The next stage

By Cindy Votruba
Before he even started his senior year of college, Southwest Minnesota State University graduate Erich Deutsch already had a job as an entry-level accountant lined up with the Cargill plant in Milwaukee.

Rachel Lehman, a senior elementary education major who is graduating Saturday, had applied for 15 different teaching positions around the state. She called Wednesday to check on her applications and 11 of the jobs had already been filled.

“One of the schools I applied at said they had 180 applicants for two jobs,” Lehman said.

Senior Michael VanDrehle, a business management and marketing major, is considering three job offers. He has five offers he is looking at, and is seriously considering three. All of his job offers are in the Midwest.

“I am waiting to sign onto a company until after the SIFE national exposition, which is taking place in Chicago next week,” VanDrehle said.

Trying to find a job in their respective field where there are a ton of applicants for one or two jobs can be frustrating for new college graduates.

And with the economy on the brink of a recession, jobs can be hard to come by.

But SMSU officials said there are jobs in the Midwest, and, in certain fields, there are many opportunities. And for some SMSU graduates, internships and other opportunities such as career fairs led to job offers.

Yet others are hopeful they will find a job in their field soon.

SMSU business professor Gerry Toland said the overall slowdown in the economy can make it tough for new graduates to find jobs.

“On the other hand, employers are going to be more particular on who they hire,” Toland said.

“That doesn’t stop employers from hiring,” said Ginger Kaufman, director of Career Services at SMSU about the economic slowdown. “They’re looking at adding some young people to their workforce.”

Kaufman said the market is favorable for those searching for a job in the region.

“In the Midwest, the job outlook is pretty good,” Kaufman said as she cited information from the National Association of Colleges and Employment. “It’s looking pretty positive for our graduates.”

Kaufman said the job demand has gone back into computer-related fields, computer programming and computer science. Finance and accounting majors are also in high demand, she said.

Samantha O’Neill said there are plenty of jobs out there for social work majors, but a lot of jobs want social workers to have at least one to two years of experience. O’Neill, who will graduate with a degree in social work, shares Lehman’s frustration.

“This makes it very hard for people like me just graduating to get a job right away,” O’Neill said.

Starting the job search early is key, Kaufman said, as employers like to hire for their summer months by March.

“I recommend seniors start their job search in the fall of their senior year,” Kaufman said.

Kaufman said seniors should write a resume, and consider the job market, where they want to live and what jobs are in demand.

There is a large demand in the accounting field, Deutsch said.

Hormel and Cargill came to SMSU to interview, so it was easier to find a job, Deutsch said.

Environmental science major Amy Schnoes started her job search in January and said there are are lot of jobs in her field.

“Most of the jobs require a few years of experience, but I was able to find several that did not,” Schnoes said.

“I applied for several jobs and so far have had two interviews over the phone.”

Schnoes interviewed with the Long Lake Conservation Center in Palisade and the River Bend Nature Center in Faribault.

“I have officially been offered the position at the Long Lake Conservation Center and I am going to visit the center before I accept the position,” Schnoes said.

Lehman also started her job search in January. She applied for 15 different jobs, all within a two-hour radius of Marshall and also a two-hour radius of her hometown of Le Sueur.

Lehman did her student teaching in a first-grade classroom in Marshall. She wants to teach in a smaller town, not Minneapolis or St. Paul.

“There are so many applicants for each job,” Lehman said. “You have to stick out somehow, but it is hard when you don’t have any experience.”

Of the 15 schools, Lehman has an interview at one. Three other schools are still looking at the applicants.

“I sent a couple of resumes and such out today again,” Lehman said. “It is very frustrating trying to find a job.”

The work isn’t over when the employer gets the resume, O’Neill said.

“Graduates need to really sell themselves during interviews to be considered for the jobs,” O’Neill said. “I am lucky to have an internship that has given me some experience in the field of work I want to do. However, many graduates do not have the opportunity to do an internship with their degree. These graduates need to really sell themselves on what they have accomplished during their college careers.”

Students often have trouble identifying their skills, Kaufman said.

“I think that’s the biggest hurdle they have before they even job search,” Kaufman said. “Employers will look very strongly at what you have.”

Students who do internships are more likely to be considered first for jobs before those who don’t do an internship, Kaufman said. An internship shows what students have to offer a potential employer, she said.

“The people already know those companies and worked in the environment,” Kaufman said.

Kaufman said she’s seeing more and more students who graduate in May who consider doing an internship that summer.

Toland said doing an internship tends to work in a student’s favor.

“Anyone who is out in the job market has to be assertive and put out a lot of resumes, following up on leads,” Toland said.

Deutsch recommends doing an internship because it is a great way to get exposed to your field while getting your foot in the door.

“Through the internship, I was able to land my job,” Deutsch said.

“Also, use your resources when looking for a job,” Deutsch said. “I was able to go through SMSU Career Services and land two interviews.”

After getting the offer from Cargill, Deutsch reviewed his options and decided to go with Cargill.

O’Neill started her job search in February after she began her internship at Pipestone Family Services.

“I was looking in the Marshall area for social work jobs dealing with child protection,” O’Neill said. “Now I am looking at jobs in Sioux Falls because there are more opportunities around the bigger city and it is halfway between home and Marshall.

“Also, I am looking around my hometown of Ponca, Neb. I will live in Ponca and hopefully commute to Sioux City, Iowa, for work.”

O’Neill has applied for 15 jobs, and has received five interviews and a couple of letters saying the position had already been filled. She said she’s been offered a couple of jobs, but didn’t accept any of the positions because she is still waiting to hear from other possible job offers.

“I do not want to accept any job and later regret it when a bigger job opportunity is offered,” O’Neill said. “I am not freaking out too much yet on not having a job. I have faith that when the time comes I will know when to accept a job.”

SMSU has a good reputation in placing students in jobs, Toland said. The placement rates for SMSU graduates are 95 percent or higher in a lot of the disciplines.

Toland said SMSU has placed 400 students at Schwan’s Food Co. and 390 at US Bank, both in Marshall.

Even if graduating seniors are starting their job hunt in May, Kaufman offers them the same piece of advice: getting their marketing tools together, looking at the job market and looking at where they want to live.

“It’s one step at a time,” Kaufman said.

Lehman said her goal is to find a job at a school she likes, in a small town with a good community and nice school. She likes having a plan.

“If I don’t get a job, I will move home and hopefully work at my church’s day care,” Lehman said.