New Jersey Institute of Technology Career Development Services Division of Academic Support and Student Affairs Year In Review 2015 973.596.3100 • Campbell Hall, 4th & 5th Floors • www.njit.edu/cds Contents Message from the Executive Director 1 Significant Accomplishments 2015 2 Our Collaborative Partnerships 4 Trends and Future Directions 6 Class of 2015: What They Are Doing 7 Message from the Executive Director The primary mission of NJIT Career Development Services (CDS) is to be a value added contributor to the career planning, personal and professional development of NJIT students, and professional success of our graduates. We have made significant progress in fulfilling our mission including an 11% increase in the number of student and alumni-attended career development programs. Four thousand eight hundred and fifty (4,850) individual students were served by career advisors and staff through 1-1 counseling sessions or within group workshops, seminars and other CDS produced events. A record number of employers posted over 26,000 technology-related employment opportunities, and 555 (+12%) organizations attended on-campus interviews and NJIT career fairs. We led the volunteer and agency recruitment and logistical site alignment efforts for NJIT’s third Alternative Spring Break, and continued our mentoring partnerships with Big Brothers/Big Sisters. In all 3,026 students participated in community service projects at 260 non-profit agencies, schools and other organizations. CDS contributes to the overall university mission and newly established NJIT 2020 Vision strategic goals by inspired teaching and learning experiences within and outside the curriculum. A record number 603 students enhanced their knowledge and acquired workplace relevant skills and experience through our co-op and internship programs. NJIT alumni engagement was broadened through increased participation in our annual Speed Networking event. There were increases in the number of NJIT alums serving as Campus Champions in advocating for the employment of our students and graduates within their workplaces. Alumni usage of CDS programs, resources and services increased this year, particularly so in our Talent Marks on-line career and professional advancement webinar series. CDS greatly supports the NJIT goal for serving as a catalyst for regional and national economic growth through our expanding efforts in employer engagement and student workforce readiness and through our roles within state and regional professional associations. Of extreme importance this year, we co-lead the NJIT report submission attaining NJIT designation as an APLU Innovation & Economic Prosperity University. Of this accomplishment President Joel S. Bloom stated, “We are delighted to be recognized by the APLU with this designation that accentuates our commitment to be a leader in economic development and job creation through hands-on education, talent development, applied research, innovation, entrepreneurship and business incubation.” We increased our work with the Office of Strategic Communications to create weekly feature stories of our students’ career success. CDS contributes to university retention efforts financially through our student co-ops’ and interns’ earnings of over $4.2 million. We maintain a presence at NJIT Admission’s open houses and partner with the Center for Pre-College Programs in administering the Panasonic Creative Design Challenge. We work with individual academic departments to facilitate career programs and in producing marketing pieces about careers within specific disciplines and career fields. A comprehensive overview of our outcomes is presented in CDS By the Numbers. We look forward to welcoming our many clients and colleagues to our new state-of-the-art career center this January on the 2nd floor of Fenster Hall. We will be strategically located one floor above the Admissions’ Office at the center of campus allowing us high visibility within our campus community. Sincerely, Gregory Mass Executive Director NJIT Career Development Services 1 Significant Accomplishments 2015 Throughout the past year, we have focused our attention towards providing leadership and resources that benefit a wide array of constituents. We are guided by a set of strategic objectives that aligns with the university’s mission and centers on enhancing the professional success of our graduates. In doing so, we have not only improved our students’ lives, we have contributed to several of the university’s key performance indicators including recruitment, retention, and success at graduation. Student