With four (or five) years of school completed and a diploma in hand, spring graduates will be ready for the real world in three weeks.

Now, their only need is a job.

Aran Cross, a senior in finance and information systems, hasn’t had any luck in finding a job, despite his registration with Fisher College of Business Career Services one and a half years ago.

“I’ve looked on the Fisher Career Services Web site, but there’s not much there,” Cross said.

Current obligations consume most of his time, but he hopes to secure a job by the time he graduates summer quarter.

“This summer, I’m going to get on top of things when I have more time,” Cross said. He hopes to find a job in corporate finance.

Luckily, offices around campus offer various services for undergraduates in their quest for a career.

“We help with the basics – cover letters, resumes, mock interviews. We make sure (the students) are really prepared,” said Pam Park-Curry, director of undergraduate Career Services within the Fisher College of Business.

In addition to working individually with the students, the office serves as a bridge between the undergraduates and employers.

“We work hard to meet and connect with employers to get them to come to campus to interview students or post (available) positions,” Park-Curry said.

The office also visits OSU organization to provide tips and advice pertaining to job searches.

“We strongly encourage you to use our services very, very early,” Park-Curry said. “We work with many (spring graduate) students as early as autumn quarter.”

Park-Curry advises business majors to register and post their resume with the career services office during autumn quarter of their senior year to gain a heads-up on the competition.

Completing an internship before graduation won’t hurt either.

“Students with internships fare better. They have experience and more to talk about in their interviews,” Park-Curry said.

Last spring, 64 percent of business graduates had finalized their career plans at the time of graduation.

Rosemary Hill, director of Engineering Career Services, encourages students to begin their job search early.

“One year after graduation, I think 95 to 97 percent (of students) have jobs – absolutely, especially if they have actively looked for a job,” she said.

“Students should start in August. Employers are often in our office in October and November,” Hill said. “In addition, semester schools have a head-start on us by one month.

“It’s really frustrating when a student comes in May. We know we could have helped them sooner,” she said.

In addition to interview workshops and resume reviews, Engineering Career Services offers three gateways to connect students to employers.

An interview program allows employers to visit campus in search of eligible undergraduates.

“We can have 10 to 15 employers per day,” Hill said. “It’s a fabulous opportunity. They can’t beat the convenience.”

The office completes resume referrals for employers as well. If an employer consults the career services office about a particular position, the office searches its collection of resumes for a qualified candidate.

Engineering students need only to submit their resume to the office and maintain an updated version throughout the year.

“We query our database for employers. It’s a free service for employers and a bonus for students,” Hill said.

Engineering students who begin their job search early and actively continue for the remainder of the academic year have more success in securing a job by graduation than students who don’t.

At graduation last spring, 50 percent of all engineering undergraduates reported employment and 15 percent reported plans for continued schooling. However, 84 percent of those who registered with career services confirmed employment.

“When the job market tightens up, opportunities are going to the best-prepared and those who are actively searching,” Hill said.

Erin Holden, a graduating senior in sociology and criminology, has finalized her employment plans.

She’ll be working as a case worker with the AmeriCorps program in Baltimore, Md.

“I’ll work with at-risk youth – youth who have been in the juvenile justice system,” Holden said.

She began her job search at the beginning of January.

“At the (Arts and Sciences) Career Services Office, I picked up some information on resumes, but I did alot of work on my own. I searched online and talked to friends who have already graduated,” Holden said.

She found the job position on the AmeriCorps Web site and submitted her resume and cover letter.