Graduation 2011 by The Standard at Missouri State University

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011

GRADUATION 2011

Table of Contents

Moving home?...................... 4 Becoming an adult............... 6 Graduation parties............... 6 Student loans....................... 7 How to get insurance........... 8 Refining your rĂŠsumĂŠ........... 9 Social Security?.................. 10 Tips on getting a job........... 11

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011

Moving back home with yo ur parents

Making the transition from college life back to family life By Sarah Bennett The Standard

While other graduates are celebrating the start of a new phase in their lives, Jonathan Hazelwood will be moving home to Kansas City the day after graduation to live with his mom for two months before he starts basic training for the Air Force. “I’m going to miss everything ... fraternity, friends, the social aspect, that doesn’t happen at home,” Hazelwood said. “It doesn’t happen like it does here. I’ve got three or four friends at home that I hang out with all the time. Here, I’ve got 30 plus that I see all the time, every day.” Come May 14, if you, like Hazelwood, are moving back in with your parents, you and your family need to be prepared for a big transition because, newsflash, life’s changed since you left home four or five years ago. “Once you move out, the routine of the house changes,” said Anne Orzek, a psychologist at the Counseling and Testing Center. Your first step in this transition should already be completed, Orzek said, and that is notifying your parents that you intend to move back home following graduation. Though your return may be welcome, it’s not something you should spring on your family the day of graduation. Thus, you’ve got some negotiating to do with your parents, Orzek said. How long will you be staying? What’s your curfew going to be? Are you going to do your own laundry? How are you going to contribute to the home? Are you going to pay rent, buy groceries, clean the house? Molly McDonald, a senior radiography major, said after studying in Springfield for two years, she spent two years studying at home in St. Louis — an experience McDonald does not want to repeat. “I had already lived on my own for

two years during my first two years of college, and then I went back home after doing everything my own way,” she said. “It was kind of hard to do things I wanted and live the way I wanted while they were controlling everything I did, essentially.” Hazelwood said he is worried about being independent for four years and then suddenly moving back in with his mom. “I actually wanted to stay here in Springfield for the summer months,” he said. “I was going to sublease for a girl that was doing SOAR, and my girlfriend’s also doing SOAR. It was going to be cool. I could stay here, chill, see friends, see my girl for a while.” What stopped Hazelwood was the inability to find a job, he said. “I look at it as a net loss,” Hazelwood said. “I can’t pay for it. My folks aren’t going to want to pay for it, so I’m just going to go home and live for free.” While this is obviously going to affect you and your parents, don’t forget your siblings who are still living at home, Orzek said. In your absence, they’ve most likely assumed a new role within the household. Finally, moving back home comes with the stigma that you somehow failed and your life’s in disarray. That’s just not fair. What’s shameful about free laundry and home-cooked meals?

Thoughts to consider Moving back home can add stress on top of graduating from college and the need to find a job. Here are some thoughts you should consider to prepare for the big transition. • The reason I believe I can move home after graduation and/or for the summer is… • I believe the most difficult part about moving home will be… • The person in my family who will be affected the most by my move home is… • I believe the best way to negotiate my financial obligation will be to… • The most positive aspect of my moving home will be… • I believe the biggest adjustment my parents will have by my moving home is… • The biggest psychological effect about moving home will be… • In moving back home, the routine

Michael Gulledge/THE STANDARD

Senior Jonathan Hazelwood, graduating from Missouri State this month, will be moving back home to Kansas City to live with his mom for a couple of months before starting basic training with the Air Force.

that will be most difficult to change is… • The area of my social life most affected will be…

• The area of my life currently that will help me most in adjusting to moving back home is…

May 3, 2011

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011

After graduation: 5 tips for handling real-world challenges

By Bobbie Sawyer The Standard If the excitement over graduating is slowly being overtaken by crippling panic and cold-sweat-inducing nightmares about an endless cycle of dead-end jobs of the nametag-and-hairnet variety, you’re not alone. But the uncertainty that comes with ditching college life and entering the real world is nothing to fear. The following is a guide to being happy, getting a job that doesn’t suck, not going (or staying) broke and becoming the mature, responsible and well-adjusted adult you always knew you could be.

