UTEP grads prepare for life after college, job searching

A recent survey published by USA Today shows 57 percent of employers are willing to hire grads fresh out of college this year. That’s up from 53 percent last year, and 44 percent in 2010.

Nearly 2,500 graduates are preparing for the University of Texas at El Paso’s centennial celebration commencement May 17. Some know where they’ll be working after graduation, others aren’t so sure.

“I’m hoping to go to law school within the next year, hopefully in January,” Debbie Ortega said while buying graduation items at the UTEP Bookstore on Monday.

“I had interned in (Washington) D.C. for the last two summers where I was an auditor for a federal agency. This January they actually extended a full-time offer,” Itzel Figueroa said.

About 200 graduation orders are waiting in the UTEP Bookstore. They include caps, gowns, tassels and other commemorative goodies.

“I’m really excited but nervous at the same time, but I’m prepared,” Ortega said.

The University Career Center helps current students, those who have graduated within the last year and members of the UTEP Alumni association find a job free of charge.

“We tell students start looking two semesters prior to graduation, because the recruiting cycle, the application cycle, is a lengthy one,” Betsy Castro-Duarte, associate director of the career center, said.

For those not walking this semester … upcoming grads like Figueroa offer some advice.

“I definitely recommend for everyone to start looking for a job. Perhaps volunteer or shadowing and start to build themselves up to getting a full-time job before they graduate,” Figueroa said.

A survey conducted several months ago for Careerbuilder shows major companies are looking to hire more college grads this year. Thirty percent of employers surveyed even say they’re willing to offer comfortable salaries in the $30,000-40,000 range. A bit of hope for graduates set to begin the next chapter in their lives.

Companies are looking for business graduates, computer and information sciences, and science, technology, engineering and math majors, according to the survey results.