When you get out of college how do you land a successful job?

Hi Angelina,

It's great that you are thinking "what next" after you've completed your degree. Success in life, in general is a function of relationships with other people we have developed; success in the business work (or world of work such as non-profit and government sectors) is a function of the network of fellow business people and professionals that you have developed along the way. So, where do you start developing a network of people who can help get your career started and to flourish once it is started?

Start Now While In College

The Career Counseling Office at your college or university is one such place to start. Get to know the counselors there. Attend all of the free seminars they offer such as how to prepare a resume, how to dress for an interview, how to prepare for a job interview. Better Career Counseling Offices also offer job fairs in the spring semester - usually in the February/March time frame (before final examinations consume everyone's time). Even if you are a freshman, go to the job fairs. Talk to the recruiters; find out what types of jobs are available to new graduates. Start creating a network with these recruiters. Ask for their business cards. Then, follow-up with an email to these recruiters. Find them on LinkedIn and connect with them. Follow what they write on LinkedIn and other social media sites! Comment on what they've written about...

Join service clubs at your college or university. Maybe even a sorority that focuses on service to the community. Become an officer in one of those clubs! By becoming an officer in one or more of those clubs, you will develop organizational skills that employers will value. You will make yourself more employable in addition to making yourself known to other members in your organization (your network). Holding an officer position within a service club will also look good on your resume for almost any job.

Speak with your academic advisor about finding internships during the academic year or during the summer months. Some larger companies actually advertise for internships on their respective websites. Example: I've seen internship positions advertised at the Comcast website! I've seen internship positions advertised at government websites (federal and state government). So, start poking around at various business and government websites; do this regularly, as usually there is a several month lag between an advertisement for an internship and when that internship commences. IF you land an internship, do your best work there! What do I mean by best work? Show up on time. Don't waste company resources (e.g., retail shopping on the company's website). IF you have nothing to do, ask for something to work on. Ask for people's business cards while you are there. Follow-up with "thank you cards" or "thank you emails" when the experience is over to the people you worked with. Ask these people, while you are there, if they are willing to be an employment reference for you!

Volunteer work is a great way to establish a network and sharpen your organizational skills. Find an organization that aligns with your values. It might be an entree to a job once you have graduated, too. Follow the advice in the above paragraph for doing your best work.

IF you know for sure that you want to start your own business....go to the website of the Small Business Administration SBA). Their website is www.sba.gov. Take as many free online seminars as possible. If there are local meetings in your college town/city, go to those seminars. NETWORK with these business professionals. You will need start-up money to establish a new business. Those SBA seminars will address start-up capital.

Once you have graduated.

You should already have a network in place from your college years. Know what it is you are looking for. Ask for assistance from your network!

Use the skills you've learned from the seminars offered by the Career Counseling Office in securing a job.

Use the skills that you've learned from the SBA seminars. Use those business contacts from in-person SBA seminars to help you to start your new business!

Once you are established in a career or your own business, be willing to help out others on their path to a rewarding career/business. In other words, share your knowledge with others!!!

Angelina, great question that I really relate to. I just graduated college last May and had many of those same thoughts running through my head. Nobody teaches you how to get a good job upon graduation and I found this really uncomfortable. There wasn't a class in undergrad titled "How to Get a Great Job and Have a Prosperous Career"...or at least not at my university. I realized that you SHOULD NOT wait until graduation to find a job, you should start second semester Junior year to start exploring options.

I have a few friends that waited until graduation to start looking for a job and they ended up scrambling to find something and often took the first thing that was offered to them (this is a bad idea). Preparation is key and the more work you do ahead of time the better. Leverage internships to explore job opportunities; internships often offer a pathway to employment if not an easier path to achieving full time employment. Your college should have a student office with career counselors whose job it is to help you get a job/point you in the right direction. There is no need to start from zero, leverage the tools you have to your advantage.

I hope this helps you in your job hunt!!

Best,

Austin