I always refer them to dls.gov (Department of Labor and Statistics) because salaries vary from region to region and city to city. I have heard Admissions Represenatives at other schools state salries while on the phone but I beieve it is better for the student to find the information themselves and see it for themselves.
Edwin,
Excellent advice to prospective students! It takes research to really know what is happening in the area in which they would like to work.
Cynthia,
You are giving the students excellent advice and follow-through. Career Services should be doing the same procedure when working with students.
Kim,
Your process is great. Often students want you just to tell them and not research. However, they must research on their own. Employers can only pay what their particular organization can pay. Many students get disillusioned by not doing proper research.
Tram,
A good practice is for the school to provide direction to reliable resources. The students should be proficient in researching salaries for career development.
I agree. www.BLS.gov provides actual reported earnings. Additionally, I believe it is helpful to recommend to prospective student to speak with industry professionals directly whenever possible regarding salaries.
I like to tell the student to go to BLS.org for salary information. They are good about updating the info often. I also let them know that it really depends. Someone with more or less experience will get a different salary. It is important that everyone do the research on the possible chosen career field to see if it fits with their expectations. Of course, some people want to do something different due to passion for it and the money does not matter.
I like to ask a student prior to discussing salaries, what they would expect to earn upon graduation. I will offer different salary sites; often they are unaware of earning potential within their field of interest.
Student also need do their own research for salary.
Lori,
Unfortunately, employers will only pay what they can offer albeit any stats we provide.
I believe that it might be easier to get information from graduates that are willing to share this type of information with your students. I know that our graduates are very enthusiastic and open to sharing this information with our students. Trying to get verifiable information is key and I know that talking to recent graduates, working in the industry,would be a good way to approach the discussion of salary potential.
I think you should definately use the department of labor for your answers, this gives the baseline wage so your students arent upset about making the $9 hourly wage when they get out, they know up front
Michelle,
Always remind students that it really comes down to what an employer is willing to pay.
I advise all students asking for salary information to go on-line and google "SALARY FOR ______" in Miami, FL. This will provide them the most up-to-date competative salaries out there at this time.
Jenna,
Students need to be reminded that these are only data sources and not guaranteed amounts. Only what an employer is willing to pay is the true figure.
We believe in directing the student to the correct resource to get the correct information. One of the resources we use is our accrediting commissioner in addition to the dept of labor statistics. In turn will always protect you by not giving a number from a compliance perspective
Tracy,
By providing reliable and verifiable data sources, students may get an idea of what the profession is paying. But again, so many factors determine one's salary potential.
MiJung,
The job market is a competitive and dynamic one. There are no guarantees.
Brenda,
Ah...if there were guarantees. Unfortunately, there are not. We can provide the generalized information from verifiable sources, but it comes down to only what the employer is willing to offer.