Retention and Alumni Engagement Career advisors provided quality career counseling for developing lifelong career strategies to 2,830 undergraduate and graduate students, assisting them with attaining their first choice destination upon degree completion. Over 4,800 unique students made 12,800 visits or contacts with CDS. Credit-bearing cooperative education experiences and internship learning experiences provided hands-on real world opportunities and exposure to business and industry for 603 undergraduate and graduate students locally, regionally, and nationally. The companies involved in these NJIT programs employ a significant percentage of these students after they graduate. We facilitated 163 professional development workshops for over 3,800 students, including three workshops on how athletes can effectively display their skills through resume writing, interviewing, and networking. CDS partnered with three student professional organizations on a workshop on Business Dining Etiquette that was funded and attended by corporate partners. We co-hosted an IDP Preparation workshop for architecture students and a career fair workshop specifically for international students. CDS continued to provide access to career advising and job search resources to our alumni. In conjunction with the Office of Alumni Relations, we hosted the 6th Annual Speed Networking Event where alumni shared networking techniques and career advice with undergraduate and graduate students. We entered our second year of providing the Career Speaker Webinar series for alumni. Through the Campus Champions Network, alumni stay actively involved with NJIT while facilitating an important staff sourcing and talent development role for their employers. Expand Partnerships with Business and Industry In 2015, Career Development Services arranged for over 500 organizations to conduct on-campus recruitment through our career fairs and on-campus interview programs. The fall and spring career fairs filled to capacity with 180 employers each and over 4,700 students. Our on-campus interview programs increased this year as well. Over 150 employers held over 2,200 interviews for more than 1,000 students. Eighty-seven (87%) of the employers rated NJIT students’ interview preparation as excellent or good. More than 26,000 technology full time, co-op, and internship job listings were posted to the CDS electronic database, an increase of 3,500 from last year. Moreover, nearly 62,000 student and alumni resumes were referred to employers. Both Buzzfeed.com and PayScale.com place NJIT among the top 1% in the nation for return on investment based on the metrics of entry and mid-career salaries of NJIT graduates as compared to annual cost of tuition. We produced the Reverse Career Fair, an event held prior to each career fair, which allowed employers to interact directly with student leaders from our diverse student organizations. Twenty-four student organizations were represented. Walid Bouabid, BSCE, ‘14 MSCE, ‘16; Said Ouabi, MSCE, ‘16 Walid and Said gained scholarships and shared a unique summer experience in 2015, working in Doha, Qatar for Louis Berger Corp. Through CDS’ relationship with the company, the two Civil Engineering master’s students spent three months on the building of Doha’s subway stations, in both engineering design and construction management roles. Waid and Said contrasted the US working culture to Doha, where the work week runs from Sunday to Thursday and working hours are often off shift to accommodate the weather. They learned how to adjust to safety practices and changes in measurements common to the Middle East. Both students are interested in pursuing careers in construction. 2 Significant Accomplishments 2015 NJIT Service to the Community Career Development Services serves as the centralized unit of Civic Engagement for NJIT. Over 3,000 students participated in community service projects and contributed well over 45,000 hours of service. A grant of $10,000 from Wakefern Food Corp. to fund our Civic Engagement Computer Center allowed for a high impact venue for NJIT students to produce technical solutions for web design, data management, and basic computer training needs for local non-profits. Civic Engagement: A Good Neighbor In August 2015, the largest NJIT incoming freshman class took to the streets of Newark for a Day of Service. For the third consecutive year staff and student leaders joined nearly 1,000 First Year students to engage in service projects throughout the city. brought 200 Newark students to campus during the summer. The goal was to provide