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Graduating senior Renee DesRoberts has exactly one thing
on her mind these days: finding a job. "Jobs, jobs, jobs,"
says DesRoberts, a history major from Sanford, "That's
all I can think about."
"It's a concern not only reserved for graduating seniors,
but shared by the whole University community. As Commencement
approaches, it's impossible not to ponder what our students
will encounter when they leave our campuses.
How have we prepared them for the next step -- and is it
our role to do so? How do we balance our capabilities with
the changing demands of the workplace? What will our graduates
take away from a USM education? These necessary questions
elicit a range of responses from USM's diverse quarters.
Employer recruitment is down, acknowledges Mary Ann Benson,
assistant director of Career Services and Professional Life
Development. "People are unsure what's going to happen
so they're not hiring. Job hunting is not fun these days,
but our economy never flew so high that it had that far to
crash. Mainers are resourceful." Benson's office offers
one-on-one career counseling for students, as well as workshops,
job listings, and vocational assessments.
She advises graduating students to take a wider, longer
view of their professional lives. "There's nothing wrong
with taking a job that's not your dream job if it's a skill-building
opportunity or an organization where there's room for growth.
No one will walk into the perfect job on day one, even if
you're a nursing major and in high demand. I tell our students
that anyone they talk to they should look to as a potential
mentor. Volunteer, join the Rotary, get your face out there
and meet as many people as you can."
While vocational demand is good for students, it has its
own set of challenges for universities, notes Marianne Rodgers,
chair of nursing programs. "Certainly, for people coming
out of undergraduate nursing programs, there's no better time
in terms of a job market. And the nurse practitioner movement
is starting to create new markets for students in the graduate
program. But within the College of Nursing, this faculty is
stretched as far as it can be."
The nursing crisis has forced administrators and faculty
at the College of Nursing and Health Professions to develop
strategies for growth with a minimum impact on its resources.
In 2002, the College launched a new, accelerated nursing program,
which allows qualified students with baccalaureate degrees
to earn a B.S. in nursing in 15 months. The fast-track program
is designed to help offset the nursing shortage and has been
highly successful among professionals seeking new careers;
80 applicants competed for 16 slots in the spring 2003 semester.
University programs that straddle a tight job market are
even more hard pressed to come up with creative strategies
for linking students with jobs. The College of Education and
Human Development tackled this issue over a decade ago when
it developed the ETEP program. This graduate-level teacher
training includes classes and programs held at area public
schools, where ETEP students also complete one-year internships.
This direct linkage has paid off, in spite of a highly competitive
job market. "When our students apply for jobs not only
are they known personally to schools, but after all these
years, ETEP has a reputation for generating graduates that
are school-savvy," notes Ken Jones, director of teacher
education.
A survey of 2002 ETEP grads showed that 94 percent were working
in teaching-related jobs and 74 percent had acquired full-time
teaching positions. Eighty-seven percent were teaching in
Maine, a hopeful statistic for those concerned about the state's
oft-reported "brain drain."
Many programs are called on to provide leadership for the
very industries they serve, which sometimes results in a short-term
employment gap as businesses incorporate these new technologies
and work practices. The School of Applied Science, Engineering,
and Technology, which supports students entering new and emerging
industries, is constantly challenged to stay current with
technology.
"One of the things the University has to do is to create
an environment of high technology," says Bill Moore,
director of the Manufacturing Applications Center. "Even
though times are tough out there and some traditional industries
are closing their doors, we will continue to attract new and
expanding industries to Maine because of our ability to support
them."
It's a case of creating opportunities, Moore says, a situation
that poses funding challenges to the University, but which
also enjoys widespread support from industry, the Legislature,
and the public. Moore points to a recent initiative where
$8 million in bond monies, federal earmarks, and private funds
will be dedicated to USM's new advanced technology expansion
project.
Still, state-of-the-art technical education won't be enough.
"Our grads can compete with any others out there, but
they're up against a tough competition for jobs. You'd better
be more than a warm body. You'd better be boiling and full
of ideas."
It may be that something "extra," those qualities
that have been coined "soft skills"--such as critical
thinking, team working, and creative problem solving -- that
are the most universally relevant job skills students learn
at the University.USM Professor of English Nancy Gish believes
so.
"I think that a university exists to discover and create
and pass on a knowledge and understanding of the richness
of human experience. It is not a job training institute. Obviously,
the more complex, demanding kinds of work in a culture, such
as medical and legal professions, are going to be grounded
in the university. But that's not what the university is exclusively
here for. Once you've done your job, you still have to be
human."
A liberal arts degree, once the base credential for a wide
range of careers, still holds up well in the marketplace,
says Gish. "Our liberal arts grads have been trained
in critical analysis. They know how to use the language, to
write. They can use their intelligence in complicated ways.
An English major is extraordinarily well-prepared for professions
like law or journalism, research or writing. They can do almost
any kind of work."
It's a path Gish hopes students will continue to see as viable,
in spite of market pressures to specialize. "Nothing
in my life has been more practical than having my mind filled
with poems. It has saved me in moments of grief; it has given
me great joy. There is nothing more wonderful than having
chunks of Shakespeare in your head."
While DesRoberts' head may currently be filled with job-search
pressures, she says her experiences at USM also filled her
with new-found confidence. "I was an under-achiever in
high school, and getting this degree was proving to myself
that I was smart enough," says DesRoberts, who graduates
magna cum laude.
"USM was my blossoming experience. I'm a little nervous
about my entrance into the real world. At the same time, I'm
pretty excited about being able to start something new and
apply the things I've learned. To see if it was all worth
it. I hope it was."
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