To freshmen and sophomores, career fairs equal free pizza, but to upperclassmen, a real job is the real goal.
Interim Director of Career Services Roberta Kaskel was put in charge of looking for new ways for students to achieve this goal. Kaskel replaced Joan Gallagher as Director after she began working at LSU in the fall.
Though Career Services is involved in bringing in employers through career fairs and setting up search programs such as the Job Search 401 Workshop Series, many students are still dissatisfied.
“Most of the employers represented at the Loyola Lagniappe Job Fair wanted two-year commitments or were hiring for Girl Scout camps,” said Jordan Schneider, mass communication junior.
“Very few of the jobs being offered allow me to stay in New Orleans,” said John Michael Rouchell, music business sophomore.
Though some students feel Career Services is ineffective, other students have faired better. Mark Schlackman, business senior, had success with the services being offered. “I found a good-paying job relating to my major with a law firm using e-mails sent by Career Services,” he said.
Kaskel acknowledged there is some rumbling in the student body, but as of January she been working on a new report that seeks to improve Career Services.
The report, which will go to Marcia Petty, vice president of student affairs, and then to the Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president, includes recommendations for what Kaskel calls a “comprehensive career center.” The report will also include ways in which Loyola will team up with other universities in order to use the power of all the schools together to draw in employers.
Kaskel’s office is also trying to get more feedback from students. To do this, they sent out a new e-mail survey to every student. The survey includes a number of questions on how the Career Services Center can work better for them. They have also opened their doors for concerns and recommendations from students.
Kaskel said she wants the university’s career center to reach a number of benchmarks set by some of the best career centers in the country. She is also interested in more of what she calls “first destination outbound data.” This is the sort of data that gives specifics on where students are going after college. The Office of Career Services does not have this data as of press time Wednesday.
“There will be more information on these recommendations when the report is released in late April,” Kaskel said.
Despite the complaints of some students, Career Services has undergone a number of improvements.
The staff has freed up more appointment time for students to meet face to face with counselors in and out of their offices, and the new Job Search 401 program is giving a series of workshops every Wednesday evening in March. The series will cover all topics from writing resumes to dressing the part in interviews.
Some in the career center feel the main weakness may come from the Center’s lack of visibility.
“The problem is not enough people know about what we do or what services are available to them,” said Amy Newton, assistant director of Career Services. “Students who come to our offices leave happy or at least less anxious and more at ease about the career process.”
Cole Adams can be reached at [email protected].
