by Kim Lamb Gregory
“So tell me about yourself.”
Many a job applicant has floundered with this question from an employer. Such a simple question, but so hard to answer, especially when you’re interviewing for your first job after graduating from college.
CSU Channel Islands Director of Career Success Initiatives Jessica Muth is helping juniors and seniors answer interview questions like this and other skills with a “Career Readiness” class designed to help students with their first post-graduation job search.
“I have been working with students seeking jobs and alumni for the past 10 years and what I’ve seen is that career preparation is a primary goal for them, but they were leaving college without that preparation,” Muth said.
So Muth and MVS School of Business & Economics faculty members Jared Barton, Cynthia Sherman and Dylan Cooper developed BUS 411 with Muth as the instructor.
“Teaching this class is so much fun,” Muth said. “It’s incredible to have students come back and tell me an internship has turned into a full-time job or that they negotiated for more money. We have a career fair coming up soon and I’ll see some of my former students on the other side of the recruiting table.”
The class, which is a requirement for all Business and Economics majors, covers all the skills necessary for the transition from graduation to a professional job, including helping students discover their personality types, interests and qualifications as well as creating professional resumes, cover letters, learning how to effectively network, negotiate, dress for interviews and much more.
The Career Readiness course (BUS 411) had already launched when Governor Gavin Newsom in August signed an executive order requiring the state to create a master plan for career education over the next 13 months. The order promises to remove barriers that California students face when they navigate the K-12 system to college and ultimately to a fulfilling career.
“California will be the model of the nation in making sure that we educate all Californians to be career-ready, back in their neighborhoods where they lift their neighborhoods,” said CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia.
The Career Readiness class was ahead of the curve, and already yielding some success stories from the inaugural class in Spring. The course resulted in three students who landed internships that often turn into full-time jobs with the Premier America, Haas Automation and the Port of Hueneme.
“I learned so many valuable things like how to make my resume look good, how to network and I was introduced to an opportunity to work at the Port of Hueneme as an intern,” said Class of 2023 Business alumnus Eliana Gonzales. “The internship was right in my field because I wanted to do accounting, and the timing was right.”
One aspect of the class involved getting professional photos taken for their Linked In and other professional social media sites.
Class of 2024 Business major Gabriel Hoffman wore a dark, collared shirt and pants and posed in front of the John Spoor Broome Library while CSUCI photographer Whitney Howard took his photo.
“I don’t normally dress like this,” Hoffman said. “Usually I wear just like a t-shirt and pants, but I wanted to look smart. It’s like picture day at school.”
Muth gets many questions about professional dress.
“I’ve had my students ask ‘Do I need to take my nose ring out for the interview?’ or ‘Do I need to dye my hair for the interview?’ ‘Should I cover my tattoos?’” Muth said.
Her answer? Find out about the company you’re applying with. Do a lot of people have visible tattoos and/or nose rings? Is the dress casual, or more buttoned up? Take your cues that way, she said.
As for the legendary interview question: “Tell me about yourself,” Muth encourages students to develop a “backstory” about all of the interests and experiences that have brought them to this point, and to link it with their future career goals and plans.
“They have to ask themselves, why am I here? What am I trying to accomplish? What am I excited about now?” Muth said. “Why do I want to work as a marketing executive for Dropbox? If students don’t have a good answer to that question, there is no way they are going to make a good first impression.”
Class of 2024 Business major Gabriel Perez wore a shirt and tie for his professional photo. When asked about how he feels about graduating and going out into the job market, Perez said: “Nervous, but also excited. I just want to graduate and get out there and start my career.”