RIVERSIDE, Calif. (May 30, 2014) -- Some spring 2014 graduates at California Baptist University are returning to the CBU Career Center to get assistance in their job search.

While some did not take the time to go to the center before receiving their degrees, others just need a little more help, said Mike Bishop, associate director.

"Whether it's OPS (Online and Professional Studies), graduate students, or even traditional students, they're coming back for mock interviews or actually redoing mock interviews," Bishop said. "Some are looking for help on their LinkedIn profiles. A number of students are asking for resume assistance."

In addition to these services, the Career Center offers help with job searches and conducts career fairs, employer presentation weeks and a professional etiquette dinner.

One example of the center's work was when the chief engineer for the Pearl Harbor Naval Station called because he heard CBU's engineering school was strong, Bishop said. Earlier this month about 15 students attended a general information session about being an engineer at the naval station, and the engineer interviewed 12 of them two days later at the Career Center.

Instead of just waiting for the students to come, the Career Center recently has become more intentional in reaching them, Bishop said. The center is working with deans and professors to promote its services, and it has more than 900 followers on Twitter.

 "We're also being asked by a lot of professors to come in and actually teach a class," said Chelsea Dirks, career counselor/internship coordinator.

"We're experiencing a lot of successes, from not only the events, but from the counseling, from the interviews, where students are coming back and voluntarily saying, ‘I got the job. I'm employed.' So there's a nice outcome from the work," Bishop said.

The Career Center is not just for seniors. Bishop and Dirks said they encourage all students to visit at least once a semester.

"We want freshmen to begin using us from the very beginning, even if it's ‘I'm not sure what my major is going to be. What are the career options in this major?' We do help all levels," Dirks said.

 "We're here to align their education with what may be out there in the job market and to show them how to do that," Bishop said.