You have just graduated. Graduation has come and gone, and it is time to go out into the corporate world to acquire a job. However, after countless interviews, phone calls, and emails, you are still unemployed. Why?
The Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers offered to give some reasons behind why new graduates fail while searching for jobs this past Monday at Café con Leche. While the audience drank café con leche (coffee with hot milk) and tasted delicious pan de bono in Hayden Lounge, members of SHPE presented “Congratulations Graduate: Eleven Reasons Why I Will Never Hire You!” which gave humorous, yet realistic explanations as to why certain actions tend to leave employers unwilling to hire.
The presentation went over major issues that are certainly not going to help an individual attain a job at the top business or engineering companies. For example, Tom Cruz, president of SHPE, spoke about resumes: “Your resume should not be longer than that of a 25 year-old professional. You need to be concise, so don’t include things from high school that aren’t relevant.” Daniela Cardona, a member who is in charge of corporate relations, spoke about bringing questions to interviews: “By bringing questions, you show the potential employer how you gather information. If you don’t, you look unprepared and uninterested in the job.”
Although the presentation seemed more appropriate for students in the later years of their Stevens education, it is very much applicable to freshmen and sophomore students interested in internships, externships, or other job opportunities. Interviewing, networking, and dressing professionally are skills that students of all ages should pursue mastery in before taking a seat in front of a potential employer in an interview.
Stevens is accredited for being a university that provides ample opportunities for students who are willing to work hard to earn a respectable job. Cruz emphasized the overall message of the presentation: “You need to make sure you know what you want to do when approaching companies. The last thing you want to do is show up at an interview and not know what you can contribute to the company.”
Café con Leche was an evening not only for interested students, but a mandatory event for the 33 members of SHPE attending the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers Conference in Detroit this week. The SHPE Conference is the major event for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers and the largest technical and career conference for Hispanics in the country. Each year, the SHPE Conference attracts over 5,000 engineering professionals, students and corporate representatives. The conference is an opportunity for engineering companies and corporations to recruit top talent from SHPE membership. The “Eleven Reasons Why I Will Never Hire You” presentation thus allowed SHPE leaders to both discuss the conference agenda while also providing some last minute tips for those who will be in contact with a potential future employer. The students attending the conference will be attending workshops, speaking with representatives from successful corporations, and networking with SHPE members from all over the country.
The presentation given at Café con Leche provided an opportunity to learn about the job-seeking process, and hopefully the Stevens SHPE members attending the conference will approach their interviews and networking opportunities following these valuable guidelines.