young people from Newark ages 16 – 19 with employment, technology, education, and enrichment opportunities in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The inaugural Newark Beautification Initiative involved the design, construction, and planting of four community gardens. The Ras Baraka Coding Institute provided students access to four exciting real world project tracks of coding experience and ended with a showcase. Both the initiatives were a collaboration of Career Development Services, College of Architecture & Design, and the College of Computing Sciences. Service Day is an important opportunity for new students to get to know and work with other students in their major and/ or programs, and to become acquainted with the faculty and staff. At NJIT learning does not just happen in the classroom, but through teamwork and real life experiences that make a difference in neighboring communities through service. The students first campus experience was not academics, but rather an experience of community and public service. They collected trash, planted gardens, painted walls, pruned trees, packed food and entertained both the young and old at about 40 different sites around the city. Fifty-five service teams ranging in size from 10 to 30 served with local community agencies which included Newark Public Schools, Apostle’s House, Branch Brook Park Alliance, IHS Development Corp., the South Mountain Conservancy, and the Broadway House. Months of planning gave birth to the Newark Beautification Initiative (NBI) and the Ras Baraka Coding Institute (RBCI), a partnership between NJIT and the City of Newark that NJIT Architecture students are accompanied by high school students as they build the community garden in Newark’s West Ward. Student Success Stories: Brian Lopez BSCE ‘12 MS Crititical Infrastructure Systems ‘15 Bryan, Civil Engineering ’12, Critical Infrastructure Systems ’15, has a rich history with civic engagement. His involvement began through Career Development Services as a Housing Scholars intern with Episcopal Community Development. He worked closely with CDS’ civic engagement program as a Corporate Liaison, Project Manager, and Project Coordinator, including assisting with the implementation of Alternative Spring Break and First Year Connections Community Service Day for freshmen. Bryan has been the CoPresident and Board Trustee for Future City Inc. since 2009. A member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), Bryan founded the Northern New Jersey chapter of SHPE Jr, to provide scholarship funds for graduating high school seniors. After graduation with his master’s degree, Bryan accepted a position as Project Control Specialist with Louis Berger consulting firm. 3 Our Collaborative Partnerships With Your Help We Can Accomplish So Much More Kathy Wertalik of UPS with Jane Gaertner and Patrick Young of CDS. Saara Marte of Verizon with Dean Marek Rusinkiewicz of CCS. Awards and Recognition Event We hosted our annual CDS Recruiting Partner Awards Celebration on April 8, 2015 to honor our top organizations whose outstanding work in recruiting and campus engagement led to highly effective outcomes for their organization and NJIT. We also featured best recruiting practice presentations by our recruiting partners, including building a talent pipeline, diversity and inclusion engagement, innovative programming, and sponsorship. In all thirteen awards were given out with Verizon, Parette Somjen Architects and Cognizant receiving honors as Top Hiring Companies. Kevin Belfield, Dean CSLA; Katia Passerini, Dean, Dorman Honors College; and Basil Baltzis, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs were among the many NJIT faculty administrators who presented the awards. At NJIT Career Development Services, our goal is to provide employers with efficient recruiting experiences that result in quality outcomes for them and for our students. Many of our employer partners have expressed a keen interest in increasing their commitment to our partnership through supporting specific branding and inclusion opportunities that focus on increasing their level of visibility to a talented, diverse group of NJIT students. We are delighted to recognize the following organizations for their generous sponsorship this year: Award Recipients Company Category Verizon Parette Somjen Architects Cognizant NAVAIR Future City Inc. Cisco Systems PSEG TIAA-CREF ADP Johnson & Johnson UPS Optum Technology Enterprise Rent-A-Car Top Hiring Company, Graduates Top Hiring Company, Graduates Top Hiring Company, Graduates Top Government Partner