Ask yourself what you want

Jenny Blake, author of “Life After College: The Complete Guide to Getting What You Want” and blogger at lifeaftercollege.org, said one of the first post-college steps should be examining where your true passion lies. “It’s really easy to be reactive with our lives, to just focus on what we have to do at our jobs and what errands we have to run and react to what everyone else is expecting of us,” Blake said. “One way to really focus on the big picture is to set some time aside — even if it’s once a month — to really sit down and think, ‘What do I want to create? What does my ideal day look like? What kinds of projects inspire me?’ and to get started on those things without waiting for anyone’s per-

mission.” Blake suggests creating a mind map, a diagram centered around the word “passion,” and looking for common themes.

Take risks

Raeanne J. Wright, Web designer and founder of CollegeAftermath.com, said postcollege life is the perfect time to cross off a few items on your life checklist. “Embrace that period in your life. You are free, essentially,” Wright said. “It really is the last moment to do whatever you want. I personally think it’s a great time to travel, maybe work a few odd jobs, to try something you never thought you would want to do.” Blake said being willing to take chances can help you discover a life-long passion, even if it doesn’t turn into a career right away. “So much of it is just trial and error, starting with what you do know,” Blake said. “What do you know that you love, or what are you especially talented at? What brings you joy in life? Whether that’s photography or travel or anything. I would say don’t worry about trying to make it into a career just yet. There’s so much value in just exploring.” Blake said taking risks can also mean having the courage to admit when a job inside your major or planned career path isn’t fulfilling. “I think, if you’re not feeling excited about it, it’s a good time now, while people are young, to do some exploration,” Blake said.

“As scary as it can be to break away from the path that they’ve created for themselves, they might be so much happier in the long run.”

Learn to ‘side hustle’

Whether you’re paying the bills with a 9to-5 desk job or a restaurant gig, chances are you may not be totally satisfied with your first post-college job. Blake said the “side hustle,” a money-making venture outside your day-to-day job, is a great way to supplement your income while working toward a long-term goal. “I think sometimes people give too much. They give everything to their job, and they don’t create a life for themselves outside of it,” Blake said. “Find things for a side hustle that are going to bring you joy, even if you’re not monetizing it right away. It’s a way to start building and creating an identity outside of your core job that is all about you.”

Be your own financial planner

As the great philosopher Kanye West once said, “Wait ‘til I get my money right.” Getting on track financially is a universal struggle and requires plenty of early planning. Blake said, when it comes to financial management, it’s best to take a proactive approach and understand your limits. “The first thing I say to people who are intimidated about their money is, ‘denial is not a financial management strategy,’” Blake said. “Ignorance is not bliss. So not knowing and

not having a handle on it is not helping anyone.” Blake suggests dividing your income into must-have expenses, such as rent, electric bills and car payments, and everyday costs, such as money spent on dining out and doing laundry. Whatever is left over should serve as your discretionary spending. Blake said free online tools such as mint.com, which allows you to manage all of your financial accounts at once, categorize transactions and set budgets, are a smart way to avoid drowning in student-loan debt.

Don’t limit yourself

Wright said happiness after college is sometimes dependent on the ability to adapt to changing situations and interests and to open yourself up to new possibilities. “I think the most important attitude to have when you graduate is just to realize that it’s going to take some time for things to work themselves out and that you might have to let go of some expectations,” Wright said. “You might have to be flexible on what your vision of yourself after school would be.” Blake said often the only thing holding graduates back from achieving greatness is themselves. “I’ve been amazed by how much is possible and how much we set our own limits. It’s not helpful, and so often we’re wrong about what we’re capable of,” Blake said. “You’re capable of so much more than you think.”

