Monthly Archives: April 2012

Apr 29 2012
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Job Search, Professional Development, Student Affairs

Introduction to My Job Searching Journey!

Hello Everyone! I first want to write a big “Thank You” to Jennielle Strother and Alex Williams for allowing me to be a contributor to the #EMchat blog. I have been participating in their weekly Thursday night Twitter chats for some time now and it feels great to be a part of the best team on twitter!

My name is Lauren Kaplan and I graduated from the University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida with my Masters in College Student Affairs in May, 2010. I came to USF as a transfer student from Valencia College in Orlando, Florida. My time as an undergraduate and graduate student has allowed me to work in a variety of student and academic affairs departments.

Since graduating with my Masters in May, 2010, I have worked part time as an assistant to an Area Coordinator for the Housing and Residence Life Department at the University of Central Florida and as an Admissions Clearance Assistant for the Office of Student Conduct at the University of Central Florida. Currently, I am a Student Development Advisor-Intern at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida.

Upon graduating from my master’s program in May 2010, I have been on a job searching journey.My job searching journey began during my last semester (Spring, 2010) of graduate school when I attended The NASPA Placement Exchange in Chicago, Illinois with my cohort.

For those of you not familiar with The NASPA Placement Exchange (TPE), it is a conference that takes place before the annual conference of NASPA begins. The Placement Exchange takes place over a period of four days where current graduate students from various graduate student affair programs or student affair professionals have the opportunity to interview with employers from different institutions from across the country. You can pre-schedule interviews before you arrive at The Placement Exchange or you can schedule while you’re in attendance. Just because you send your resume and cover letter to an institution before you arrive does not guarantee, though, that you will receive an offer to interview at placement. You can find the position postings by registering with The Placement Exchange website.

While attending NASPA TPE in spring of 2010, I kept an open mind and heart the entire time. Prior to attending the NASPA TPE in Chicago I pre-scheduled interviews with various schools across the country. The positions were mostly for residence life as that tends to be the main positions posted on the TPE job posting website. As a graduate student, I looked at TPE at the time as a great course on how to interview for higher education positions. As a result of those interviews, I did not receive any on campus interviews. However, I was okay with the outcome because I knew that my first TPE was an opportunity to learn how to interview.

Since TPE 2010, I have had eight on campus interviews and dozens of phone interviews. I am always the candidate never the hired. It’s very humbling to be called for an on campus or phone interviews. I truly consider it an honor to be picked out of the 1,000’s of resumes. It just would be nice to be able to call an institution my home of employment.

This past March 2012, I decided to attend TPE in Phoenix, Arizona. This time around I knew what to expect and how to navigate my way through the interview process. I made it a point to network and connect with student affair professionals. I decided to stay for the NASPA conference; this would be my first NASPA conference so I took this opportunity to further put myself out into the world of student affairs and attend sessions on topics I wanted to know more about. Both TPE and NASPA conferences were a wonderful experience. I can’t wait to attend the NASPA conference in 2013 in my hometown of Orlando, Florida.

As a result of this job searching journey or marathon for short, I would like to help other graduate students or current student affair job seekers along in this process. It’s important that we stick together! My former College Student Affairs Professor, with each step in this process has always told me “Maybe it’s your turn” and that phrase has not only kept me motivated, but when the timing is right, it will be. I will write next month on “Job Searching Strategies”

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Apr 26 2012
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Retention

Welcome Week – Picking up Where Orientation Left Off?

Welcome week, an opportunity for students to move into their residence halls, buy their books and supplies for the next semester, and just get themselves acclimated to the university.

But it is really the tip of the iceberg.

Welcome Week, or at least at my institution “Fall Welcome,” is a time for celebration!  ”Congratulations!  You are a Bronco!  Welcome to Western Michigan University!”  It also is somewhat viewed as the kick-off to the rest of a student’s collegiate career.  Whether it is 4, 5, or 6 years, it all starts the week before the fall semester in your first year.  There is a wide variety of ice breaking events and information sessions for an entire week.  Everything we would hope a student would want to know is somewhere throughout the week.

But what do we really hope a student gets out of a “Fall Welcome”?

The excitement of a new year is really great.  At the same time, our excitement as members of different departments on campus can inherently hinder the start of a student’s time.  We all want our students to know we exist, but do we have to do it all at the same time?  Or, is it more important to be unified in welcoming the new class into the family?

Reflecting quickly on my own experience, which was not that long ago in the real scheme of things, I felt like my mind was on overload.   While it was exciting to see all the different organizations that I could get involved in, I was also learning about the different services.  In the meantime, I was still trying to figure out what my ID card could do for me and why I should always have it on me.

Again, what do we really hope students get out of a Fall Welcome?   This is not a hate on welcome weeks post, but rather the opposite of that.  It is a conversation starter on a program that I personally hold dear to my heart.  I am not the leader I am without the experience I had, but that is a different conversation.

