Meramec’s Career Specialists Help Students Make the Transition
By: CASSIE KIBENS
Production Manager
Students graduate every semester from St. Louis Community College- Meramec, and according to Rita Reinhardt, Career Specialist for Meramec, she is there to help guide them to a career that fits.
“No two days are the same,” Reinhardt said about working as a career specialist.
There are different opportunities at Meramec to prepare for life after community college. The Career Services office has three career specialists students can go to for hour-long planning sessions. Reinhardt said she sees about 3-4 students a day ranging from helping students get up from rock bottom to helping students find jobs to apply for.
“I don’t sell the trendy positions to students,” Reinhardt said. “As soon as I tell you that something is in demand, you’ll major in it and it may not be in demand in those two years it took you to graduate.”
Reinhardt focuses highly on streamlining the process to help students find a career for them and to provide the right information for them to leave the appointment feeling better about life after Meramec.
“My motto is that we need to find what you are interested in and go from there,” Reinhardt said.
One way students can get ahead in finding the career for them is through the career fair. This year Meramec is combining all three career fairs into one large spring career fair in March. Career fairs feature 75-100 employers and Reinhardt advises students to call the office to receive a list of the employers in advance.
“There is so much that goes into the job search process you can never be over-prepared,” Reinhardt said.
Reinhardt stresses that students need to create a plan. Taking a career assessment test and getting involved in clubs that are affiliated with the career you are interested in are two ways to guide students in the right career direction.
“I’ve gone through this and I’ve failed; I’m talking about 200 resumes, master’s degree in hand and could not find anything because I had no plan,” Reinhardt said. “I definitely needed a mentor and documents to showcase my skill set.”
Reinhardt said she no longer looks into the “trendy” degrees but rather recommends getting a degree with the most skill sets because that is what companies are looking for.
To contact the Career and Employment Services department, students can visit Clark/Administration Building, Room AD-249, call 314-984-7611 or email at CES@stlcc.edu. Hours are Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
