age 6
Career Development Center
Helpful with job searches,
resumes and interviews; make
every year a planning year
Everyday students are confronted
with the same intimidating sermons
about how important it is to get
good grades, find a meaningful job,
and make the "big bucks." As true
as these words are, they can be
overwhelming and even depressing.
When you stop and think about it,
the competition students are faced
with today is anything but mild.
Countless people with various
levels of education and skills are
fighting for a limited number of
jobs. A college degree used to
mean security and prosperity. But
now it can provide little more than a
starting point down the long,
winding road of employment or a
ticket to a low-paying, dead-end
job.
The collegiate atmosphere can
also consume: With so many
students in pursuit of the same
resources and opportunities, it often
seems like students are nothing but
numbers in a never-ending
computer database.
So where do students go to find
answers to the questions that will
shape their futures and determine
their careers? The solution is much
closer than many think.
Behrend is home to an incredible
resource, the Career Development
MAKE EVERY YEAR A
CAREER PLANNING YEAR
FRESHMAN YEAR:
Identify your interests, values, and abilities by
talking to a career couneior or by using
DISCOVER.
Test your interset through courses, volunteer
jobs, student activities, and summer work.
Use the Career Devekipement Center resources
to identity majors that relate to your interests,
abilities, and values.
SOPHORMORE ,YEAR:
Join student organizations revelant to your
major.
Choose eleCtive courses that vwill make you more
marketable:'.-
ExPlore relevant work experiences such as
internships and summer jobs.
Obtain 1114)1 Thati 011 about cccuPations 4 y:using
DISCOVER. the career tiles; and by attending
career fair events
Attend the Alumni Career Panets and iisten to
alumni inakting possible Career paths
Center. Located in the first floor of
the Reed Building (898-6164), it
provides free career planing and
academic counseling.
Mary Beth Peterson is the director
of career development, Kevin
Moore is the assistant head, and
Marilyn Chase is the staff assistant.
Their offices are open Monday
through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The CDC is here to make lives
easier. It has a wealth of valuable
information about career paths and
job opportunities, and its staff is
Students may
schedule appointments
to discuss such issues
as interests, skills,
values, where to find
career information, and
how to set goals
at the Career
Development Center.
more than willing to steer motivated
students in the right direction.
"Students may schedule
appointments to discuss such issues
Features
as interests, skills, values, where to
find career information, and how to
set goals," according to the CDC's
latest pamphlet. Appointments
typically last one hour.
The two most popular features of
the CDC are resume files and
internship counseling. "All
students are encouraged to establish
a resume file in the Career
Development Center at least six
months prior to graduation," (CDC
pamphlet). The file is composed of
fifteen to twenty copies of the
student's resume and an
informational sheet and release
form.
Since resumes are such an
essential part of the job search
process, they are kept on file for
one full year after the date of
signature.
The process of finding a job or
internship begins once a student
constructs his or her resume. With
thii planning period completed and
all of the necessary paperwork for
the on-campus system filled out, the
student is ready for phase two.
Mrs. Peterson describes this time
period as the "active job search
phase," the time when students try
to "impress a potential employer."
She stresses the importance of
JUNIOR YEAR:
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SENIOR YEAR:
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Recruitment Prog ram.
tie the On-Ca
Thursday, April 11, 1996
Education: It pays for the
The newest data on lifetime earnings from
the Bureau of the Census tell an old story:
The more education you have, the more
money you earn. In fact, the value of
education has certainly increased during the
past 20 years. The new estimate of annual
earnings for those who are high school
Mean annual earnings for people
age 18 and over,
by highest level of education, 1992
Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census
both timing and action. According
to her, many people have missed
out on some rewarding
opportunities due to procrastination
or indecision.
Mrs. Peterson recommends that
students begin the internship
process sometime after their
sophomore year and before the
middle of their senior year. She has
seen many students come to school
in August of their senior year
expecting the internship process to
be smooth and fast, which is not
always the case.
Since many companies project
who they plan on hiring as early as
December or January, a lot of
deserving students miss the chance
to be considered.
Mrs. Peterson also stresses the
uniqueness of the internship
process. She admits that "different
job search methods work better for
different people, and it is important
to...cover all possibilities."
Although not all Behrend majors
require internships, those that do
provide a variety of options. For
the student, working for credit is
usually preferred. Some
internships are simply work for
work's sake; they offer no credit or
pay, just experience. So those
students who are lucky enough to
get credit should take advantage of
their good fortune.
Most interns are supervised by a
Behrend faculty member, who may
Thursday, April 11,
Highest level of educe
Some college, no degree
High School only
Not a high school graduate
also attach a letter grad.
student job performanc
other criteria the facult
sees fit. These criteria m
but are not limited t •
presentations, journals,
evaluations.
Mrs. Peterson e
students to "take c
managing their careers."
offers an abundance
programs and resources
sponsors periodic w
career and internship fair
has a video interviewing
the convenience of stude
interviews through the
Park Recruitment Progra
The CDC is also ho
Career Resource Roo
contains countless p
books, and reports on •
employment outlook, •
planing strategies.
Technology has done
facilitate the job searc
Students can now use
Wide Web to obtain el
information twenty-fo
day, seven days a week.
"Surfing the net" can
computer researching
employers look for, any
speed and access to vast ;
information are no doub
features.
The Web gives stu
chance to advertise their
several databases and ne
graduates
one ($7,
earnings I
inflation.
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than the I
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