Springfield has many businesses that are helpful for planning grad parties By Nick Simpson The Standard

For college graduates, one of the most important aspects of their last few moments as college students is the graduation party in which they celebrate their hard work and time spent as students. But even preparing for an event meant to celebrate the alleviation of college stress can bring about problems of its own. Questions arise: Where should I hold the party? Who should I invite? What forms of entertainment should I have? What food and drink should I serve? And suddenly the familiar feeling of stress has returned, and your party might not sound like such a great idea anymore. But worry not, for Springfield has many businesses that focus specifically on helping prepare for the college graduation party and all the trouble that comes with it. Austin Todd, a senior in hospitality and restaurant management, is also a manager at Discount Smokes & Beer at 635 S. Kimbrough Ave. He said they prepare for a bigger influx of sales during the end of the

semester, but not just for kegs of beer. “The last week of the school year is a really good week for us because students are upon graduation,” he said. “With exams and high stress levels, we sell a little more alcohol. This is good for us because we do lose quite a bit of business when the kids go home for summer.” Todd said some of their alcohol is marked down to embrace the demand. “We try to have an end-of-the-semester sale where we mark down bottles of Burnett’s and Aristocrat, so the price is a little more effective for kids to buy it,” he said. “When kids are graduating, it’s their transition from (Natural Light) to Bud Light or Budweiser. So it’s pretty interesting how they change their ways when they’re starting a salary job; it makes a big difference.” But let us not forget, if you are serving alcohol at your graduation party, it is especially important to be wary of the guests in attendance and, more importantly, their age. If you expect to host a large number of minors, it may be a smart idea to have a responsible friend tend the bar. If you don’t

have any responsible friends, it may be even smarter to hire a bartender. Another facet of the college graduation party is preparing adequate supplies such as decorations and eating utensils like plates and silverware. For many students, Party City on 2840 S. Campbell Ave. is a one-stop shop. One of the most important aspects of the graduation party is feeding your guests, and there are many restaurants and delis around the Springfield area ready to cater to your needs. Among these are obvious businesses such as Dillons, Subway or Blimpie, and other not-so-obvious places like Qdoba and Pasta Express. Dillons serves party trays year round for a number of different and is also adequately prepared to accommodate a number of college graduates. They serve meat and cheese trays as finger foods, or to complement sandwiches, with prices generally ranging between $24.99 and $29.99. They also offer ready-made sandwich trays with prices ranging from $9.99 for sandwiches by the foot to $24.99 for large sandwich trays.

Photo Illustration by Matt Kile/THE STANDARD

Graduating students can get help around town to throw a “memorable” grad party.

By far, the most important part of each graduation party is the guests. Make sure you give each of them enough time to respond to your invitations by mailing them as soon as possible — the earlier the better. It is in the company of others that each occasion is accented to its brightest. The most important time in nearly every college student’s life should be no exception.

May 3, 2011

GRADUATION 2011

What students need to know about paying back loans By Amanda Hess The Standard

With summer right around the corner and seniors worrying about multiple things already, there is one more thing they should worry about: loans. Unless seniors are going to attend graduate school right away, they are expected to start paying their loans back once they graduate. Tom Masterson, a senior elementary education major, said he hasn’t given a lot of thought to his college loans. “I get statements in the mail and stuff, but for the most part, I ignore them because there isn’t really much I can do about them right now,” Masterson said. “Once I graduate and get a job, I will start paying them. I will pay as much of them as I can right now because I want to get them paid off sooner (rather) than later.” Jackie Lewis, assistant director to the loan unit of Missouri State’s Office of Financial Aid, said she oversees all loan processes. “Students don’t usually realize there is a six-month grace period for their payments,” she said. “They usually don’t have enough knowledge about consolidation. From what I understand, they haven’t read what the federal organization has online for them.”

Sara McClendon, a senior public relations major, said she graduates in December and has not really thought about her loans until recently. “Honestly, at this point, if I graduated tomorrow, I wouldn’t even know where to begin,” she said. “I wouldn’t know where to call or send the check. I haven’t really thought about them much before. It was one of those things where I was conscious of how much I was taking out, but since I didn’t think it was much, it didn’t matter.” There are some very important things that all students need to know about their loans, but few actually know about them.

