One question that is on most college students’ minds is “Will I get a job when I graduate?” The Office of Career Placement and Internship Services can help students find the answer.
The office, located on the third floor of the D.P. Culp University Center, provides students and alumni of ETSU with the skills needed to impress employers and helps them contact employers who are hiring in their fields of interest.
Some of the free services provided by Career Placement are job placement, career fairs, career planning and rsum building.
Calvin Purvis, assistant director of career placement, said that visiting the office’s web site is the key for successful career planning.
On the site, students can access all the information the office has available at times convenient for the searcher. The web site also has a calendar, which provides information on all the upcoming events the office is planning, including career fairs.
Career fairs are often the best way to explore the demand for jobs in a student’s field of study. Purvis said that students need a “reasonable expectation of what to expect upon graduation before they get there.” Attending a career fair gives students an idea of what jobs are available.
Purvis recommends that students start looking for a job one year prior to their graduation date. He also suggests that students come prepared to the career fair.
“If you are truly interested, bring a rsum,” he said. “Also, dress to look one level better than you would at the job if you were hired.”
He cautions students not to expect on-the-spot hiring because it rarely happens. Instead, job seekers should go looking for an invitation to a second interview.
“If the employers are impressed, they will want to talk again,” he said.
Some of the upcoming events sponsored by the career placement are a nursing career fair scheduled for Monday, Sept. 20, from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Culp Center Ballroom and the Accounting Professionals Networking Night slated for Sept. 29 at Millennium Park. The Networking Night event is aimed accounting majors or anyone who is interested in the field.
For more information, call the career placement office at 439-4441, e-mail Calvin Purvis at purvisc@mail.etsu.edu, or visit the office’s web site at www.etsu.edu/careers.
The office is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

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