New Career Services and Internship Office website coming soon!

Soon you be able to experience our new and improved office website.  Look for the new website to roll out later this fall!
www.smumn.edu/careerservices

Students want their future employers to demonstrate "Green"

Today's Millennnial college students and recent grads are overwhelmingly interested in connecting the "green movement"--i.e., environmental friendliness and responsibility--to their future careers, according to a recent survey by Experience.

Of the more than 2,700 students/grads who participated in the study, 81 percent said it's important for them to work for a "green' company--one that is "green-friendly, green-conscious, or green-certified."

Similarly, 79 percent said they'd be more likely to accept a job offer from a "green" company over an identical offer from another company.

Source: Experience news release, August 4, 2008

Welcome back!

Welcome back! The staff in Career Services and Internships is excited for another school year! Now that you're back at school please remember to visit us in 136 Saint Mary's Hall. We've been very busy this summer adding and updating services. One very exciting addition is this blog which is intended to keep you up to date with the latest news and happenings in the areas of career services and internships. Also, we will be rolling out an exciting new software product that helps you fine tune your interviewing skills. It records your interview via webcam and is sent to your email account for viewing and review with career services staff. Everyone knows how important interview skills are, poor interview=no job offer! More information will be coming soon about this product. Stay tuned...

The new Job Choices magazines are on our shelves. Students, stop by and pick up your free copy today. Seniors, you will be mailed a copy the second week in September. Senior education majors, you will receive a free copy of The Job Search handbook for Educators in September.

Mindset list for the class of 2012

The following information was released by Beloit College this week.

This month, almost 2 million first-year students will head off to college campuses around the country. Most of them will be about 18 years old, born in 1990 when headlines sounded oddly familiar to those of today: Rising fuel costs were causing airlines to cut staff and flight schedules; Big Three car companies were facing declining sales and profits; and a president named Bush was increasing the number of troops in the Middle East in the hopes of securing peace. However, the mindset of this new generation of college students is quite different from that of the faculty about to prepare them to become the leaders of tomorrow.

Each August for the past 11 years, Beloit College in Beloit, Wis., has released the Beloit College Mindset List. It provides a look at the cultural touchstones that shape the lives of students entering college. The List is shared with faculty and with thousands who request it each year as the school year begins, as a reminder of the rapidly changing frame of reference for this new generation.

The class of 2012 has grown up in an era where computers and rapid communication are the norm, and colleges no longer trumpet the fact that residence halls are “wired” and equipped with the latest hardware.

Read more...

These students will hardly recognize the availability of telephones in their rooms since they have seldom utilized landlines during their adolescence. They will continue to live on their cell phones and communicate via texting. Roommates, few of whom have ever shared a bedroom, have already checked out each other on Facebook where they have shared their most personal thoughts with the whole world. It is a multicultural, politically correct and “green” generation that has hardly noticed the threats to their privacy and has never feared the Russians and the Warsaw Pact.

Students entering college for the first time this fall were generally born in 1990. Here is a sample taken from the mindset list for the class of 2012:

Since they were in diapers, karaoke machines have been annoying people at parties.
They have always been looking for Carmen Sandiego.
GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available.
Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.
Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle.
Gas stations have never fixed flats, but most serve cappuccino.
Electronic filing of tax returns has always been an option.
Club Med resorts have always been places to take the whole family.
WWW has never stood for World Wide Wrestling.
Films have never been X rated, only NC-17.
IBM has never made typewriters.
McDonald’s and Burger King have always used vegetable oil for cooking french fries.
The Tonight Show has always been hosted by Jay Leno and started at 11:35 EST.
The Green Bay Packers (almost) always had the same starting quarterback.

To read the complete list visit: http://www.beloit.edu/mindset/2012.php

Tips for college success

Two weeks from today, Saint Mary's University fall semester begins. Students will be enjoying their first day of classes, faculty will be eager to share their expertise with students and parents will be home wondering how his/her young adult student is doing in Winona.

I recently ran across the following article about tips for college success at http://college.maryaherdman.com/tips.html. I thought it would be a perfect post for this time of year. The author also has a college readiness questionnaire that looks interesting - check it out if you have time.

Five Prime Tips for a Successful Start to College

Prepare: Take advantage of freshmen orientation as a chance to meet new friends before classes start. Review the information your school sent to you and make sure you have done all that is necessary to begin that first semester.

Family Farewells: Have an understanding with your parents about when and how you will be in touch with one another. Recognize and acknowledge the support of your family and friends in your agenda to do well in college.

Read more...

Talk to your Roommate: Make plans with your roommate-to-be to share special items, e.g. a small refrigerator, lamps, fans, etc.

Set Some Goals: Proactively review and pursue your goals for your first semester. Give some serious thought to whatever barriers may arise for you in trying to achieve your goals and take some helpful action to overcome them.

Money Matters: Try to earn/save enough money over the summer so that you will have some spending money for occasional treats. Consider opening a bank account at a bank on campus or nearby the school. Before leaving home, discuss with your family how you will afford to travel back and forth between home and college during the school year.

Enjoy your last two weeks of summer break! See you soon.

Blog format, goals and frequency of postings

Hopefully by now we have a handful of repeat readers. If not yet, then my hope is that once school starts more students, alumni, faculty, staff and parents will frequent this blog often to find out what's happening in Career Services and Internships and learn the latest news and tips.

This blog will be replacing our office newsletter that was published each semester in the past. We will periodically send email notices out trying to recruit new readers, we also have the blog "icon" on our websites for readers who might happen to "stumble" upon it.

The primary goal of this blog is to be informative (aren't all blogs). We hope you find the articles we post useful, we will advertise our career events and workshops here as well.

I am most excited about the opportunity to allow other people to post on the blog. Students, alumni, faculty, and parents are all invited to write a post. Alumni spotlights, intern spotlights, advice from faculty, student thoughts, parent perspectives, ect..... are all welcome! Help spread the news. Please email your article to jbaker@smumn.edu.

Ideally, we would like to post something new for the reader everyday M-F. That may happen occasionally, but for now we will definitely be posting something new every M-W-F. Make sure you check back those days!

Have a great week!

Reality - full time college student and part time employee

Now that summer is winding down, chances are most of you are starting to think about returning to school for another year. It's probably also time to start looking at your finances for the upcoming year...maybe asking yourself "did I save enough money from my summer job" or better yet, "where did all my money go this summer?" If you feel you need to get a part time job this year, you're not alone! According to an article written by By Lucy Lazarony at Bankrate.com, 57 percent of college students have jobs. She says, most of today's college students are working and working hard, before, in-between, and after classes. Students with jobs typically work 25 hours a week and earn $7.50 an hour. Most jobs are off campus.

If you are looking for a part time job in Winona for the upcoming year, check out the Cardinal Job and Internship LINK, stop by Career Services, or check out the Winona Daily News classified ads.