Career services offers assistance for new students

Brief

Tables handing out information about Kent State lined the walls of the Holiday Inn Select in Strongsville.

The Career Services’ table was one of many tables at the reception. The attendants handed out fliers, little key chains and booklets to the incoming freshmen about what the career services office does.

When students are ready, Career Services helps them decide majors, find employment on and off campus and revise their resume, said Crystal Ake, graduate assistant of career services.

She informed students who came to the Career Services booth that they could go online to www.kent.edu/career. There is a step-by-step process on how to fill out a resume on the Web site. But Ake recommends going into the career services office, located in room 261 of the Michael Schwartz Center and seeing a professional.

“We hope to let students know we are here at the introductory stage,” she said. “Most students don’t find out about us until the middle of (any) year. A lot of students say, ‘I hate what I’m doing, but I’m almost done.’”

There is also a class students can take for school credit called the career exploration class.

“It’s a class for any student who is interested in exploring their career more in depth,” said Carla Owens, assistant director for career education. “It’s a three credit course. It’s a very comprehensive class.”

The class assesses interests, personalities and multiple intelligences. Next, the class helps to determine what job would be good for the student, given the information previously obtained. The conclusion of the class involves a job searching process which includes how to prepare a resume, how to conduct a job search and how to interview, Owens said.

— Adria Barbour