Career Services has started up Career Cafe once again on the Weber State University Ogden campus with the intent of reaching out to more students through social media and advertising efforts.

J.T. Eborn, a current student and information specialist for Career Services, heads the Career Cafe. Eborn has helped develop a new strategy for Career Cafe to make it more fun and engaging to students.

“Feed the body, feed the mind,” he said.

Within the Student Services Building, Career Cafe gives students a weekly opportunity to dine for free and listen to speakers. In the past, the attendance for the cafe averaged about 18-20 students, but through more marketing efforts, it now averages more than 50 students who come eat and listen to the speakers, Eborn said. Career Cafe’s goal is to get the word out about all the services the center offers.

“We want students to utilize everything we have to offer, and Career Cafe was designed to give students little snippets of our service,” Eborn said. “The services include information on part-time employment, graduate school information, real career-building experience and internships available to students.”

The center also helps students find full-time employment.

“We give them the tools and skills they need to get to that position,” Eborn said. “You may have a degree, but you may not be able to market yourself like you need to, and we are trying to teach students how through Career Cafe.”

The services are provided for all current WSU students and alumni. Tricia Cook, a WSU alumna and recruiting specialist for Career Services, has helped push Career Cafe this year through social media.

“We help students figure out what they want to go into, help them with their resumes, interviewing and applying for positions,” Cook said. “We want to help students graduate and come out with confidence.”

The social media push includes using accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and YouTube to get out the word. The Pinterest account has different boards centered around students succeeding.

“One board has men’s and women’s dress and what is appropriate for an interview,” Cook said. “It is something you need to research before you go to the job interview. ”

The Career Services YouTube account has video clips highlighting different careers, advice on how to dress for success and an introduction for students about the Career Connect system.

All students are automatically enrolled into the Career Connect system. This gives students the ability to see the latest job postings, upload their resumes, connect with employers and stay informed and up to date with the events Career Services has planned.

Career Cafe events include workshops on learning how to get internships and apply to graduate school, employer visits and workshops provided by career counselors.

Adobe representatives will present at Career Cafe in the coming weeks on how to prepare for a career at their company.

“They will not be recruiting,” Eborn said. “It’s more about how to get your foot in the door, see what they are looking for, and learn how to get your ducks in a row.”

Marissa Questereit, a sophomore at WSU, attended last week’s seminar, titled “What’s In It For Me?”

“Listening to the speaker at the Career Cafe was a great experience,” Questereit said. “He talked about how much having a degree will help you in life. You get better jobs, make more money and have better job security. I really enjoyed listening to the speaker. It was very informational. “