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More job seekers going back to school in hopes of competitive edge

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By Melissa Mixon Friday, 26 June 2009

For 11 years, Keith Pease worked at Dell, Inc., where, as the program manager, he helped lead a successful initiative that is now used companywide.

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But in October, just as the economy started to tank, Pease was laid off. Since then, he has scoured job listings, polished his resumé and — true to his management background — treated his job search like a project.

“I’ve spent 35 plus hours a week engaging in job workshops, going to career fairs and going after positions,” Pease, a 49-year-old Cedar Park resident, said.

He has also done something that he believes will make him stand out among the growing pool of job applicants: gone back to school.

With the tough and competitive job market, Pease is among a growing number of job seekers who are currently going back to school in order to get a competitive edge over other applicants.

Higher education officials in Austin and north Austin, which is home to several universities and professional certification programs, have reported a growing number of applicants for master’s and associate degrees as well as specialized certification courses.

At Austin Community College, officials are reporting record numbers. The college saw a 13 percent increase in the number of students enrolled for its spring semester. The college normally budgets a 2 to 3 percent growth in applicants for each year, and this spring, for the first time ever, the number of applicants outpaced those for the fall semester, said Brette Lea, a spokeswoman for ACC.

“We’ve seen, just since the economy kind of took a tumble, skyrocketing numbers,” Lea said.

The University of Texas’ graduate programs also have seen increases in the number of applicants for the fall semester. Currently, there are roughly 23,515 applicants for the university’s programs, while last year there were 21,263.

Officials with St. Edward’s University reported an almost 20 percent increase in the number of applicants for graduate school over this time last year. And, at St. Edward’s University Professional Education Center in northwest Austin, there is a growing interest in obtaining specialized certifications.

At a recent monthly informational meeting on the center’s project management courses, 66 people showed up. The average number of attendees prior to that meeting was 20 people, said Rudy Rodriguez, managing director of the center.

“People are looking to find a way to differentiate themselves, and they’re looking to update their skills or polish those skills they currently have to give them a market differentiator,” Rodriguez said.

It is understandable, as the pool for qualified applicants has swelled, he said.

“One [employer] posted a job that paid fairly well,” Rodriguez said. “She got 1,500 resumés.”

Trying to standout

Two nights a week for eight weeks, Pease commuted from his Cedar Park home to the St. Edward’s Professional Education Center. There, he attended three-hour-long classes on project management. The course, which wrapped up in mid-June, preps professionals for a project management certification exam that most take after the classes end.

Pease is well-aware of how stiff the competition for jobs is. After months of trying for a job, he still has not found one. While at Dell, he worked as a hiring manager and said that he used to get 25 to 30 resumés that, with a quick glance, could be narrowed down to five candidates. Now, he said, employers get 25 to 30 resumés and all are “top notch.”

That is what led him to the classes to obtain his project management certification.

“I believe it will certainly make me a stronger candidate because now when it asks that question about whether I’m certified, I’ll be able to answer yes,” he said.

Classmate Bobby Aziz shares the same sentiment. In mid-December, he was laid off from his IT project management job at Level 3 Communications, where he worked for eight years.

Like Pease, 44-year-old Aziz plans to get the Project Management Professional certification when the classes end.

Without it, he said, there are some jobs he cannot even apply for, and a lot of companies are now using the certification as a weed-out tool for filling a job.

Does more education equal a job?

Judy Armstrong, the owner and manager of Career Services of Austin, a job training and placement agency in northwest Austin, said having a professional certification or continued education absolutely makes a difference in today’s job market.

“I’ve seen it happen,” she said. “And I’ve seen employers ask for it.”

Armstrong said a certification, especially in this economy, appeals to employers because it shows that the candidate has a sincere interest and the ability to follow through and complete the certification.

But a lengthy and extensive academic background alone, however, will not necessarily land you a job. Experience, in addition to education, will, said Alan Runge, provost of Concordia University.

Runge said companies now are less willing to spend a lot of money developing and training somebody, so if a candidate has a master’s degree but no work experience, it could actually play to their disadvantage.

“You’ve still got to develop a good resumé that says, ‘I’ve got a master’s degree, but I’ve also got this experience,’” Runge said.

“Education can be a trump card, so long as it makes sense. They’d much rather take a well-rounded, educated, fast learner,” he said.

Making financial sense

As a recruiter for Career Consultants Staffing Services, a job placing agency serving Central Texas, Grant Simpson has been especially busy at his job.

Simpson said employers that his agency works with are not asking for more education from applicants, and none of his clients have said that they were laid off because of a lack of education.

The decision to go back to school — and acquire debt while doing it — has to make both financial and practical sense, he said. Some jobs will not require more education, but with others — especially the mid- or upper-level management business positions — a bachelor’s degree has almost become the equivalent of a high school diploma, he said.

Bridget Davidson, director of the Center of Academic Progress for St. Edward’s, said in this economy it does make sense to invest in education.

“We all know the money we’re putting in our 401(k), and it doesn’t look great,” she said. “At least with putting money into your education, you know it’s going to appreciate.”

Enrollment and applicants increase

Tips for landing a job

In this tough economy, with sometimes hundreds of candidates all vying for one job, some job seekers believe that by going back to school and getting extra certifications, they can beef up their resumés and stand out to employers.

But, career consultants and college officials say that an extra line about education on your resumé is not the only thing that is helpful for landing a job in this market. Employers are now pickier than ever, scrutinizing everything from how you dress in an interview to how your resumé looks in print.

Grant Simpson, a recruiter for the staffing agency Career Consultants Staffing Services, offers these tips on how to impress prospective employers and, potentially, land the job.

Create a good resumé.
- Have friends and former colleagues proofread your resumé. Also, try looking online for standard formatting tips and examples of good resumés.
- “When I receive a resumé, if they’re not topnotch and error free, they go to the bottom of the list,” Simpson said.
Dress sharp but also dress for the job you are applying for.
- As Simpson puts it, “Don’t show up for a construction job in a suit.”
Do not talk about your personal life during a job interview.
- “It should all be about what I can do to help you solve a problem,” Simpson said.
Treat the job search like a full-time job.
- Simpson suggests spending six to eight hours a day looking for work. Also, make sure that time counts. Do not just apply to jobs online — go to job fairs and networking events. The more resources you have, the better.