  • What is working at your institution, what do your weeks look like?
  • Are they even weeks? Days? Day?
  • Who do you have involved in the program?

I know a future post will be the influence student leaders have in this crazy equation and how they are so very essential to this kind of program.

Apr 24 2012
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Tweetup

#EMchat tweetup at #NAGAP this Thursday!

Hello #NAGAP friends!

I hope you all have a safe trip to Austin! The weather is supposed to be perfect, and I am looking forward to meeting you all IRL (In Real Life).

Here are the #EMchat tweetup details:

Thursday, April 26th
5:30 – 6:30 PM
The Loft Bar at Hilton (conference hotel)

Tweet me if you have questions! @EMjennielle

¡Ciao!
Jennielle

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Apr 20 2012
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First-Generation

The Transition – First Generation College Students

Hello Everyone.

Today was our final FirstGen meeting of the Spring semester here at the University of St. Thomas. Some of our students are about to walk across that graduation stage decked out in their well-deserved cap and gown attire. College Graduates! They’ve beat the odds. Their journey of becoming a college graduate is really coming true and I couldn’t be more proud of them. Now’s the time to make sure that you are reminding your first generation college students of this important transition and all that comes along with it:

  • Finals Encouragement – I’ve already had to remind at least two of my graduating seniors that now is not the time to slack off and lose sight of why you are in college. Take time to check in with them these last few weeks and provide them that much needed pep talk to finish your college career stronger than you started.
  • Keep Fear In Perspective – Feelings of fear is very visibile during this time for some and it could possibly stem from “What is my life going to be like after college” and “Am I really ready to enter the real world?” Be that sense of reassurance for them that they’ve accomplished history for themselves and their family and you know they will continue to succeed. Remind them about still connecting with Career Services even if they’ve landed a job already. Career Services can help to talk about preparing for your new job, what to wear in the new work place, and how can my university help me after graduation.
  • The Family Role – Some of your students have a good balance with graduating and including their family in this amazing celebration. However, some may feel overwhelmed and unsure of how to include their family in preparing for this new journey. Teach students to continue to keep that important line of communication open with the family so they can discuss what’s important about this time. Does the student really want a HUGE party the night of graduation or does she prefer a nice quiet dinner at home? This is not only a big time for the student, but their families have probably invested in the college journey too.

All in all, this is an exciting time for so many on our college campuses and we as professional staff have a chance to help in that experience. Please share your student’s graduation stories (or even yours if your graduating…congrats!) here and also on Twitter. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #EMchat as I would love to retweet and join in on your celebration! I certainly hope this helps you and the students you are trying to support!

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Apr 19 2012
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Retention, Tweet of the Night

#EMchat 25: Tweet of the Night goes to @JoshKohnert

#EMchat 24 was about Multicultural Retention.  #EMchat’s own, Jillian Hiscock (@jhiscock) was our guest and also moderated tonight’s chat.  Tonight’s chat was a follow up to Jillian’s post on Multicultural Retention.

Tonight’s Tweet of the Night goes to #EMchat’s own, Josh Kohnert (@JoshKohnert):

….and here are our Tweet of the Night Honorable Mentions:

One of our newest #EMchat community members, Cammie Baker Clan (@CammieBakerClan) receives HM for her contribution.  Welcome to our community, Cammie! We’re glad you found us.

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Ed Cabellon (@EdCabellon) joined us tonight, and offered information on the great stuff they’re doing at BSU:

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Thank you to everyone who participated tonight…and remember, no #EMchat next Thursday.  Let’s get to May 1st! :)

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Apr 17 2012
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EM, Professional Development

So… you’ve always wanted to be an admissions officer?

Do you know anyone who, while growing up, claimed to have had a goal to work in enrollment management? Or anyone who wanted to become a college admissions counselor ever since she was in high school, or even younger? Quite honestly I’ve only ever met one such person. Years ago an employee of mine told me that he knew he wanted to work in college admissions when he was a senior in high school. The admissions representative at the college he ultimately chose to attend had inspired him, even before he decided to enroll at the college.

From my experience the scenario that I just described seems highly unusual. I would wager that most of us wandered into this profession after preparing for something else, or because we needed a respectable, professional position as a stepping-stone to the future. In college we majored in a field such as business, management, marketing, communication, psychology, English, the arts, or perhaps even teaching. I was a German language major and had taught high school for several years before getting a job at a German division of a freight shipping company. Even though I relished the opportunity to speak German to clients all day, the job itself was not rewarding. I finally took a week off and began to scan the classified advertisements in the local newspaper. (Remember the classified section? That was how we looked for jobs in those days.) One ad in particular caught my eye: “Admissions Representative for a local college. Recruit students from an assigned territory. Frequent travel required.” The salary was not much, but I had loved being a college student, and I loved to travel. I set out to land that job, and over 20 years later I am still glad that I did.

