With the onset of the Notre Dame Job fair today, the Saint Mary's Center for Career Opportunities (CCO) is preparing for an influx of seniors in their office.
"Our office has definitely seen an increase in the number of students seeking assistance with preparing for the upcoming Notre Dame career fair," director of the CCO Stacie Jeffirs said. "Students are asking for assistance with resumes, interviewing skills, career fair strategies, networking and much more."
The CCO's new location in Spes Unica Hall seems to be playing a role in the large number of seniors who are visiting the center.
"[We're] much more visible to students who are walking by," Jeffirs said. "Also, I think that we have put a considerable amount of effort to get the word out that our office is here to help."
Often times, advice is unique to each individual who comes in and there are very few tips that can be given across the board, she said.
"There are some general tips that we give most seniors in order to help them make the most of their senior year at Saint Mary's College. However, much of what we do in our office is unique to each student since interests and career goals vary," Jeffirs said.
The center emphasizes the need to start career planning early by looking for internships during a student's sophomore or junior year or building skills in career exploration, goal-setting, resume and cover letter writing, job searching, networking, interviewing and graduate school research.
"As always, our staff is here to serve the needs of each of our students," Jeffirs said.
The CCO is committed to promoting the continuation of learning and growth in both the personal and professional lives of students and alumnae, she said.
Jeffirs emphasized that the networking is one of the most popular way to find jobs at Saint Mary's because of the strong alumnae network.
"One of the great resources that Saint Mary's students and soon-to-be graduates have at their fingertips are SMC alumnae," she said. "They are an excellent resource for networking and getting connected to opportunities throughout the United States in various professional areas."
Saint Mary's students have many resources right at their fingertips including the recently completed Junior Jumpstart and Senior Startup programs. The CCO has had nearly 100 students participate in both programs in which they learned more about internships, job searching and networking.
"We are very pleased that so many students are taking a proactive approach with their career goals and beginning the process early," Jeffirs said.
