Despite the recent increase in job listings from the Center for Career Education, some students still complain that the center’s resources are narrow.
LionSHARE, CCE’s database, provides listings ranging from internships to full-time jobs and serves students and alumni from three of the University’s undergraduate schools and four graduate schools.
“CCE is definitely more useful and fruitful with people who are going into finance,” Ope Omojola, CC ’12 said, echoing a common concern, which administrators argue is invalid.
In the 2009-2010 year, there were 12,742 opportunities available in LionSHARE, Al Spuler, CCE’s executive director for administration & planning, said recently. This was a dramatic increase from the 4,260 opportunities available the previous year. The total number of unique employers also jumped 135 percent.
Though some students say it seems that most opportunities are in finance, administrators say this is a misconception. Fifteen percent of the employers who post on LionSHARE are in the finance industry, Spuler said, which is the largest industry in the database. The second largest, the nonprofit sector, makes up nine percent, and employers in the advertising, marketing, and public relations industries make up eight percent.
“I think it’s hard as a science major to find awesome opportunities,” Yinuo Wang, CC ’12 said, adding that her academic research positions have come directly from departments.
With hopes of going into the arts, Omojola said that CCE has done little to help her find relevant opportunities, especially since she thinks that major corporations with resources to recruit on campus do not provide the kinds of creative jobs she wants.
But Niamh O’Brien, CCE’s director of undergraduate career development, said that students do not seem to realize the variety of jobs available.
“Often students are swayed by the most visible employers, the ones that have big HR departments and are hiring on campus,” O’Brien said in a recent interview. “They think that is all there is.”
CCE Dean Kavita Sharma also added, “There is a much more equal distribution [in LionShare] than students think.”
For Heben Nigatu, CC ’13, CCE was helpful her first year in offering resume and cover letter consultations. But now it seems that opportunities offered by CCE often only cater to specific interests. “The things that are on CCE’s calendar are banking, banking, banking.”
Though she ultimately found an internship, it was through Craigslist, not a University resource.
Chris Canales, CC’14, said that, while he is not aware of the resources the center offers, it’s not CCE’s fault. “I plan on seeking a job... in the next semester. I think they [CCE] do a pretty good job of getting themselves out there.”
Evan Platt, GS, agreed that the burden should fall to students to actually make use of CCE’s resources.
“I haven’t paid any attention,” he said, adding that students need to be proactive. “I focus a lot on what I want to do after graduation, but I have never been to the CCE.”
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