by Scott Albright
Daily Lobo
Students preparing for the real world have a helping hand at UNM.
The University's Career Services Office in the Student Services Building offers guidance for finding employment upon graduation.
The service is also available to UNM alumni and community members.
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The service provides assistance in writing cover letters, building a rÇsumÇ, conducting interviews, job hunting and career counseling.
The service schedules job fairs and invites employers to campus to recruit students.
The career services Web site provides access to employers who are looking for students.
"Employers know who we are," said Tanya Campos, manager of the office. "They come here specifically looking for students."
The Web site allows users to browse through a list of employers registered
at UNM.
A schedule of events is also available, including upcoming job fairs and on-campus recruiters' visits.
Users can sign up for interviews with employers visiting UNM by going to the events calendar or searching by the employer's name.
"There are about 4,500 employers registered with us who want UNM students," said Jenna Crabb, interim director of career services.
Crabb said 126 employers are signed up for Tuesday's career fair at the SUB.
"That's intimidating to walk into a huge ballroom with 126 people that are going, 'We want you,'" Crabb said. "So, how do you work it? How do you go up to recruiters? How do you talk to them? How should you dress? What should you bring with you? We walk through that with students so that they walk in and impress those recruiters to where, hopefully, they're walking away with interviews and possibly
job offers."
Crabb said it is important to dress nicely when attending job fairs.
She said to bring plenty of rÇsumÇs, meet and greet recruiters and be prepared to interview and research the employers.
Dan Grassham, employer relations intern, said students need to be prepared when attending job fairs.
"If you show up and your rÇsumÇ looks like it was written on a typewriter, or you show up and you're kind of dressed in pajamas, no one's going to hire you - that's probably the biggest mistake," Grassham said. "Another big mistake is people don't start looking soon enough. You should start looking about a year before you graduate."
Grassham started working at career services as a student employee in May and was hired as an intern in October.
He said employers like UNM's demographics.
"They (employers) come here for diversity, and this is a very diverse campus," Grassham said.
Campos said it is important to tailor rÇsumÇs to specific employers.
She said students can set up appointments with her or the other counselors to go over rÇsumÇs and cover letters.
Students are assigned counselors based on the college they get their degree from.
Crabb said students should register with career services as soon as they start attending UNM.
Most students don't come in until their senior year, and it usually takes six to eight months to find a job, she said.
Grassham said students who are having a hard time figuring out what they want to do should visit career services.
Crabb said the job market is good, so students should be picky about their careers.
"You have to find passion in what you do," she said. "Make sure that your degree and your career choice is your passion, because if it is, nothing will stop you. You have to love what you do. The career has to fit you, not you fit the career."
