"Future Forum" At Mitchell Looks To Student Job Prospects

Whenever the dire state of the economy comes up, college students may be one of the populations worrying most about their future. These young men and women not only enter an uncertain job market, but have to compete with a pool of unemployed yet experienced workers.

Mark A. Stankiewicz, program manager for the Connecticut Workforce Investment Act, addressed some of these concerns on Tuesday morning at a presentation at . Along with members of the college’s career center, attendees examined the factors facing students and what employers expect of young job applicants.

“We need to hear this so we can better prepare our students to be workers and citizens in our community,” said Catherine Erik-Soussi, director of the Mitchell College Career Center.

Amanda Ljubicic, assistant director at the career center, said the center operates more like a counseling agency to help students who may find it difficult to adapt to the professional world. She said the College Central Network allows employers to post jobs for students or search student resumes to hire for temporary or summer jobs.

Stankiewicz that over the next eight years, the United States is expected to see job growth in areas such as professional and business services, health care and social assistance, and state and local government. Job loss is predicted for manufacturing, as well as utilities and mining. He said that though job openings increased between 2009 and 2010 in a number of areas, it remains a tight labor market.

“It is an employer’s market in terms of who they want to hire,” he said.

Stankiewicz said one encouraging sign comes from the National Association of Colleges and Employers. A recent study by the organization found that companies expect to hire 19 percent more college graduates in the coming year than in 2010, the biggest one-year increase since 2007.

Stankiewicz shared a number of tips for job hunters. He said avoiding human resources and contacting the hiring manager or someone you know within the company tends to be helpful, and that it is OK for resumes to extend to a second page. Interview recommendations included researching the job and company ahead of time, turning off your cell phone, and giving a strong handshake. Stankiewicz said the state also maintains a “reemployment portal” on the Connecticut Department of Labor website for people to enter their former title and find matching jobs.

Group discussions after Stankiewicz’s presentation brought back suggestions on how to prepare students for the job market. These included establishing skills from a young age such as financial self-management, math skills, avoiding a sense of entitlement, and an attitude of learning rather than knowing.

“We need them to have better social skills,” said Nancy Tolson, a professor in Mitchell’s education department.