My name is Karen Full, and I am Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Kettering University in Flint, Michigan. I am thrilled to have become a participant on Emchat. I have worked in college admissions and enrollment in various capacities and on many college campuses, and I’ve recently been thinking about what has sustained me through this profession for so long. I have some reflections and ideas for training and mobility that I would like to share with other, perhaps newer, admissions staff as they learn to enjoy this profession, embrace it, and grow with it.

This is the introduction to my series on admissions training, staff development and networking. I look forward to sharing some of my ideas, successes, follies, and yes… laughs… it is definitely necessary to have a good laugh now and then in this line of work! I look forward to connecting with you on Twitter (@KarenAFull) and hearing your thoughts and ideas as well. Happy recruiting!

Apr 13 2012
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Grad EM

#EMchat Tweetup at #NAGAP

I just found out that the #NAGAP conference is being held in my hometown, Austin! Because there are #EMchat friends attending, I think it is only natural to organize an #EMchat Tweetup!

The conference schedule has been posted, and it looks like Thursday, April 26th between 5:30-6:30 is open.

Who’s up for connecting and meeting IRL?!?

I’ll post more details when we get closer to the date.

Tweet me @EMjennielle if you’re interested in joining us.

¡Ciao!
Jennielle

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Apr 12 2012
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Recruitment, Tweet of the Night

#EMchat 24: Tweet of the Night goes to @jhiscock

#EMchat 24 was about Multicultural Recruitment.  #EMchat’s own, Jillian Hiscock (@jhiscock) was our guest and also moderated tonight’s chat.  Tonight’s chat was a follow up to Jillian’s post on Multicultural Recruitment.

Tonight’s Tweet of the Night goes to Jillian Hiscock (@jhiscock):

….and here are our Tweet of the Night Honorable Mentions:

One of our favorite people in the #EMchat community, Alex Wilshaw (@ChasingAcademe), takes home another HM!

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Alex, you get two of your tweets mentioned! The first for being able to put into words why the #EMchat community is so amazing, and the second for contributing a great point that sparked an insightful conversation.

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Tim Amyx’s (@tamyx) tweet is on target.

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Last, but not least, Alex Williams (@AlexMWilliams_) receives recognition for his tweet about student participation in the recruiting process.

Thank you to everyone who participated tonight…and THANK YOU for helping us get to 24 chats tonight! It marks 24 hours (1 full day) of content created.  YAHOO!

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Apr 05 2012
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Tweet of the Night

#EMchat 23: Tweet of the Night goes to @FujiFulgueras

#EMchat 23 focused on Alumni in Recruitment efforts.  #EMchat’s own, Kristen Rothfeld (@KMRothfeld) was our guest and had great input on the topic.  Kristen has written a 3-post series about using alumni in EM.  Check out her Alumni+Recruitment post here.

Tonight’s Tweet of the Night goes to Fuji Fulgueras (@FujiFulgueras):

….and here are our Tweet of the Night Honorable Mentions:

A very close second for Tweet of the Night goes to Meghan Dalesandro (@MeghDale)

Such great input, Meghan. Thanks!

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Lindsey Fogleman’s (@LindseyFogleman) tweet inspired some good ideas:

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Last, but not least, Kristen Rothfeld (@KMRothfeld) demonstrated why using alums is effective -

Thank you to everyone who participated tonight!

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Apr 03 2012
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Admissions, Community

Alumni & Retention Initiatives

Part III of the Alumni & Recruitment Efforts series is taking a slight turn to open up other ways to engage alumni in the campus community long after they have graduated.  One way of continually engaging alumni is through retention initiatives.

One initiative that engages alumni in the retention efforts is the opportunity for alumni to become involved in a conference designed to assist students in the transition from student to professional.  This opportunity was implemented at my undergraduate institution and was very popular.  Not only was it popular with the alumni who gave presentations, it was a success with the students as well.  This gives alumni the chance to present on their experiences and offer tips and advice to students who are preparing to graduate and enter the working world.  Another initiative that allows alumni to engage with students is the program “Dinner with a Dozen Grizzlies.”  This event gathers current students, staff, and alumni at a volunteer’s home to enjoy a potluck meal, network with new people, and meet people from different areas of campus.  This gives current students another avenue to become involved on campus and get to know faculty and staff on a different level.  These initiatives are just a few examples of how alumni can remain involved with the institution’s community long after graduation.

For many programs designed to engage alumni in recruitment and retention activities, support is only offered from one department.  At my undergraduate institution, the program was started off a two year grant that applied for by the admissions and alumni offices.  The coordinator was involved in events and meetings with both departments.  Having buy-in from both departments allowed for the program to grow and with the hard work by the coordinator and student assistants, the program became permanently funded in the summer of 2010.

I hope my posts regarding alumni & recruitment efforts have sparked some ideas for others.  Please join #EMchat on Thursday, April 5, 2012 at 9:00 p.m. EST/8:00 p.m. CST as we discuss alumni in the recruitment process.   Until next time…

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