Career Services Annual Report
2012-2013
The 2012-13 year was a year of exceptional changes for students served by Career Services and a
successful transition for the department itself. The Career Services team focused their efforts on a
commitment to students, career services and improvement. Staff members that were newer in their
roles took their performance to greater heights with strategic changes in service delivery, a strong
commitment to excellence/outreach and new events and programming with new partners. With an
Interim Director in place and a temporary employee filling a Career Coordinator’s role, Career Services
transitioned into a fully functioning department that surpassed the previous year’s performance with
better and more responsive assistance to students and the university community. While quality
coaching and customer service was a focus throughout the year, outreach to targeted students and
collaboration within UND’s community was an additional concentration.
Career Services is known for its service to students which enhances early career development, effective
and innovative service delivery and student learning. Career Services emphasized using technology to
improve outreach to students as well as promoting its services with new social media technologies (such
as Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest). Exceptional UND Strategic Priorities: Enrich the Student Learning
Experience, Encourage Gathering, Facilitate Collaboration, Expand UND’s Presence, Enhance the Quality
of Life for Faculty and Staff continued to be strong focuses of Career Services.
Mission of the Unit
Career Services’ mission is “to provide the highest quality of education by guiding students and alumni
in preparing, planning for, and carrying out their career goals and by partnering with local, state, and
global employers to provide students/alumni with the opportunities to apply, enrich and extend the
learning environment beyond the classroom prior to and after graduation”.
The mission is in alignment with the University’s mission and the Division of Student Affairs’ Values and
Principles by recognizing that helping students accomplish their educational, career and life goals is the
reason for our existence. As a team, we encourage and support creativity, embrace change and the
opportunities it brings. Along with that, Career Services recognizes the benefits of teamwork,
collaboration and celebrating the successes that our students bring to our department and to UND.
Career Services primary function is to provide UND’s prospective, current and former students quality
assistance with career guidance that not only prepares them for their “first destination” employment
opportunity but for career development that lasts a lifetime. The following quality services include:
providing employment, internship and co-op opportunities through Career Connect, advising and
coaching students about these opportunities by assisting them in creating a dynamic resume and cover
letter, ”selling” themselves during an interview, and other job search/networking techniques which
form a solid base for their immediate career path ahead and for future career development. For
undeclared students, Career Services offers a Career Exploration Class, which allows students to
examine the results of the Strong Interest Inventory and the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), which
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in turn helps them decide a major based on interests, strengths and understanding their value systems.
The computer lab “Walk In” center provides students the opportunity to learn how their specific
interests match with professionals who have similar interests by taking “Career LiftOff”, an online
interest survey. These tools, along with the expert guidance from Career Coordinators, Career Services’
GSA and GTAs, help students define their course of action while deciding a major and/or career choice.
Performance of the Unit
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4,690 students were served by Career Service during the past year in presentations/workshops
and individual appointments. This includes a total headcount of 6,215 (compared to 3,657 last
year) attending larger events such as Career Fairs, Etiquette/Networking Dinners and
Professional Dress Events. In addition countless other students were made aware of the value
of Career Services at events such as Grad Expos, the Road Rally and Freshmen Orientation.
Of the total number of students served 1,611 students received personalized “face time”
attention in scheduled appointments, drop ins, and “Crash Course” workshops.
In addition to the total count, 665 estimated email and telephone advising contacts were
conducted this year alone.
640 new employers registered accounts on Career Connect, Career Services’ portal which
connects employers offering jobs, internships and co-ops to UND students and alum. These
positions were offered to the 14,366 students and alum who are registered in Career Connect.
Accomplishments
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Conducted the 3rd Annual Accounting Fair in September, the 18th Annual Fall Career Fair, the
13th Annual Spring Career Fair, with a “Meet and Greet the Employer” the night before each
event, bringing in over 1,344 students (compared to 1,297 students prior year) and 249
employers (compared to 204 employers). The Meet and Greet events began last academic year
and have been growing in popularity and numbers ever since. President Kelley and Tim O’Keefe,
CEO of the Alumni Association and Foundation, gave the opening welcome remarks at the fall
and spring fairs, respectively. Prior to next year’s career fairs, the Meet and Greet events will be
co-hosted by Career Services and the Alumni Association and Foundation, with the Meet and
Greet taking place at the Gorecki Alumni Center, thus fostering a stronger connection and
partnership with them.
