We require students to complete one full term before they are eligible for Career Services assistance. I agree that it is more effective to start early in the establishment of a career. This allows us to help them in developing internships/coops/externships before they graduate, we have time to coach them and guide them in additional activities they might participate in to build their resumes, and they might need employment in order to attend school. My challenge is that many students consider us as sort of an 'employment agency' where we will just give them a job, rather than a career guidance center and job referral service. Especially when a student is so early in their program that it is very difficult to place them in their field. What is the best way to distinguish our department from that mentality? We want to be helpful and successful, but I don't want the students to have expectations that we cannot fulfill.
