Representatives from UNM Career Services say students should concentrate on focusing their career search, making themselves competitive and planning ahead to find a good job in a market overshadowed by economic recession.
Though business has slowed, particularly in the technology sector, agencies such as the federal government are actively recruiting graduates and others are recovering, said Mary Monta§o, a career development coordinator at career services.
"We're starting to see with employers that hiring slowed down a little after 9-11, but it's starting to turn around," she said. "The tech sector looks like it will come back in the fall."
In the meantime, she said, there are a number of ways students can make themselves stand out from the crowd as companies hesitate to hire en masse.
The most important thing students can do, she said, is get work experience in cooperative or internships before graduation. The career center offers several opportunities for students to get experience, such as cooperative education, work experience that is actually reflected on transcripts; and internship opportunities through its 1,200-employer database.
"Eighty-five percent of our co-op students get full time job offers from those employers," she said. "If you want to work at NASA, the best way to get in is through a co-op. Most places are looking for a quick return on their investment."
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
Deborah Nikita, another career development coordinator at the center, agreed.
"It definitely helps to get job experience before graduation," she said.
Besides internships and co-ops, the career center also offers help with rÇsumÇs and interview skills, as well as job search assistance.
"We know our employers - we can work to have students get interviewed," Monta§o said.
RÇsumÇs play a key role in the job search process, Monta§o said. Career services can help with rÇsumÇs and cover letters, as well as catalog rÇsumÇs for referral to employers - a common alternative for companies who are scaling back on-campus interviewing.
"A company will call us and say 'we want to see rÇsumÇs for MIS (Management Information Systems) students with a 3.2 GPA or higher' and the student wouldn't have even known there was a job posting," she said.
Career services can help students with rÇsumÇ content, format, accuracy and overall presentation, Monta§o said. Though some companies will scan a rÇsumÇ for keywords from job postings, listing every job a student ever had is not necessary, she said.
"We want students to understand it's a marketing tool, not a laundry list," she said.
Monta§o said the federal government, which has two hiring liaisons on campus - one for the Department of Agriculture and the other for the Department of State - offers a range of plentiful job opportunities that could be applied to any major. Federal agencies have stepped up hiring recently as large proportions of their staffs reach retirement age.
"The Census Bureau could hire a history major or math major to do data analysis, English students could write grants or work for a company needing a technical writer - we can help them focus their search," she said.
Nikita said though she doesn't think companies are hiring less people, it is taking longer for students to find jobs. She recommends getting an early start and considering a broader scope of job options. Networking and posting rÇsumÇs on job search Web sites such as hotjobs.com and monster.com can also help, she said.
Monta§o recommends making contact with career services at the beginning of freshman year, but said that students nearing graduation could still benefit from its services.
Nikita agreed.
"If they're just starting now, they'd better get going," she said.
Both advisers said attending job fairs is one of the best ways students can distribute rÇsumÇs and have a chance to meet human resources people from companies they might be interested in.
"Develop a list of your five preferred employers, and then watch their Web page, introduce yourself to their hiring reps and then send a thank-you note as a follow-up," Nikita said.
