A reorganization of the University Career Development Center, including the elevation of the center director to an assistant vice provost, emphasizes the importance of career planning and placement for University of Arkansas students.

Angela Williams, former director of the center, has been named assistant vice provost for student affairs and executive director of the Career Development Center.

 "I'm excited about the reorganization because it demonstrates the University of Arkansas' top priority and commitment to successfully equipping our students for the college-to-workforce path," Williams said.

Research indicates parents and students rate "getting a better job" as a major reason for attending college, and in fact many people regard post-graduate employment as one of the primary measures of value provided by higher education institutions.

The University of Arkansas senior administration recognizes that partnerships and collaboration within the entire campus are necessary to increase the post-graduate employment placement rates of our students.

"Making career planning and employment placement institutional priorities also helps us achieve our other priorities, including increasing graduation and retention rates," Williams said. "Students who have clear career goals and goal-focused action plans have higher retention and graduation rates than other students."

Charles Robinson, interim vice provost for student affairs, is pleased with the changes, which were being discussed prior to his appointment as interim vice provost

"This reorganization positions the Career Development Center to lead in this effort to increase the career placement numbers for University of Arkansas students," Robinson, said. "Under the guidance of Angela Williams the CDC, in partnership with others across campus, has already begun implementing several initiatives to increase the career readiness and post-graduate employment rates for U of A students."

Williams has earned three degrees from the University of Arkansas. She received her bachelor of arts in psychology in 1988, a master's degree in education in counseling education in 1991, and her doctor of education in adult education in 2006.

Williams has held several positions at the University of Arkansas starting with student employment coordinator in 1991. She has been an academic counselor; assistant director then director of Student Support Services; assistant to he director of Career Development; associate director of student development. In 2011 she was named director of the Career Development Center.

As part of the restructuring two staff members have been named directors in the Career Development Center.

KayLee Simmons, who supervises and trains career advisors and a graduate assistant, has been named director of career education.

"KayLee ensures that professional development training is standard practice for our career advisors. She also ensures that we continue to offer quality online career resources and expand the use of existing online resources such as Optimal Resume (for resume building and development) and Razorback Career Link for job searches and video presentations," Williams said. "One of KayLee's primary responsibilities is to assist me in developing the plan and process for integrating career development into the academic curriculums across the U of A campus so more students become engaged in the career planning process and participate in our career events."

"What is great about working for Angela is that not only is she open to new ideas to meet the needs of students, she is often the visionary who brings forth suggestions," Simmons said. "She truly lives out the goal of one day becoming the best career center in the nation and that enthusiasm is contagious for the entire staff."

Students still schedule traditional in-office visits with career advisors, students can also use E-advising to talk to a Career Counselor through Skype, email and other real-time methods. Students can now easily schedule their appointments online using our Razorback CareerLink system. 

"In this past year, we have implemented an online appointment system so students can schedule an appointment at a time that is convenient for them," Simmons said. "It's imperative for students to gain as much relevant experience and skills as possible before walking across the commencement stage. My goal is for all students to look beyond the next four years and start planning for their careers as freshmen so they are more prepared for the workforce or graduate school."

Rickey Booker, who coordinates career fairs programs, has been named director of career programs.

"Rickey collaborates with nearly every college, numerous campus departments and our directors of employer relations to provide state-of-the-art career fairs and career events," Williams said. "These events make it possible for students to connect with employers to acquire internships and full-time employment. In fact, Rickey was recently selected as a Staff Senate Employee of the Year for the outstanding collaborative partnerships he's created and for his exceptional organization skills."

Booker said he enjoys working with Angela Williams and is excited by the possibilities of working more closely with the faculty and staff in the colleges.

"Dr. Williams has a great ability to establish a vision, consult with people to get buy-in, and she has an unwavering ability to work with staff to establish a plan to accomplish that vision," Booker said. "I am really looking forward to working with more academic units and campus departments to better establish the importance that faculty and staff play in encouraging or requiring students to attend career fairs and career programs."

Over the next few years Booker will continue to build collaborative partnerships with departments, student organizations, and employers to provide more experiential and professional development training opportunities for our students, Williams said.

"We know from our research the kinds of experiential activities that will allow students to gain skills and competencies highly valued by employers which will increase their job placement and graduate school acceptance rates," Williams said. "Our vision is that every University of Arkansas student knows those skills, how to acquire those skills, and has an opportunity to acquire them." 

Directors of employer relations for Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences; the College of Engineering; Bumpers College of Agriculture, Food and Life Sciences coordinate employer recruiting on campus, including scheduling employer speakers in the classroom and employer information sessions. The next director of employer relations will be placed in the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design. Their primary responsibilities are to develop and implement strategies designed to increase employment and experiential opportunities for students and recent alumni.

"What is most exciting for me about working at the U of A in this role is the way everyone works together to serve our students," Williams said. "To accomplish our goals, the career center staff collaborates and works very closely with the Walton College Career Center, the University Advancement staff, U of A Alumni Association, Arkansas Athletic Association, faculty and staff in all colleges, our Student Affairs colleagues, employers, parents and many more."

The Career Development Center is increasing efforts to partner and collaborate with academic departments, Students Affairs, Registered Students Organizations, employers, parents, the Arkansas Alumni Association and many more to develop a strategy to ensure that all University of Arkansas students have a clearly defined career action plan; experience either a well-planned and supervised internship or conduct collaborative research or another hands-on learning experience related to their major/career goal; have opportunities to solve problems in diverse settings; receive professional development training and as a result are well-prepared for their job/graduate school search. These kinds of hands-on experiences are integrated coherently into every student's University of Arkansas experience and into every college's academic curriculums.

"Due to our concerted efforts, we have already significantly increased the numbers of employers recruiting our students, increased the number of career fairs and career education programs that we are able to provide to our students," Williams said. "These efforts have also increased our UA graduates' placement rates from 53% when I became Director of the Center in 2011 to 74 percemt as of 2014. Our placement rate is better than the average of all universities in the southeast region (67.7 percent), and is higher the national average of public universities (73.4 percent)."

Williams is not content with these increased numbers, she said. "We are not resting on our laurels, as we know this current rate has to improve significantly, and we are currently implementing strategies to increase it."