You have a grace period

Seniors will have a ticking timeline of six to nine months after graduation before they have to start making payments on their loans. Lewis said there are many different payment plans for your loans, and students should try to figure out which one is best for them. “The best advice I can give them is to be in contact with their lender,” Lewis said. “Their lender keeps them in check with how much they owe and all the options they have. If they (students) are having problems with paying them back, they can talk to their lender about deferments. Their ultimate goal is to keep stu-

dents away from default.”

You have options

The Federal Student Aid website lists six different payment options for students. Depending on what a student needs, plans can give you from 10 to 25 years to pay loans off as well as graduated payments that increase over time or payments based on your income. With students taking out multiple loans through the course of their college lives, consolidations are something students should consider, Lewis said. “Consolidations will have to be handled through federal, like all their other loans,” Lewis said. “This allows students to have one payment instead of multiple payments from all the individual loans. With consolidation, your interest rate is a median of all your previous loans.” When students can’t pay their loans, for whatever reason, they need to contact their lender, Lewis said. “Deferment is when a student goes to school or graduate school and the feds pay your interest,” she said. “Forbearance is when interest accrues but payments are stalled. You can do it online, but it is best to talk to your lender so they know all the ins and outs of your problem.”

The biggest thing students should do is stay away from defaulting their loans, Lewis said. “Default can be extremely serious,” she said. “It can show on a credit report and keep them from buying a house or car. They can garnish your wages, take your tax money back. Some states need state licenses for certain jobs, and they can revoke those licenses. It is always good to keep in contact with your lender.” Students should not fear quickly going into default, Lewis said. “It takes a long time to default, and from the time you are delinquent to the time you default, the lender is trying to contact you the whole time,” Lewis said. “They aren’t exactly calling to collect money but to help. Students default because they ignore the lenders’ pleas to try to help them.” Federal Student Aid also outlines many ways students can be forgiven of their loans if they work in a specific field, such as teaching or certain health care fields.

You have information

Lewis said students should go to the National Student Loan Data System at www.nslds.ed.gov to get all the information See LOANS page 11

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011

Health care available until 26 By Megan Gates The Standard Stop. Take a look in the mirror. If you don’t see Superman looking back at you, you might need to brush up on your health care knowledge to protect yourself in the future. “A lot of times, young people think that they are invincible,” said Deb Wiethop, media contact at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri. “Even if you’re young and healthy now, it doesn’t mean that will always be the case. So having health insurance is really important.” Americans in their twenties are twice as likely to go without health insurance as older adults, Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said in a conference call. Approximately 1.2 million Americans will be able to gain insurance coverage this year as the Affordable Care Act allows young adults under the age of 26 to stay on their parents’ health insurance plans. “In 2011, students will be the first to graduate with the ability to stay on their parents’ health insurance plan until age 26,” Sebelius said. “We have graduation right around the corner, and we’re working to make sure that everyone has the information they need to make the most of the law’s new benefits.” Prior to the passage of the Affordable Care Act in September 2010, students could only stay on their parents’ health insurance plans if they were under 19 or if they were enrolled as full-time students. “With the Affordable Care Act, young adults can stay on their parents plan up to age 26 as long as the plan already covers dependents,” Sebelius said. Young adults under 26 can stay on their parents’ plans regardless of if they are married, living outside the family home, enrolled in school or financially dependent upon their parents. However, until 2014, if young adults are eligible for coverage through an employer, they cannot stay on their parents’ plans. “If you are in a situation, though, where you do not have employer health insurance available to you, you can re-enroll in your parents’ plan,” Sebelius said. “If you’ve been in the job market or out of the house, you’re eligible to re-enroll. It doesn’t have to be a continuous enrollment; it can be someone who is 23 or 24, has been out of their parents’ plan and can come back at this point.” The Affordable Care Act requires some health insurance plans to cover preventive services, such as screenings, vaccinations and counseling, and creates a new Patient’s Bill of Rights. “There’s a new Patient’s Bill of Rights that outlaws many of the worst abuses of the insurance industry,” Sebelius said. “It is now illegal for companies to deny coverage to children under the age of 19 based upon the fact that they have a preexisting health condition. In

