Michelle Schraudner
Life Editor
Known as one of the most affordable colleges with high starting salaries for graduates, Idaho State University aims to give students the tools to succeed in any economy.
Looking at in-state tuition and graduates’ starting salaries, affordablecollegesonline.org placed ISU 15th on their list.
One factor influencing ISU’s rank is the employment rate of graduates. According to the ISU Career Center, 82 percent of graduates from the class of 2012 are employed. The College of Technology alone has a graduate job placement rate of over 91 percent.
On the Career Center’s website is an employment survey of recent ISU graduates, usually sent to them six months after graduation.
“It shows the different colleges, what percentage of students are employed, what the average salary is, how long it took them to get a job after graduation, plus where they live, what part of the United States they live plus some of the companies that they got jobs from,” said Lance Erickson, director of the Career Center.
A survey from the class of 2013 has not yet been conducted in order to give grads time to find employment and get settled.
The Colleges of Business and Health Sciences both boast an 87 percent employment rate for graduates from 2012. Grads from the College of Science and Engineering had the highest average starting salary at $42,866.
The Career Center’s survey doesn’t include graduates from the College of Technology. That college has its own comprehensive survey of students.
For students currently unsure of their career plans, or who have yet to pick a major, Erickson recommended they visit the Career Center’s website for information on majors and career fields.
A helpful tool for students who are undecided on their major is the “What Can I Do with This Major?” page on the Career Center’s site. The site has an extensive list of majors, accompanied by the most promising career paths for each major.
“This isn’t going to give information about job areas that are really not viable,” Erickson said. “It’s not going to give you bizarre information. It’s going to give you things like, ‘The majority of people who major in history go in these directions.’”
Choosing a minor that complements a major can also make a student more hirable. Erickson gave the example of an education major adding a Spanish minor, which would give the student a big advantage in today’s job market.
“I think there’s some great things to major in and then minor in something you have an interest in. That’s a great balance,” said Erickson.
Although starting a career with a high starting salary right away may sound ideal, Erickson recommends finding a job field that is both interesting and promising.
“For a long time, people have said, ‘Do what you love.’ I am an advocate of that but school is expensive and finding good jobs isn’t as easy as it has always been,” Erickson said. “There is a balance there. You need to find something that you’re interested in, that you’re passionate about but also something that’s going to provide some good job security and job availability.”
Erickson said some students ask him what career field would provide a stable employment opportunity. However, he advocates choosing a career based on more than just money. “I’m an advocate of going in a direction where you know you can get a job but you also need to enjoy it and like the field. Be interested in it.”
For students looking for employment now, the Career Center hosts job fairs throughout the year. The Part-Time Job Fair will be held Sept. 4 in the Pond Student Union Ballroom. Erickson said he expects around 30 employers to attend.
For more information about career help while at ISU, visit the Career Center’s website at http://www.isu.edu/career.
