AU students seeking employment should use spring break to maximize their job search, according to Amit Puri, a career adviser at the Kogod Center for Career Development.
Students should participate in informational interviews, job shadows and networking opportunities over the break, Puri said in a job search presentation last Thursday.
Although the unemployment rate is near 10 percent, Susan Gordon, director of Career Development at the AU Career Center, said she is still hopeful for AU students' job prospects.
"The job market is in the recovery," Gordon said.
In December, the job search Web site juju.com released a "Job Search Difficulty Index for Major Cities." D.C. was listed as the city in which it was least difficult to get a job.
Gordon also said that more students, especially seniors, are looking for internship opportunities rather than full-time jobs.
Jobs right now come primarily from the federal government, she said.
About 27,000 jobs were created in the D.C. area from November 2008 to November 2009, many of which were federal government-related jobs, according to the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University.
The Career Center will host the Job Search Crash Course, a job and internship fair, on March 23, a week after spring break. Gordon said about 83 employers have already registered for the job fair, and she hoped to have over 100 employers come to AU this semester.
She also said students should consult with career advisers and begin their job search early.
"We are providing one-on-one advising to help students search for jobs and internships through various online databases," Gordon said.
Megan Carpenter, a junior in the Kogod School of Business, said she has applied to the Republican National Committee for a summer job. She hoped to hear back from the RNC in April. Carpenter has interned previously for Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texas.
"[The job market] is not really tough this year [for current students]," Carpenter said. "But it is definitely tough for the students who graduate in May."
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