Collaborated with the ND Association of Career Services Professional (NDACSP) while hosting an
Education Fair at NDSU in May, the first in many years. Plans are to continue this Education Fair
in the future.
Hosted the 13th Annual Spring and Fall Etiquette/Networking Dinners and Professional Dress
events which included table sponsorship from employers and the university community, a new
twist to a traditional event. The sponsorships allowed Career Services to provide complimentary
tickets to students who could otherwise not afford the cost of the dinner. Representatives from
the UND Alumni Association and Foundation, the School of Graduate Studies and 7 area
employers participated. Marilyn Haggerty (ND food critic and UTube sensation) was Guest of
Honor and wrote a very positive article about the event in the Grand Forks Herald.
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Provided professional development/training to Career Services staff, resulting in 3 staff
members gaining valuable knowledge from conferences such as, “Hiring Trends” (a one day
workshop by Dr. Phil Gardner, Director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute (CERI),
NACE and the CSO-Advanced Solutions Training and Networking conference.
Hosted a follow-up CERI “Hiring Trends” webinar series, inviting university entities such as the
International Centre, the School of Graduate Studies, the Student Success Center and Trio
Programs which later led to discussions about how to further collaborate.
Collaborated with the School of Law by hosting two Federal Employment webinars for students
interested in pursuing government employment positions. Trish Hodny, the School of Law’s
Career Center Director, was available for Q&A afterwards.
With the Student Success Center, co-hosted the “Monster College Advantage” presentation
which inspired, motivated and offered tips to freshmen on how to succeed in college.
Career Coordinators served as guest speakers for 4 sections of the Counseling 101-Career
Exploration class, taught by Career Services GTAs. Student enrollment totaled 66 students for
the year, with evidence of student learning captured in reflection papers.
Interim Director taught two sections of BADM 105 and one section of BADM 106 (Career
Development for Business Majors) courses created by Dr. Steve Moser, Associate Dean of the
College of Business and Public Administration. The Interim Director invited local GF employers,
UND faculty and student speakers to talk about the benefits of interning, how to effectively
interview, the value of being active in student organizations and other topics with real world
suggestions/applications. Evidence of student learning was captured by the students’ 6
reflection papers.
Career Services’ staff participated in a morning work retreat, the first in 14 years, where team
members bonded as a professional unit, recognizing strengths and weaknesses and setting goals
to overcome shortcomings.
Student Employment transitioned from Financial Aid to Career Services serving 4,516 students
who were hired in the following capacity: Institutional positions (2,837), Summer Institutional
positions (800), Federal Work Study (804), Summer Federal Work Study (75). The Student
Employment Coordinator answered an average of 88 calls a week, assisting students and
departments.
The Student Employment Coordinator led a nomination committee which selected a graduating
senior majoring in Classical Studies as Student Employee of the Year; this individual went on to
win the North Dakota State Student Employee of the Year.
Career Services brought 49 employers on-campus in which 358 students were interviewed.
543 students participated in 848 co-ops, compared to 526 students and 795 co-ops prior year.
Collaborated and assisted the UND Alumni Association and Foundation with the pre-planning of
their Mentorship Program. By working closely with them, Career Services works to provide
strong student candidates for both mentee and newly graduated mentor roles.
Career Services presented a review of services available to the summer MSW cohort (a first), in
collaboration with the Social Work Field Placement Coordinator, with intention of ongoing
presentations for other online/distance degrees.
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CS installed web cameras in order to serve online/distance students more effectively. Electronic
flyers marketing the services available to online/distance students were sent to all instructors
who teach online courses.
Challenges
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The lack of a solid metrics was a challenge for Career Services. Without a model in place, it was
challenging to determine specifically where the center needed to go and how it needed to
improve in order to best serve our students. In the coming year, creating an effective needs
assessment survey is a goal of the Director so that a targeted audience can be
identified/surveyed and where data is collected and analyzed. From the information gathered,
Career Services will be able to make accurate decisions and recommendations (based upon the
data) for the coming year. The Director and the team will embrace this important endeavor and
implement more changes as results surface.