2014, that protection is extended to all Americans.” In addition, the Patient’s Bill of Rights gets rid of lifetime limits on coverage or insurance policies that terminate once a patient’s medical costs reach a lifetime limit; restricts annual dollar limits on coverage or the amount of money a patient is allowed to use on their plan in a year. It also removes insurance company barriers to emergency department services; and allows people to choose their own doctor that their insurance plan covers, depending on the type of insurance plan. Each of these rights will be phased in over time and will be complete by the year 2015. A schedule of each implementation, along with a full list of exemptions, is available at http://www.healthcare.gov. Wiethop said she recommends students looking for options after graduation visit their health insurance providers’ website to see what’s available and talk to their parents and employers. “For those who have coverage through Blue Cross Blue Shield, they can visit our website anthem.com and check out their options,” she said. “Students should also talk to their parents and their employers to find out what coverage is available for them and what they need to do to either maintain or to get coverage, as each case is different. Students can also call a sales rep, and they will go through the options available to them.” If students are not already covered under their parents’ health insurance, they may have to wait for an open enrollment period to get coverage on their parents’ plans, Wiethop said. Everyone with a company health plan has a date their plan starts for the next year. “The starting dates are staggered throughout the year, some beginning in January, February and March. If students aren’t covered under their parents’ health insurance, they have 30 days after their parents’ plans begin for the new year to get enrolled. If they can’t enroll in that time period, they can get an individual plan until they can enroll,” she said. Sebelius agreed with Wiethop’s advice and said young adults should check with their health care providers or speak with their parents about the options best for them to succeed in the future. “We know that allowing young adults to stay on their parents plan can give them the freedom to pursue the jobs or opportunities that are best for them,” Sebelius said. “They won’t have to worry if a desk job with insurance is a better choice than pursuing their dream to work for a non profit or even starting their own business, and that peace of mind makes a huge difference for those parents and for the young adults.” Visit the Affordable Care Act website at http://www.healthcare.gov or their Facebook page, Young Adult Coverage, to read about options available to you.

May 3, 2011

GRADUATION 2011

Students face challenge of finding work of any kind after graduation

First impressions key for finding a job after school By David Hunton The Standard

One MSU alumna is glad to have found work — of any sort — after graduation. Dani Wendel, who graduated with a BFA in dance last December, is living in Los Angeles. “Mostly, I’ve just had your basic gigs for shows and a music video, but I’m starting a position at a dance studio as a teacher in the summer, which I’m extremely excited about,” she said. Wendel admits her experience was far from typical, though. “Searching for work in dance is very little like searching for work in other fields,” she said. “I got lucky and got picked up by a talent agency that’s helped me get a lot of my work.” Job hunting is never easy, regardless of the field that prospective employees search for work in. So how can you make yourself more desirable to prospective employers? “First impressions are key,” Nick Balla said. Balla, a peer adviser at the Career Center at Missouri State University, said that taking a proactive approach to job hunting is a great start. “Get your résumé and cover letter taken care of,” he said. “They’re not something you can put together at the last minute.” He said it’s important not to assume that your résumé is in the right shape for the job being applied for. “Résumés should be specialized and tailored to the job you’re looking for,” Balla said. Balla said it’s always useful to use all available resources to help in the search. “Missouri State has access to something called JobTracks online that students and alumni can access and use,” he

said. “And there’s always the Career Center, too.” And when it comes to choosing what to wear, Balla said, always err on the side of more refined clothing. “When in doubt, a good suit and tie for guys or a pantsuit or dress for girls is always the best option,” he said. Paul Gies, the district causality claims manger for American Family Mutual Insurance Company in Springfield, agrees. “Dress for the job you want, but if you’re not sure how nice you should dress, always dress up more than you think you need to,” Gies said. Gies said one of the first things any applicant should do is research the job they’re applying for. “Check out the qualifications for the job and make sure you measure up,” he said. “I don’t like to see applications cross my desk from people who are clearly under-qualified for the job they’re pursuing. It’s a waste of my time.” He said there’s a lot of qualities he looks for in an interview. “Enthusiasm, especially for the job, as well as interest in what we want out of our applicants is always good,” he said. “Demonstrating an ability to learn is good, too. And I always like to see someone show that they worked a job while going through college — it shows that the applicant knows how to work hard.” Gies said he also appreciates someone with good verbal communication skills. “Someone who can convey their ideas in a coherent, well-thought manner is always a plus,” he said. “And it doesn’t hurt to demonstrate a good sense of humor.” Wide skill sets are also a plus. “A guy who knows how to do a lot of things is always a very appealing prospect,” he said. “Foreign languages, knowledge of computers, any skill that can put you over the top should definitely be mentioned.” In the end, he said persistence is definitely key. “If there are two guys in a dead heat for a job, I have a very simple way of choosing who gets it,” he said. “It’ll go to the guy who calls back the most, who expresses the most interest, who demonstrates tenacity. Persistence is always a good thing.”

