(Photo by State Press Staff)A 2014 job search study by Millennial Branding found that 73 percent of hiring managers felt colleges are only “somewhat preparing” students for the working world.
Pew Research Center compared unemployment rates between multiple generations, including the Silents, Boomers, Gen X and Millennials.
When each generation entered the job market with a bachelor’s degree or higher, Millennials had in 2013 the highest unemployment rate, at 3.8 percent, compared to the previous generations, Pew Research said.
Although unemployment rates are high for current Millennial job seekers in comparison to other generations, students at large universities, like ASU, have a better chance of succeeding in job interviews and finding a job, Hearst Corporation Human Resources Manager Amy Helmus said.
“I think going to a large school isn’t easy, and when you get to a large school, you have to fend for yourself,” Helmus said. “I find that students who go to large universities are more outgoing, have bigger personalities, are eager to get involved, are eager to learn and are not afraid to get themselves heard.”
While the study said it doesn’t matter if a student has a business major or liberal arts major, students with some business background involving classes or corporate experience are more appealing.
The candidates who are the most desirable are those who are confident, comfortable, good listeners and proactive, Helmus said.
“I feel like people who are from large universities usually are, because they want to stand out,” Helmus said. “Don’t give up and continue to be proactive.”
ASU’s Career Services website provides over 70 helpful career links for students, including career assessment tests, job search strategies and career plans for graduates. ASU assigns students to a career coach to help them get through their collegiate careers, Undergraduate Business Career Consultant Marsha Gonzaga said.
“It’s all preparation,” Gonzaga said. “When it comes to their senior year, I think that everything has led up to that point.”
ASU has over 1,000 registered student organizations and employers seek out these involved students because they are looking for leaders, Gonzaga said.
She said ASU students have the competitive skills and resources to be a desirable candidate to hiring managers, and while many universities don’t require curriculum about careers, ASU helps prepare students for real world career experience through courses such as internship capstones and other courses that incorporate lessons centered on career development.
“Because of the fact that it is a large institution, when you think about the classes, especially during upper division courses when you do group work, the key things like teamwork that companies are looking for, and other characteristics, can be supported through the classroom,” Gonzaga said.
ASU alumna Laila Oskouie, said being a business student helped her prepare for the work force because she was involved in multiple professional development and major-related student organizations.
“Networking is huge at ASU and we had more opportunities than smaller schools to connect and interview with companies,” Oskouie said.
Oskouie, now an area manager for Amazon in California, said that she was hired for her job through networking with W. P. Carey alumni during her senior year.
ASU alumnus Devon Mills said in addition to the career support ASU offers students, the network of people was beneficial when job searching.
“The large number of Sun Devil Alumni out in the world is a powerful tool unique to a large institution. I know that fact personally,” Mills said. “When I was searching for my current job, I sat down with a Partner at Phoenix Law Firm who was a former Sun Devil, member of ASU Greek life and several other organizations that I was a part of. Having this in common broke the ice pretty easily and in the end, he helping me get my current job.”
Reach the reporter at alopez2@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @SimplyAudreeKate
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