20 - Tno M higan Daily - Friday, September 24, 1999
FRIDAYFOCUs
. f
P'
True,
the
21st Century
promises
\
&
+ f a; t
f
n
te ch nolog.y
careers.
But
jobs
als are cropping up in
places
that
may
be surprising to
-MAIIIII41[iiiiiiithh-
many students.
ew fields create wider options
nemployment in the United
States has hit a low rate
of 4.2 percent, and for
college-educated adults, jobs
seem to be everywhere - sta-
tistically, anyway.
The question is no longer "where
can I find an employer who will hire
me?" but instead, " where can I find
a job I will enjoy and that suits me
well1?"
With current economic growth and
the emergence of new job markets,
college students are presented with
another dilemma. Choices. But,
that's not such a bad dilemma to
have.
Growing fields
Between graduate schools, career opportu-
nities, often financing themselves entirely for
the first time and simply figuring out what to
do for the summer, students nearing gradua-
tion certainly have a lot of choices.
And although many jobs based in computers
and Web-based technology are shaping the job
market of the 20th Century, other fields are
planting themselves at the head of lists labeled
as "top jobs for the future."
One of those fields is health care. Judy
Lawson. the senior assistant director of
Recruitment Services for the Career Planning
and Placement Center on campus, said that
although technology is a huge growth area,
any aspect of the health care system is a close
second place.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
careers that are growing quickly are those that
supplement other careers.
One occupation in higher demand than pre-
viously is a nurse practitioner, who performs
the same tasks as physicians and can hold pri-
vate practices. Nurse practitioners should
expect to have a high paying job, although
they typically earn an average of $30,000 a
year less than a physician.
Nurse practitioners do
not have to attend med-
ical school, but they
prescribe drugs.
examine patients and
refer patients to spe-
cialists. A nurse
must be a
reg is t ered
nurse and
t h e n
receive
advanced
education
and clini-
cal train-
ing in a-
health care
specialty
area.
T w o
o t h e r
S42.000 per year.
LSA sophomore Reeba Varghese said a
career in physical therapy appeals to her for
several reasons.
"I really want to be a physical therapist or a
pharmacist." Varghese said. "I want to work
in the medical field and help other people to
be able to do things, like walk, that they
weren't able to do without my help."
The field of chiropractic therapy also is
experiencing a fast rate of expansion.
Chiropractors can expect to make anywhere
from 530,000 to start to S 170,000 a year with
a private practice.
In addition to careers in the health care field,
several others are experi-
e n c i n g
steady job
increase.
The parale-
gal profes-
sion isk
expected to
r a n k
among the
20 fastest
g r o w i n g
o c c u p a -
tions as
employers
recognize
that parale-
gals per-
form many
of the same instructor Ian Williamson teaches an
tasks as yesterday at Princeton Review on So
attorneys do for less money.
While a typical attorney may earn an aver-
age of S60,000 per year - typically more if in
a private firm - a paralegal is more cost effi-
cient at an average yearly salary of 530,000.
Also, a paralegal does not have to attend law
school but instead must have a bachelor's
degree with some emphasis on legal issues.
Although the job market is currently being
positively affected by a prosperous economy,
not all jobs are on the rise. Many are leveling
out in terms of availability.
One of the most difficult occupations for a
recent college graduate to pursue is a postal
worker position. Very few people under the
age of 25 are hired as career postal workers.
Applicants must fulfill strict qualifications
for the job. A potential employee must take a
written exam that measures speed and accura-
cy of checking names and numbers and the
ability to memorize mail distribution
procedures.
Candidates also must
take a physical exam
and may have to be
able to lift 70
pounds.
Likewise, aero-
space engineering
and architecture
prove to be a very
competitive employ-
KIMITSU vnYcACHIIr)Yv ment environments.
U
Ut
"People with liberal art degrees are needed
in the technologv field for a various number
of growx ing jobs.-For examples. non-technolog-
ical degrees are needed for advertising, com-
pany literature and even company Websites."
