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The American construction industry labor force is standing in the shadow of a historically unprecedented hurdle. A number of factors are contributing to a pending, severe labor shortage. The two factors most widely recognized as contributing to this shortage are the baby boomer generation’s impending retirement, and the declining rates of young people entering the construction industry. The latter of these causes is likely due, in part, to successful campaigns to send American youth to colleges. United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data indicates that “since 2001, the college enrollment rate for recent high school graduates has been trending upwards”1. Scott Shelar, Executive Director of CEFGA, the official construction program accrediting organization for the Georgia Department of Education, said, “This whole insistence in going to college to be successful may be a reason construction is down, but it’s simply not the case.” While it may not be necessary to go to college in order to be successful in construction, it can certainly help, and for many people it is a smart career move. With more young Americans entering college each year, the construction industry needs a way to encourage these students to enter construction, and also a way to find them. Moreover, these students need to know how to enter the industry, and what hiring managers are looking for in student candidates.
Rhiana Barr is the Corporate Human Resources Manager for Morrison Homes. She specializes in talent acquisition, and recruits all of Morrison’s executive staff. She also launched a college recruiting campaign for interns at the University of Florida. To say the least, she knows something about hiring people with college degrees. During a recent interview she revealed that her college recruiting campaign has been a success and spoke about it in detail. “This year, we helped division presidents. We had them submit project proposals to me, and I paired interns with projects most interesting to them.” It was, at its simplest, an exercise in supply and demand. She first identified which divisions had need, and then supplied them with an intern. For all her internship positions she “paired interns with projects that would really entice them.”
With more of America’s youth going to college after high school rather than directly entering the labor force, the construction and homebuilding industries need a way to directly connect with talented college graduates who may be interested in the construction industry and pair them with internships and entry level positions that will really entice them. TopBuildingJobs.com is proud to launch its College Ambassador Program in an effort to address this exact need. This unique program creates an individual and specific website for each college, where their students can upload resumes and search for construction jobs. TopBuildingJobs.com hires a Student Ambassador at each school to promote construction jobs and encourage students to search for them through our job board. Meanwhile, firms can search these student resumes with the added ability to search within a specific academic institution. Top programs, alma maters, and particular locations can now be targeted with ease. Hopefully, having a student at each school directly promoting construction careers will result in increased interest in not only our College Ambassador Program, but also construction and homebuilding jobs in general.
These Student Ambassadors also provide a perfect example of the Number 1 thing you can do as a student to get a great construction internship or job. Here, as promised, are the Top Five Things a Student can do to break into construction:
- Get Experience! Rhiana said that she always focuses on what the student has done. “We know you don’t have lots of experience, but be proud of what you’ve done!” Did you just take classes, or did you go out there and pick up a part-time job? Becoming a Student Ambassador is a great way to show your interest in, and learn about, the construction and homebuilding industries!
- Get Active! Besides part time jobs, have you joined any student organizations? What have you done to exemplify your interest in the construction industry? In your experience and activities, you can show you are passionate about construction, even if you are not in a construction major!
- Go to Resume and Interviewing Workshops! Ms. Barr noted that most of the students she interviewed acknowledged knowing about resume or interviewing workshops offered by their school, but very few had actually utilized them…and it showed! These skills can make that crucial differentiation between you and an otherwise equally qualified candidate.
- Be Honest! Many college students, due to a lack of experience and insecurity about future plans, feel obligated to spice up their resumes or make up some future career path. Rhiana says, “Don’t lie, we can see right through you,” and “Take time to think about where you want to go, if you don’t know where you want to go, be honest! That’s why I’m talking to you guys!”
- Follow-through! Ms. Barr said that “follow through has been lacking the past few times” she has interviewed college students. Take the time to write a note to her. After a day of interviewing hundreds of interested students, receiving a note makes her sit back and say, “wow.” It shows your “professionalism,” when you “reach back out to that rep after doing research about the organization.” For example, you could write a note saying, “Thanks for taking the time to interview me yesterday. When I got home, I went on your website and looked up your Leadership in the Making Program. It looks fantastic, I’d love to talk to you more about it some time.”
Be sure to visit ConstructionJobsBlog.com and the TobBuildingJobs.com Career Center this week to find out more about the condition of the construction and homebuilding labor market, as well as more tips and advice for high school and college students interested in a career in the industry.
1: College Enrollment and Work Activity of 2006 High School Graduates. April 26, 2007. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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