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Opportunity Not Knocking At UT Job Fair

Tribune photo by MICHAEL SPOONEYBARGER

Fewer employers are turning up at job fairs such as the one at the University of Tampa last week.

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By ADAM EMERSON

aemerson@tampatrib.com

Published: October 11, 2008

TAMPA - Professionally dressed and eager for an interview, Lauren Hillsgrove roamed a University of Tampa job fair last week and searched for employers who would accommodate her chosen career: public relations and event planning.

She found none.

Hillsgrove, a senior at UT, visited the same job fair a year ago, when recruiters filled nearly two-thirds of the gym. Now, she has $100,000 in student loans to repay and prospective employers trickled into just a third of the gym.

"This is the worst time for us to be graduating," she said, after spending an hour talking to recruiters and coming up empty.

The same frustration has roiled many would-be job candidates who are ready to graduate from college during what some have called the worst economic meltdown since the Great Depression.

Local college career counselors are reporting hundreds fewer jobs on their message boards and recruiters are absent from job fairs that they visited just last year.

Among the smattering of banks and federal departments at UT's job fair last week were restaurant chains and retail outlets looking for store managers; rental car agencies; insurance groups; and independent companies offering pay-by-commission sales jobs.

For some students, moving to another state is a better option

"A lot of my friends who graduated in May are living with their parents," said Kristen Benoit, 21, an advertising senior at UT who's from Dade City.

The job forecast, however, is worsening nationwide. Companies surveyed by the National Association of Colleges and Employers this fall said they planned to hire 6.1 percent more new graduates, down from 16 percent a year ago.

But even that figure may be overly optimistic. Officials with the association said its current estimates likely are inaccurate because a third of the companies surveyed said the souring economy will affect their hiring projections.

Unemployment rolls are swelling by millions nationwide, and the jobless rate for Americans is at 6.1 percent. It's worse in Florida, where the unemployment rate is 6.5 percent.

A 'Paralyzing' Search

The trends are borne out in job postings available to students. There were 455 full-time jobs posted on UT's electronic career service from June to October, a 45 percent drop from the same time last year.

The university's job fair hosted just 35 companies, down from nearly 50 a year ago.

Although graduation is months away for most seniors, it takes an average of six months to find a job in a good economy, said Tim Harding, UT's career services director.

To students, news of a deepening recession "is almost paralyzing in some ways," Harding said. "They almost feel there are no jobs."

Where students do find jobs, they also find increased competition. Graduates aren't just competing with one another, but with seasoned professionals laid off from their old jobs or looking for other work, said Drema Howard, the director of the University of South Florida's career center.

Although 175 employers visited USF's career fair this month, that number is down from 215 a year ago, Howard said.

"We still have employers coming to campus," Howard said. "The difference is how they're recruiting. Employers are looking to replace people. There's not this large amount of openings out there."

Missy McPherson, the recruiting manager at Raymond James Financial, said the company is filling jobs, but admits that students will find that "it's going to be a little tougher."

More of its competitors are slashing jobs nationwide, so Raymond James is drawing more talent from other states, McPherson said.

It's not just financial firms squeezing out job prospects, however. Student after student visiting recruiters at UT's job fair expressed the same disappointment: There were no jobs for the skills they had and they had few skills for the jobs they wanted.

Better Luck Elsewhere

For many, repayment of student loans looms upon graduation, so finding a job is paramount.

Channon Goodman, a UT senior majoring in criminal justice and a former Marion County firefighter, has $60,000 in student loans. The call center where she was working downsized and cut her job, and Wal-Mart reduced her weekly hours as a customer service manager.

She found possibilities with the federal agencies offering employment at the job fair, including work at U.S. Customs and Border Protection. But they told her that the hiring process takes about 1 1/2 years.

"I don't have a year-and-a-half," Goodman said. "I'm freaking out."

Not all is lost, Harding said. Most vacant jobs aren't posted, so students must network, he said. Students have to be inquisitive and strike up conversations with potential employers during their day-to-day lives.

Graduates also will find more options if they're willing to relocate, Howard said.

"I think they have to adjust their expectations," she said.

Darren Rubin already has adjusted. The 30-year-old Wesley Chapel resident will hold two master's degrees from UT by the time he graduates in December.

Rubin is interested in working with a biotechnology start-up company, but he found no luck at the job fair, and has found no luck elsewhere in the region.

"I'm thinking I might have to move out of state," he said.

Reporter Adam Emerson can be reached at (813) 259-8285.

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