Our placement team is always contacting employers, building relationships with these employers and sharing with us new partners and job postings to share with the students.
Jeremy,
Instructors can also share their contacts with Placement folks too. Building the network never stops.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
The first person our students meet at orientation is the Director of Student Operations. That person happens to be me. I introduce myself and my Career Services team and remind them of our school’s mission. That mission is to train the student to be able to find employment as an entry level technician. I stress to them that our faculty will present the material, but it is up to them to apply what they have been show and then work with us to assist them in finding work in the industry.
Our students will receive a few hours of employment training while enrolled in school. My Career Services team will go into classrooms with PowerPoint presentations on creating a resume, how to interview, etc… During final exit interviews I’ll go into the classroom and congratulate students on their achievement. I will let them know that now that they are leaving school, their relationship with Career Services becomes the most important. I let them know we will be here to support them until they chose to retire from the industry they looking to get into.
This process can be improved by having the admissions team let applicants know of real world outcomes. The faculty can also support Career Services by sending students to us or recommending our department to students. Sharing success stories is also a great way to help increase student retention.
Eric
Eric ,
Another well thought out and thorough post. Are these things you put in place? If so, what increase have you seen in placements?
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
We have Career Fairs and have a job board of local places that are hiring.
I also work with the students on help them to create a resume.
We have students job shadow.
Jennifer,
Do any job shadows turn into externships or jobs?
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Our placement department does a lot to reach students throughout their program. They visit the classrooms numerous times throughout their program.
During these visits they do mock interviews and resume writing. They also have employers come on campus and we have what we call "Lunch and Learn". The students can bring their lunch to these sessions. We have employers come on campus to introduce new things to the students that are not taught in the curriculum. For instance, we do not talk about Essential Oils in the Skin or Massage programs so we have someone come out and talk about Doterra.
We also have Career Services sit with the students to find out exactly what kind of employment they are looking for. Are they looking for FT, PT, spa, self employment, etc.
Sounds like we all have a great CS team!
Kristie,
How do instructors interact and work with the CS team? You list and describe good practices for Career Services.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Instructors communicate very well with CS to let them know when to come into the classrooms. They work very well together with the students during mock interviews as well.
Also, our Instructors are very good with keeping in communication with our students once they graduate. With that being said, they are very well aware when students get a job which they in turn give that info to CS (if they aren't the ones that assited in that interview).
This is one area our school is really lacking. We do not have a dedicated placement department and job opportunities are simply announced to students been made available by employers contacting us. I think the suggestion in this module to have a page on the website dedicated to placements is a great idea and one that I am certainly going to promote. My own concern with this, based on past experience, is of the outside chance of a student dropping out because they are offered what sounds like a fabulous job to start before graduation. The student then feels they don't need to graduate to find employment. It is very important here to help students take a long term view of what a diploma will mean in the long run.
Huseina,
Is your school regionally accredited? If nationally accredited the school would be measured by their placement. Students taking a job need to be made aware that they still have loans to pay and will need that diploma later.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
Kristie,
In addition to being a good practice this also helps when verification of employment is needed when reporting placement statistics to accrediting bodies.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
People from our placement department meet with our students when they begin school and serve as guest speakers for our classes on a regular basis. Our placement department also regularly host a job fair that is not just for graduates but also for our current students. This gives the students a chance to network with some of the people they might soon be interviewing with and let them see how much opportunity for employment is in front of them if they complete their program.
Scott,
It seems as if placement should be decent for your school or that students are well prepared for job searches. Working with the student from the outset is a good way to help the student succeed in his or her studies and start their career.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
The placement department works with staff to provide resume training and mock interviews to the students throughout their program. Student retention always increases when the students feel you are interested in their success.
Audrey,
Your last statement is true from the moment of application to employment. If we come to know the student and make them feel connected it will help them to succeed.
Ron Hansen, Ed. D.
She is involved in orientation, has employer and grad panels and goes into the classroom multiple times to help them with the testing and licensing process to get them prepared!
We have just started community outreach with local non profits it’s fantastic industry experience for our students and I would like to see it expanded.
We also do a design club that pairs students with real world projects and every student is required to do an internship before graduation.
I would like to see all of this continued and get all students involved while they are still early in their academic career.
We have only 1 designated admission rep for the nursing program. This rep is experienced and is aware what is expected from nursing students in order to graduate
