What Do University and College Career Services Departments Think About Career Athletes?
As the 2009 fall semester approaches, Career Athletes is working hard to schedule over 100 campus visit programs throughout the country during the 2009-10 school year. By the time these visits have been completed, Career Athletes will have conducted seminars at over 900 institutions since 1998. It is often overlooked that, while on campus, Career Athletes is not only working with Athletic Departments, but Career Services Departments as well. Partnering with both departments enables Career Athletes to enhance our clients' relationships and reach with the institution as a whole, and also maximizes the student-athlete experience.
So what exactly do career services departments think about what Career Athletes has to offer? Here is Judy Rychlewski, Director of Career Services at William Jewell College, with her thoughts regarding Career Athletes:
I want to recommend a program offered by Career Athletes (formerly, Athletes4Hire). I was first introduced to their career program for athletes in the spring of 2008 when they conducted two sessions on our campus for athletes - one for underclassmen and one for upperclassmen. Our former athletic director, Jim Redd, and several coaches attended as well. They used William Jewell as a venue for videotaping the sessions.
First of all, I would like to say that in preparing promotional emails and flyers, I was impressed with the testimonials and other materials they provided. However, it wasn't until during and after the program that I really understood the value of what they had to offer. I have used their concepts, website and materials numerous times in working with student-athletes. Career Athletes helps the athlete recognize and articulate his/her value to employers. They help the athlete understand that being a student-athlete is a job, and the athlete doesn't need to feel diminished by not holding down part-time jobs and internships while in college. I liked the affirmation and confidence they instilled into our athletes, giving them 25 adjectives to use in describing their traits. They explained how to use http://www.careerathletes.com/ to find employers who are seeking individuals with collegiate athletic experience. They handed out a fantastic career booklet to help the athlete go through some self-discovery exercises in order to determine where the student fits and what s/he has to offer. They talked about their business card template, resume and cover letter templates and interview preparation. They were upbeat and encouraging - everyone went away saying, "WOW - why haven't we taken advantage of this sooner!"
Jim Redd, the coaches and I also went away wishing we had found a way to mandate the attendance - DJ had encouraged us to do this, and he was right. Given an option, students will be students and miss programs that aren't required. This is the kind of program ALL of your athletes need to hear.
DJ Washington and the rest of the Career Athletes leadership team are well connected to the employment community. They seek relationships with employers and coach HR representatives, hiring managers and student-athletes in marketing themselves to each other. I have had nothing but admiration for DJ and his colleagues. I feel very fortunate that this organization is headquartered in our community and that we have easy access. As a small college, we have the opportunity to take advantage of the outstanding services that the big universities have successfully utilized for some time now.
I wholeheartedly recommend Career Athletes to you for your consideration. Feel free to contact me if you have further questions.
- Judy Rychlewski, Director of Career Services, William Jewell College
