NEWS | May 2009 - all articles

This page includes all articles in the May issue of NEWS. Return to summary or go to the NEWS archive.

Career offices get creative in a slow economy
State makes rare investment and boosts aid for college students
Grants from institutions help keep college accessible
Briefs

Career offices get creative in a slow economy

In face of a tough market for college graduates, career offices at our 17 institutions have ramped up their efforts to help the class of 2009 land jobs. Career services are available to alumni throughout their lives, but we were especially curious about how this year’s grads are faring and what our campuses are doing. Here are some examples shared by staff members at four institutions.

Carleton College writing tutors assist seniors in writing their profiles, aiming for a balance between professionally appropriate and no-so-serious Carleton language.

“Making sure students are thoroughly prepared and informed is important, but in this challenging market we’re emphasizing making connections with everybody in their circle and beyond,” said Mike Hendel, associate director of the career center at Carleton College. “Engagement Wanted,” a new program introduced this spring, helps students tap the power of networking. More than 1,200 alumni and parent volunteers have signed up to coach, refer and offer opportunities to the class of 2009. See article in the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Starting April 10, the alumni and parent volunteers began receiving weekly e-mail messages with photos and 500-character profiles of five seniors. If they have any advice, contacts or opportunities to offer the students featured, they are encouraged to contact them. By August, all volunteers will have received all senior profiles.

Relationship-building is important — “it is ‘who you can come to know,’” Hendel said. “Our alums have a strong affinity for supporting other Carls; this is one way they can help.”

Finding other ways in
Rich Manke, Hamline University’s director of career services, acknowledges that employers haven’t come through like they have in the past. He uses this analogy to describe Hamline’s response: “when the front door is locked, you need to find another way in.” Graduates may have to keep an existing part-time job while looking for internships and other ways to gain experience in their major field, Manke said. “In the meantime we’re emphasizing networking.”

Manke’s office involved academic departments in developing the “Preparing for World of Work” seminar. One workshop was aimed at Physics seniors and included assignments on developing an elevator speech and doing an informational interview. “One of our students was interested in aircraft propulsion and knew someone who knew someone at Boeing,” Manke said. “He talked with the person, followed up on the connections he received and ended up with three solid referrals. Afterward he told me ‘I had no idea this stuff worked like this.’”

Manke reports that the number of alumni his office serves has remained fairly steady this year. “There is a rhythm to a person’s life — we see more alumni at transition points in their lives,” he said. “During rough economic times we may see a few more.”

Mary Jo Starkson with a student at Bethany Lutheran College

Perseverance is the key
At Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato, career services coordinator Mary Jo Starkson said that the graduating class is evenly divided between those who have jobs, have offers and are still looking. According to Starkson, eighty percent of companies no longer advertise because they’ve gotten so overwhelmed with applicants. “There are positions out there but competition is cutthroat,” she said. “Students need to find a place they want to be and work and work to get hired.”

One student Starkson assisted started applying last fall. “He’s had 17 interviews. When he finally landed a job two weeks ago he said ‘my hard work paid off.’” Starkson said that another student who complained about too few interviews discovered that the search has helped her refine what she’s looking for. “As she works through the process, each job that comes up is a better fit.”

A critical part of her job is to help students clarify what they are looking for, Starkson said. “Finding out what motivates them, what their work and life values are, what their passions are — this is important for students.”

Tapping alumni
Seniors at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University (CSB/SJU) are receiving fewer job offers this year, but more companies are interested in students as interns, career services director Heidi Harlander said. “Employers are willing to make a temporary commitment and will consider hiring students from this year’s pool in 2010 if the economy improves.” A few more graduates than usual are also considering service opportunities such as Americorps, the Peace Corps, the St. John’s Benedictine Volunteer Corps or Maryknoll China Service Project, Harlander said.

CSB/SJU also tapped its alumni this year to participate in about 20 programs where they shared their stories and advice with students. “We’ve had hundreds of alums involved in our Career Exploration Series,” Harlander said. Topics ranged from careers for food lovers to working in Asia. “They help expose students to the spectrum of possibilities for different majors,” she said.

A first-ever Career Expo in the fall offered 14 seminars on diverse topics including consulting careers, non-profit careers and attending graduate school. “We had 52 students attend a session on using your liberal arts education in business,” Harlander said. Good collaboration with faculty and support from the alumni office makes these programs work, she said.

Harlander said she is seeing more parents who are anxious about their students’ career prospects. “They like that we are high-touch here. We get to know students, help them think about their interests and skills and we watch how they’re progressing.” Students see the value of this attention too. Responding to a senior survey, a Saint John’s student who used the career centers extensively wrote “it gave me peace of mind that I was doing all I could to best position myself for potential job/career options.”

State makes rare investment and boosts aid for college students

The thousands of college students who receive need-based aid from the state of Minnesota will see their awards increase by $70 million over two years, thanks to actions taken this legislative session. This will be the largest increase in State Grant awards in more than a decade.

The increase is the result of action at the federal level, combined with bipartisan support in Minnesota for targeting assistance to college students who need it the most. It is happening in spite of the state’s budget deficit. Grants through the State Grant program help 83,000-some students afford college educations at two- or four-year institutions that are both public and private. Most students’ families have incomes below $40,000.

