Mary,
I am so impressed with all of your ideas. You are clearly very dedicated and hands-on. I hope you don't mind if I share some of them as a forum post-I think everyone could benefit.
Elizabeth Kemler
One of the things I do is to go take pictures and bio's of graduates who have recently been employed in their field. I place these bio's on the wall outside of the classrooms for that program so the upcoming graduates can see this being themselves, for them it is exciting for them to see an fellow student get employed.
I also have my students on the last day of class stand up in front of each other and discuss what their plans for the next year are. We talk about those who were hired by their internships. We also discuss networking with one another once they leave so they are aware of new postions where a current graduate already works. They leave on their final day with a plan of attack.
i usually tell our students that they finally graduated and now it is the time to concentrate on doing their very best to get a good job.
after all that hard studying, now they could be proud that they have a license and they can get what they want it so bad, a good job, a good future.
Luis Silvi
Must reach out to the student early and advise on the importance of their resume to begin tailoring it for their ideal positions. Their activities, education, internships, jobs should revolve on around their resume to help them achieve that next big position.
Cruz Leticia,
I like your Facebook idea-people tend to spend a lot of time there anyway, it makes sense to use it for professional purposes.
Elizabeth Kemler
I agree with the points made. We meet with each student individually at the beginning of the program to find out what are their goals to guide them in the right direction.
In addition we have a Facebook page where we encourage our students and alumni to LIKE to keep them informed about potential job leads and important information to be in communication and support them 100%
Paulette,
This is definitely one of the best ways to get students excited and to see that there's a light at the end of the tunnel.
Elizabeth Kemler
I especially like the informational interview approach.
When a student seeks a professional in the field they are considering or someone who is working at the company they 'think' they want to work at, and conducts an informational interview - it helps them determine if this actually IS the right environment for them.
Additionally, they are conducting a professional interview and finessing those skills.
One of the ways we help generate excitement about the job search process is when we bring in recent graduates for a panel discussion to a senior classroom.
The panel begins by stating when they graduated from their program and tells the class where they are currently working; why they chose that particular environment; what aspect of their job they absolutely love; and how they have had a positive impact on the life of one of their clients as a result of their training. They also discuss how they determined this particular job and what steps they took to get there.
This inevitably opens the door for a great question & answer session between the students and graduates.
Our graduates enjoy coming back to campus and sharing their experiences and job search tips with the upcoming senior class.
Michael,
Every teacher who has mentioned doing this has said it was a huge success. Glad to hear so many people are doing this.
Elizabeth Kemler
I have found bringing an employer in just to talk to studets or soon to be graduates about the industry and what their company has to offers creates a huge impact. Also having former graduates come in as well to talk about the success they have had since they graduated. This gives the students an actual visual goal and helps to motivate them to be like them and be get everything done they need to get into the industry as well.
marsha,
I love this! There is really no better way to keep students motivated than by reminding them that every accomplishment counts.
Elizabeth Kemler
Colleen,
I agree that there is often a lot of fear for various reasons-it's great that you're addressing that up front.
Elizabeth Kemler
Kallie,
This is definitely the best way to get students excited initially about the job search, and to keep them motivated throughout. And I LOVE your custom fit method idea-it makes so much sense.
Elizabeth Kemler
celebration each accomplishment and each milestone. making everyone around them know that they have accomplished what they set out to do, while motivating the current students to be like the ones who have stayed focus and reach their goa.s
It sounds so simple, but I just start by trying to strip away the fear that surrounds the job search. I also am sure to dig into the reasons why the student started their schooling and then use that to direct our conversation. I find that the slightly terrified student that approaches my desk is excited about their new direction when they leave.
One of the ways we build excitement pertaining to obtaining employment in our students' field of study is to consistently bring employers from different aspects of the industry into the classroom to discuss their employment culture. We also invite our previous graduates back to serve on our graduate panel. By inviting our past graduates’' back to the campus they are able to speak with the current student population about their individual experiences and success within the field. We utilize a custom fit method to match a student with an employer on multiple levels such as skill level sought, personality, schedule, availability and personal preference. This has proven to increase the success rate for the Career Services department and further solidifies the trust built between student and administrator and employer and administrator. Our students stay very motivated and excited throughout their schooling as well as ready to jump into their field after having so many currently employed graduates share their stories and successful implementation of their new skills with them.
When a student receives a job interview or a job offer, we let everyone know; it really creates a lot of momentum for other students to get hired; it becomes more of a reality when they see their peers gaining employment. I also work directly with each of them to find a job setting that they would be interested in and also excel at; the student feels a stronger connection if I know them and what they are interested in doing; once you get to know your students better, individually, it will be easier to place them in a job and it will be significantly easier to tell employers about that particular student. It has more depth.
I think a key thing is to have all the staff on the same page when it comes to job hunting. If staff, especially instructors, are positive and excited about certain companies or types of jobs the students tend to catch their excitement. However, on the flip side, a negative comment about a company can start a downfall of negativity from students.
Tara,
This is so true. You can learn a lot about what you want by looking at what you enjoy in your life right now-whether school, work, or outside activities.
Elizabeth Kemler
