.. ,. Yi. r By Stephen Gregory 0F ALL THE aspects of job hun- Jting, nothing may be as agonizing as those half-hour interviews with prospective employers who try to ex- pose your personality while you at- tempt to deftly size up their com- panies. With a bit of research and familiarity with the format of an in- terview, however, that agony can be overcome. "The objective of the interview is to convince the interviewer you will fit in perfectly with the company and the job you're applying for," says Margaret Carroll, director of placement at the University's School of Business Administration. Earl Pfeiffer, a recruiter for IBM, says "two things that the interviewer considers as given are that the inter- viewee will know himself well and will know a good deal about the company and the job he's going after." The only way to show a recruiter that you know yourself is to carefully analyze your career goals in relation Research and rehearsal Keys to interviewing success to your previous job experiences and, skill strengths and weaknesses - before the interview. "Researching a company is almost like adding another class to your schedule," says Donna Gray, an ad- ministrative assistant in Career Planning and Placement. _ Being able to ask intelligent questions about a company's projects or plans for the future can make or break an interview, Carroll em- phasizes. "If only two out of 13 inter- viewees know a lot about a company, then that's a strong indication of who's interested in the company," she says. "A good place to start researching is by looking at Dunn and Bradstreet's Million Dollar Register or the Stan- dard and Poor's Register of Cor- porations," says Jane Lucas, a librarian at the business school. Both directories briefly describe major corporations by their size, location, top managers, and main products or services. Lucas also suggested reading annual reports and recruiting brochures provided by the company as well as recent periodicals that feature articles about the firm. These materials are available in the business school library and the career planning and placement office. "On the day before the interview," Carroll says, "go over in your mind the points that you want to get across to the interviewer that make you best for the job." Since first impressions count, you should also be sure of your recruiter's name and address him or her for- mally when the interview begins. Use "Mr.," "Mrs.," or "Miss," and offer your hand first in the handshake. ''As important as anything else is how well you can communicate," says Roy Mastic, a manager at Dow Chemical who has recruited at the University. He and other recruiters say they usually pose questions such as these: " Tell me about yourself and why you decided to interview with us? " Why do you think you'll be suc- cessful in this field? " Where do you see yourself in 10 years? * Tell me about your previous jobs and what you learned about your field of interest from them. " Why did you choose your major? "If I ask questions and the inter- viewee does not respond thoroughly, I consider that a poor interview," Mastic says. During the last half of the interview the recruiter usually turns the questioning over to the student. This opportunity allows the interviewee to further convey interest in the com- pany. Specific questions concerning salary or offers to show the recruiter unrequested work samples should be avoided in the initial interview, however, Carroll says. According to Donna Gray, non- verbal communication is just as im- portant during an interview as what you say. "Posture, eye contact, and bearing can either contradict or underline what you're trying to get across to the interviewer," Gray says. Non-verbal communication is par- ticularly important at the end of an in- terview, adds Allan Troub, a recuiter for Data Graphic Inc. "Plan your exit, don't let your professional presence down," Troub said. "Be pleasant and enthusiastic, but above all be yourself." By Nancy Driscoll A FTER 16 YEARS of note-taking and homework, the last thing most college students probably con- sider after graduation is a teaching. career. Yet jobs for educators are opening up across the country, owing to a new surge in the number of school-aged children combined with a drop in the number of college students receiv- ing teaching certificates. Trying to match the influx of children of the Baby Boom Generation, school districts are desperate for elementary educators, according to Luda Murphy, an economist