Governor Tim Pawlenty signed the Omnibus Higher Education Appropriations Bill into law on May 16. The Senate and House had negotiated and agreed on the legislation (SF 2083) earlier in the month.

“With today’s economic hardships, expanding Minnesota’s need-based aid was more important than ever,” said Pam Jolicoeur, president of Concordia College and board chair at the Minnesota Private College Council. “Our policy leaders saw the need to act now to build the educated workforce that will be required in the future as we move into recovery. We thank them for their leadership.”
 
The first step was taken earlier this year by the President and members of Congress when they put $15.6 billion of new funds into the Pell Grant program, which helps the lowest income students. Since the State Grant program is linked to the Pell, the new federal funds triggered the $70 million increase in State Grants. But to secure that size of an increase, Minnesota policymakers had to keep current state funding stable. And on that front, all branches of state government agreed.

“After years of helping students less and less, state and federal governments are stepping up and doing more,” said David B. Laird, Jr., president of the Minnesota Private College Council. “There is a significant shift, one that recognizes that we need to act now to strengthen our economy for the long haul.”

The State Grant changes will include:

• Making thousands more middle-income students eligible for government aid,
• Increasing the average grant by 17 percent, raising it to $1,712, and
• Helping eligible students who are not able to complete a bachelor’s degree in four years by awarding the grant for an additional semester.

Agreement on the increase in State Grant awards has not carried over to many other areas in the closing days of the legislative session, which ended May 18. Divisions between the Republican governor and DFL-controlled chambers remained sizable and no overarching budget was approved. Gov. Pawlenty has stated that he will use his authority to keep the state’s budget balanced to make cuts to close the deficit. These cuts would appear to need to go beyond what he proposed in his initial budget at the start of the year, so it remains possible that the State Grant’s fate could shift.

Base funding for the public institutions has already been trimmed and could be targeted with more cuts as well — exacerbating the need for higher tuitions or spending cuts at the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State Colleges and Universities campuses.

The State Grant’s impact is felt strongest at public institutions, which enroll most of the recipients. But the program is important for students at the nonprofit colleges and universities as well. About 12 percent of the students receiving the awards attend one of the Minnesota Private College Council member institutions, where they account for about a quarter of the undergraduate student body.

While the Council has been an ongoing champion for the program, other groups have urged policymakers to be supportive. The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce identified the State Grant as its top priority for higher education, for example, and Growth & Justice released a report last year calling for additional State Grant investments.

Grants from institutions help keep college accessible

Given the tough economy, keeping college accessible is important. To help families meet the cost of an education, our institutions awarded $288 million in institutional grant aid in 2006-07. These awards demonstrate an ongoing commitment to making college possible for students from all economic backgrounds.

A total of 7,777 (88%) of full-time, new entering undergraduate students received an institutional grant in 2006-07. The average award was $11,018. Grants varied among our 17 institutions and ranged from an average of about $7,000 to more than $18,000 per student. An additional $19 million was awarded to 1,600 undergraduate students in tuition discounts (almost $12,000 per student). Students do not pay back these grants and discounts.

Minnesota’s public institutions also provide institutional grants to students, though at a lower level. In 2006-07 the University of Minnesota awarded $41 million (average award of $3,565) and MnSCU schools awarded $14 million (average award of $1,952).

The $288 million in institutional grants awarded to private college students in 2006-07 represents 81% of total grants. State grants contributed 10% (average award of $3,598) and federal grants, 9% (average award of $4,277). When all grants were combined, the total average award was $11,261.

The sizeable amount of money provided to students in the form of institutional grants and tuition discounts makes our colleges significantly more affordable for students and families. While the average 2006-07 tuition, fees and room and board totaled $31,440, the average institutional grant of $11, 018 significantly reduced that cost for most undergraduate students.

Briefs

• The estimated number of spring graduates at our campuses (BA/BS degrees) is 7,973. Commencements occur between May 2 and June 13.
• Six Phillips Scholars will do their service projects this summer: Jewelly Lee, College of St. Catherine — Postsecondary exploration before graduation; Senia Jutila, College of St. Scholastica — Junior Explorers Camp: Exploring new friendships and new opportunities; Mao Lor, Concordia University — Kev Sib Raug Zoo (Better Relationships); Caitlin Polivoda, Hamline University — Young Women’s Leadership Camp; Kristin Riegel, Macalester College — Daring dialogues: Discovering the leader within; and Jennifer Kramm, St. Olaf College — Latino VentuREACH.
• The Minnesota Department of Health is sharing ongoing guidance on the H1N1 novel influenza situation. Information for colleges and universities is available on its Web site.
• The Rev. Robert Koopmann has been named the 12th president of Saint John’s University. He will begin his official duties on July 1. Jay Coogan was named the 16th president of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. He also takes office in July.
• The Common Good Forecaster, a Web tool created by United Way and the American Human Development Project, uses census data to forecast how things might change if educational outcomes were better. See how health, financial stability, kids’ achievement and civic participation are affected by fiddling with high school graduation and college participation/graduation.