You’d expect that getting a college graduate degree will guarantee you a job, but this clearly isn’t the case. With the competition of getting a job getting harder and harder, even those who easily qualify for certain jobs have a tough time landing them. So what do college grads got to do in order to get a job and have a fulfilling career? Here’s 3 tips for college grads to finally get a job:
1. Implement a Job Search Strategy
Most job seekers spend a lot of time replying to online job ads. This is a big mistake, since most of the time, a human being will never see your resume or job application. So, ultimately, you get a sense of false productivity. Also, replying to online ads is very non-proactive. Instead of applying for jobs that seem interesting, you should figure out some career tracks that are appealing to you and then researching the companies or roles that will suit these career tracks. In this way, you will be applying for jobs you know that you will be interested in and you will be getting jobs that suit your educational background.
2. Brainstorming and Networking
Networking is probably a very daunting task, not just for college grads. However, friends or family can help start off the network and make it easier to get connected with the working and social world. If you haven’t already done so, you can create a LinkedIn profile and connect with everyone you know or have met recently, even those who are contacts with your parents or older colleagues. Once you’re connected and have brainstormed your career paths, then you can reach out to these contacts and ask them for brief informational interviews. Most professionals will take the time to arrange a 20 minute interview for a struggling college graduate who’s interested in their working field.
Alumni from your college are also great to add to your network. These guys are already ahead of you and may be more willing to help struggling college grads, like yourselves. Especially, if you come from the same college! You can find them through your college careers services center.
Also, don’t forget about getting into or forming a career planning group with other unemployed grads. You can do this online or offline but is definitely great for networking, discussing career ideas and sharing progress.
3. Get Outside Support
Most college grads who graduate from school are still unsure about their career paths. Also, they realize getting a job wasn’t as easy as they thought. So, if you’re a struggling college grad, then you should also consider getting a career consultant or counselor. These people can analyze your strengths and weaknesses and come up with career paths that best suit your skills and personality. They can also put together a list of well researched organizations and role, and a concrete plan of action on how to contact them.
If one of your parents or friends (or alumni) has connections with certain people in an organization that you want to work at, then this can seriously increase your odds of getting a job. This is because you’ve got a referral by someone the organization knows and has trust in, your resume will almost certainly be read by a human being and the job will suit your skills and qualifications.
Remember, the bigger your network the better. The most important thing is to take action and to use these tips right away to get a good idea of your desired career path, to get connected and to (obviously) get a job.