Because of the recession, University Career Services and the Alumni Association’s Career Services are attempting to reach out more to University students and alumni through new programs and strategies.
Alumni Career Services, which serves clients who graduated from the University more than six months ago, reported that the number of clients seeking help with resumes and interviews increased by 20 percent since last year, said Tom Folders, a representative of Alumni Career Services and president of the University’s Alumni Association, who presented at Friday’s Board of Visitors meeting. The number of advising appointments at UCS, however, has remained around 7,000 for each of the past eight years, UCS Executive Director Jim McBride said during the BOV presentation.
Although the University is still hosting employers through the end of the semester, the number of employers recruiting students has decreased by 26 percent, McBride said. That being said, he also noted that the total number of student interviews has increased by 28 percent.
“It would be misleading not to tell you that students graduating in May 2009 are facing one of the most challenging employment markets any of us has ever seen,” he said.
McBride also noted that a recent study showed that 77 percent of employers said internships were their primary means of recruiting entry-level employees, although more students and fewer organizations attended UCS-sponsored career fairs this year. This disparity was even more pronounced in the spring, McBride said.
To adapt to the economic downturn and the reduction in jobs for students, UCS has implemented some new strategies to help students deal with the current economic climate, he said. McBride said one of these strategies was to change the “business model” of UCS’s career counseling.
“We made a decision in mid-to-late fall to suggest to students ... [for our career counseling staff] to be their personal career coach throughout the year,” McBride said.
This strategy contrasts with the earlier model, in which UCS attempted to serve students as quickly as possible, he said, noting that now, students can visit UCS for 45-minute appointments throughout the year.
Another new focus for UCS has been an emphasis on networking to find jobs. In the past, students may have found the concept of networking to be very abstract, as most would not have had experience in the field, McBride said. Now, however, McBride said social networking Web sites can be used to introduce students to the concept of professional networking. He said the same networking skills students learn from using Facebook can be applied to professional networking Web sites such as Linkedin, which is used by about 7,000 University alumni.
Similarly, Alumni Career Services has seen about a 13 percent increase in online participation, Folders said. About 14,000 alumni now use Hoos Online, through which alumni can also offer to act as mentors to students and other alumni, Folders said. In addition, Folders said Alumni Career Services is on Facebook and Twitter.
With such social networking tools, “you reach people where they are,” Folders said.
In addition to networking, UCS is instructing students to “follow the jobs,” McBride said.
“Geographically, we are somewhat fortunate,” McBride said during the BOV presentation. “Among the 49 major metropolitan areas with populations of 1 million or more, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that four areas — Washington, Virgina Beach, Baltimore and Richmond — are among those with unemployment rates below the national average [of 8.5%].”
Despite the decline in employment opportunities for graduates, UCS has not found that students have lost all faith in the current job market, McBride said during his presentation.
“Even with all the dismal economic news, our career counselors would tell you the students we are advising have not displayed panic or fear with respect to the employment market,” McBride said. “True, [students] are concerned, as they should be. But, they are also resilient and pragmatic — both important qualities in these tough times for developing job search strategies.”
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