Orlando, FL – In an April 5th New York Times article author Jeffery Selingo outlines the three types of college job seekers and their paths to a career. The three types are classified as Sprinters, Strollers, or Stumblers and the direction they tend to set off for in their journey. The challenge to universities and their career services departments are to figure out which students are whom and match a career direction made for their personality. But first universities need to understand who these student are.
Sprinters he contends, arrive at college with a plan for what they want to be and what career they wish to pursue and do not deviate from the path no matter how difficult. While sprinting does not designate they finish college any faster, the metaphor is used more to acknowledge their straight line path to their first job. Strollers are more casual in their search. They tend to change majors and are not in a hurry to decide a career path before graduation. They may go through phases of intense interest that eventually wanes. However, strollers will eventually find a path that gets them to graduation and a career. Finally, Stumblers may or may not graduate on time but once they do they are not in a hurry to embark on a career. They may hold down jobs or dabble in a career or two but these students revel in the live exploration of their career possibilities and some may just not be ready for a career and are happy with the flexibility of leaving their options open. Fortunately, all three Florida Consortium offer career exploration opportunities that fit each respective career search type.
At the University of South Florida Sprinters were introduced to the first Tampa Bay STEM Summit. The purpose of the summit was to highlight the diversity of career choices for students pursuing STEM and to allow students to explore their potential careers in a focused and organized environment. Students who attended were able to network with companies who hire STEM majors, hear from leaders such as Florida U.S. Senator Marco Rubio and keynote James J. Wynne, PhD, a senior member of IBM’s Research Headquarters. These types of interactions are important for Sprinter students because they reassure direction, give clues about career possibilities, and allow skill development.
For Strollers, volunteering can be a great way to explore possibilities and make connections for future career exploration. At Florida International University they are giving Hospitality students just that chance. Students at FIU have the opportunity to volunteer and intern at the South Beach Food and Wine Festival. The festival gave over 1,200 students nearly 4,000 volunteer shifts in everything from event management to crowd flow and event decorations. These types of experiences are important for Strollers because they can try out multiple opportunities in one event and this can give them a better sense of how the work feels and if they are truly invested. Strollers like to sample opportunities like food festival goers like to sample dishes from all over the world.
Finally, the University of Central Florida are allowing Stumblers to find their way through events like the Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition. The competition is designed to allow college entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas and to get real-time feedback from a panel of experts. Stumblers are the types of graduates who enjoy the challenge of starting their own company and striking out on their own because they enjoy the flexibility of being their own boss. UCF offers a number of opportunities for Stumblers to start up their own business such as the Blackstone Launch Pad, which assist students with idea development and securing funding.
College is a great time to explore career choices but not all students are built the same. The universities in the Florida Consortium understand this and provide students a myriad of opportunities whether you are a Sprinter, Stroller or Stumbler.
The Florida Consortium of Metropolitan Research Universities aims to produce more career-ready graduates with lower debt, better training and workforce skills that meet the demand of Florida’s growing economy. The Florida Consortium is a collaborative endeavor between Florida International University, the University of Central Florida, and the University of South Florida. Operationally formed with consultation and support from the Helios Education Foundation, the Consortium will grow the number of degreed professionals and positively impact Florida’s economic development. Consortium institutions serve 47% of State University System total enrollment and 54% of the state’s undergraduate minority enrollment.