Hot summer for youthful job seekers

Candice Rainwater is on an athletic scholarship at the University of Nevada Reno where she has become one of the dominating members of the university's women's softball team.

For the Wolf Pack, the season ended two weeks ago.

For Rainwater, the job search began.

"I've got to find a summer job," she says.

For an athlete on scholarship, there are always university boosters who will find room in their businesses to help that person gain a paycheck until fall classes begin.

For the bulk of students, both high school and college, the job search can be more demanding.

Yet, job placement professionals in northern Nevada say the market for young people is as good as it's been in several years.

Pat Campbell, manager of Hire Dynamics in Reno, says the student job market is hot right now.

"There are lots of jobs out there for young people," she says.

"We recently had an employer come to us to help find 30 students willing to work for about 10 weeks during the summer."

She says her firm is more focused on college students, noting the job placement firm does not work with those employers hiring people under the age of 18.

The largest employer of high schoolage teens in the Reno-Sparks area is Wild Island Family Adventure Park in Sparks, says Diana Harper, the theme park's marketing director.

"We employ between 200 and 250 young people every summer."