PAYING YOUR DUES

After graduating, many students believe that they will come out of college making lots of money. Depending on your major, maybe, but in most cases you must pay your dues. In order to get your foot in the door you may take a job, for example, as an administrative assistant in the industry and at the company you want to work for. This job will give you the opportunity to get your foot in the door, learn, and add experience to your resume. Go for your dream job, but don’t be opposed to starting at the bottom and working your way up.

Always make sure the job you are taking is in line with your final destination. This is where planning comes into play. Ask your mentor and also research on your own, what the progression of jobs looks like to achieve your final goal.

Take a moment and write down where you want to be in five years and how you intend to get there. Who you may need to help you along the way? Also make preparations for Road B. You may be traveling down Road A, and all of a sudden a boulder is placed in the middle of the road. What will you do to get around it? Be prepared to rebound when barriers place themselves in your way.

JOB SEARCHING

If you start looking for a job after you’ve walked across the stage and received your degree, you’re getting in the game late. Your senior year of college should include visits to the career and counseling center at your school, to get help with your resume and cover letter, interviewing skills, information about upcoming career fairs and potential job openings and assistance with clarity regarding your career path. If you’re interning, you should be making connections and keeping your ears open for upcoming opportunities.

Spend some time researching your career industry and companies within that industry. Also research the various types of things that can be done with your degree. Don’t just rely on posting your resume to job boards to become employed. Go out to networking events, seminars or meetings involving your field of interests, join organizations that may give you access to professionals in your field as well as giving you the opportunity to learn more about the industry.

Don’t forget to use those contacts you’ve gained from internships, volunteering, and other networking opportunities.

PRESENTING THE BEST YOU

Unless you’ve gotten a referral for a job, most times your resume and cover letter will be your representatives. Here are a few tips.
• Hiring managers get hundreds of applications for open positions and only give each one about 10 seconds of viewing time. Make sure your resume and cover letter are free of grammatical and spelling errors. Create a resume design that causes your resume to stand out among the rest.
• Do not use an email address like hotsexy@yahoo.com. This is unprofessional and will result in your resume and cover letter being thrown in the trash. Create a professional email address like yourname@yahoo.com.
• Target your resume and cover letter to the job that you are applying for. Show how your experiences make you the best fit for the job.
• Make sure to tout your achievements. If you increased attendance at an event by 35% because of your marketing strategy, say so.