For spring graduates, job prospects looking up

According to a study done by the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University, hiring at the bachelor degree level will increase by ten percent.For spring graduates, this is good news.

Lisa Severy, director of career services at CU, says she has seen the same positive growth on the Boulder campus.

“We post anywhere from 200 to 250 jobs a month into the system. Those can be jobs or internships. In January we posted over 500, so it was twice what our regular average is,” said Severy.

Not only is Career Services listing many employment opportunities, but also, so is the career fair on campus.

“We had over 120 companies at our spring career fair, which is a sellout,” said Severy.

The 120 companies are not necessarily small ones. Some of the companies include Facebook, Apple, Time Warner Cable, Lockheed Martin, and Goldman Sachs.

As far as securing a job right after college graduation, attending career fairs are an excellent way to network and see the opportunities that are out there.

“Because of the job market, we’re making sure that students know that it is going to take longer than it has in the past,” said Severy. “Certainly, you could get the very first job you apply for, but generally speaking, it’s taking people longer, so the earlier then you start to engage the process, the better.”

Severy says the best thing students seeking potential employment at career fairs can do is to be prepared.

“Folks that tend to be real successful at the fair have done their research ahead of time. They’ve gone to our website, they see who’s coming, what majors they’re looking for and a general description of the corporation.”

The next career fair will be April 13th at the University Memorial Center.

Students can go to the Career Services website at www.careerservices.colorado.edu to find out more.