CP&P publishes career guides for students
focusing in the humanities and social sciences
- among other majors - wx ith a long list of
possible occupational opportunities for vari-
ous concentrations.
The career guide indicates that some of the
potential careers for a history of art graduate
are a public relations specialist, an appraiser
and book or journal editor.
"A liberal arts major does not define the job
they are pursuing," Lawson said. "Liberal arts
students are in a good position in terms of the
job market."
Jackie Calahong, a 1997
University graduate is
proof that a liberal arts
degree can lead to jobs
outside of liberal arts
fields. She is now study-
ing environmental policy
at Tufts University,
although she graduated
with a degree in political
science.
"Environmental policy
is a great field with many
new things coming out,"
Calahong said. "The
KIMTSU voGACHiDaiy field is so interdiscipli-
SAT preparatory class nary, so my well-round-
h University Avenue. ed education really helps
out."
Helpful hints
One of the most important, and sometimes
overlooked factors to acquire a good job after
graduation is getting experience in the field.
This kind of experience can come in the form
of either an internship or previous work expe-
rience.
"It is very valuable to gain an internship in
an area. It is one of the best ways to build
skills. Employees want you to have skills in
the position they're hiring for," Lawson said.
"Internships are the only way to get job
skills. Extra-curricular activities should not be
overlooked." she said.
CP&P offers many resources in the way of
internships and job opportunities, including lists
of potential employers and job and internship fairs,
The center is scheduled to host Job Fair '99
on Oct. 5. More than 145 companies are
expected to participate and CP&P organizers
estimate that about 1.000 students will attend.
The center also offers walk-in advising, job
and interest assessment tests, research materi-
als and workshops to help students land sum-
mer internships and post-graduation jobs.
In addition to resources at CP&P, the
University offers programs such as the
Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program.
UROP is a program for students - regard-
less of grade - who are in their first or sec-
ond year of school at the University. It allows
Recent alums
far well after
graduation, i
job market
By Jeremy W. Peters
Daily Staff Reporter
Many of the University's 24,000 undergraduate stu-
dents come to the University in hopes that upon gradua-
tion their internationally recognized diploma will make
them more marketable in the real world.
Are they right?
According to the Office of Budget and Planning they
are.
In 1996, the budget office conducted a campuswide sur-
vey of graduates from all the University's undergraduate
schools and colleges. Though the results of the survey
have not been formally released, preliminary numbers
reveal promising futures for most University graduates,
Ruth Kallio, assistant director of the Office of Budget and
Planning.
The Office of Budget and Planning found that two-
thirds of University graduates were working full-time
while 12 percent occupied part-time jobs. Four out of
five survey respondents not reporting any form of
employment cited continuing their education as their pri-
mary reason.
Overall, 96 percent of graduates were either employed,
in school or both seven to nine months after graduation.
The survey was the first University sponsored follow
up on graduates in recent years and no other surveys of
its kind have been conducted since.
The Office of Career Planning and Placement hopes
that in the future the University will compile yearly sta-
tistics on job and graduate school placement.
"We had hoped that it would be an annual survey, but
so far that hasn't been the case," said Terri LaMarco,
associate director of the Office of Careet Planning and
Placement.
But individual schools within the University gather
information of this sort for their records. For example.
the Engineering Career Resource Center tracks the job
and salary offers of its bachelor's degree candidates.
According to their statistics for the class of 1999, the
95 graduates from the Electrical Engineering program
were offered a total of 1.863 jobs.
The average salary offer for electrical engineering grad-
uates was S45,114 for men and 545,492 for women.
Compared with other reputable colleges, the
University fares quite well in graduate placement.
Colorado College. a highly ranked, private liberal arts
college in Colorado Springs, has similar statistics for
its undergraduates.
Alumni Office officials said that at Colorado College
66.5 percent of those responding to a survey of the class
of 1997 occupied full-time jobs six months after gradua-
tion, 22.5 percent of graduates held full-time temporary
--I,- -A 1 1 r-,--- - - ,. .ar n ..t-i t
niivii iov l vunu-/ vary ,. ,.. ..,, ... ... ........