The transition from College to the job market can be difficult one, but Career Services helped set seniors on the right path through a recent Senior Career Summit.

“In reality, for 2011 graduates there is reason for optimism,” said Career Services Director Paul Tanklefsky, who said that the Boston area hired 32,000 new employees in 2010, and professional services went up 2.7 percent.

He advised seniors to follow the five p’s of a job search:

Personal branding
Positive
Proactive
Persistent
Persuasive

Andrew Graff, CEO of Allen and Garritsen advertising and a Suffolk alumnus, elaborated on the importance of personal branding as “how you set yourself apart from the thousands of applicants going against you.”

Instilling confidence

He suggested that students place more emphasis on listening and learning than on talking.

“Overall, I love learning about new things every day,” said Graff. “Learning does not stop after school.”

Suffolk University senior Michael Gomez, said that Gaff’s talk gave him “motivation to be confident during my job search.”

Interviewing

Doris Labitue, a human resources generalist at Liberty Mutual, offered interviewing tips.

“When I first meet a candidate, I am looking for energy. It is important to be excited about the company and interview.”

Additional presenters were: Richard Curtis, manager of university relations, State Street; Julie DeLillo, director of human resources, Vinfen Corporation; Abby Taylor, human resources associate, Cone Communications; Carole Edson, Northeast Human Resources Association; and Jennifer George, Publicity Club of New England.