Career Services finds your future

If you’re a film studies, theater arts, music or any other similarly artistic major, you’ve… If you’re a film studies, theater arts, music or any other similarly artistic major, you’ve probably heard more than enough about how it’s impossible to find a job in your particular field. Luckily, Career Services is here to tell you (almost) the exact opposite.

Career Services provides similar support to students of all majors, of course, but they can be especially valuable to those liberal arts majors with little or no idea of what to do with their impending degrees.

The career consultant for liberal arts majors is Carrie Timlin. While she acknowledges that “it’s a little bit harder to get these kinds of jobs,” she has plenty of information and ideas available to make it a little bit easier.

The first opportunity Timlin cited was the most obvious, the fall 2007 Job and Internship Fair. Particularly important for arts majors is the second day of the event, Oct. 4, which carries the encouraging title of “All Other Majors Day.” At the fair, students can apply for important internships and full-time positions. It will be held on the main floor of the William Pitt Union from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Timlin put particular emphasis on the next key date, the Pathway to Professions Networking Event on Oct. 18.

“Networking is so important in these fields. I can’t stress it enough,” she said. While the Pathway to Professions event isn’t geared towards any specific major, that doesn’t lessen its value.”

The event brings together Pitt alumni from dozens of different fields to dispense advice and help to form valuable career connections. Although the event is open to all Pitt students, advance registration is required and can be done easily and free of cost at http://www.alumni.pitt.edu/pathway. A more specialized event, the Creative Careers Seminar, occurs Nov. 9. Geared toward students majoring in fine arts or performing arts, as well as other fields, it will be held at the Student Center at Carnegie Mellon University.

While these events are great ways to get started, they are just the beginning in the potentially long search for a well-fitting career. At the Career Services website (http://www.careers.pitt.edu), Timlin’s personal page contains dozens of links that will be of interest to film, theater and music majors. She stresses that while graduate school is often a valid option for those with liberal arts degrees, it is not the only one. Before choosing to tread that path, she encourages arts majors to explore every possible option.

For those in the film or theater arena, there are links to theatrical and artistic organizations both local and national, from the Pittsburgh-based Talent Group to the Entertainment Recruiting Network. The immediate resources for music majors are somewhat less bountiful, but they are still there if you look for them.

The most basic service that Career Services provides is the reassurance that it’s not the end of the world if your degree doesn’t guarantee a certain kind of job.

“Networking, networking, networking,” Timlin said to sum up the most important point for liberal arts majors to consider.

This is why Pathway to Professions could be an important event for anyone who is not completely sure what he intends to do after graduation.

You can make an appointment with Carrie Timlin by calling Career Services at 412-648-7130. She also holds open hours on Wednesdays from 1 to 4:30 p.m.