Everyone knows that their first resume looms stressfully over them. Career services aims to help students in need of direction. Ouachita’s career services works to help students with resumes, cover sheets, mock interviews and even finding jobs and internships right out of college. Career services is located on the first floor of Cone Bottoms, in Suite 125, Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Rachel Jones and Hannah Pilcher act as coordinators for career services. The two manage relations with outside employers, arrange workshops for students and offer their assistance with resumes and internships to all OBU students, free of charge. OBU alumni are also available to access career services. Students are able to start from scratch, during their resume preparation or build onto previous resumes. If a student has a previous resume that they wish to replace, career services will help. Career services provides the same services for preparing a cover sheet for students’ resumes.
For students still searching for a major, career services provides a test called Focus 2. The test gathers a general area of interest in an attempt to direct students towards majors and areas that they seem to be interested in. Focus 2 is mainly for freshman students, but all current Ouachita students have access to the test. The test can be located on the obu.edu/career website under the tab labeled “students.”
Students looking for internships will find that career services makes every effort they can to cater to student wants, as well as needs. Seniors looking for long-term internships will receive help finding an internship or a potential job, whereas younger students will mainly be helped with finding summer internships. Students can visit the career services office or use the web search Tiger Career Connections, which is available to current OBU students via their student ID. Alumni also have access to the search tool. Graduates within the past five years can use their student ID to access Tiger Career Connections. If the user graduated more than five years ago, career services can help as well. Tiger Career Connections, updated daily, is located at obu.edu/career under the “student” tab for current students and the “alumni” tab for all alumni.
Many students have never had to undergo serious interviews, such as one for an internship or graduate school. Career services provides tips and training for interviews, as well as providing mock interviews to better students’ confidence and skills.
Career services also offers workshops throughout the school year for students interested in jobs and internships. The Ouachita Graduate and Professional School Fair, a workshop for students interested in graduate school opportunities, will be held Wednesday, September 28, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The fair will have 20 universities present, representing their schools and helping potential students learn more about the programs. There will be a Career Services Workshop on Wednesday, October 26, and a Missions Throughout Your Career Workshop, with guest Tacos 4 Life, Wednesday, November 14.
For more information visit obu.edu/career, contact Career Services at (870) 245- 5593 or email careerservices@obu.edu. Rachel Jones can be contacted at jonesrm@obu.edu and Hannah Pilcher can be contacted at pilcherh@obu.edu for further questions.
By Will Blase, Staff Writer
