Career Building is Part of the Program at the College of Management

Career building is part of the program at NC State College of Management

The same message applies to all students regardless of the academic program, said Ira Weiss, dean of the college, in a later interview.

�Today�s global marketplace means each person is facing stiff competition for the job of his or her dreams. If you want to secure that job, you need to start building a career path that will help you achieve your goal.�

Coming to college is a first step, but it�s not the only step, he said. �Students can�t wait until their last semester to start their job search. Even though the pressures of classroom assignments and team projects may lead you to procrastinate, you need to remember that you�ll never have more time. You just need to make the best use of your time while a student.�

That includes taking advantage of internships, co-ops and other experience-building opportunities offered through the college and the university�s career resources center.
This fall, the collegeâ��s students will also be using a new tool â�� InterviewStream.com â�� that will help them polish their interview skills. The web-based product puts students through the paces of a real interview, on their own time. They will use mini-cameras â�� on loan from the college or those embedded in their laptop computers – to record interview sessions prompted by the online program.

The software showcases a student�s personality and unique skills with a custom online video interview while providing feedback of non-verbal behavior and communications missteps � like using too many �um�s� and �ah�s.� It is designed to complement a career counselor�s guidance and provides an objective communication assessment.

â��This tool â�� whose developers were students themselves – will enable our students to practice their interview skills before they come to our offices for one-on-one counseling and career guidance,â�� said Shelly Hoover-Plonk, assistant director of the collegeâ��s Jenkins MBA Career Resources Office.

�We also can send these out as mock interviews to our corporate partners, who can provide feedback just as they would at a mock interview session. They won�t need to come to leave their offices but still can provide valuable feedback and allows them to stay in touch with our students,� said Linda Taylor, director of career resources, working primarily with MBA students I the college�s Jenkins Graduate School of Management.

�This is a great way for all of us to build stronger communications and working relationships with our corporate recruiters,� said Brenda McCarthy, director of career resources for the college�s Undergraduate Programs Office.

The software will also be used by career staff in the Master of Accounting and Graduate Economics programs. Each program�s career staff will be customizing its use to their students� unique needs, complementing other specialized resources offered to help students with their job searches. For example:

• Undergraduate students have a full schedule of workshops to help them gain confidence and prepare for their interviews and professional careers. McCarthy also created a career planning timeline to help students stay on track with the career-building process.
• Master of Accounting students jumpstarted their career searches with a Tour of Cities during the summer, meeting with college alumni, partners and recruiters from Big 4 accounting firms in Greensboro, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., and Atlanta, Ga.
• MBA students have a Managerial and Career Effectiveness class that includes a career management component, teaching students how to negotiate for the best salary, and a communication component that includes presentation and writing modules presented by professional communications coaches.

• Students in the Graduate Economics programs participate in professional conferences, presenting papers and meeting with researchers from around the world.

Students are also encouraged to participate in the dozen-plus student organizations that provide opportunities for networking and learning from working professionals in their chosen fields.

�Your academic coursework is very important, but equally important is to take the steps you need to achieve your ultimate goal � landing the job that you want. You need to devote the same energy and dedication to your career path as you do to your academic path,� Weiss said.