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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2004)
m a Page B6 (rin |Jn rtian h © bscruer College Credit for Life Experiences Prior learning counts toward college degree D iscover how to earn college credit forexperienlial learning— sk ill, a b ility and k n o w le d g e gained outside the classroom — at a free Prior Learning A ssess m ent in fo rm a tio n s e ssio n at M arylhurst U niversity on T u es day, Aug. I0 ,fro m 6 :3 0 to 8 p .m ., BP John A dm inistration B uild ing, room 200. “You can earn college credit for the know ledge y ou’ve ac quired from accum ulated experi ence,” said D enis Law rence, d i rector o f M arylhurst’s Learning A ssessm ent C enter. “ L earning can com e from career, volunteer, m ilitary or parenting activities, or from hobbies and life-expanding experiences. "Through PLA you’ll dem on strate how your prior learning has potential for credit at the college level,” Law rence said. “ You provide the evidence o f what you have already learned, and PLA evaluates it. A suc cessful request will be aw arded credit.” Up to 45 credits, the equivalent o f one year, may be obtained through PLA. To register for the PLA infor mation session or more inform a tion, call 503-699-6260 or 8(X)- 634-9982, extension 6260, e-mail p la @ m a ry lh u rst.e d u o r v isit w w w .m arylhurst.edu. M arylhurst is located 10 m in utes south o f Portland on H igh way 43. The university is rated first in O regon for small class size according to U .S.N ew s and W orld Report. It offers p ro fes sional certificates and degrees for undergraduate and graduate studies. Science Careers Promoted (A P )— Energy Secretary Spen cer Abraham has announced an initiative to promote “science lit eracy” and boost the number of American students interested in becoming scientists and engineers. The program will award scholar ships at national labs for math and science teachers. It also will require the 17 labs to host fifth- and eighth- graders for at least one day each year, sponsor annual science ap preciation days and have scien tists visit public schools. The programs will focus on stu dents and teachers in middle school - a time when American children’s curiosity in math and science often wanes. According to an international studycompletedin 1999,U.S.fourth- graders ranked among the world’s best in math and science. By eighth grade, they fell below the interna tional average. By 12th grade, they trai led students in nearly every other industrialized country. It’s unclear whether the initia tive will stem years o f declining enrollment in science programs among A merican col lege students, and it’s unlikely to change a broader concern: Engineering and science graduates from develop ing nations dramatically outnum ber those from U.S. universities. |uly2l,2O O 4 New Jobs Coining to Oregon Steel North Portland industry plans expansion Thanks in a large part to the efforts o f a business recruitment committee made up o f some o f Portland’s key private sector business leaders as well as public officials, Oregon Steel Mills Thursday announced it would bring up to 200 new jobs to the Port land area. The com pany plans to build a new pipe making facility at or near its north Portland, Oregon mill. The project would consist o f two mills that pro duce large diameter line pipe. It is estimated the project will cost approximately $35 million. The facility is expected to be com pleted during the fourth quarter o f 2005. “This announcement points to the true value of public and private entities teaming up to encourage business in vestm ent in Portland,” said Judy Peppier, Qwest President, Oregon and chair of the Portland Ambassadors committee leading the effort. The team is designing a proposed package o f incentives that includes Enterprise Zone and Construction- in-Progress tax abatements as well as G overnor’s Strategic Reserve Funds and other state tax credit programs. In addition, W orksystems, Inc. offered a wide array o f customized services to meet the com pany’s recruitm ent, screening, hiring, training and reten tion needs. “Portland is an attractive place to do business and Oregon Steel M ill’s choice to expand here is a great credit to the public-private partnership now in place that advertises and promotes that fact,” said M ayor Vera Katz. OSM already em ploys400 workers at its facilities on North Rivergate Workers oversee production at the Oregon Steel Mills plant in north Portland. The company Boulevard, adjacent to the site o f the announced plans last week to build a new pipe making facility at or near the existing plant, proposed plant. bringing 200 new jobs to the Portland area. Popular Interview Questions Anticipating questions takes the edge off Some interview questions tend to pop up i n al