By Amy Condon
When Suzanne Porush, a current graduate student at SCAD, first graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Literature at the beginning of the 1990s, the headline on TIME magazine’s cover read, “Graduating to Unemployment.”
She returned to graduate school, earning a master’s in Architecture from the University of California-Los Angeles, and worked in the profession for five years before health problems interrupted her career.
She discovered a passion for motion graphics and began night classes at the Art Center in Pasadena before coming to Savannah. However, when she went looking for a job, she saw postings disappear every day.
“I found that employers only wanted to hire people with two or three years’ experience,” she said.
She realized she needed a higher degree from a school with a strong reputation to set her apart from the competition.
Graduate student Elisa Wallace shares a similar story. Wallace endured two layoffs within one year, and thought, perhaps, the universe was encouraging her to take a timeout.
“I decided I needed to be more marketable. Marketability to me is education,” Wallace said.
She applied and was accepted into SCAD’s graduate writing program for the fall quarter.
SCAD welcomed its largest incoming freshmen class this year, despite reports from other colleges and universities that enrollment was down. Early estimates show a 10 percent growth in undergraduate and transfer students, with the number of graduate students rising as much as 20 percent.
Undergraduates putting off the job search until more companies begin hiring again and career-changers are contributing to this increase in post-graduate degree seekers.
Kim Beveridge, Associate Director of Financial Aid, says that despite the economic downturn students and their parents still view college as a wise investment.
“They realize [the recession] is only a temporary situation,” she said.
Beveridge says inquiries about financial aid have increased as well, and students are exploring a variety of combinations among scholarships, grants and loans to afford tuition.
The Obama administration’s infusion of funding into the Pell Grant program allows schools to extend that opportunity to more students than in the past. Job losses, home foreclosures, savings depletions and credit denials—all of which are up—have led to approval of more special circumstances considerations through federal loan programs.
Of particular concern to many students, though, is how to pay off those loans once they graduate. SCAD’s default rate of 1.7 percent is well below the national average of 6 percent.
Beveridge credits SCAD’s Career Services department with preparing students for the realities of the job search.
Sue Hinkin, Dean of Career Services, reports that eight out of ten 2008 alumni were working in their field or had been admitted to graduate school within six months of graduation.
Considering she noticed a 40 percent hit on job postings between August and December 2008, Hinkin says she is impressed with how proactive students are.
She encourages students to begin building their professional experiences as early in their courses as possible.
“Professional internships are more critical than ever; the earlier the better. Do not wait until you graduate to do one. The expectation out there is that students will know more,” Hinkin said.
Some professions, such as the building trades, are experiencing a tougher time right now, and are looking for project managers. Hinkin suggests students be willing to look at and consider broader options.
Career Services offers school-specific counselors to provide personalized attention to a student’s specific needs. Its Career Tool Kit guides students through resumé, cover letter and portfolio development, interviewing skills and internship and job research.
The department also organizes a number of events in addition to the spring Job Fair, including:
• Freshman and Sophomore Career Networking Socials – juniors, seniors and graduates come back and present their internship experiences.
• Job Shadowing – Through an application and selection process, first and second year students can participate in a one-time event shadowing employers from all over the country.
• Thinking Outside the Paintbox Symposium – A new program for winter quarter, workshops will focus on composing business plans, freelancing basics, legal issues and self-promotion.
Job Wire provides a weekly posting of job-related events as well as lists four to five positions or internships per school that are available. The Job Magnet allows students to post their resumes, portfolios and web links. The site receives more than four thousand hits from employers during the spring.
A successful job search ultimately rests on the tenacity of the student.
“Go out and create something for yourself,” Hinkin said.
Work Study and SCAD Employment
With an increase in the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour, SCAD’s Work Study and employment programs offer an opportunity for students to work flexible hours while attending school. For more information, contact Secene Dorsey, Student Employment Manager, 912-525-8776, www.scad.edu/savannah/life/studentemployment/cfm.
Ten Job Search Tips from the SCAD Office of Career Services
1. Start Job Search Early
Competition will grow more intense toward the end of the school year, therefore, students should begin looking for that summer internship or post-graduation job well before May. Employers also are hiring earlier to get jobs filled before budget cuts or further freezes.
2. Have a Plan
A self-marketing plan should be strategic and thoughtful, not scattershot. Research the companies you intend to pursue and make the list twice as long as you would have last year. Keep track of all contacts and remember to ask for business cards from everyone.
3. Perfect Your Marketing Materials
Resumés or CVs, cover letters and work samples must be flawless.
“A typo can cost you a job,” warned Hinkin. Put in the extra effort to stand out in a classy way. Always write thank you notes after an interview.
4. Network with Ferocity
Have your elevator pitch (a 30-second speech about who you are, what you want to do, and what you can offer) so ingrained that you can wake up from a dead sleep and tell your story convincingly. Let everyone you know, even Aunt Ida, that you are searching for a job or internship. You never know if her bridge partner has a son who works for DreamWorks. Be ready when opportunity knocks.
5. Tap the Hidden Job Market
Less than one quarter of all jobs are advertised. Do not rely only on surfing the web for job listings. Take initiative and contact companies directly, call job hotlines, contact professional organizations and alumni, use your social networking sites, and attend professional club events, conferences, career fairs, and seminars.
6. Cast Your Net Wide
If the job in New York City does not come through, be prepared with alternatives you may not have considered, such as smaller cities and companies.
Hinkin encourages students also to look at companies that may not be a perfect fit on the surface. Companies such as Target, hire teams of painters, industrial designers, fashion designers and fibers experts to develop new products, and they need writers to help promote their wares. These places can help you gain industry experience and launch your career. Be willing to freelance to get your foot in the door, continue on to graduate school or other additional studies, or participate in an extra internship to hone your skills.
7. Be Professional
Present yourself as a professional in your field, even if you are still a student. Companies want to hire interns and graduates who they can “see” working for their company and representing their company before clients and the public.
Know your major’s hiring culture because everyone is different. For instance, employers expect architecture students to wear a suit to an interview; whereas, the same would not be appropriate for a video game design company.
8. Stay Positive
Students should support one another and share networking opportunities. Creative industries are the fastest growing segment in the nation’s economy, and a 2008 study by the West Virginia Gazette showed that as many as 44 percent of employees work in creative careers in some metro areas.
“It’s still a good time to be an artist,” Hinkin said. “And we hear from companies all the time that SCAD students are so prepared for working.”
9. Persevere
Finding a job is a job. Be strong and tenacious, and if you must take a job to make ends meet out of your field, always keep one foot in your desired professional area by staying connected with your contacts, volunteering, freelancing or involvement in professional associations and organizations.
10. Meet with Your Career Counselor
Students can receive one-on-one attention from the career counselor assigned to his or her school. Career counselors provide resumé and portfolio review, assess skill sets for gaps, work with SCAD’s regional representatives to match students with internships or jobs and hold mock interviews to improve presentation skills.
To learn more about Career Services call 912-525-4653.
