This year, students at Saint Louis University got a leg up in the job market, thanks to multiple new opportunities made available in the Career Services Department.

Among the additions to the department’s usual initiatives was a type of podcast, called CareerCasts. These online videos are available on Career Service’s Web site and serve to help students “learn about new information and new career paths,” said Kim Reitter, director of Career Services.

There are podcasts from students, alumni and employers alike, and they contain information on everything from the importance of internships to advice for current SLU students.

Career Services was also responsible for the first virtual Career Fair, held over this last winter. According to Reitter, its conception was actually by accident: it only came about on account of the excessive snow on the day of the actual Career Fair, which led to low student and employer turnout. Thanks to Career Services’ quick thinking, through an online Career Fair “we were able to give students another opportunity to drop off resum?s for recruiters,” said Reitter. She still stressed the importance of attending the actual Career Fair though, “since nothing beats that face-to-face exchange between employers and students.”

An online chat feature is also now available for students with questions who don’t want to walk to the Academic Resources Center. From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. each weekday, students can log in to CareerSLeUth and chat live with staff members that are standing by.

A lot of the changes were made this year because Career Services recognizes that “students are really electronically savvy,” said Reitter. “We’re constantly trying to find ways we can reach out to students so they can get information whenever they need it.”

Career Services works to help prepare students for jobs, internships and graduate school during or after their time at SLU. The recent additions to the program are in conjunction with their other services, such as individual appointments with a career counselor and giving students a chance to take different personality and interest tests to help them in deciding a career path.

Most of all, Career Services exists to help students “work on understanding who they are and begin to think about what career path they are really called to do, and what’s really going to excite them in life,” said Reitter.