PEORIA —
Emily Wolffe had to interview for 4 1/2 straight hours and wait four months for a phone call, but she finally got the job she wanted.
Wolffe, who graduated from Bradley University on Saturday with a degree in mechanical engineering, was one of many college students who rode the roller coaster known as a job search this school year. She was hired in February at the Edison Engineering Development Program in Cincinnati, Ohio, as a mechanical engineer.
Wolffe’s journey is just one example of the experiential learning, as Jane Linnenburger called it, that Bradley University students gain as undergraduates.
“We want to give our seniors an idea of what it will take to succeed and provide a strong support system to help them do that,” said Linnenburger, executive director at Bradley University’s Smith Career Center. “We saw a 34 percent increase in the amount of employers at our job fairs this year which increased student attendance as well.”
Linnenburger said 11 percent more Bradley undergraduates were employed before graduation this year than in 2011, indicating that although the job market has taken a major hit since the economic collapse in 2008, it is showing signs of recovery.
“We’ve heard from employers that things have improved, and we’ve experienced healthy recruiting from August to May,” Linnenburger added. “We had an increase in students with multiple offers to consider, so they seemed motivated the whole year because they had the opportunity to be more selective.”
According to a report from Rutgers University – “Chasing the American Dream: Recent College Graduates and the Great Recession” – for the college graduates interviewed who are currently working, the job search was short. Almost a quarter found a job within two months of starting their search and just about half found a job within the first six months. The report reflects the results of interviews with 444 graduates of four-year colleges and universities from the classes of 2006 through 2011.
Wolffe, a native of Germantown Hills, epitomized that opportunistic approach by embracing all employment opportunities throughout her senior year. Her current employment with Edison Engineering Development Program came after a strenuous schedule of online, over-the-phone and in-person interviews, including a trip to Cincinnati in October involving hours of interviews with multiple professionals and the four-month waiting game before the phone finally rang.
“I was offered a full-time position after interning at Archer Daniels Midland this year, but I knew it wasn’t really for me,” Wolffe said, admitting the risk in turning down a guaranteed paycheck.
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