The job market is shifting, and both regular employment and internships are morphing into various virtualities, disappearing, or frozen in the what ifs of the shelter-in-place orders both across the country and close to home. However, although it is shifting, it seems to be adjusting to new needs and standards relatively quickly. 

Kelsy Bensky, a career advisor with Sonoma State’s Career Center, said, “We are working really hard at the Career Center to learn about what’s happening in the economy and to identify new resources for our students that will support their career development, now and in the future.” 

Career Services Coordinator Audra Gray Verrier is excited about the Virtual Career Week coming up soon, along with career advisors Bensky and Becky Sandoval Young. Young acknowledged that while the format isn’t necessarily new, the scope of the joint virtual event is beyond anything they have previously done. 

“I do imagine we will have some issues to work through, and adjustments to be made but the career team is practicing what it might be like so that we can address any issues that arise,” Young said.

Virtual Career Week, May 5-7, will look different than all of us are accustomed to, but it will involve that interactive element that can’t be found scrubbing through listings on the web. Another way it will differ is that Santa Rosa Junior College is co-hosting the event, so students from both colleges will have access to the same group of employers in one joint career fair.

For students who prefer the face-to-face, guaranteed, immediate demand job opportunities afforded by making the rounds at Career Fairs, approaching everything online can be overwhelming and frustrating. 

Students may be wondering how this will work and what kind of jobs will be available. Verrier thinks they have come up with a good plan that will feel as close to a real event as possible. Students will have to pre-plan a bit more than they would for a regular come-and-go setup with all employers present at once, but the face-to-face interaction may actually be more meaningful than two minutes at a bunch of booths in the real world.

According to the Career Center’s email blast last week, “Each employer will have a specific date and time during which they will host a 75-minute virtual ‘booth’ and will have a Zoom link associated with that session. You will be able to sign into your Zoom account and use the link provided to connect with each employer.” 

Young said, “Each day we will have 3-4 tracks. Each track can host up to 5 employers throughout the day.”Pull quote: “Once we get more employers registered we will email out students who might be interested in specific tracks with the times that employers will be hosting the Track.” –Young]”Students can pop in when they want to talk to an employer, ask questions, get advice and learn what job opportunities are available. I would suggest that if a student is interested in a track they pop in when each employer is hosting the room.”

The official list of employers sits at 25 at the moment, but Bensky said this is normal at this stage of planning and more employers are signing on daily. The event can accommodate up to 50 employers with the tracks currently planned just like an in-person Career Fair, and Bensky is confident students will have plenty to choose from.

Graduating seniors, especially, are feeling the pressure of the shifting landscape. “While we are always available for any Sonoma State students or alumni, we are currently focusing our efforts to specifically support our graduating seniors who will have the most significant challenges to address in the coming months,” Verrier said.

The new Graduating Senior Hours program was designed for that purpose. Each session will begin with an informal workshop and Q&A session, and follow with dedicated drop-in hours for seniors looking for more one-on-one assistance. It’s a good place for seniors not just to find support navigating their post-graduate transition in this uncertain job climate, but to connect with other seniors about their job search process.

“We are struggling to get a pulse on how students really feel because for every student there is a different challenging scenario they are up against right now,” Verrier said. “And all of this on top of the grief that they may be experiencing related to the pandemic itself, and the possible loss of loved ones.”

Verrier explained that while all students are being impacted by the changes in the job market, certain SSU students are more impacted than others. “We are seeing that low-income families are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and all of the associated impacts and consequences of this. We have to work even harder to support our first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented students right now and we want them to know that we are here to support them,” said Verrier.

Although the Student Success & Advising Zoom Lobby room is open for  drop ins Mon.-Thurs. from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., not as many students have taken advantage of them as they would like to see yet. Verrier said, “Right now we haven’t seen high numbers of drop-ins, and our assumption is that this is due to students just really getting settled in with remote work, adjusting their work to the remote setting, or the loss of jobs, being back home and all of the challenges of this transition.”

The Career Center is taking this all in stride and working hard to provide students not only resources, but reassurances. Verrier said, “It is hard to be in the shoes of students, and honestly, I can only share what I am seeing, which isn’t the full spectrum.” 

Young said they have roughly 5000 jobs posted on Handshake right now compared with the 6000 that is typical for this time of year.  The numbers aren’t down as much as they thought they might be, and this is good news for all students looking for work. 

So, if students are looking for employment stop by the Virtual Career Fair and see what’s out there.