with the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. The demand for educators has grown so great in some parts of the nation that colleges are lowering requirements for teaching cer- tificates. And some school districts such as Houston and Los Angeles are feeling the pinch so much that they are willing to hire teachers who haven't yet been certified. The L.A. school system recently posted adver- tisements saying: "Want to teach but have no credentials? Relax. We can help. You get your teaching creden- tials while you work full-time as a junior or senior high school teacher." Michigan hasn't taken such drastic steps yet, although the shortage of teachers in the state may worsen. Nearly 17 percent of the 87,471 Back to the classroom]? Demand for teachers increases edi bee this app sta per be '1 all min ear new nun toi ten N Lib. arts grads sell skills (Continued from PageO a recruiter for Bantam Publishing Co. in New York. She says that although English, communication, and jour- nalism majors tend to dominate the publishing field, her firm also hires business and other liberal arts majors. Graduates of a liberal arts curriculum gain valuable "tran- sferrable skills," such as writing ef- fectively and analyzing data that will help them in any job, Taylor says. "Written and verbal com- munication, no matter what type of occupation, is critical for success," she adds. "It's that total combination of ex- periences and the way the student is able to articulate what they have got- ten out of those experiences (that matters)." Almost every employer relies as much on the general impression an applicant makes as on his qualifications on paper. Jeff Mar- shall, personnel director at First of America in Ann Arbor, says the resume "is least important, as long as it's halfway well done." ogervicei D "We tend to look toward the business degrees," Marshall says, but he adds, "We've had people in the bank who have liberal arts backgrounds, and they've done very well. It depends on the area." 542 LSA Building 764-9216 NINA PUMP NOW $46. AUSTIN REED. When You Interview - FIRST IMPRESSIONS LASTING IMPRESSIONS INSTANT: Passpot -visa- .p/llcatin -photos while U wait hrs. 1:00~4:30 Mon~ -Fri 10% STUDENT DISCOUNT Miss J, classic pumps for you! Leather-lined kidskin, with no-seam, turned topline,° and comfortable mid-heel for dress and career. Truly the most versatile shoe in your fall and winter wardrobe. Black, taupe, navy or wine. Sizes 7-10 narrow, 5-10 medium. PROGRAM IN AMERICAN 11 LECTU RE/ DISCUSSION FALL 1985 October 17 Corporate Careers: Pros and Cons of V in Big Business. Jack Rowan, Director of Quest Services, Co data Worldtech, Inc. 23 Address by A. Alfred Taubman, Progi Institutions Benefactor, (3-4 p.m.) 29 Working in Washington: Public vs. Pri John Katosh, Executive Director of Researc Analysis, Election Date Services. November 1 The Pleasure and Perils of Dual Caree Relationships. A panel discussion with: Ann and Tim Connor, social worker and artis Cindy Straub and John Heidke, University of Annette and George Robson, Burroughs exe Moderated by Rosemary Sarri, Professor of University of Michigan (12-2 p.m.) 5 Jobmanship: You've Got the Job. Now Jim Berline, President, The Berline Group. 12 Power! And Other Timely Topics for Women in Management. A panel discussion with: Leslie Christensen, Director of Operations, E Prudence Cole, Account Manager EDS, Karen Teegarden, Vice President, Laine Mey (4-6 p.m.) 19 Got the Message?: The Importance of Business Communications. Alan Kidd, Senior Vice-President, Quality As Sandy Corporation. FREE ADMISSION - EVERYONE'1 KUENZEL ROOM, MICHIGAN UNI( 4-5 p.m. UNLESS OTHERWISE INI FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL " " " " " 0 0 Copying Resumes Binding Brochures Foil stamping Carbonless forms Business cards Letterheads Envelopes " Transparencies * Books * Word Processing " Typesetting " Padding " Stapling " Folding " Labels " Dissertations Coupon I ---------m--- Jacobson's- 10 Free Crisp Quality Copies 8 x11 20# Bond White -.............. Coupon - -.... ... ... vfnu aiwO. 0i> . We welcome Jacobson's Charge Card or The American Express@ Card. We Will.&3 MasterCard Shop until 9 p.m. on Thursday and Friday Validate Your Parking A,,AEL FOR WOME American Express Until 6 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday 306-310 S. STATE ST. * ANN ARBOR 16 Weekend/Friday, October 25, 1985 I.a 535 E. Uberty Ann Arbor, 665-0111 1217 S. University Ann Arbor, 995-2111 a Weekend/ m - s V- -, -