Do companies not recruit on college campuses these days?

[arminnie]

I hear so much about recent college graduates who cannot find jobs for months (years) after their graduation. In the past many (most) students lined up jobs prior to graduation via campus interviews.

Now I am older than dirt - but as a woman 50+ years ago (back when everyone swears women were not allowed to have professional jobs) I had two excellent job offers by March of my senior year. In today's dollars each had a starting salary of about $65,000.

It was nice having a job all lined up long before graduation. Same when I got my MBA. I spent the last quarter traveling for "fly backs" to go to interviews.

Of course all of that is ancient history - so I was wondering if anyone actually interviewed on campus anymore.

 

[mnrose]

The School of Science and Engineering (where my son attends) has a fall and spring "career day" with representatives from dozens and dozens of companies at each event. Could even be hundreds. It's huge. Now, of course, these are very "in demand" professions, so maybe that makes a difference? My son attended his first and will actively be seeking an internship during the second in a few weeks time.

 

[Southernmiss]

I hear so much about recent college graduates who cannot find jobs for months (years) after their graduation. In the past many (most) students lined up jobs prior to graduation via campus interviews.

Now I am older than dirt - but as a woman 50+ years ago (back when everyone swears women were not allowed to have professional jobs) I had two excellent job offers by March of my senior year. In today's dollars each had a starting salary of about $65,000.

It was nice having a job all lined up long before graduation. Same when I got my MBA. I spent the last quarter traveling for "fly backs" to go to interviews.

Of course all of that is ancient history - so I was wondering if anyone actually interviewed on campus anymore.

Companies still recruit on campuses.

Not sure why you question this.

Ds got his real job after working an internship where he first connected through an on campus fair.

There are now a lot of college candidates for jobs, maybe that has changed in the last 50 years.

I'm aware of others who got their jobs with on campus career days.

 

[arminnie]

Companies still recruit on campuses.

Not sure why you question this.

Ds got his real job after working an internship where he first connected through an on campus fair.

There are now a lot of college candidates for jobs, maybe that has changed in the last 50 years.

I'm aware of others who got their jobs with on campus career days.

I question this as I hear so much about how impossible it is for college grads to find a job. People act like it is so hard to even get an interview. Getting an interview is easy if they interview on campus - but one does have to make a good impression to go further.

There have always been a lot of candidates - but usually anyone who was motivated and had a decent record could find employment.

 

[Southernmiss]

I question this as I hear so much about how impossible it is for college grads to find a job. People act like it is so hard to even get an interview. Getting an interview is easy if they interview on campus - but one does have to make a good impression to go further.

There have always been a lot of candidates - but usually anyone who was motivated and had a decent record could find employment.

There's probably as many reasons as there are students who have trouble finding a job.

Our dil has a Master's in marketing. Her first job out of college was not directly linked to her major. But it was a stepping stone to the job she got in November-a year after graduation- at a different company.

There are fields that are easier to break into than others.

Sil's degree was too specialized. She went back to school and got a nursing degree which opened more doors for her.

Could be location. Maybe some degrees more in demand depending on where you live.

It is true that there are more college graduates today than ever. That adds to those looking for jobs.

Also, bachelor's degrees don't go as far as they used to. Students I know are at least getting Master's degrees and more, if they can afford to. Bachelor degrees are hardly a foot in a door.

 

[Katy Belle]

Companies still recruit on campuses here in Oklahoma. The highest GPAs, most involved, cream of the crop, seem to get the on campus interviews, and then interviews at the company. Those graduates have jobs lined up before graduation.
The graduates with lower GPAs, less impressive resumes, have a harder time getting the on campus interview. At the job fair, you can hand out your resume to every company, shake hands,etc, but it may not result in an interview.
DS graduated with a 2.86 , or something like that. MIS degree. He got a few on campus interviews, but not invited to a second interview. After graduation he started working with a recruiter (head hunter) and got a decent job.

 

[NotUrsula]

At my DS' school, there are two job fairs each semester: one for business and STEM seniors, and one for everyone else. The specialty fair includes actual on-the-spot interviews, but the other one does not unless you independently applied for an advertised opening beforehand and arranged to do your interview during the fair. The general fair is more of an information table situation; it seldom generates follow-up interviews.

