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TechNews | Tuesday, September 23rd, 2014

 

The Game of Job Hunting: The First Investigation

Zaira Ortiz
TECHNEWS WRITER

At some point, we ask ourselves
that inevitable question, “What will I do
with my life after graduation?” Although
we are college students, and although the
answer to this question may seem rather
obvious, this question remains unanswered
by the majority of students attending a col-
lege or university today. It is a universal
misconception amongst all college students
that once he/ she crosses the podium with a
fresh diploma in his/her hand, there will be
an employer waiting on the other side. Ac-
cording to an article posted on the New York
Post website, this is true for only 17% of the
graduates in 2014, and was true for 20% of
the college graduates in 2013 (notice the
downward trend.)

It’s not a mystery what employers
are looking for. Actually, quite often, em—
ployers blatantly express what they are look—
ing for in potential candidates. According to
the article, the top 10 skills employers look
for in candidates revolve around communi-
cation skills, technology skills, team skills,
and ethics skills.

It’s not always about your Grade
Point Average (GPA). Students typically
think that their ability to obtain a job after
graduation is dependent on one sole factor:
GPA According to employers, GPA helps
when applying for a job, but what truly dis—
tinguishes interviewees to interviewers is
experience. Employers are interested in see-
ing that a candidate is experienced in his/
her field with internships and work experi-
ence throughout college. Regardless of your
industry, employers across the board regard
internships as an essential trait a candidate
must hold.

John Ramirez, third year business
administration major, is an average IIT stu-
dent, gives us insight into a real IIT student’s
mindset. On Wednesday, September 17,
2014, I conducted an interview with John
discussing his current view of IIT and his
goals for the future.

I began our interview by asking
him the most popular question college stu-
dents use in order to introduce themselves
to one another, “What is your major and
why are you pursuing it?” He easily replied
saying, “Business Administration/Finance
because I tried computer engineering and
hated it, but I love numbers and handling
money.” By his response, I could tell John
knew quite a bit more about himself than
most students who are still discovering their
callings. I continued our conversation and
asked, “Have you thought about what you
want to do after graduation?” His confident
stare dwindled away, and he responded with,
“Not really. Not too sure what job I want to
pursue in my field yet.” I found his response
interesting, but not surprising.

This is the same response that
most college students would give for this
question. We continued our interview, and
I asked him a lengthier set of questions in
an attempt to collect more insight from him,
“How long do you think it will take you to
find a job after graduation? What do you
think employers are looking for?” Returning
to his confident state he answered saying, “It

won’t take me very long, if at all, to find a
job after college because of all the opportu-
nities IIT gives us to get one. Employers are
looking employees that know their stuff, and
need little training or reprimanding. They
want those who are self-sufficient.” I sup-
pose my lengthy question sparked a lengthy
answer.

Intrigued by John’s response, I
followed up with a question that every stu-
dent wants to know the answer for, but is
too scared to ask. In the spirit of unveiling
the truth, I asked, “If you were an employer,
what percentage of your peers would you
hire?” Not at all intimidated by my question,
he responded with, “If I had to hire my peers,
I would likely only hire about 50% or less.
While they may be proficient in what they
do, they may lack in other areas.” In hopes
of gathering more feedback, I followed up
with, “Where do you think your peers are
lacking?” Again, John politely and honestly
replied with, “Depends, some of them lack
the knowledge of material and others in
being able to work and communicate their
ideas to everyone.” Ready to ask the grand fi—
nale question, I digested John’s response and
reflected on the facts. The facts, along with
John’s commentary, led me to the conclusion
that students often believe that graduation
is a one way ticket to comfortable employ-
ment. Although students who graduate from
a university are much more likely to receive
a higher paying job after graduation, com-
pared to individuals who don’t pursue a de-
gree, the ability to live comfortably depends
on one prime factor, the individual. The in-
dividual is a reoccurring theme in the game
of job hunting. Willingness to work hard,
thrive in all aspects, and own your educa—
tion and employment is essential to finding
that dream job that makes you happy after
graduation. After all, at the end of the day,
employers are giving us the answers of what
they want. It’s up to us to show them that
we are what they need. On that reflection,
I finally asked John, “What number do you
think the HT undergraduate business school
is ranked?” He replied to his final question
with a sincere breath, “out of 100 I would say
around 30.” With that, I thanked him and
concluded our interview.

