https://www.esubulletin.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/student-interview-RGB.jpgWith dead week rapidly approaching and students scrambling to prepare for graduation, graduating students are looking to the future. For those who are unsure what the next step should be, Career Services is here to help.
June Coleman, director of Career Services, said the goal of the program is to provide a variety of services for incoming freshman, helping them decide a major, working with students during their time at Emporia State and helping them to move on to the next phase after graduation. Coleman said that a major focus of Career Services is providing students with experience in their field while in college.
“Usually sophomore or junior year, we show them ways to gain experience while they are here,” Coleman said. “In the teaching program, (experience is) built in, but a lot of majors don’t have that option.”
Coleman said a lot of the focus revolves around preparing students for a job search. Career Services works with classes, teaching students how to write cover letters, create a resume and how to find jobs. They also host the annual career fashion show, which emphasizes how to dress professionally and how to know which outfits go together, Coleman said.
“We also host career fairs, allowing students to network with employers,” Coleman said. “We host interviews, so the employers can be here all day, and students can interview.”
Matthew Crome, senior management information systems major, said that Career Services has been vital to his post-graduation plans.
“About half way through my junior year, I really started to think about how, despite how capable I thought I would be in business, it wasn’t what I was looking for. I wanted something more hands on,” Crome said. “I was talking with Career Services about how I had reservations about going into business, and they started offering up alternatives.”
Crome, who will graduate this May, said he plans to attend the Navy Officer Training School in Rhode Island. He said most of his professors have been helpful throughout the application process.
“Several actually wrote letters of recommendation for the program,” Crome said. “I actually settled on the idea while working with Career Services about a year and a half ago.”
Kelsey Wilson, senior health promotions major, said that Career Services has helped her as well, despite the fact that she will not yet be graduating. Instead, Wilson will complete an internship in cardiac rehab in Washington before pursuing her master’s degree.
“We worked with Career Services, building our resumes and learning how to look for internships in classes,” Wilson said. “We’ve also had practicum hours preparing us for an internship.”
Career Services, located in the basement of the Memorial Union, is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and is available for all students.
