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Campus News - November 12, 2001 |
Spotlight
Parsons prepares, pushes students to enter work world
By Steve Carr
Drew
Parsons has a motto Get a job!
As manager of Advisement and Placement at the Robert O. Anderson School and
Graduate School of Management at UNM, thats exactly what Parsons helps
students do.
We have lots of success stories here, Parsons said. I feel
like I am the last guy they see in college and Im the one pushing them
out of the airplane saying Jump! Its time for you to get a
job!
Parsons responsibilities include recruiting high school students, freshman and sophomore outreach recruitment, academic
advisement center operations, job search coaching and placement services for
undergraduates, graduate students and alumni.
Also included in that mix are employer relations involving interaction
with organizations that are here to hire business students, Parsons said.
He focuses on the front end, the recruitment and outreach and on job placement, while the academic and advisement team handles everything else.Were really geared towards employers who have a specific interest in recruiting business students, Parsons said.
Were sort of a custom shop here on campus. We work with local,
regional and national companies for both part-time and full-time jobs and internships.
I think weve been fairly successful. Right now were averaging 85
to 90 percent placement rate within three months of graduation.
Parsons also teaches Career Management Skills, a seven-week seminar, at the
Anderson Schools.
We work students to develop their personal marketing skills - how they
present themselves on paper with cover letters, resumes and in person in an
interview, he said. We utilize community business people to come
in and conduct mock interviews. We also teach the basics on how to organize
a job search and how to evaluate an offer. Were a resource for the student
and the alums as well.
Parsons came to the UNM nine years ago when he accepted a position as an employment
representative in the Human Resources Department. Hes been in the Advisement
and Placement Office at the Anderson Schools for more than three years.
In his spare time, Parsons enjoys reading fiction, science fiction and fantasy
novels as well as skiing and lap swimming. Its not unusual to find him
skiing at Sandia Peak, swimming at Midtown Sports and Wellness or curled up
with a good book.
I like reading books that stir up the imagination, Parsons said. Yes, Ill read my Wall Street Journal, Fortune magazine and Business Week, but there comes a time when you really reach the saturation point and you want to get away from it all.
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