Class aims to ease students’ fears about graduation and job hunting
At this time in the semester students are not only forced to think about graduation, but about the pressures of finding a job that matches the skills learned in their major, said Brett Cheney, a junior majoring in entrepreneurship.
Cheney is one of about 30 students who were enrolled in a no-credit class titled “Great Work Great Career,” after Stephen R. Covey’s book published in 2009. Covey partnered with USU as a tenured professor in the Jon M. Hunstman School of Business. With about a year left until graduation, he said he has observed the way this nine-week course has influenced students who are unsure what their majors will allow them to do career-wise, especially those majors that have been deemed less marketable.
“For me, I realized that I have qualities that other people don’t,” Cheney said, “and I felt that this class will help me better show those qualities to potential employers.”
This program is hopefully going to turn a negative into a positive, said Bryce Smalley, a student and facilitator of the class. After Sen. Howard Stephenson’s claim in February that students are working toward “degrees to nowhere,” many students were disheartened, but this program can help those students realize that they can be marketable if they learn how to sell themselves effectively.
USU students must pay a $100 fee to participate in the class, said Lynne Pettit, a business professor who got the ball rolling on the project about a year ago. This fee includes Covey’s book and access to the affiliated online program.
“This is a critical time for this program,” Pettit said. “The job market is getting extremely competitive. The number of jobs available has gone down.”
Lydia Brown, a senior in human resources, will begin her job hunt upon her graduation May 7, but she said she isn’t too worried about landing a job because she knows how to market herself well. While taking this class she realized potential employees should not go into their careers simply wanting a job, but should want to make a contribution to that company, she said.
“They have needs to hire employees to fill those needs,” Brown said. “Employees should want to make a difference with what that company is doing.”
The class is not only taught by professors like Pettit, but by three student interns as well, and they are opening the classes up to students of all disciplines on campus. One of the first lessons learned, Chensey said, is defining each individuals’ unique contributions based on their talents and knoweldge.
“Its about combining their talents, their passions, their overall desires,” Cheney said. “Along with that, a lot of stuff what you learn in this class is common knowledge but not commonly practiced.”
One example of a tip taught in the class is to research the company’s purpose and goals before attending an interview with them, he said, and simply doing this will make the chances of being hired much greater because the company will know the applicant is clear about what he or she could contribute.
“Basically, they can say I can solve your problem, and learn how to do that without being arrogant,” Pettit said.
Smalley said he encourages students who feel unsure about what to do with their liberal arts majors to come to a brief meeting in Room 211 of the business building on April 29. There will be an information meeting about the curriculum and its benefits. USU’s history department has committed to sponsor six of its students to enroll in the class.
– catherine.meidell@aggiemail.usu.edu