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So I'm a college student, looking to graduate in December. I am working an internship right now and hoping to get another internship in the field I actually want to go into. I have been applying at other places. Even unpaid internships are hard to come by, depending on where you live and what field you are looking to get into.
Many of us college students feel lost when looking for "professional" jobs especially right out of graduation. I know I worry about it a lot. Here in Tucson the economy is horrible and even though I like Tucson, if I wanted to stay I doubt there would be an opportunity for me. Odds are I will have to look in Phoenix for employment or out of state. Out of state is where I would like to go, and this seems even more daunting.
Some of you guys are in the position of hiring or at least have been experienced for quite some time. You probably have seen a plethora of people just entering your field, probably young adults the most. What advice would you give them in the act of applying for jobs, so that they have better chances for succeeding in employment? We want to work but for the newbie of the workforce it's hard to be qualified. You can't get work experience without work experience!
I am hoping this would be a thread for all college students to read, not specifically about me.
What's on your current resume? I hope you have some work experience in something (part time, work study, etc). You should already be applying to all of the Campus hire programs across the country.
I don't know your major but be open to jobs in other areas. Consider looking at entry level jobs in financial services operations. Jobs are available nationwide. Be open to relocating.
Mine will be in Public Health specifically. I am looking to get into Occupational Health (OSHA stuff) and/or Environmental Health such as air pollution, water quality, etc. Job titles tend to fall something under "EHS Specialist" or something like that. EHS is the common acronym that is used it seems though.
Choose a particular type of job or field and apply for all of them that you see, anywhere. Be open to going anywhere. I live in a medium sized town that's 3 hours from a major metro. We don't get that many strong apps from younger people because they don't want to come here (understandably, the youth scene kinda sucks here).
If you have a vocation-focused degree, ie: nursing, graphic design, etc.. then some of the work is done for you. Apply for the nursing or graphic design jobs.
If you have an academically focused degree, ie: biology (contrary to popular belief, STEM is not all its cracked up to be), psychology, political science, business, etc... then you have some homework to do. You have to choose a particular type of job, type of workplace, or at least grouping of jobs in the same wheelhouse. Scatter-shot applying for any job does not work, or at least will not work out in your favor in the long run. This is especially true if you're going to search out of state. You need to know what you want.
If you have a goal that you've targeted more specifically than just "a job" - then it's easier to apply... you only need to make minor adjustments to each app's materials instead of having to radically change everything for each app.
My most recent example... I was recently involved in hiring a business systems technical analyst, starts in the high 40s per year. On paper, we wanted a business or finance degree, 3 years general experience, 1 year specific experience with the programs. In reality we got 8 apps, none of them close to that. The job needs to be done. We had 2 internal candidates who could do it with lots of training. HOWEVER, had those 2 not applied - we would have interviewed people that were only had tangentially applicable degrees and experience. No one had the exact experience or degree we were looking for ideally.
Keep this in mind when you're searching - the reviewers are judging your materials against others. Whether you get called for an interview has somewhat to do with your qualification, but it has A LOT to do with who happened to be your competition. Sometimes your competitor pool is cutthroat good, & sometimes you a are a big frog in a small pond. That's why you want to apply for a lot of CERTAIN types of jobs to improve your odds.
What's on your current resume? I hope you have some work experience in something (part time, work study, etc). You should already be applying to all of the Campus hire programs across the country.
I don't know your major but be open to jobs in other areas. Consider looking at entry level jobs in financial services operations. Jobs are available nationwide. Be open to relocating.
I want to relocate, however employers don't seem open to people who aren't locals. At least what I've heard, especially for college graduates.
Choose a particular type of job or field and apply for all of them that you see, anywhere. Be open to going anywhere. I live in a medium sized town that's 3 hours from a major metro. We don't get that many strong apps from younger people because they don't want to come here (understandably, the youth scene kinda sucks here).
If you have a vocation-focused degree, ie: nursing, graphic design, etc.. then some of the work is done for you. Apply for the nursing or graphic design jobs.
If you have an academically focused degree, ie: biology (contrary to popular belief, STEM is not all its cracked up to be), psychology, political science, business, etc... then you have some homework to do. You have to choose a particular type of job, type of workplace, or at least grouping of jobs in the same wheelhouse. Scatter-shot applying for any job does not work, or at least will not work out in your favor in the long run. This is especially true if you're going to search out of state. You need to know what you want.
If you have a goal that you've targeted more specifically than just "a job" - then it's easier to apply... you only need to make minor adjustments to each app's materials instead of having to radically change everything for each app.
My most recent example... I was recently involved in hiring a business systems technical analyst, starts in the high 40s per year. On paper, we wanted a business or finance degree, 3 years general experience, 1 year specific experience with the programs. In reality we got 8 apps, none of them close to that. The job needs to be done. We had 2 internal candidates who could do it with lots of training. HOWEVER, had those 2 not applied - we would have interviewed people that were only had tangentially applicable degrees and experience. No one had the exact experience or degree we were looking for ideally.
Keep this in mind when you're searching - the reviewers are judging your materials against others. Whether you get called for an interview has somewhat to do with your qualification, but it has A LOT to do with who happened to be your competition. Sometimes your competitor pool is cutthroat good, & sometimes you a are a big frog in a small pond. That's why you want to apply for a lot of CERTAIN types of jobs to improve your odds.
Thank you for this advice! I know many of us very little experienced folk see an "entry-level" job asking for a few years of experience. And yes, I am aware entry-level can mean for that specific field, not for a person who needs training.
It's a work in progress! I got a LinkedIn account and added a few of my classmates and coworkers at my internship. However not with someone that works in my desired field yet. I am hoping that in my last semester, when I finally get to have more coursework in my desired field, I can network with my professors (who do have work experience in this field and know something, Public Health is very broad and the field I'm looking into within it is the smaller one). Thank you for this advice! Do you have any other suggestions in ways I could network?
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