MTSU employers process hundreds of student applications every semester, but few applicants will receive an interview, and even fewer will actually get the job they applied for. However, aspiring students looking for on-campus employment can take advantage of the many free employment tips and resources available at MTSU. 

The first step of the hiring process is crafting an appealing résumé that will catch an employer’s eye. Professional employers spend about six to ten seconds on an applicant’s résumé, according to the MTSU Career Development Center. Because of this, it is important to construct a noteworthy résumé suited to the job’s hiring description. 

The Career Development Center, located on the third floor of the Keathley University Center, is built specifically to help students build a résumé that fits the criteria employers are looking for.

“One of the main things I do is review student résumés to tell them how to properly build a résumé, what to put, what not to put, things like that,” said Justine Norton, student worker and a peer-career ambassador for the Career Development Center. “Students send their résumés to our email, and then we’ll go in there and give them tips on formatting or helping rewrite a sentence or bullet point [in their résumé]. And when that’s said and done, we send it back to them, and hopefully, they’ll send back an updated one so we can help them out with that as well.”

Most on-campus hiring is done through the hiring website Handshake, and students are encouraged to create a free account to access available employment opportunities on campus. 

Campus positions through Handshake are ideal for students who have large gaps in their schedule, as those gaps can be filled with work hours that would otherwise be difficult to fill in off-campus positions. Travel time and gas money spent are cut down significantly and it allows students to build their schedule in tandem with their job instead of around it. 

The Federal Work Study program through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid is another avenue for employment at MTSU. Students with an updated FAFSA can fill out an FWS application form through PipelineMT. If a student qualifies for FWS, they will be able to apply for FWS positions at MTSU. 

Cameron Earnest, a freshman and FWS candidate at MTSU, applied to many different jobs at MTSU, but his current position in the Todd Art Gallery complemented his major the most.

“I have a federal work study on-campus job in the ceramics room … I did ceramics my senior year of high school and really enjoyed it,” Earnest said. “I get to build stuff while I’m watching over the ceramics room, and it’s kind of fun. [My major] is interior architecture, it’s kind of design-oriented like ceramics, so I think the creative process could be applied to anything like that.” 

It is important to keep in mind that campus positions are scarce, whether or not they are FWS positions, and it is up to the student to be proactive when job-seeking. Timing can also be a deciding factor in employment, and open positions fluctuate depending on the point in the year. 

“Most of us do try to staff up before the summer ends,” Jennie Bryan, the assistant director of employer relations at the Career Development Center, said. “Some of us even start in the spring semester recruiting for who will be able to work in August. The same is true now. We’ll be recruiting in the fall semester for the spring.”

Bryan acknowledged the challenges that come with finding an on-campus job. 

“Sometimes, it’s difficult … If your schedule doesn’t allow you to work in the available hours, then you may not get that position, not because you’re not qualified, but because it doesn’t mesh well with your schedule,” Bryan said. “But do continue to follow up … other students’ schedules change, too. Some larger departments also have more flexibility than others.”

MTSU employs 2,600 students, a relatively small number compared to the 20,000 students total enrolled at MTSU. Although a campus position is admittedly hard to come by, the time and effort (and a little bit of luck) are worth it to those determined to reap the benefits of a campus position. 

“Nearly 50% of our students are first-generation campus students, so those of us that employ student workers invest in them beyond the work they do,” Bryan said. “For a student that is just beginning to develop their professional persona, decide their career pathways and [learn] what it means to go into the world of work, I really highly encourage them to seek on-campus employment.”

Bryan said her experience as a student worker prepared her for life in ways that other jobs wouldn’t. 

“I’m a huge advocate for on-campus employment,” Bryan said. “… I was a first-generation college student, and I worked in the Dean’s Office, and that’s when I really began to understand the benefit of on-campus employment. It plugged me in in a way that other opportunities wouldn’t.

Employment at MTSU takes many steps, but those willing to put in the time and effort will be rewarded with flexible hours, engaging work and preparation for future employment.

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