With graduation looming on the horizon, many students will be looking for post-grad jobs.

Some students attend college with the hope of opening up more career opportunities. The importance of preparing for this moment while still in school cannot be overstated.

Many professionals and business owners look for upcoming graduates to fill their open positions as early as the start of their senior year.

Small-business owner Matt Holliday runs a construction company which does work all over eastern Washington. Though Holliday said he does not require his employees to have college degrees, he does look for newly-graduated individuals to fill positions because he believes they are responsible and ready to work.

“Employees fresh out of college are often the most motivated employees and the fastest to move up in the company,” Holliday said.

EWU provides students with several opportunities to look for jobs before they graduate. Some of these resources include clubs and organizations designed for career searching, job and internship fairs and the office of career services.

The office of career services may be the most valuable resource students have access to on campus.

Staff members are eager to help students get jobs and internships as they facilitate events such as job and internship fairs and offer a workshop, called Internship 101, every quarter. This quarter the workshop will be on Thursdays at 2 p.m. Students can visit career services in Showalter 114 for more information.

Associate Director Robbyn Hoffman is a resource for freshmen and sophomores to utilize. She specializes in helping undeclared and undecided students decide how they would like to spend their time at EWU as well as what their goals are after college.

Romeal Watson is a resource for all students, but would be most beneficial to upperclassmen as he is the internship coordinator.

Students who are struggling with the decision of what to major in can seek the assistance of Hoffman and enroll in CRSV 295. This is a pre-professional internship designed to help students make an informed decision about a future internship and career path.

Hoffman said freshmen and sophomores should consider volunteering for a business or job shadowing a professional instead of an internship because these will give a more detailed experience of what the career will actually be like. “Internships are best as a capstone to your academic experience,” she said.  

Preparing for graduation and the next step may be tricky, but with the right resources and preparation the process should proceed smoothly. EWU does its best to provide its students with as much help as possible along the way.