A university education can teach all the skills to do a job, but that doesn’t mean that all college graduates have the right skills to successfully land a job. Finding the right opportunities, impressing in interviews and fitting into workplace culture are nonacademic skills that students don’t necessarily learn in class.
The Craig School of Business at Fresno State launched a pilot program in fall 2025 to bridge this skills gap and help students better prepare to transition to the workforce.
Two classes of seniors majoring in accounting and finance participated in the program that included three workshops and three career coaching sessions throughout the fall semester and culminated in a panel discussion featuring local accounting and finance professionals.
The program was developed and presented by Jen Elena Romano and Sylvia Bonilla, founders of Cura, a career coaching start-up based in the Bay Area. The workshops were funded through the Moss Adams Student Professional Development Series, funded by Craig School alumni Chris Morse and Ken Wittwer of the accounting firm Baker Tilly.
Dr. Susan Henderson, chair of the Accountancy Department at Fresno State, said better career readiness training is needed because traditional networking opportunities are not easily accessible to many Fresno State students, either because they are first-generation students or because they also have family and work responsibilities.
“Employers tell us that when they hire Fresno State students, their skill sets are amazing, but what doesn’t get addressed in the classroom is how to present yourself professionally,” Henderson said. “First-generation students can’t always ask mom and dad, ‘How do I do this?’ Students who have children at home or have a 30-minute commute can’t always join student organizations or attend extracurricular events. This program really speaks to these students.”
Dr. Susan Henderson, chair of the Accountancy Department at Fresno State
A significant barrier to career success is that first-generation students are often unfamiliar with professional office culture. The Cura training is designed to clearly explain to students the unspoken workplace rules that employers take for granted. Romano and Bonilla were the first in their family to attend college, and they shared with Fresno State students their own early career awkwardness.
“We’re not afraid to share some of the difficulties we’ve had, because first-generation students don’t hear that enough,” Bonilla said. “A big part of what we do is talking about workplace expectations and what we wish we knew, what we wish someone told us — understanding that you should contribute in a group meeting, how to advocate for yourself and take initiative. We teach them that being professional in the workplace is something anyone can do.”
Pursuing the right job
In addition to practical tips on job application tactics, the training also emphasized the importance of thinking strategically about pursuing the right job to advance one’s career. The Cura team led students through exercises to identify their unique values, strengths and career goals and encouraged students to broaden their job search to smaller companies where they can gain more experience.
“Students, especially if they come from first-generation households, tend to look for jobs at the biggest brands,” Romano said. “So what we try to demystify for students is what we call a three-tier strategy. At a top-tier company, you’re one of a thousand doing what’s already been implemented. There’s less room for contribution. If you really value creativity and collaboration, a Tier 2 or 3 company, or even a startup, might be open to contributions from a first-year employee.
Nikolas Lara, a senior studying finance, said learning the pros and cons of large and small companies was particularly helpful. “Before this training, I was kind of overwhelmed with all the possibilities out there,” Lara said. “The Cura workshop people broke it down that there are different businesses, and I started to see that maybe this is for me or not for me, and it made me more comfortable about talking about my goals and exactly what I want to do.”
Showcasing the skills to stand out
Students also participated in group discussions and exercises to help them become more comfortable with interviews, networking, workplace conflicts and the crucial skill of selling themselves, which can be difficult for students with self-effacing personalities.
“Peer-to-peer collaboration is so critical, because when you’re in a group of peers, and you see someone you think is a phenomenal student act in a self-deprecating way, it’s easier to encourage them and describe their strengths,” Romano said.
Senior finance major Aden Ellis said, “We had an initiative journal that we did throughout the semester, where we wrote things we’d done in the past where we felt we’d stepped up. When you write these things down it helps you be prepared to put your best foot forward and show what your strengths are.”
Romano and Bonilla said they were impressed with the determination and enthusiasm of Fresno State students, and they emphasized that first-generation students have some critical advantages in the job market.
“First-generation students downplay the things that make them resilient and give them extra grit that is valuable in the workplace,” Bonilla said. “Students will say, ‘I have to babysit my kids and work two jobs in the summer,’ and they don’t think much of it. We’re trying to help them identify why that’s valuable in the workplace, and that’s part of building confidence.”
The success of this pilot program will be evaluated on student feedback. Accounting lecturer Lolita Araim believes the program has had positive results and hope that similar training can be offered to all students in the future.
“From what my students have communicated to me, this training has made them more comfortable with applying for a job,” Araim said. “It’s given them more confidence in who they are, how to communicate, how to deal with situations and becoming more career ready.”