DH & I are bracing for the likelihood that it may take DS up to a year to find FT employment. However, I certainly don't expect him to get one that earns over $50K -- entry-level jobs like that are truly rare outside of a very few highly in-demand sectors. My guess is that any offer he gets will have a salary in the high 20's.

Also, FWIW, you & I are about the same age, and the situation regarding on-campus hiring was actually worse at my large state school back then. I graduated right into the Oil Bust of 1983, and even the engineers didn't get offers that year. (I had a roommate who graduated with an engineering BS in the winter of '82. She took an offshore job as an Oiler to make ends meet and pay her loans, and finally got an engineering offer from a paper mill after 6 months of that. She was on it like white on rice, even though it meant moving to a place she really didn't like. She dealt with the WORST sexual harassment on that drilling platform, and even though she was a really tough person, and it paid well, she kissed it goodbye as soon as she could.)

 

[georgina]

I'm sure it depends on the field among other factors. DD with a computer science degree had her pick of offers in the fall of her senior year. She goes back to her campus each fall to recruit, also to the Grace Hopper conference, trying to get some more women to work with. Nothing beyond a bachelor's degree needed there.

Other DD made contact with her current company in the spring of her junior year, and had interviews and a job offer by the fall.

 

[bcla]

Companies still recruit on campuses here in Oklahoma. The highest GPAs, most involved, cream of the crop, seem to get the on campus interviews, and then interviews at the company. Those graduates have jobs lined up before graduation.
The graduates with lower GPAs, less impressive resumes, have a harder time getting the on campus interview. At the job fair, you can hand out your resume to every company, shake hands,etc, but it may not result in an interview.
DS graduated with a 2.86 , or something like that. MIS degree. He got a few on campus interviews, but not invited to a second interview. After graduation he started working with a recruiter (head hunter) and got a decent job.

I wasn't really that serious about getting a job directly out of undergraduate studies, so I applied to grad school and waited for then. I didn't really avail myself of the numerous opportunities to interview on campus. At UC Berkeley there were lots of campus postings of which companies were coming on campus for outreach, although many didn't seem to be for any kind of scheduled interview system.

I haven't been there in years, but I remember back in graduate school our campus recruiting was extremely regimented and wasn't based on providing any direct information to the employer. We had some sort of signup system where we could request interviews with the employer of our choice at the campus career development office. I think there was also some element of chance in getting an interview, but I managed to get 3 of the companies I really wanted. There was also one really hot company (Silicon Graphics) I was hoping to join and I managed to land a slot. I believe the onsite interview I got for my first industry job came out of that campus interview system.

However, on the job I've done a few campus job fairs. We didn't do any interviews per se and weren't really asked to do a whole lot other than represent our company. One was referred to as a "diversity fair" for otherwise underrepresented candidates, but the vast majority of the student I saw were white and Asian. My job there was simple. I'd answer simple questions about what our company did/what kinds of jobs were available, accept resumes (all went to HR and many were directly viewed by our hiring managers), and tell prospects to submit a resume to our HR director email to have on file. Most of the time it went OK, but there was this one student who just seemed to cop an attitude. When I handed over our HR business card and told her to send an electronic copy of her resume to HR, she flat out asked me if it was a waste of time to hand over a paper copy. It wasn't just that she was asking it, but a tone and almost an air of entitlement. I probably should have added a note to the resume indicating that the student had a bad attitude.

 

[ashley0139]

I'm currently getting an MBA and going through the on campus recruiting process (which is currently making me nauseated from anxiety about it). Definitely still a thing.

 

[amcnj]

Recruiting efforts can also vary based upon the economy. I remember some years when the number of recruiters was way down and some companies that did attend said they were there basically to maintain a relationship with the college, but weren’t hiring.

