No-shows irk Career Center

The number of students who fail to appear for their job interviews at Duke was unusually high this fall, with about 20 percent of some firms’ applicants neglecting to appear or canceling their appointment with insufficient notice.

Staff members from the Career Center refer to the students as a “no-shows.” The rise in no-shows has caused some employers to question whether they will continue to come to Duke as part of their recruitment efforts on college campuses, which could result in serious problems in the future for on-campus job recruiting.

While student no-shows have always occurred for on-campus interviews, this year marked a substantial jump in the number. Bob Leonard, a recruiting representative for Ford Motor Company, said his firm “experienced a student no-show rate of around 15 to 20 percent this year compared to one no-show for every 30 to 40 candidates in years past.” Duke’s statistics were comparable to at least one other university where Ford recruits, Leonard added.

This considerable rise in student no-shows at Duke has caused recruiters like Leonard, who normally spend significant time and resources to come to Duke, to consider avoiding the University if this problem becomes a trend.

“They have expectations about what to expect from Duke students,” said Kara Lombardi, associate director for counseling and programs at the Career Center. “If recruiters come and are disappointed that they’ve wasted their time, they may not come back.”

Yolander Albert, associate director of employer relations at the Career Center, wrote an e-mail directed to juniors and seniors Sept. 30, warning them of the growing problem and encouraging awareness of Duke’s policy for interview no-shows. She described the situation as “unprofessional and not expected from Duke students.”

Recruiter frustration at the rise of student no-shows was made especially clear this year to Duke’s Career Center. “Traditionally, we have never experienced the amount of negative feedback from recruiters that we received this year,” Albert said. “It is a poor reflection on students at Duke because it gives the impression that Duke students do not take the interview process seriously.”

Some students feel that they do not have enough time to commit to all their interviews. “Students get wrapped up in their own bubble with on campus activities and lose a sense of the bigger picture,” junior James Chiang said.

Another reason for student no-shows seems to be the recovering economy, which has made students more selective about company choices and less concerned about meeting their commitments, officials said.

Albert said the problem can be greatly reduced if students use the Career Center to work out time conflicts they may have. If a student notices he will be unable to commit to an interview within 48 hours of the appointment, the Career Center can try to work out the situation with the company by changing the time slot or filling in an alternative student.

To prevent substantial interview no-shows, the Career Center continues to enforce its on-campus recruiting policies. The Career Center’s no-show policy is enforced if a student does not appear for a scheduled interview or cancels an interview less than 48 hours beforehand. After the first offense, a student will be banned from DukeBlueDevilTrack, a product of Monster.com, which manages job postings and on-campus interview information. Students can only be allowed back into the system after a meeting with the Career Center staff and a written apology to the company. In cases of a second offense, a student will be banned from all campus interviewing activities indefinitely.

Albert noted that he hopes greater awareness of the problem and more use of the Career Center will decrease the number of interview no-shows in the future.

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