Top Non-Profit Recruitment Partner Top Diversity and Inclusion Partner Top Diversity and Inclusion Partner Top Diversity and Inclusion Partner Top Hiring Company, Co-ops & Interns Top Hiring Company, Co-ops & Interns Top Hiring Company, Co-ops & Interns Best Emerging Recruitment Partner Top Recruitment Partner Sponsor For more information regarding the NJIT Career Center Partner Sponsor Program, please contact Greg Mass, executive director, mass@njit.edu or 973 596 5745. Moreover, we would greatly appreciate your informing us of any student career development, civic engagement or business/higher education collaboration grant funding opportunities that may be available through your organization’s community outreach department of corporate foundation. 4 Our Collaborative Partnerships Since its inception in 1986, the Cooperative Education Program has been supported by a partnership between students, faculty, employers, and Career Development Services. Co-op at NJIT is one of the few experiential learning programs that is academically integrated and confers credit through faculty involvement. Faculty co-op advisors and career advisors in CDS work as a team to ensure that work experiences are related to the major course of study and that learning objectives associated with the experience are fulfilled. With their knowledge of curricula and familiarity with students, faculty co-op advisors are an invaluable component of the Cooperative Education Program. Faculty Co-op Advisors George Abdou Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering; Engineering Management; Occupational, Safety & Health; Pharmaceutical Systems Mgmt Piero Armenante Pharmaceutical Bioprocessing; Pharmaceutical Engineering Michele Bell Computer Science; Information Systems; Information Technology; HumanComputer Interaction Athanassios Bladikas Transportation Engineering Joseph Bozzelli Chemistry; Environmental Science Daniel Brateris Electrical & Computer Engineering Technology John Cays Architecture Maurie Cohen Science, Technology, and Society Carsten Denker Applied Physics Alev Erdi Biomedical Engineering Chris Funkhouser Communications Melodi Guilbault Business; MBA Edwin Hou Computer Engineering Michael Khader Telecommunications Management Technology Walter Konon Civil Engineering and Environmental Engineering Lev Krasnoperov Pharmaceutical Chemistry Alison Lefkovitz History (2nd Co-op); Law, Technology & Culture Samuel Lieber Mechanical Engineering Technology David Lubliner Computer Technology; Medical Informatics Technology Mohamed Mahgoub Concrete Industry Management Technology Eileen Michie Applied Math; Statistics Durga Misra Computer Engineering; Electical Egnineering Somenath Mitra Environmental Science George Olsen Computer Science; Information Systems; Information Technology Admin. & Security; Bioinformatics Karen Rappaport Actuarial Science Nuggehalli Ravindra Applied Physics; Materials Science & Engineering Karen Roach Biology (U) Ron Rockland Technology Education Roberto Rojas-Cessa Internet Engineering; Telecommunications Max Roman Biomedical Engineering Richard Sher History Marek Sosnowski Electrical Engineering Reginald Tomkins Chemical Engineering John Wiggins Construction Engineering Technology; Construction Management Technology Mengchu Zhou Bioelectronics; Computer Engineering; Power & Energy Systems 5 Trends and Future Directions If there has been one emerging trend that has grabbed national attention among the college career center and corporate college recruiting community this year it is hands down – recruit once, hire twice. By definition this phrase references the practice of hiring co-op and intern students for the purpose of converting the top performers to full time regular employees upon their graduation. While this strategy has been in practice for decades it has recently exploded with greater interest and usage. In many cases students wrapping up their summer internships are receiving solid job offers months before they graduate. On the plus side these students get to enjoy their entire final year of college without fretting whether they will land a good job when they graduate. Meanwhile employers are maximizing a return on their training and development investment by retaining their best employees, and in doing so are nixing their industry competitors from accessing this newly claimed talent. The employment demand for NJIT graduates, especially in IT related disciplines, continues to be high. However, the assumption that increased job opportunities automatically results in higher employment rates is erroneous. Job offers to