University of Virginia Library

Placement Service Uses Computer

A computerized service that tells
degree candidates how well their
career interests and qualifications
match with specific job opportunities
is available this year in the
Office of Placement.

The new service, announced by
the University's placement director.
Lawrence A. Simpson, is provided
at no cost to students through
arrangements with Placement
Research, a division of Placement
Publications, Inc. The Placement
Research computerized job matching
service is described by Mr.
Simpson as "a very valuable adjunct
to the expanding career counseling
and interview program being
developed in the University Office
of Placement."

"The Placement Research service,"
he said, "is a carefully
planned system which was successfully
tested last year in the placement
programs of Michigan State
University, Rutgers University, University
of Rhode Island, and the
University of Maryland. The service
provides students an excellent
opportunity to remove some of the
guesswork and hit-or-miss aspects
of interviewing."

Mr. Simpson explained that the
Placement Research computer has
stored a large number of job specifications
from employers seeking
students from this year's graduating
class at the 25 universities now
participating in the program.

Career interests and qualifications
of students are indicated
by completing a brief Placement
Research coded questionnaire.
Student data is then compared to
the job specifications of the participating
employers and students
receive a report of up to 25 of their
best job "matches" ranked in order
of suitability. For each match, the
report specifies the complete name
and address of the recruiting company,
the job title, location of the
opening, if and when the company
is interviewing at the University of
Virginia, name of the interviewer,
and an index showing the degree of
the job match.

The system is flexible since
students may change or update
their original questionnaire as
needed. The computer will then
search the job bank and provide
another report of the best job
openings based on the revised
questionnaire.

"This system is designed to serve
all degree candidates," Mr. Simpson
said, "who are interested in business
or industry employment.
Grades do not enter into the match
score, nor do ethnic or family
background, or religious affiliation."

"The system places smaller
employers on an equal footing with
larger and more well known companies,"
he continued, "and it helps
open students' eyes to career
opportunities in fields they may
not have considered. Further, the
system supplies information which
helps both students and employers
to make preliminary contact before
the scheduled interview. It also
makes it possible for students to
arrange for off-campus interviews if
an employer is not sending a
recruiting representative to the University."

Mr. Simpson cautioned job
seekers that the Placement
Research computerized system is
"only a more effective and rational
means of matching candidates with
employment opportunities and that
it does not guarantee jobs. "It
expedites contact," he said, "but
does not substitute for the interview.
The student, in an extremely
tight employment market, must still
sell his skills and abilities to the
prospective employer."