By JEANETTE JOHANSSON
October 15, 2006

We all come here to the Abbey hoping to learn the skills for our future job. But how many of us learn the skills actually to get it?

It comes to a surprise for some of us when we realize that a B.A. is not going to be enough. We also have to figure out how to land a job. You have to make an everlasting impression on the person interviewing you -- from the moment you send in your cover letter with the resume to the thank you note your prospective employer needs to receive from you within two days after your interview.

There are other items to consider should you land that interivew. How many of you knew that we are supposed to be able to answer these kinds of questions: “Why should we NOT hire you? What bothers you the most about other people? During the last year, how many days were you absent from school? Tell me about the your proudest accomplishment? Who was your toughest boss?” You need to prepare yourself to answer such questions before they get asked of you.

Your appearance is another factor. There are certain details that will help you to give a better impression. When you go to your interview, make sure there is no dirt under your nails. Most hiring managers will notice something like this when they reach to shake your hand. Ladies, managers won’t be impressed if long nails might prevent you from doing your work. It looks cute, I agree, but they are not always functional. Also, brush your teeth one extra time so that the manager will remember your ideas, your skills, and your personality instead of what you ate for breakfast. Brush, floss, and use mouthwash. It is also a good idea to avoid strong perfume or colognes. And, of course, do not forget to use deodorant and antiperspirant. If you suffer from hand sweat, rub a little on your hands and you will have a nice dry handshake, too.

There are many other details to remember to help make as close to a flawless impression as possible. Here at the Abbey we are lucky to have Mr. Matt Caporale at Career Services and Internships to help us out with these things.

Mr. Caporale says that “the Office of Career Services endeavor to provide complete career development services in a welcoming, educational environment.” He adds, “We believe that the path to success is through the awareness of your personality, interests, skills, faith, and values and developing a career development plan that meets your individual needs.”

Services provided include individualized career planning, coaching, and development; FOCUS, an online career assessment instrument; an online internship, job, and resume posting database; numerous local, national, and international internship contacts; a weekly email of opportunities; help with resume and cover letter writing; help preparing for interviewing; information on graduate schools, as well as a graduate school fair; on-campus recruiting and interviewing; career fairs; and other seminars, workshops, and networking events.

Mr. Caporale notes that “employers and graduate schools look for relevant experience.” Through something like an internship, you will “learn new skills and develop existing ones, make connections between the classroom and the ‘real world,’ try out potential careers and see which one ‘fits,’ [and] make new contacts that can help with later job searches.”

Instead of walking into your first job interview blindly -- or not getting one at all -- go pay Mr. Caporale a visit in St. Leo’s 102 and ask him to prep you for an interview or help you to find an internship position this upcoming summer. He can also be reached by phone (704-825-6874) or by email (matthewcaporale@bac.edu). Good luck!