Dealing with a Downturn

The economy is in tatters. What will that mean for students about to graduate? What advice and assistance can LMU offer? What can students do for themselves? And is there a silver lining?

By Jeremy Rosenberg

Even the experts aren’t making any predictions. Few saw the recession coming, and fewer will venture to say when it will end.

“It looks very bad for the next few years,” says James Devine, professor of economics, when asked for his financial forecast.

“Obviously, our economy is not healthy at the moment, and we’re struggling,” says Jennifer Pate, assistant professor of economics. Indeed, millions of Americans and others worldwide face significant negative effects from the financial free fall that occurred in 2008. But what does a severely stressed economy portend for LMU students who are about to graduate? What are they up against as they enter the job market in an economic environment that reminds many commentators of the ride-the-rails 1930s?

“Think about going to graduate school,” says Pate. And if not, then be prepared to search hard for a job. “Students should understand that the economy is not well right now and that it will be tougher than it was for their friends from last year and the year before that,” she adds.

“I’d recommend students take whatever jobs are available but keep on looking for jobs that fit their interests and education. Do not give up,” Devine says.

“Students will need to think ahead, spend some time on their future and put more effort into it,” says Ellen Ensher ’87, associate professor of management. “I think the students coming out will do well, but they’re going to have to work harder.”

A To-Do List
What, then, should be on the to-do list of soon-to-be grads? What resources exist for them at LMU? And what, if any, silver lining might there be?

Based on interviews with faculty, staff and students, the short answers to those questions include: Students should think about how to make themselves more appealing as hires; an LMU degree is an asset, and the university has programs to help graduating students and alumni; and, believe it or not, silver linings abound.

One positive is a by-product of the poor state of the economy itself. “I think it underscores the importance more than ever of being a competitive candidate,” Ensher says. “The bad news is the job market is tighter. The good news is that college students are knowledge workers, and organizations are looking for knowledge workers.”

Ensher has long advocated the benefits of identifying and learning from a mentor. She co-wrote “Power Mentoring: How Successful Mentors and Protégés Get the Most Out of Their Relationships.” (Go to iTunes.lmu.edu to hear an interview with her about it.) She acknowledges that finding a mentor may be tougher today for students than before, as professionals are juggling more tasks and are anxious about their own economic future. That means, Ensher says, that students need to consider what they can offer a mentor. “Maybe insight to technology,” she says, “or youthful enthusiasm, or an updated way of thinking. People are looking for sources of revitalization.”

Ensher also suggests that students nearing graduation should heed more seriously the same general advice that she and colleagues traditionally distribute. “If you are planning to do one internship, do two or three internships,” Ensher says. “If you are planning to attend a couple of networking events, double that.”

Elizabeth Atilano is executive director of LMU’s Career Development Services. She says that according to an October 2008 poll of employers conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, “Hiring levels remain stable for the class of 2009 in comparison with those for the class of 2008.”

Atilano points to statistics that show 96 percent of the graduates from each of the past two LMU classes say they reached a career goal — landing a job, being admitted to graduate school or doing a year of voluntary service work, for example — before or within six months of graduation. Atilano also cites the upbeat example of Claudia Godinez, a 2008 graduate who majored in accounting and Spanish and was one of about 13 Lions who received job offers after interning with Deloitte & Touche.

Nonetheless, Atilano notes, employers seem to be interviewing prospective candidates earlier than usual this year, and competition among qualified candidates seems to have increased.

For alumni as well as graduating seniors, support is available through CDS, Atilano says. She encourages alumni to get involved, both to further their own careers and to help jump-start others’ work. (See “lifetime job resources,” below.) CDS, she explains, provides “lifetime career development services that include career counseling, job-search assistance, graduate school information and access to career resources.” The center also offers counseling and search services for free, and no longer charges annual fees to alumni.

Looking for Opportunities
Pate teaches mostly seniors and freshmen in her economics classes. For seniors, she says, there may be little time left before graduation to prepare well for weathering the current storm. But more and more freshmen are thinking about it

Pate says, “They ask, ‘What should I do now so that I look like a better candidate when I enter the job market four years from now, just in case the economy isn’t functioning well then?’”

Ana Castellanos ’81 is vice president for human resources with Oakwood Worldwide, a housing corporation based in Los Angeles that provides furnished apartments and other long-term housing options. Companies are looking for top candidates, she says, because they see hiring as an investment in two ways. First, turnover is expensive, so they have an incentive to hire people who will stay and advance. Second, companies, even in a downturn, are planning to be prepared for the eventual upturn.

“Candidates need to make sure they are educating themselves about the company they are interviewing with,” Castellanos explains. “Find out as much as you can about the company, but also find out what the company’s future is. I may hire you for Position A. But I might be thinking about Position B and C after that, because I know we’re going to spring back, and we want to make sure that we have the right players for the long haul.”

A Recent Graduate’s View
LMU alumna Snow Bui of Westminster, Calif., graduated in December 2008 with a degree in economics. She can’t go back three years in time to retool her career planning, and her goals to work in the financial sector and pursue entrepreneurial endeavors are on hold. “It’s going to be impossible for me or any other aspiring entrepreneurs to get any sort of loan from the banks to start a business. I’m forced to re-evaluate my options,” she says. “I will admit that I am concerned, but there’s nothing that I can do about the situation because these things are beyond my control.”

But Bui is far from fatalistic or apathetic. With the help of one of her professors, she organized a panel discussion that featured a trio of LMU economics experts. About 100 students attended, seeking explanations about the current economic crisis, such as what happens when a financial institution declares bankruptcy and the like.

Ask if there is a silver lining, and Bui replies: “Of course there is! The problems that exist today serve as opportunities for tomorrow’s entrepreneurs to find solutions. For me and other people like me who want to become entrepreneurs, we have to keep our eyes open and read a lot so that when opportunities come up, we’ll be able to capitalize on them.”

Then Bui adds the same sort of statement that Ensher, Pate and other national commentators have made. “More than anything, [this] forces people to live within their means. Once all the chaos settles down, we’ll be more responsible with our spending at the individual level and, hopefully, at the business and government levels,” Bui says. “We’ll be smarter and stronger. As a nation, we’ll recover, and we’ll look back one day and say, ‘Look, we were able to live and endure in the face of economic adversity. If we were able to pull through that, then what else can we overcome? We can do anything.’”

Jeremy Rosenberg is a Los Angeles-based writer. His "The Great Call of China" appeared in Vistas (Winter 2008).

Turning Around the Downturn

Good advice for job or internship seekers is “Make yourself a stronger, more hire-able job or internship candidate.” Here are a few ways to do it:

be prepared for every interview
know your strengths, weaknesses and values
identify skills you’ve acquired outside of the classroom or workplace
research your potential employer
research your potential employer’s competitors
figure out how employers will benefit now and later by hiring you
if you plan to do one internship, consider two
identify someone who can be your mentor and seek his or her advice
network, network, network.

Lifetime Job Resources

LMU Career Development Services (www.lmu.edu/cds) offers job-seeking services for both students and alumni, including LionJobs, a Web site available for posting and finding jobs and internships. If you are an alumnus or alumna who works for a company with job openings or internships, e-mail careers@lmu.edu and write “LMU Alumni Referral” in the subject line. Include your contact information as well as the names and contact information of human resources professionals you wish to connect with your fellow Lions.