It’s no secret that IIT students
think highly of the academic curriculum
they’re in. In addition, it is also no secret that
IIT professors think highly of the students
and curriculum IIT offers. On September
18, 2014, I interviewed Professor Twombly,
a professor at the Stuart School of Business.

We began our interview at 10 West
café at the HT Tower. Once we settled down,
I asked him the first question of a series to
which college students want the answer. This
question was, “What would you say the top
5 complaints employers have about recent
college graduates are?” He responded with,
“I know that what employers are looking for
is for people who are punctual and reason—
ably dressed, presentably dressed.” He con—
tinued with, “I hear complaints that students
don’t write that well, and I see that myself
when everyone is sending text messages and
form a few coherent paragraphs.” Finally, he
added, “Those are the complaints, they’re
not punctual, they don’t write well, they’re
not serious, not prepared for interviews,
and don’t ask ‘how much am I going to get

paid’ as a question during an interview.” Af—
ter hearing Professor Twombly’s response to
my first question, I thought for a moment
about the ways IIT students can differentiate
themselves to employers by making these
top 5 complaints their top 5 strengths. The
answers for getting a job after graduation
are in his response. IIT students can be the
exception by being punctual, by sharpening
their writing skills at the Writing Center on
campus, by dressing up for interviews, and
by taking employers and the professional
world seriously. I continued our interview
asking, “Do you think IIT students are ready
for the workplace after graduation?” Pro—
fessor Twombly replied with, “IIT students
are some of the best students I’ve ever seen,
and IIT isn’t the only school I’ve taught at.
The top students here are as good as the
top students anywhere; very well prepared.
Someone once said, ‘IIT attracts good stu—
dents, our job is not to mess them up?” Im—
mediately after his response, I reflected on
the atmosphere of IIT, the commitment
to academics, and how students have built
that atmosphere. I continued our inter-
view with this question, “What percentage
of the students you’ve encountered at IIT
would you hire if you were an employer?”
He responded with, “I’d hire most of them,
the ones who come to class, and the ones
who distinguish themselves. I don’t expect
people to get As and Bs necessarily. I’ve
had students who come to class and do the
work, and get Cs because what I teach can
be more left brain than right brain, but they
were good at everything else and were seri-
ous about it.” Finally, I asked him, “What is
IIT Stuart School of business undergraduate
ranking?” He responded with, “I don’t know
our ranking, but I know we’re too well to be
kept a secret. I ran into a High School boy
when crossing the street to work and he said,
“I didn’t know IIT had a business school.” I
told him we do. I later looked him up on
Google and he was president of the senior
class and won countless awards. These are
the kinds of students who need to be able to
find us.”

So, to all you IIT students reading
this, whether you’re in the Stuart School of
Business or not, remember that employ-
ers want college graduates who differenti-
ate themselves. Go get an internship, be
involved in school (there are so many op-
portunities!), take your education seriously,
take interviews serious, and most impor-
tantly, suit up!

On that note, it is clear that profes-
sors think highly of HT and it is also clear
that students think highly of HT. Professor
Twombly and John Martinez, a professor
and a student in IIT’s Stuart School of Busi—
ness, both consider the education, quality
of students, and employer demand for IIT
students to be high up there. But, why don’t
people know about us? I personally looked
up the IIT Stuart School of Business under-
graduate ranking and there isn’t one. The
thing about rankings is that in order to be
ranked, you need to participate in rankings.
So why aren’t we participating? We’re a great
school with a great business program that
isn’t ranked! Find the answer next week un—
der, “The Game of Job Hunting: The Second
Investigation.”

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