Worried about a job after college? Start looking now

Despite the economic gloom-and-doom, graduating seniors shouldn’t despair over finding full-time jobs, college counselors and employers say.

Of 10 businesses surveyed by The Virginian-Pilot, eight said they expect to increase or hold steady the number of full-time hires and summer internships this year.

“There’s just a little bit of constriction,” said Tom Wunderlich, assistant dean of career management at Old Dominion University. “There has not been a significant drop-off” in recruiting.

“What that means is, it’s going to be a little tighter and a little tougher for students who have not started early,” he said.

Yet even some early birds are finding slim pickings.

Bryan Stephens, a communications major at ODU, started searching in January for a job in public relations or human resources. He hasn’t landed anything yet.

“I at least figured that somebody would be very interested, bringing me in for interviews and whatnot,” said Stephens, 21, of Danville. “I’m nowhere near that right now.”

In the meantime, he’s trying to get another internship at the company he worked for last summer. That will give him more time – and another notch on his resume.

The National Association of Colleges and Employers, in its annual job outlook for college graduates, predicted 8 percent growth in openings, the smallest increase since 2003.

Another survey, by the Chicago consulting firm of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, found that only 12 percent of 100 human resources officials planned to reduce recruitment of college seniors.

One reason the economic downturn isn’t cutting into recruiting more, said Edwin Koc, the research director at the colleges and employers association, is the advent of another trend: the increase in baby boomers who are retiring.

The “steady attrition for the next decade” is keeping Norfolk Southern Corp.’s hiring constant, at 150 new management trainees this year, said Rick Davison, assistant vice president for human resources.

Other companies report increases in entry-level jobs or internships: Cox Communications in Hampton Roads is more than doubling its interns, to 15 from 7 last year, spokeswoman Felicia Blow said.

KPMG, a national accounting firm, expects 2,800 new hires this year, up from 2,650 in 2007. Its Norfolk office will get 18 of those positions, compared with 17 last year, said Dave Crainer, the chief recruiter locally.

“Everyone needs their taxes done every year,” he said. “Bankers and lenders continue to require audits of our clients. The economy does not affect that.”

Northwestern Mutual Financial Network, a financial services firm, is increasing the number of full-time hires locally from 10 to at least 12 and the number of interns from 3 to at least 12, said Diane Dempsey, its area recruiting director.

“Right now, people need us the most,” she said. “In hard times, they need to be more careful with their money.”

Some businesses in the finance sector are cutting back: TowneBank expects 15 summer interns, down from 18 last year, said Kim Ritter, vice president of human resources.

Troubles in the U.S. housing market forced plumbing supplier Ferguson Enterprises to scale back, from 850 hires out of college last year to a more usual rate of 350, spokeswoman Denise Waters said.

The cutbacks have thinned the ranks at some college recruiting fairs. Summer Jobs Fest, held Thursday at ODU’s Webb Center, drew 31 employers, down from 38 last year, Wunderlich said. ODU’s major career fair, in March, had 152 employers, down from 166.

Virginia Wesleyan College did not hold its annual fair because of the economic downturn, said Lisa Fentress, associate director of career services. But Norfolk State University attracted 100 recruiters in the fall, up from 84 a year before, said Nash Montgomery, the director of career services.

The career counselors say jobs are plentiful in information technology, engineering, teaching and the federal sector.

“Salary levels are still going up,” Wunderlich said, and more employers are offering signing bonuses, which can reach $6,000 or one-quarter of the first-year salary.

The only area where he sees a significant decline: the service sector – retail openings, for example.

ODU senior Julian Zavala, 29, a finance major from Colombia, has discovered success following the tips given by career service directors: Start your search early. Find summer internships.

Zavala isn’t graduating until December, but he said he already has a full-time offer with the real estate company of William E. Wood, where he has interned since last year.

Other seniors, though, haven’t been as proactive.

David Andre, 22, a communications major from Virginia Beach who attends Virginia Wesleyan, said he hasn’t started looking yet. But he predicts his internship experience and a polished resume “will be good enough to get a job.”

Ramonica Williams, who will graduate from ODU with a criminal justice and sociology degree, said she has a good reason for delaying the search: She wants to focus on classwork.

But she plans to follow another piece of advice from career counselors: Be flexible.

Williams, 36, of Hampton, is open in terms of relocation, hours and salary. “To me, any pay is better than zero.”

With options such as law enforcement and corrections, she foresees few hurdles landing a job. Confidence rules the day for many college seniors.

Sharmane Holeman, a sports management major at ODU, is looking for an internship with an athletic program or pro team. That, he said, will catapult him into a full-time job.

“You can’t be half-stepping at all,” said Holeman, 22, of Halifax County. “After I get my foot in the door, I should be able to outshine the competition.”

Philip Walzer, (757) 222-3864, phil.walzer@pilotonline.com

Jennifer Jiggetts, (757) 446-2643, jennifer.jiggetts@pilotonline.com