiar with college survival techniques such as note taking, study and learning skills, and test taking. Additionally, because our program is industry specific, students discuss the different job opportunities within the industry. Placement also has an open door policy and meets with all incoming students during their first quarter to get an idea of their skill level and career desires.
Weekly employer contact is very important. While it is central to remember the student is our customer, so is the employer and the placement department is the bridge between them. The field trips were designed to be implemented during specific times during the student's coursework during a specific quarter. Because they are industry specific, they range from winery tours to restaurant tours. The trips tie-in with what is being taught in the curriculum at a specific time.
Our advisory board is amazing and there is quite a bit of talent among the members. Most of them do employ our students and graduates. One of the skills they felt students needed to improve upon was their knife cuts. Therefore, the curriculum was updated to intensify that particular skill set. Lack of communication was another assessment the advisory board felt the students needed to work on. In that regard, more role playing was implemented in the management classes in order for the students to have a idea of how various scenarios can play out in the real world.
Hi Suzanne
Thanks for all the great information. Something for all schools to apply. I like the open door policy of your placement department. Do you have records of how many students use the services. Or how many don't. The field trips sound great. And very relevant. Relevancy is always a challenge for schools. Sounds like your advisory board is amazing because you value and act on their opinions.
Thanks
Susan
Our placement department keeps a weekly report on the students/grads who come to or call the department. Additionally, the report also includes employer contacts made, incoming job opportunities, and what graduates were placed during the week. Its an excellent tracking system. We also have a software program that tracks graduate information, including, but not limited to, graduate resumes, placement department contact with graduatesm, and scheduled interviews for the graduates. From this software we can generate a variety of reports for the college management team.
Suzanne- I was wondering who sets up your advisory board meetings and how much time does your placement staff put into preparing for the meeting?
How large are your advisory boards and how are they structured? Is it a set format every time or do you discuss different topics?
We too have advisory boards for each program, but the Placement Department isn't always an acitve participant.
Hi Jennifer,
Our program director is responsible for setting up the advisory board meetings. The placement staff attends the advisory board meetings to enter into any discussions regarding employment and to field any questions the board has regarding placement. I usually bring my current placement records and any questions I have for the board as some of them do employ our students and graduates.
Our advisory board has about 12 members. We are looking to expand it though to include new employers in our locale. We have a set agenda for the meeting. The format for the most part includes information college/program expansion, goals that have been set by the college for the program's upcoming year, discussions of graduates and job placement, and any new developments that are of importance.
Suzanne
Your advisory board sounds great and your staff makes great use of them. Agree that a school can always use more board members. They come and go and you need good representation. Susan
Jennifer
You brought up great points about an effective advisory board. There needs to be an agenda, a structure to the board including types of areas each member represents, and also buyin by all stakeholders. Susan
Suzanne
Great that so much information is tracked. Are you sharing the information with the admissions department. They can use the hard facts when talking to prospective students. After all that's why students want to enroll - to get a job. Susan
Hi Susan,
The placement department does share the information with the admissions department. However, the admissions department prefers for the placement department to speak on such matters. The admissions department will provide generalized information, and prospective students are introduced to the placement department during their tour of the campus and program department. Because our placement office is located in the program department, we have the opportunity to speak with and respond to any questions that prospective students may have.
Hi Suzanne...
As we have just created our placement department, we are finding it quite a challenge to track all that you have mentioned. The tracking is recorded manually in the students'academic file and employer information in a separate binder. Would you be able to advise a good software program or effective process that would assist us in our efficiency?
Thank you.
Wendy
Each program has an advisory board. Career Services has established relationships with the members of the advisory board. Through these relationships we are able to provide quality speakers to our students.
We are also members of several local and statewide organizations. These organizations have allowed us to meet many people who are qualified to speak to the classes.
As far as the approach, most employers are more than willing to speak with our classes. They have good information and are eager to share it with the graduates.
We are involed in several professional organizationa plus the advisory boards for each program. This gives us regular contact with professionals in each program area. Most are willing to participate on advisory boards as well as speak to classes. We also have a culinary school restaurant that we use to intice and treat employers who speak to classes.
Finding active advisory members can be a challenge, but when you do, WOW! They are crucial to assisting all departments within the school. Plus, they are a great source of free advertising for your school. We always try to get former grads involved in providing these services as well. We have found that many times a former grad can really portray to the students how realistic their goals are and can be. Many times they have 'walked the same road' and obviously survived.
Hi Jennifer
It is a challenge to keep a bank of advisory board members. That's why it is a good idea to ask everyone - current and future employers. Also staffing agencies. All employers can be a source for new enrollments too. Former grads can also help with placement of your students. Sounds like you have a great career services department.
Best wishes
Susan
Hi Todd,
Great to hear that you have people from professional organizations to staff your advisory boards. That is an excellent source for people and other schools should take note since it is always a challenge to have enough advisory board members to do all that is needed. The restaurant can be a way to draw members of the community to be on your boards as well. They can give good input as well as people from your industry. Best wishes, Susan
