In light of the recent sexual abuse scandal at Penn State, the school is apparently now coaching students about how to address that little issue in job interviews.
According to a piece by Leah Beckmann at Gawker, the school’s career services office has now issued a special letter telling students how to behave:
Students may acknowledge that they are primarily concerned for the victims and also concerned for Penn State in these unsettling times. However, students should keep the focus on the job or internship for which they are applying and how they will excel in the opportunity. Students should note that they can only take personal responsibility for their individual actions. Talk about all of the good work accomplished at Penn State in building the skills and professional qualities in preparation for the position, and about the excitement to put those skills to work for the employer. Inform the employer or internship site that, if hired, you will reflect favorably on the employer through your good work, core values and skills obtained through our University
This is a little odd. As Beckmann points out “if these toddlers need direction like this, there’s a good chance they weren’t going to nail the interview anyway.”
Beyond that, it’s Penn State. A special “how to talk about this college” message might be necessary if the college were some random institution identifiable only by the scandal (e.g. the University of Alabama at Huntsville) but come on, the school has 45,000 students.
No legitimate company is going to ask a Penn State graduate about the Sandusky matter. [Image via]
