By Leslie Collins
Northeast News
March 30, 2011

Students glanced into Room 2046, awaiting their mock interview. While some sat outside calmly, others clutched their resumes, outwardly anxious.

Today, March 24, these high school juniors and seniors would each undergo three interviews as part of the requirement for being enrolled at Manual Career Technical Center.

But, this isn’t where their journey began.

Since November, Kansas City Missouri School District Career Tech Education Coordinator Pauline Johnson has held mini workshops on career readiness and college preparation for students enrolled at Manual.

The first thing she concentrates on is building the student’s confidence, she said.

“I want them to first understand everybody has dreams and you can do whatever you dream. You want to make the right decision on what’s going to be rewarding,” Johnson said. “We talk about marketing, how to market you the person.”

She relates marketing oneself to dating. For a date, you dress up to impress the other person. The same concept applies to a job interview, she said.

“Now, they remember, ‘Oh, I can’t wear my hoodie to an interview,’ or you shouldn’t bring a cell phone into the waiting area even though you’re not interviewing yet,” Johnson said.

In addition to learning about the job interview process, students also learn how to compose a quality resume and cover letter and how to job hunt.

“I try to get creative,” she said of teaching her students.

To engage her students, she’s used Park College graduates to demonstrate “dress for success” and marketing oneself. She’s hosted a tie tying contest and other interactive games and uses guest speakers.

The mock interview is the “highlight event,” she said.

“It’s amazing how many people get to college and they’ve never had this,” said Mary Spencer, senior media relations specialist for KCMSD. “It’s an early education for students as to what the real world is like.

“The people doing the mock interviews are actually successful professionals coming in who volunteer their time to do this.”

Volunteers included bank presidents, IRS employees and employees from Mazuma Credit Union, Missouri Career Center, Kansas City Southern Railroad, among others. Approximately 25 businesses were represented, Johnson said.

“These professionals that come in say, ‘Man, I wish the candidates I have now knew this back when they were in high school,'” Johnson said.

During the mock interview, the business volunteer grades the student in several areas, including poise, resume, marketing oneself, knowledge of the career field and how the student answers the questions, among others. Approximately 150 students from area schools participated.

“I want them to gain more confidence in the actual employment process and understand that it’s very competitive,” Johnson said.

For Northeast High School senior Alfonso Cardenas, the program has already boosted his interviewing confidence. Last year, he participated in the mock interview process for the first time and received several tips from his interviewer.

“I had no eye contact and I was mumbling when I was introducing myself,” he said. “My interviewer gave me tips on how to breathe and relax before an interview.”

This time around, Cardenas wasn’t nervous, he said.

“It’s been helpful because you get a chance to experience it (interview process) and make corrections before you actually enter the work force,” Cardenas said.

He cited the importance of not chewing gum and turning off one’s cell phone before the interview.

“Little things like that are going to increase your chance of getting the job,” he said.

NEHS junior Hung Nguyen, a first-timer to the mock interview process, said he learned several key items from Johnson.

“I learned the resume is pretty important for a job in the future and you really need a good resume to get a job,” Nguyen said. “You have to be confident, act like you want the job and act like you’re the right person for the job, so they’ll take you.”

For Paseo senior Somer Mayhue, dressing well stood out in her mind.

“If you come to the interview dressed like you want the job, you’ll probably get the job,” she said. “If you come dressed in your street clothes, they’ll mark you off.”

Asked what advice her interviewer gave her, she said she needed to loosen up and not be as nervous.

However, the interviewer commended Mayhue on her college plan and how she answered the questions.

“It’s a good experience,” Mayhue said of the mock interviews. “It made me understand some things in the interview process and will help me with my next interview and job.”

Above: Northeast High School senior Alfonso Cardenas greets his interviewer, Deidra Norton of the IRS, during a March 24 mock interview at Manual Career Technical Center. Leslie Collins