 

[SteveH]

My oldest is at University California, San Diego working on his Masters and it sounds like they have a ton of business recruiters on campus. He did his BS at a small private University that didn't have near the draw that UCSD does. But I think much of is how much the student is interested in those businesses and how engaged they are. I was impressed with the major companies that were recruiting but also how many start up's were there as well

 

[RedAngie]

DD graduated this past June from UC-Santa Cruz. She had four or five on-campus initial interviews, and was called back for additional interviews from two companies at their off-campus locations, finally deciding to accept an offer from one of them.

My first job out of college resulted from a campus recruiting job fair.

 

[Poohforyou]

My daughter's university has career fairs for jobs and internships. She went her freshman year just to see who was there and what it was like. She had some nice conversations with people but there wasn't anything there for her at the time.

We've also seen companies recruiting at events and conventions.

 

[Christine]

My son's college was heavily recruited. But the majors they were heavily recruiting for were finance/accounting, engineering, and computers. Fortunately he was in one of those fields and had his job offer by November of his senior year.

My DD's school (which was different) also had heavy recruiting in certain majors. She was in a soft major and had little-to-no recruiting that applied to her. She struggled with getting a decent job for about a year.

 

[Mickeypooh99]

arminnie did you attend Stanford? My DS is a freshman there now. He just finished his first quarter before winter break, and he loves it there. He says there are always recruiters on campus. He is looking for an internship this summer, but kind of hoping he can get something close to home in Michigan.

I know a few recent college graduates who have found work. It's just not their ideal job or their dream job. I think a lot of them may just be holding out for the perfect position.

 

[cvjw]

My son graduated last May with a masters of taxation and was heavily recruited on campus. The big accounting firms invite the undergraduates to summer conferences one year, then to do internships the next year, and then full time employment after that. My son had his full time job lined up a year before he graduated.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Getting an interview is easy if they interview on campus

I graduated 3 years ago and I'm now heavily involved in on-campus recruiting for my employer so I can give experience from both sides of the table. In short, yes, employers do still recruit on campus but as PPs have mentioned often times they are for certain in-demand degrees. I graduated with a chemical engineering degree and our engineering department had a fall and spring career fair, both of which hosted over 100 companies each year. I went to both every year just to practice, then eventually to try to land an internship or FT job. Our university also had a general career fair at least once a year that was open to all majors.

This is where things might have changed, according to your statement above. When I recruit now, in the 5-6 hours I'm at a career fair I get at least 100 resumes. Usually at least 60 of these are stellar students, great people, with good interactions and would probably do just fine with our company. BUT I have to narrow that 60 down to the 10-15 time slots we have available for on-campus interviews and then narrow that down to 5-6 to actually bring on site. To say it is competitive is an understatement. Getting good grades and being in one club doesn't cut it. Leadership, proven communication skills, teamwork abilities, networking, people skills- it all has to come together.

 

[motherof5]

I hear so much about recent college graduates who cannot find jobs for months (years) after their graduation. In the past many (most) students lined up jobs prior to graduation via campus interviews.

Now I am older than dirt - but as a woman 50+ years ago (back when everyone swears women were not allowed to have professional jobs) I had two excellent job offers by March of my senior year. In today's dollars each had a starting salary of about $65,000.

It was nice having a job all lined up long before graduation. Same when I got my MBA. I spent the last quarter traveling for "fly backs" to go to interviews.

Of course all of that is ancient history - so I was wondering if anyone actually interviewed on campus anymore.

They had career days when I was in college but didn't have interviews on campus.

 

[tvguy]

With unemployment at a 50 year low, it makes no sense to me that a College Graduate has to wait months or years for a job. Their "dream" job maybe, but a job, no way.
Yes, my company sends managers to Colleges to recruit, USC most recently, and Professional conferences. Our owners offer a fellowship program where recent College Graduates are given a paid position and places at a location for a year. We even started offering PAID Internships to get people in the door....we've had one person hired, he lasted week. He went to work at Chick Fil A for $5 hour more! I did all my internships for College Credit only.
My wife's company also sends managers out to recruit. They too have a fellowship program through their owner, and they have been offering students jobs 2 and 3 months before they graduate.

We currently have 20 jobs open in my department, we have 88 authorized positions, so a big chunk of our jobs are open. Some open for over 2 years. Job applicants, especially those right out of College, seem to have salary and benefit expectations that exceed what we offer.