UIdaho Career Services organizational profile

1. Career Services has taken a passive role in engaging with students in the past. But Eric
Anderson, associate director of career development, said, “You will see career services as very
proactive and not just waiting for people to come to us, we will be out there because we know
you have a lot to offer employers.”
The Career Services staff is interested in reaching students and making them aware of
offered services. The office hosted an open house in November. Staff handed out pizza, candy
bars, sodas, and even entered students into raffles for gift cards, in an effort for students to walk
around Career Services and meet and greet the staff.
Anderson said events like the open house are designed to engage students who otherwise
would not come to Career Services. Anderson said most students imagine Career Services
employees as the suit-and-tie types, but he said the office is more laid back and geared towards
serving students. He said he aims to help every student regardless of what they plan to do or
what they are looking for from Career Services.
Anderson said it is crucial for students to know that Career Services is there for them at
any point in their life. Even if students do not utilize services while on campus, they can call or
email because the office serves alumni for life.
Anderson said it is crucial for Career Services to be on the cutting edge when engaging
with students so staff are active on social media interacting with students who may not come to
the office. The intern team has developed the idea of taking Career Services to Snapchat to stay
relevant and engage with yet another audience. Anderson said the response from surveys at the
open house was overwhelmingly positive about utilizing Snapchat.

2. Andrew Schaffer, a Career Service liaison, said the transition to the real world varies
tremendously from student to student, and even in the same department, no two students are the
same.
Schaffer is the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences liaison and he said he sees
students with a wide variety of backgrounds come through his office. After a few appointments,
even the most worried students leave with action steps to get them headed in the right direction
toward a career they want, he said.
Schaffer mostly helps students tune up resumes and write cover letters to score potential
jobs. But he also can help students at any point throughout their time at UI. He said he could help
students figure out what they want to do with their major or even find a major that is a good fit
for them.
"We help the student expand their idea of what they have to offer," Schaffer said.
Often students come into Career Services thinking they have few applicable skills that could help
them towards their dream job. But Schaffer said anything in life could help a student get a good
job if you know how to market yourself.
For example, Schaffer advised a student who did not know what he could use as
applicable skills on his resume. But Schaffer found out the student was a leader in World of
Warcraft. Schaffer also found out how many relevant skills the student had learned about
leadership through playing World of Warcraft, including conflict management, time management
skills, and coordinating plans. Those skills went on the student’s resume. Schaffer said the
student got a job because of the resume.