recent college graduates have become increasingly dependent upon candidates who possess previous related work experience and competency in technical and managerial skills related to success on the job. Students lacking related work and leadership experience and in-demand skills are less competitive. members were selected primarily from those organizations having an established recruitment and employment relationship with CDS. The first meeting held in April included representatives from Johnson & Johnson, Prudential, PSEG, Enterprise, ADP, TATA, Optum, and Universum. Among the issues addressed were challenges with obtaining hiring outcomes from students and employers. CDS Advisory Board Mr. Torrence Traynham ADP Student debt remains a national concern. The implications are that the more we can do to reduce the debt need, the more success we will have in recruiting and graduating our students. Increasing participation in university administered co-op and internship programs will dramatically decrease student debt loads. Mr. Les Lartey AT&T Mr. Chris Fitzpatrick Enterprise Rent-a-Car Mr. Russell Moke Johnson & Johnson Mr. Joseph Hinksmon Merck Ms. Kimberly Lam NJIT Student Students’ interest in experiential education including coop, internships and civic engagement is at an all-time high among our underclassmen. Students who avail themselves of these services will be more satisfied and successful constituents. Mr. Larry Hansen Prudential Ms. Angela M. Parrinello PSEG Ms. Kimeth Williams Tata Consultancy Services Mr. Richard Target United Health Group To assist us in staying informed about trends and planning for the future, the newly formed Career Development Services Advisory Board was introduced in 2015. Board Mr. John Flato Universum USA Ms. Saara Marte Verizon Student Success Stories: Yohana Garcia BSChE ‘15 & Michael Scudiero BSChE ‘15 Yohana and Michael are two May 2015 graduates in Chemical Engineering that accepted positions with ExxonMobil in Texas and here in New Jersey. Career Development Services played a role in each alumnus’ experience. Yohana met up with ExxonMobil at the Career Fair and also obtained a co-op position with Colgate-Palmolive, both through CDS. Including an internship at Merck, Yohana had the work experience and credentials that were attractive to ExxonMobil. She is now a Process Contact Engineer at the Baytown site in Texas. Michael found out about the ExxonMobil LOFT Fellowship through Career Development Services when he was a sophomore, leading to two summer internships. In the fall, Michael was offered a full time position in Annandale, NJ in Exxon’s Pilot Plant and Laboratory Engineering Group. 6 Class of 2015: What They Are Doing Employment and Graduate School Outcomes Each year Career Development Services produces an employment and graduate school report for the May graduating class. Sixty two percent (62%) of our BS and 52% of MS graduates are employed full time within 3 months of graduation. For our BS graduates this number is up 10% from a year ago and remains significantly higher than the national averages for all BS graduates. NJIT graduates continue to fuel local economies by beginning their careers in NJ with such firms as Verizon, Johnson & Johnson, UPS, Prudential and PSEG. Nationally, more graduates are making an impact by accepting positions with Cisco, Microsoft, and ExxonMobil. Employed Full-Time or Employment Offer Perhaps the year’s most impressive outcome is the tremendous number of employment offers received by our Bachelor of 52% Architecture graduates. Eighty-five percent (85%) of the survey respondents reported having attained an offer at the time of graduation. Among the hiring firms this year are Parette Somjen, Ware Malcomb, Perkins East, SSP, and Hatch Mott MacDonald. Employed Full-Time or Employment Offer 62% Employed Full-Time or Employment Offer 62% Employed Full-Time or Employment Offer 52% Undergraduate Students Seeking Employment 20% Graduate Students N=391 N=451 Graduate School Full-Time 18% Graduate School FullTime 10% Graduate School Full-Time 10% Seeking Employment 38% Seeking Employment 20% Graduate School FullTime 18% Student Success Stories: Nida Riaz BChE ‘15 Nida is a May 2015 graduate in Chemical Engineering who took advantage of the opportunities available through the CDS Cooperative Education Program. Nida’s first co-op experience was with Infineum USA as a Project Engineer, followed by a summer as a Chemist Co-op with L’Oreal USA. She finished up at Merck as an intern in Chemical Process Development & Commercialization. Along the way, Nida found time to be Corresponding Secretary then President of AIChE. Beginning fall 2015, Nida will begin doctoral studies in Chemical Engineering at NJIT with a view towards a career in research advancement and academia. 