Engaging faculty in Career Development principles and services also remains a challenge for
Career Services. Our goal is to partner with and to equip faculty/advisors with knowledge about
Career Services so that they can actively support and recommend us to students. While many
faculty are in full support, Career Services is still challenged by those who are not aware of our
services, what we offer to students and our commitment to serving as an effective catalyst for
their departments. Career Services has begun to overcome this challenge by creating a faculty
testimonial page on our website, which gives those who understand and endorse Career
Services a voice to be heard among their colleagues. Successful students and graduates are also
adding their testimonials. Their links will be sent to department chairs for distribution with
hopes of “spreading the word” about how we serve their “star students”. Student testimonials
will also assist Student Affairs’ new Development Officer as he begins the process of showing
student success to potential donors. Other overtures include continuing to invite faculty as
special guests to our Career Fairs (and luncheons) and meeting one-on-one with faculty
members, chairs and deans to gain information about what each department needs from Career
Services and what changes should be made. The Director will continue this strategic process by
following a two-year schedule of departments starting with Computer Science, Engineering and
Information Systems.
Priorities for Next Year
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Priorities for next year include completion of an effective Needs Assessment and the writing of
Student Learning Outcomes for 3-4 services that Career Services provides to students. The
Director will become more familiar with learning outcomes assessments as it relates to career
services practice with the emphasis on the student’s career development. Learning outcomes
will be a priority in the year ahead. A goal of Career Services is to find out how students will
change as a result of what we do and to document that change, showing results. With this in
place, Career Services will continue to better serve our students and address their expectation
for a return on investment. The use of this data will help drive decisions of the department.
Assessment of Student Learning
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In 2012-13, students completed a simple survey after each presentation which asked the
following questions, “What three things did you learn today?” “Did you feel this event was
helpful?” “If no, why?” “What other topics are you interested in with regards to Career
Services?” 100% of all surveys reported that their needs were met and they had been helped by
the presentation. Assessment of student learning also takes place in these areas: Career
Exploration Class: Students enrolled in Counseling 101 are surveyed and direct data was
gathered that measured student learning. Along with completing the Strong Interest Inventory
and the MBTI personality inventory, students conducted an occupation information interview
and submitted summary report of these projects.
Future plans also include creating a more effective way of capturing student learning, showing
how the student changed. In the coming year, students will be asked to create a “One-Minute
Reflection” after meeting with Career Services professionals or attending a presentation. The
one-minute reflection will allow students to articulate what action steps they will take after
gaining knowledge from Career Services. Additionally, a means of scoring resumes will also take
place during the coming year. A rubric will be created (with examples taken from NACE) in
which resumes which have not yet been reviewed by Career Services staff will be compared with
resumes after Career Services reviewed them. The evidence of learning will be reflected in the
improved score. By looking through the stakeholders’ lens, Career Services will continue to
make improvements to align with assessment of student learning by creating student learning
outcomes for all aspects of Career Services, starting with 3-4 of the most widely utilized services
we offer.
Career Services remains committed to all of the Exceptional UND Strategic Priorities. The following is
an example of how we embraced one of them: Facilitating Collaboration
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Began a strong relationship with the UND Alumni Association and Foundation by assisting them
with the planning of their Mentorship Program and co-hosting student events on campus.
Hosted a “Hiring Trends” webinar for the International Centre, School of Graduate Studies,
Student Success Center, and Trio Programs; collaborated with the School of Law by presenting
webinars for students seeking federal employment; presented to MSS, ULife Classes, Society of
Women Engineers, Greek Life, etc.
Two interns from the Educational Leadership program began working on their requirements
early in June with the creation of workshops and a resource guide as final projects.
Interim Director taught 3 sections of Career Development classes for CoBPA.
As the year ended and with a strong commitment to technology advances, a focus on student and
faculty engagement, campus-wide collaboration, evidence of student learning and a creative and
energized staff, Career Services continues to grow in excellence and with innovation and dramatic
change.
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