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011

Students shouldn’t plan on r e ce i v i n g S o ci a l S e cu r i t y By Lauren Healey The Standard Do you plan on living off of your Social Security check once you retire in a few decades? Don’t. In all likelihood, the entitlement-based Social Security system we use now is going to change very drastically before we have a chance to cash in on it, according to David Mitchell, director of the Bureau of Economic Research. “Don’t expect Social Security to be there for you in retirement the same way it’s been for your grandparents,” he said. “If you do, you’re living in a fantasy world.” Mitchell said Social Security was never designed to support people in retirement. “It was supposed to be a supplement,” he said. “There are a lot of people who completely rely on their Social Security check, and it wasn’t supposed to be that way.” People paying income taxes today pay for the Social Security benefits being given out today, Mitchell said. “Theoretically, the income taxes you pay are going to help pay for your retirement,” he said. “But, since Social Security is a partially funded system, when students retire, it’ll be the people working at that time paying their benefits. The problem is, there are not enough people coming up behind us in the workforce to pay for our benefits.” Mitchell said three things could happen when the workforce is much too small to pay for our retirement: Benefits could be severely diminished, taxes may be severely increased or Social Security could turn into a means-based system, much like welfare is today. “Social Security is an entitlement,” he said. “If you meet the eligibility requirements, you are entitled to receive it. The problem is, the way the system is set up now, there will be no way to pay those promises once we get to the future. I think it will become a means-based system. For example, if your income is above a certain amount, maybe $75,000, you won’t ‘need’ it and you won’t get it, even though you paid for it your whole working life.” The Social Security Act was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Aug. 14, 1935. In addition to several provisions for general welfare, the act created a social insurance program designed to pay retired workers age 65 or older a continuing income after retirement. If you were born in 1960 or later, your full retirement age is 67, according to the Social Security Administration website. Mitchell said the Social Security system was redone in 1983 because the SSA was getting more in revenue than they were paying in benefits.

“The government bought U.S. government bonds with the extra money so they didn’t have to borrow money,” he said. “They essentially spent that money and gave the SSA an IOU. When the SSA goes to cash in the IOU, which could be in five to 10 years, it’ll be the same as if there’s no money at all. The government would have to decrease spending, increase taxes or borrow more money to pay back the money they borrowed in the first place.” Mitchell said Social Security is a continual problem that’s always going to get larger because more people retire than come into the workforce. “The best thing you can do is not plan on relying on Social Security in retirement,” he said. “I know you’re young and retirement is far away, but a little bit of savings today will pay huge dividends in the future. Saving should be fairly easy for college students because most will become high-income earners.” Katie Moorman, a senior psychology major, said it’s especially important for college students to save money. “It’s difficult for me to choose to save a few bucks rather than hang out with my friends downtown,” she said. “The solution for me is to directly deposit a determined amount into a savings account and/or retirement fund. It’s never too early to start saving, and it is now becoming necessary for people of all ages.” Mitchell said the average rate of return on Social Security (what you pay vs. what you will get) is negative. “It’s like putting $100 in a savings account and coming back the next year and only $99 is waiting for you,” he said. “Not only do they not pay you any interest, but they give you less money than you put into the system. You’ll never get that money back.” A general rule of thumb for retirement is to set aside enough money so that each year you’ll have 75 to 80 percent of your salary made before retirement, Mitchell said. “You could be retired for a long time — maybe 20 years or even more,” he said. “Your retirement will probably equal about half of your time spent working, and it takes a long time to save enough money for that. Start saving now because it’s a whole lot easier than starting later.” Mitchell said you could save $100 per month at 12 percent interest for 40 years, paying $48,000 total, and it will grow to $1.18 million. You could start at 27 and have that $1.18 million if you retire at 67. If you save $100 with the same interest rate for only 30 years (paying $12,000 less overall), you’ll only have $349,496. That’s about $827,000 less than you could have if you start 10 years earlier. Start saving, seniors.

