Career Services has brought back in-person workshops for students to strengthen their professional skills for the workforce since going fully virtual when the pandemic began.

Assistant Director of Career Services Cynthia Smith said in an email interview that they are now able to provide the same services that they did before quarantine. These in person activities are supplemented with Zoom workshops for students that aren’t able to attend. 

For the fall semester, the department has been hosting weekly events promoted through The Hub to help students improve their resumes, cover letters and interviewing skills, as well as other applicable traits to improve applicants’ hiring desirability. 

Coming back from a year and a half of Zoom classes prompted the addition of new programs that had not been introduced before the pandemic. Career Services offered a “Crash Course Catchup … that covered all topics in a one hour session since many of them [first-years and sophomores] were starting the semester having never been on campus,” Smith said. 

Virtual events still remain popular, as accessibility for students and alumni is still the main goal for Career Services, said Director of Career Services Cindy Lewis. 

“It’s given the students that aren’t living on campus and our alumni more opportunities to participate since they can join virtually from wherever they are,” Smith said. 

Alumni can receive help from Career Services for life and have been able to utilize workshops available through Zoom, no matter where they are in the world, Lewis said. Virtual consultations and workshops was one of the positive outcomes to produce from the pandemic. 

Lewis said that it is her goal to continue utilizing virtual workshops for students and alumni. Her biggest hope is to be as helpful to students as possible. When considering the option to work in a hybrid format, convenience was the largest objective for Lewis and the rest of the Career Services team.

“It’s always student focused,” Lewis said.

New events are still available for students to check out before the semester ends, but next semester in March will bring the Career and Intern Expo, which is Career Services’ largest event.

Lewis recommended that students, no matter what year, attend this fair as the “Great Resignation” has left a vast space in the job market. 

“It’s one of the best job markets I have seen in 20 years,” Lewis said. 

More information on Career Services’ events and workshops can be found on the Hub.