7 Seeking Employ 38% CDS Class of 2015: What They Are Doing Employment Source for NJIT May 2015 Graduates May 2015 graduates who reported that they had obtained full time employment were asked how they found their positions. OCI Fifty-nine percent (59%) of the 243 undergraduate respondents and 53% of the 133 graduate student respondents reported 15.0% that they found full time employment through their participation in one or more NJIT Career Development Services administered programs. Co-op/ Internship Conversion 12.1% Personal Networking 15.8% Coop 11.3% On-Campus Interviewing 10.8% Co-op/ Internship Conversion 11.3% Personal Networking 15.8% NJIT Career Fair 17.8% Onlin On-Campus Interviewing 15% Personal Networking 16.5% Online Job Listings / Other 11.4% Undergraduate Students N=243 Online Job Listings (CDSlink) 18.2% Non-NJIT Career Fair 1.6% NJIT Career Fair 15.0% Other 6.1% Faculty Referral 4.4% Other Online Job Listings 11.4% Graduate Students NJIT Career Fair 15% Other 6.1% N=133 Faculty Referral Online Job 4.4% Listings (CDSlink) Other 11.3% Non-NJIT Faculty 1.5% Referral Career Non-NJIT CareerFair Fair 6% 1.6% 1.6% Other Online Job Listings 21.1% Online Job Listing / CDS 11.3% TOP EMPLOYERS OF NJIT MAY 2015 GRADUATES A&J Consulting Engineering Services Inc. Merck & Company Rutgers University ADP Microsoft, Inc. Schindler Elevator Corporation Alliant Technologies NJ Transit Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories Cognizant New Jersey Institute of Technology TATA Consultancy Services (TCS) ExxonMobil Panasonic Corporation of North America TechnoMax, LLC Hatch Mott MacDonald Parette Somjen Architects LLC Turner Construction IBM PCL Construction UnitedHealth Group Johnson & Johnson Philadelphia Energy Solutions UPS Information Technology Kroll Cyber Security Prudential Verizon/Verizon Wireless Langan Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc. PSEG ZT Systems 8 Class of 2015: What They Are Doing Fields of Graduate Studies The first choice destination of most of our new degree holders is the pursuit of full time employment. However, 18% of our bachelor’s degree and 10% of our master’s degree recipients indicated that they will enroll in full time graduate or professional school during the fall 2015 term. Biomedical engineering graduates remained the largest cohort of those pursuing advanced study with more than half of the respondents reporting they are continuing their education. The NJIT degree serves as Management/Finance/Accounti ng Chart Title excellent preparationEngineering for advanced study. As in past years, NJIT graduates have been accepted to some of the most prestigious 18% 49% graduate degree programs. Computer/ IT 18% Computer/Information Technology 18% Engineering 49% Fields of Graduate Studies Accounting/ Finance/ Management 18% N=389 Other 1% Other 1% Architecture/ Design 3% Liberal Arts 5% Health/Medicine 6% Liberal Arts 5% Health/ Medicine 6% Architecture/Design 3% SAMPLE LIST OF GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS THAT NJIT GRADUATES WILL ATTEND IN 2015, N = 260 Auburn University Stanford University Carnegie Mellon Stevens Institute of Technology Columbia University Tufts University Cornell University UMDNJ Georgetown University Law Center University of Calgary Georgia Tech University of Delaware Harvard University of Denver MIT University of Edinburgh New Jersey Institute of Technology University of Maryland Baltimore School of Medicine NYU University of Massachusetts Amherst Oxford University of Notre Dame Penn State University of Pennsylvania Princeton University of Pennsylvania/Dental Medicine Rensselaer Polytechnic Virginia Tech Rutgers University Yale University 9 Class of 2015: What They Are Doing NJIT Salary Report of May 2015 Graduates The class of 2015 continued to fill the pipeline that has earned NJIT top spots in the US for students’ return on their tuition investment. Our graduates’ average starting salaries far exceed the national averages. Chemical engineering graduates average starting salary was an amazing $76,000 per year. Three Surveying Engineering Technology graduates reported an average of $83,333. Computer engineering grads averaged $69,500 and most all our College of Computing Science graduates received salaries in the mid to upper $60,000 range. Three Information Systems graduates listed starting salaries averaging $94,167. SALARY BY MAJOR 10