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011

Cover letters are impor tant for making résumés stand out By Damien M. DiPlacido The Standard

The best résumés are like the best news reports: concise and straight to the point. When your résumé sits on the desk of a potential employer, there’s a good chance it’s at the bottom of a stack of 100 or more. Something about your résumé must stand out from the rest. Jack Hunter, director of Missouri State’s Career Center, has looked over thousands of students’ résumés during his 12 years in his position. The purpose of the résumé cover letter is to make a potential employee more personable to the employer,

Loans Continued from page 7 they need about their loans, including their lender, how much they owe and their interest rates. “An important thing is keeping track of the amount of what they owe or their amount of debt,” Lewis said. “It’s a big surprise for them when they take a look at their loans when they have just been accepting them and not realiz-

he said. “Cover letters show you’re human and that you can effectively communicate,” Hunter said. “Cover letters are an important companion to a résumé. You have a résumé that’s boring data, and you have a cover letter that complements and more fully explains your résumé.” For someone competing for a job, the only purpose of a résumé is to land an interview, he said. It’s the applicants’ way of showing who they are and what capabilities they possess. Résumé building is one of the skills the Missouri State Career Center specializes in helping students with, Hunter said.

“When I go through a stack of résumés, whether it’s one or 100, I’m only going to look at it for 20 to 25 seconds,” he said. “If there’s a whole stack, I’m not looking for good ones; I’m looking for bad ones.” Several résumé pitfalls Hunter warns students against are the following: not making sense, forgetting to add the year and the month the person graduates, and being over the top and difficult to read. The most common mistake people make with cover letters is forgetting to sign them, Hunter said. Sloppy, hastily thrown together cover letters and résumés will always find their way into the trash. Lauren Holiman, a sophomore fashion

design and merchandising major, is using her résumé to find an internship that coincides with her major. “Résumés really help you show someone you’re professional,” Holiman said. “Employers are more willing to give you a chance if you take the time to put together a good résumé.” What an applicant places on a good résumé should be highlights, Hunter said. A résumé that focuses on the highlights of a person’s work history is easy to read and relates to what employers are looking for. “It’s really not about your degree; it’s about skills,” he said. “A résumé I read that’s a good résumé has proof of that.”

ing how quickly they can add up.” According to the Federal Student Aid website, you can also call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-4- FED-AID (1800-433-3243) to identify your loan service and gain other information about your loans.

before you graduate. Any general questions can be answered by the Financial Aid department, but students need to go to the federal website to see specifics to their loans, Lewis said. “We work with all federal loans (at MSU),” she said. “We encourage students to use subsidized loans, but they are need-based and so some students aren’t eligible for them. Stafford loans are best for students because they are the federal loans, and the interest rate is lower than the public sector. They are also on a fixed rate while most others are variables.

As long as a student doesn’t default, it shows as a positive debt on credit reports.” With all the ways the government is trying to help students pay off their loans, students would be able to stay away from defaulting, Lewis said. “There is no reason to go into default. That’s why the government has all these safeties to keep you from it,” she said. “I know some people feel afraid to owe, but I’ve never talked to a student’s lender that wasn’t nice. They aren’t like regular credit agencies. They are trying to help and are really good people.”

You will live!

Loans can be stressful, especially with all the information you need to understand. You can visit the National Student Loan Data System or your local Financial Aid workers to try to understand loans more thoroughly

GRADUATION 2011

May 3, 2011