Ryerson University’s Ted Rogers School of Management is expanding its business career centre with new counsellors and social media tools to respond to demand from students and recruiters. With a staff of 16 (including 10 career consultants hired since August) and a new digital app (developed in Ryerson’s digital media innovation hub) that matches students and recruiters, school officials believe they have one of the most advanced career centres at a business school in Canada. This week, (oct 4) the Rogers school held an event to recognize a collective donation of $800,000 from Certified General Accountants Ontario, Sears Canada Inc. and accountants Hogg, Shain and Scheck for the centre’s work. “We are not just a job posting and résumé centre, we are actually a connector between business and students early on in their education,” says Mark Patterson, director of the school’s Careers and Employer Partnerships. The goal, he adds, “is to actually produce graduates who can hit the ground running and deliver on the needs of business.”

The school’s career consultants work with students, starting in first year, to help them assess their personality, past experiences and future ambitions as part of a personal “narrative” for their career. In the process, students identify their strengths and weaknesses, the right mix of courses and potential internships to put them on track for their professional future.

“Students come in with preconceived ideas from different influencers about what they want to do,” says Mr. Patterson. “What we are responsible for is to open their eyes and really expose them to the breadth of career options out there.”