Diplomas don't guarantee jobs
By Lindsey Henry Kansan correspondent
Attention graduating seniors: that shiny, new diploma you labored over for four years may not be enough to ease into corporate America's top positions.
"College is not a major key to open doors," said Mike Heuring, assistant director of the University Placement Center. "Employers don't hire graduates because they have a degree. You have to have certain skills to do the work. If you want to be the Chief Executive Officer after graduation, you will be disappointed."
Doug Borcherding said that when he graduated from the University of Kansas in 1990, and received a job with NCR, a computer company later acquired by AT&T, the marketability of one powerful skill was not as important as it is now.
Excellent oral and written communication abilities, computer science skills and an outgoing personality were among the top requirements employers want to see in their applicants, Heuring said.
"I don't think corporate America can afford to hire someone without a marketable skill," Borcherding said. "You have to build one skill that you can really
sell because it is so incredibly competitive; you've have got to build credibility around your skills."
Though he enjoyed his first job because of its location and his position, Borcherding said that it took three to four years to establish what exactly he wanted to stem from his degree in business.
A common mistake graduates make is disregarding opportunities that do not come directly from their major, Heuring said.
"Graduates think, 'I'm getting my degree in this, so what can I do with it?" Heuring said. "That is too limiting, they need to look at life after graduations as 'I'm a college graduate, what can I do now?"
One way to feel out options in a career is interning during the college years, said Kim Scarbrough, graduate assistant and UPC internship coordinator. She said those with practice in a field will be more prepared after graduation.
Interning after her sophomore and junior years led Julie Hammond, Hays senior, directly into post-graduation employment.
A journalism major in advertising, Hammond's first internship was with a large advertising agency in Kansas City, and
May 1996 The Hill
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