A Message from Lindsay Scott, HPU’s Director of Corporate Relations

Dear Parents,

With so much uncertainty in the world right now, there is indeed uncertainty in our nation’s job market. In my role, I work with employers excited to hire HPU students for internships and graduates for full-time employment. The good news is employers are still hiring! Things are being done a bit differently, but many employers are still planning to proceed with summer internships and are still hiring for full-time roles. One key difference is that much of the interviewing and hiring process will be done virtually.

The job market is not the same as it was prior to this national crisis. Some companies will be forced to reduce pay, institute hiring freezes and potentially lay-off employees. In your professional roles and spheres of influence, I am sure many of you are seeing this happen. Here are a few tips for how you can best support your child as they search for employment:

• Encourage them to attend virtual webinars with the Office of Career and Professional Development. Every topic related to virtual hiring and landing a job during these unusual times will be addressed.
• Encourage your student to schedule a phone or video appointment with their Career Advisor. The advising team is prepared and ready to help students remotely. Students can schedule an appointment by going to the following link https://bookhpuoocapd.timetap.com/
• Encourage your student to dedicate a substantial amount of time to connecting, researching and doing the work required to secure an internship or full-time job. These tough times will end, and those who are diligent in networking, applying and most importantly, following-up, will be the first considered when an opening occurs. This is the time to be a highly active job seeker! Simply applying online through the myriad of “job boards” is not enough. As you know, most jobs are not advertised, and as many as 75% of jobs are found through networking connections.
• Students and graduates must be flexible in what they are looking for. While at HPU and through enriching life experiences, students have developed life skills that are transferable into many types of jobs. Many employers do not put a huge emphasis on a student’s academic major, rather, they focus on how teachable and coachable the person is, how quickly they can be trained and learn to adapt. Students will need to be creative as they think of ways to apply their skills to a variety of industries and positions.
• Students must remember to search for opportunities where they can learn new skills so they can use those skills in their next role.
• Follow the Office of Career and Professional Development on Instagram @hpucpd and Facebook at HPU Career and Professional Development to keep up with virtual offerings. The team is working tirelessly to provide excellent workshops to ensure that HPU students and graduates are ready to transition from college and into the workplace.

Below you will find a schedule of upcoming webinars hosted by Career and Professional Development. You can find instructions to access these events on both Instagram and Facebook. If you have any difficulties accessing these webinars, please email [email protected]

Please know that I am here as a resource for both you and your student. Please reach out if you have questions about how HPU is continuing to engage with employers.

Sincerely,

Lindsay D. Scott, ‘13

Director of Corporate Relations