CSO coaxes soon-to-be graduates to job fling

Author: Amy McCowan

For its third annual "Spring Job Fling," strategically located in the Ross Lounge during Monday's 5-6:30 dinner rush, Middlebury's Career Services Office (CSO) regaled job-hungry seniors with entry-level positions in the business, government, law, arts, sociology, psychology, language, social sciences, technology, physical science, biology, international, education, health care, non-profit and communications industries.

To counter the "there's nothing out there for me" attitude contagious among second-semester seniors, CSO sought to reduce panic and spark interest in the career opportunities available. "The idea behind this set-up is using industries with a person behind each industry so students can get to know someone and strike up a conversation, to be educated about entry level positions and to answer the question, 'Where does my major go after Midd?'" said Don Kjelleren, associate director for recruiting development and the event's organizer.

One such representative ready to start a conversation was the Program Coordinator of Darmouth's Tuck Business School Bridge Program, Victoria Yang. Last summer, the four-week Bridge program, which focuses on business fundamentals, hosted 16 Middlebury students.

"For students like those at Middlebury who have the great resumes and high GPAs and are applying for business positions, it is often a disappointment when they don't get the jobs they want right away. The employers often come back saying they're a great applicant, but they don't have the business component, and that's where Tuck comes in to not only make you competitive, but to differentiate you from all of the other great liberal arts graduates applying for that job," said Yang.

As a result of their liberal arts education, Middlebury students often hit frustrating roadblocks when their non-business or economic majors do not correspond with real-life job opportunities.

"For a sociology major, there are not a lot of jobs out there. I'd like to do independent work, but that doesn't make any money. I saw that they've got a sociology sign up, so we'll see," said Micah Gurard-Levin '07.

Looking at the colorful pamphlet in her hand, Geography major Katie Clagett '06 said, "[CSO] gave me this, but I've already seen this and looked into it - it's old news. They say 'we're not just finance jobs,' but the stuff they send out is geared to the economics majors. For people interested in jobs in geography, CSO doesn't have many entry-level positions."

CSO hopes that the opportunities presented at the Spring Job Fling will push students to learn more about the job application process and worry less about the immediate, post-graduation outcome. "What's important now is to begin the process, to know how to do it when you're ready to do it, so after your year of skiing in Vail is over, you know how to research, how to write a resume and cover letter and how to network," said CSO Associate Director for Internships Susan Walker.

"The job market's up for the fourth year in a row, but that doesn't mean this is easy. People definitely need to work at this. The process isn't so hard - the challenging and exciting thing is figuring out what you want to do in the two-year or more bridge time after you graduate," said Kjelleren.

Playing the numbers game alongside her peers, American Literature and Civilization major Jessica VanWagenen '06 voiced the common sentiment: "What's been a challenge is that there is too much out there, so much so that it's difficult to choose what you want to pursue."