most every job i nter- view. While the bad news is that common questions are usually dif ficult to answer, the good news is that you can prepare for them well in advance. The four most common inter view queries are, tell me a little bit about yourself, why did you leave your last job, w hat’s your greatest weakness and do you have any questions for me? Som etim es the most general questions can be the hardest. To tackle the common introductory questions, tell me a little about your self, keep in mind that this is not an invitation to sum up your whole life in three minutes or less. Instead, it’s an invitation to describe what you can offer the company. In the book 101 G reat A nsw ers to the T oughest Interview Q u es tions author Ron Fry suggests focusing on your key accom plish m ent at previous jo b s and how they relate to the jo b for w hich y o u ’re applying. Rather than re citing your resum e, tell the in ter view er how you cam e to be inter ested in this p articular com pany and job. Chances are, you’ll have to ex plain why you left your last job at your interview. The biggest sign of a troublemaker is when someone trashes his or her former em ployer so stay positive. An interview is not the time to vent frustration with former bosses or co workers. If you were fired, be honest and quick about explaining what you learned from that experi ence. If you were laid off, don’t apologize or act defeated. It’s not as taboo as it was five years ago to be caught in the slaughter o f a bankrupt dotcom or massive lay off. If you quit, be honest and posi tive by stating that the work didn't challenge you enough or that you are seeking higher levels of respon sibility. Be sure to discuss your desire for growth. The question about exposing y o u r biggest w eakness should not be a pitfall to convince an em ployer not to hire you. Instead, use it as an opportunity to d is cuss how you tackle challenges. Be sure to follow up a w eakness w ith your action plan for o v er com ing it. Be sure the w eakness is jo b -related , but d o n ’t reveal a w eakness that will torpedo your chances o f getting hired. An interview usually closes with an invitation to ask the interviewer some questions. D on’t pass up this opportunity to show that you've been listening and have done re search on the company. This is not the time to inquire about vacation days, salary or other compensation p ac k ag e s. In stead , ask ab o u t growth opportunities in the com pany or what your interviewer likes about working for the company. Finally, don’t forget to ask for the jo b by saying that this is the exact type of position you are looking for and what is the next step in the interview process. FLEXIBLE Business Career Degrees Professional Certificates • BS BUSINESS A N D LEADERSHIP" • BUSINESS A N D M A N A G E M E N T • BA C O M M U N IC A T IO N STUDIES • BUSINESS LEADERSHIP" • BA INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES" • CONFLICT RESOLUTION & M ED IATIO N • BA O R G A N IZ A T IO N A L C O M M U N IC A T IO N " • O R G A N IZA T IO N A L • BS REAL ESTATE" C O M M U N IC A T IO N " • BA SCIENCE A N D MATH • PUBLIC RELATIONS • MBA" • TR A IN IN G & DEVELOPMENT • M A INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES ‘ Available in on online format (O R G A N IZA TIO N A L C O M M U N IC A T IO N ! FALL TERM STARTS SEPTEMBER 23™ . To w o r k w i t h a n a d v i s o r , e - m a il s l u d e n t i n f o 0 m a r y l h u r s f . e d u Portland General Electric values the energy o f TEAMWORK. DIVERSITY and INNOVATION to maintain high quality service as Oregon's largest provider of electric service. Our 2,800 employees - from diverse backgrounds and cultures - serve close to 740,000 customers in the greater Portland, Oregon area. Our employees contribute their unique skills, creativity and commitment towards a common goal of building unity through diversity Career fields include: Accounting/ Finance, Engineering, Information Technology and Customer Service. To learn about our current career o p po rtu nitie s, visit our website at w w w .po rtla nd ge n eral.co m , or call our Job Information Line at 1 888-346-3291 (TDD Access Line at 503-464-2996) J o r c a ll 5 0 3 . 6 9 9 . 6 2 6 8 ★ US News I World Report BEST COLLEGES 2 0 0 4 "N u m b er one in Oregon w ith classes under 2 0 students" MARYLHURST UNIVERSITY N o r th w e s t C om m ission on C o lleg es a n d U n iv e rs itie s a c c re d ite d In te r n a tio n a l A s s e m b ly fo r C o lle g ia te B usiness E d u ca tio n a c c re d ite d 1 7 6 0 0 PACIFIC HIGHW AY (HW Y 43) MARYLHURST OREGON - JUST 10 MINUTES SOUTH OF PORTLAND Serving students since 1 8 9 3 . W W W M ARYLHURST.EDU 8 0 0 .6 3 4 .9 9 8 2 Advertise with diversity in 11 j J o r t h m b (iD b sm ic r ( .ill 5O3-288-OO33 ads Import landab sen ei. lohi