he Asia Pacific Career Conference was described by students and faculty as a unique, never-beforeseen event at BYU-Hawaii, which occurred on March 7-10. In the past, BYUH would bring selected students to their home countries to visit possible employers for internships or employment opportunities. But this time, instead of bringing the students back to their home countries, they decided to bring the employers to the students. Students, faculty, and employers said the key takeaway from the conference was the necessity students have to plan for the future path they want by knowing the steps needed to get there. Lani A. Pinpin, an employer and presenter from Microsoft over project management, advised, “Find a company you want to work for, and look at the job openings they have now. Start matching those skills already, so when you’re ready to go in front of them, you already have that skill.” A senior from Oregon majoring in human resources, Megan Powell, added, “I think it was a good opportunity for students who might not know what they want to do, to kind of see the opportunities and options out there. I think it opens our minds to the different things that are available.” Bob Kuo, a freshman from Taiwan majoring in business management, said he planned before the conference what he wanted to take away from it. “Although I am just a freshman, I came to prepare what I should do now for the future to get a job, practice how to do the interviews, and build a network.” Self-reliance manager over Cambodia, Phanna Yi, said Kuo had the right idea. His passionate advice about following one’s own path was, “I just want to say don’t be afraid. Try it out. Go do it. Just go do it.” However, some employers like Mark LeMonnier from Ancestry.com, recognized many students are not preparing correctly for the career they seem to want. He said, “I’ve had conversations with students the past few days where it was clear they had a real passion for a
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certain type of career, but when I was looking at the degree or looking at their resume or whatever it was, the match-up wasn’t really there.” To combat this issue, he instructed, “You’ve got to make sure you’re laser-focused; that you’re doing your homework and making sure the investment that you’re making in yourself is actually getting you in the right direction. It really is important to make sure that everything you’re doing is reflective of that.” He said the other recommendation he feels he and his coworkers suggest is, “As a student with interests, you have an ability to create resumes or CV’s that represent a lot of different interests.You can have multiple CV’s, and you should, depending on the type of opportunity that you’re going after. “You have opportunities to create different views of who you are.You own your brand.” However, for those students who have almost completed school, and don’t feel like they can re-route, LeMonnier also commented, “It’s not to say that there aren’t opportunities with different backgrounds.” His primary encouragement was, “You want to get yourself on the best path possible.” THE CHURCH’S SELFRELIANCE MANAGEMENT FEEDBACK: As of 2013, the Self-Reliance Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established to help church members become more self-reliant through education, job placement, and/or self-employment opportunities. Mark MacDonald, director of Alumni and Career Services, and lead organizer of the entire conference said the response from all self-reliance managers was extremely positive. He commented that out of the four groups represented at the conference-students, faculty, employers, and self-reliance management--the self-reliance management
“It’s really cool to see all the different groups from the CES to the church, the employment resource managers, employers, and the different country representatives to kind of come together with the same purpose to further the mission of the church and help develop these students, so they can be leaders in their countries at home.” -Lane Muranaka
team thought the experience was exceptionally effective. “The self-reliance managers loved it,” he commented. Franco Dellosa Advincula, the selfreliance manager over the Philippines, said, “This is the first time we were invited here. They expanded the conference and invited the self-reliance group, so that we can be of help to the students in finding possible employers for when they go back to their home countries.” Advincula also said, “What we can always do, because we’re not employers, is developing resources that they can tap into after they’re graduated. We’re trying to build relationships with employers so they can pursue more possible employment after school. Not a lot of the students are aware of the services we offer, so we’re doing this.” However, at the near-conclusion of the conference, self-reliance manager, Phanna Yi over Cambodia, said for him personally, it seemed like students at BYUH are truly Continues on Page 16
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