What To Do If You Graduate Without A Job
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As many as 50% of all college students will graduate without a job offer. Since most students have outstanding college loans coming due and dreams of living on their own, graduating with no job offers is a big problem. To get back on the right track, recent graduates should make their employment search a seven day a week, eight plus hour a day job.



If you find yourself in this position, there are things that you can do:



1. Strengthen Your Resume - Emphasize your experience, strengths, accomplishments and successes. Include things that you have done that have benefited your employer, your college, the community or other people. If you were a leader, describe what you were able to accomplish as a leader.



2. Revise Your Sales Letter - It is not a cover letter. Your letter must convince someone to interview you. Find a way to stand out. Tell employers what other respected and influential people have said about you. A different letter, tailored to each employer, will be much more effective than a single letter for all.



3. Prepare For Interviews - Learn about the employers that invite you for an interview. Develop several interesting stories and examples that will stimulate interest on the part of those employers. Dress and speak like a professional. Smile, stand up straight and and act in a confident, likeable manner. If possible, record your practice interviews, so you can study them and make improvements. Follow up your interviews with a thank you note.



4. Join an Association - Find a local association that has members in your field of interest. Attend the meetings. Network with as many members as possible. Prepare and utilize a four or five sentence introduction. Bring copies of your resumé to give to those members who ask for one. Ask everyone for their business card. Leave your own business card with each person. Make a point of meeting and talking to the Association Officers. Ask for job hunting suggestions. Make a follow-up phone call to each person who has expressed a willingness to help you. Make them part of your network.



5. Identify Highly Respected and Influential People - Within your community, there will be a few people who are highly respected and influential. Once you have established a good relationship, ask them to serve as references for you. They can also help with contacts and job hunting information. Do not annoy them, but stay in contact with them. Show your appreciation for any help they provide.



6. Pursue Internships With Target Employers - Be willing to work for free, in order to get your foot in the door. Paid or unpaid Internships, part-time and summer jobs can lead to good jobs. Do not ignore summer and part-time jobs. Be ready to prove your worth.



7. Attend A Seminar/Lecture or Sign Up For A Night Course - Show potential employers that you want to learn more about your field of interest. Use these learning opportunities as a way to make contacts and build your network. The more people who are attending the course, seminar or lecture the better. Remember to bring your business cards and obtain cards from other attendees.



8. Contact Temp Agencies About Short-Term Jobs - Anytime you can gain some experience in your field of interest or work with an employer that hires people like you, you must do your very best to impress the employer. Many employers use temp agencies as a way to “try out” people before they hire them.



9. Strengthen Your Job-Related OnLine Image - Wise students carefully build an employer-friendly profile on Facebook. Make certain that everything on your page emphasizes your capabilities and professionalism. A similar page should be created on LinkedIn, a wonderful place to network with others in your own field of interest. Employers WILL check these two networking sites. Make them work for you.



10. Identify Web Sites and Employment Agencies - Their are many web sites and employment agencies that serve your field of interest. Spend time every week to identify more and more. Post your resumé on sites that meet your needs. (Be wary of scams and those that ask for money.) Continue to visit sites that are of interest on a regular basis. After you send your resumé to an employment agency, follow up by phone.



11. Pursue 100 Employers - Use all of the tools at your disposal to find and research employers that have previously hired students in your field of interest. Use the information you learn about each employer to differentiate yourself from other candidates. Send your resumé with a customized sales letter to the department head in your area of interest.



12. Personally Visit 25+ Local Employers - Ask each employer if you can leave your resume or fill out an application. Dress like you are a member of management. Develop a sales pitch. Tell them why you should be interviewed. Differentiate yourself in a positive way. Even if you get an interview, keep going and continue to contact each employer on your list. It may take ten or twelve interviews before you receive a satisfactory job offer.



13. Do Not Ignore The Want Ads In Newspapers and Trade Journals - You should use every source of information that is available to you. You never know when or where an interesting ad will appear.



14. Contact Everyone In Your Network - Expand your network every day. Develop four or five questions to ask each person in your network. (Do you know anyone who works at XYZ company? Do you know of any employers that might hire a college graduate with an ABC major?, etc.) Be certain to ask for referrals to other contacts who might be willing to talk with you. Ask if it would be OK to stay in touch with them. Remember, you must regularly talk with your most productive contacts. Follow up with them every three or four weeks. Prepare a new set of questions. Try to help them. Always show genuine appreciation for the help you receive.



15. Stay In Contact With Your Career Services Office - Career Services Counselors, Professors, Alumni, Former Employers and Classmates can help with your job search. Obtain a list of alumni who work in your field of interest and contact them. Try to build relationships with people who are willing to help.



Students who have graduated from college, but have not yet found employment, must make their job search activities a full-time job. There is plenty to do. This is the time for graduates to get busy and perform the activities that will launch their careers. The more effort and energy students put into their search the faster they will receive the job offers they are seeking.