YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Williamson College of Business Administration students at Youngstown State University can gather their career management guidance in one location.
The college celebrated the grand opening Tuesday morning of its Center for Career Management on the first floor of Williamson Hall.
Students filed through the office, taking advantage of the coffee and doughnuts and entering a raffle for a chance to win one of the donated prizes. Insomnia Cookies, Stonefruit Coffee, WCBA and YSU Athletics contributed baskets for the raffle.
“Prior to today, prior to the summer, we were in different locations, so this brings us all under one office, one roof, that students can come and get assistance instead of different parts of the college,” said Christina O’Connell, center executive director.
Office staff works with students from freshman year through senior year in career exploration, finding internships and other career preparation.
“We do resume reviews, LinkedIn assistance,” O’Connell said. “We help students find internships and jobs as well. We want students to have a job in hand upon graduation. We’ll assist alumni and graduate students as they come back as well.”
WCBA students learn about the office shortly after arriving on campus. During freshman year, students attend workshops at the center.
“We start with a career exploration workshop early on, so they start to know us,” she said. “Sophomore year, it’s the staff from the Center for Career Management who teaches our business professionalism class that every student has to take in the College of Business.”
Students also attend the professional development summer and Meet the Employers Day, both of which are presented through the office.
“And then they find their internship come that junior year, early senior year, and then they will come back to us because they say, ‘Wait, I need one more look at my resume. Can you help me start looking and searching for employers that I can be successful with?’” O’Connell explained.
Help provided to students by the center differs for a first-year student compared with a third- or fourth-year student.
“Freshman, a lot of times it’s more what are you interested in, what skills do you have, what do you see yourself doing and then trying to look at maybe what major and what career is going to get them to where they want to be to make sure that they are going to be successful as a business student,” O’Connell said.
For a senior, the office helps determine how that student has developed the skills learned during an internship.
“But then it’s also helping them find employers and reminding them how to network and helping them find that job that they’re going to be successful in,” she said.
Pictured at top: Christina O’Connell, executive director of the Center for Career Management at YSU’s Williamson College of Business Administration.