N E W S R E L E A S E

For Immediate Release
DATE: May 20, 2004

CONTACT: Scott Beeler, Beeler Communications
717.747.9155, 717.578.9958 (cell)
email: scott@beelercommunications.com
Company Web site: www.gdovin.com

(York, PA) - It's graduation time! Grab you diploma, toss your cap, and hoist a few with your friends! Did you have a good time? Great!

Now go find a job.

The four-year learning experience is quickly fading into the rearview mirror for many college and high school graduates in Central Pennsylvania. Now, they realize it's time to get serious about work. But will they?

This year, 53 percent of college graduates had not started looking for permanent employment as of April, according to a national survey by Yahoo HotJobs. At the same time, 34 percent said they were confident they would find a job within three months. And 42 percent (at least they were honest) still didn't know when they would start looking for a job.

"In my experience, the study isn't that surprising," said Ann Gdovin-Hake said, president of Gdovin Personnel, Inc., a York-based placement firm. "But that doesn't make it any less disheartening. It's pretty clear these young people are in for a rude awakening, and that many of them will need help."

Gdovin-Hake, who also teaches a yearlong Career Development class at Dallastown School High School, believes that jobseekers will face a Central Pennsylvania job market in flux. The region continues to lose manufacturing jobs, but make gains in other areas, like healthcare.

"At Gdovin Personnel, we're matching many jobseekers with jobs, but it's not like the boom-time of the late 1990s," Gdovin-Hake said. "When you throw a wave of graduates into the mix, things could get tough for some jobseekers."

Still, she said, there are plenty of ways for recent graduates to help themselves. What are the smart graduates doing? For one thing, Gdovin-Hake says, they spent their college or high school years exploring possible career paths and learning about the types of jobs they'll actually want to do. They've also built marketable experience through part-time work and internships - a key to standing apart as a candidate.

Know a graduate who didn't do those things? Well, they're not alone - and it's not too late, according to Gdovin-Hake. She's suggests the following jobseeking tips for Central Pennsylvania's graduates:

• Start now If you need work, don't "take a few months off." Begin your job search immediately.
• Discover what you want Determine what skills you enjoy using, what fields interest you, and where you may want to live. You won't get to your destination if you don't first identify what it is.
• Use every resource available Leave no stone unturned when searching for work. Tell friends and family you are looking for a job, research the Internet and local media, get help from your college or high school career center, and explore possibilities through placement agencies.
• Treat your job search like a job Take your jobseeking work seriously, because it is work. Spend time every day researching opportunities, honing your resume, talking to perspective employers, and networking.
• Consider experience-building jobs Part-time work, short-term positions and "externships" can enable jobseekers to have a tryout with several different types of careers and employers.
• Know what's hot If you have any interest in the healthcare field, pursue it. Six of the 10 fastest growing jobs over the next decade will be in this sector - a growth trend that's already begun to hit Central Pennsylvania.

One final bit of advice: "Stay positive," Gdovin-Hake says. "It's never easy to find a job, but time and again, I've found that the optimistic jobseeker tends to find a meaningful job sooner."

Gdovin Personnel Inc. provides high-quality staffing solutions to employers in the medical, clerical, and light industrial fields. The company, pronounced "DOH-vin," was founded by Ann Gdovin in 1996, after she spent years managing a national staffing agency in a large metropolitan market. Based in York, Gdovin maintains a specific focus on the Central Pennsylvania market. The company's fastest-growing division serves the region's healthcare providers. For more information, visit www.gdovin.com.