Career Services Update - week of February 10!

* Congratulations – Ryan White has informed our office that he has accepted a position with American Media Partners in Portland.  Congratulations, Ryan!

* Brown Bag – THIS THURSDAY, February 13, Rick Whalen (class of '93) will be presenting at our Brown Bag lunch from 12:15 - 1:15.  Grab your lunch at the cafe or bring a lunch and sit in for this great presentation on PERSONAL FINANCE.  Rick will be offering basic information that will allow you to make the best financial decisions for you!  Rick is the branch manager of the Wells Fargo Bangor location.  This presentation will be held in the Board Room. 

* Mark your calendar!  -  More details will follow, but save these dates!

• March 19 - Thomas College spring career fair - to be held in the gymnasium from 10-2.
• March 26 - Brown Bag lunch featuring Sonya Workman from MBNA.  She will discuss 'Employer/Employee Expectations'
• April 15 - Etiquette Dinner
• April 13-19 - National Student Employment Week
• April 17 - Brown Bag lunch - "On Your Own" featuring a job specialist from Jobs for Maine's Graduates.

* Contest News - Our friends at Railroad Square came up with the February Contest of the Month. As independent film screeners in rural central Maine, they figure they have stumbled upon one of life's least lucrative careers. Are there others? Send us your entries - they can be serious (teaching comes to mind) or humorous (yard-sale buying and selling). The suggested career with the most votes will win two passes to Railroad Square Cinema! Voting will end on Friday, February 28. 

* Job Hunting tips -  Employers describe perfect job candidate (courtesy of NACE)

What qualities do employers want most from the college students they consider candidates for employment?  Communication skills, honesty and integrity, and teamwork skills are at the top of the list, according to respondents to a survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).  Several employers offered practical advice to college students about how to become a perfect job candidate...

• Research the company and the position, if possible, before you interview.  This will enable you to ask intelligent questions during the interview.
• Be open-minded.  Don't let salary alone determine whether you take or nix a job offer; you need to consider the work involved, stability of the company, corporate culture, and work environment. 
• Gain relevant work experience.  Having relevant work experience gives you a distinct advantage over inexperienced candidates.  You will also be better prepared to make a decision about the type of job and work environment that best suits you.  There is one other key advantage...many employers turn first to their own interns and co-op students when they have jobs available.

* Job tip of the week - Where's YOUR resume?  We are seeing so many more employers checking out our resume page. Instead of using just one method of job hunting, we suggest you use as many tools as possible.  Our tip this week is to post your resume to our resume site.  It's very easy, the instructions can be found here: 

http://www.thomas.edu/career1/resumehowto.htm.

* Winter 2003 SALARY SURVEY REPORT:  Top employers, majors, and salaries -

Where are the job offers coming from for new college grads?  What majors are employers seeking?  What types of employers offer the highest salaries?  Here are the top five in each category, according to NACE's Winter 2003 Salary Survey report:

TOP FIVE EMPLOYERS - based on number of jobs offered.

1. Accounting services
2. Educational services
3. Engineering services
4. Government/federal
5. Building, developing, general contracting

TOP FIVE MAJORS (by number of offers extended, average starting salary in parenthesis)

1. Accounting ($42,005)
2. Mechanical engineering ($48,115)
3. Economics/finance --- including banking ($40,413)
4. Business administration/management ($36,634)
5. Marketing/marketing management --- including marketing research ($35,698)

TOP FIVE HIGHEST-PAYING EMPLOYER TYPES (by salaries offered, average starting salary offer in parenthesis)

1. Petroleum & coal products ($52,588)
2. Engineering services ($45,206)
3. Building, developing, general contracting ($43,212)
4. Accounting services ($42,179)
5. Government/federal ($37,378)

* Weekly humor - Everyone loves the little conversation heart candies in stores this time of year.  We've compiled a list of sayings you WON'T find on your candies (we hope!)...

1. U SMELL
2. AMSCRAY
3. CALL 911
4. IT'S OVER
5. 1000x NO
6. R-U NUTS
7. URA ZERO
8. I'LL MACE
9. GET REAL
10. EAT LEAD
11. NO HOPE
12. GO AWAY
13. TOO SHORT
14. U-R SICK
15. WANT FRIES?
16. GET OUT
17. I'LL DUMP U
18. BAD HAIR
19. I QUIT
20. AS IF

You are on vacation next week so the weekly update will be taking a week off, too!  Our next update will be sent on February 24 - see you then! 

Career Services

Thomas College

Waterville, ME

(207) 859-1106 - phone

(207) 859-1114 – fax