The experience of discovering key facts about job-hunting -- truisms
that you can't believe you never knew and no one ever taught you --
is an almost universal new-grad experience. Here, recent grads give
you the benefit of what they wish they'd known -- so that you can be
sure you obtain that knowledge before you graduate.
"I wish I would've known that you have to send A LOT of resumes in
order to start getting call-backs."
-- 2001 TV production grad
"I wish a senior-level class would have been offered that dealt with
such practical matters as creating a resume, writing cover letters,
applying for jobs, business etiquette, appropriate business attire,
etc."
-- 2002 philosophy and religion grad
"For starters, [I wish I had known not to] take the first offer ever
when talking about salaries. Secondly, all the stuff you learned in
college is worth just about as much as the paper your diploma is
printed on."
-- 2002 biology grad
"I've never heard of salary negotiation before. Every time somebody
has offered me a job, I've taken it."
-- Anonymous
"I had taken an effective negotiations class, so when it came to
negotiating my salary, it was relatively easy. The key was staying on
top of what I objectively felt I was worth."
-- Anonymous
"I wish I had known that the job market would be so difficult when I
graduated. Many companies recruit on campus at my university, and I
wish I had taken advantage of those opportunities. At the time I
chose to pass up many of those opportunities, but thinking back, I
think I should have considered many of them more seriously and given
myself more options. I feel like once you're out of college, it's
difficult to get into the job-hunt because at school they
automatically inundate you with so many opportunities."
-- 2002 anthropology grad
"I wish there were more information on writing resumes and cover
letters without the help of a resume service."
-- Anonymous
"There are many things I wish I knew about prior to job-hunting. For
example, what employers are really looking for in an employee. They
seem to want a lot of experience, and when I graduated I hardly had
any experience in my field. I had theory knowledge mostly, but the
employers wanted work experience. And it was very very hard finding
an employer who would take a chance on me."
-- 2003 electronic engineering technology grad
"I wish that I would have started looking early."
-- 1999 grad
"I did not want to start working right away, but now I wish I had.
Still looking to land a good job."
-- 2000 geography grad
"I wish I had started sooner, if for no other reason than to meet a
variety of people from a variety of companies to help my networking
along."
-- 2002 marketing and Japanese grad
"I wish I knew who to call when looking for a job, or, more
specifically, perhaps, I wish I knew what I am doing wrong."
-- Anonymous
"I wish I knew how invaluable my education was so that I had more
confidence in interviews. The first job was hard to land, but after
that, the confidence increases and negotiating salary and getting
other jobs becomes easier and easier."
-- 1998 English grad
"I wish I had taken more internships!"
-- Anonymous
"There are several things I wish I had known. First that job-hunting
is a full-time job and that there are no miracles. I wish I had a
savings account of significance and a lot more resources and time.
Everything about a job search takes money, from resume paper to
travel expenses. Landing a job that not only fits what you are
looking for the long term and is stable is extremely difficult. I
have had to accept things with no permanence or stability just to
have experience on my resume. I'm still working on the
salary-negotiation skills. When you're broke, any salary is great."
-- Jo Smith, substitute instructor, Murray State College, 2001
psychology grad from the University of Oklahoma
"Not to expect to find a job that you will like, and don't expect to
get hired any time soon."
-- Anonymous
"Having many internships will help in finding a job -- pads the
resume, and you meet a lot of 'connections.'"
-- Anne Johnson, senior corporate relations coordinator, U.S. Chamber
of Commerce, 2002 economics grad from the University of Dallas
"I wish I knew how hard it was to get a job and how education is
actually viewed in the business world."
-- Anonymous
"I would have liked to know how to start looking for the right job
and how to be ready for an interview. Some practical interviewing
sessions would have helped very much."
-- 2001 grad
"I wish I would have know a lot more about job-hunting when I first
graduated from college, especially salary negotiation. You may have
the degree, but if you don't have the experience they are looking
for, it can be difficult to land a good job."
-- Anonymous
"[I wish I'd known about] job-searching. For me, it has all been
trial and error. Thank goodness for the Internet. Perhaps [colleges
should teach] how to apply a particular major to the outside job
market."
-- 1999 history major
"[I wish I had known] that it is important to really find your focus
in what you want to do."
-- Anonymous
"I wish that I would have known that no matter how perfect a job
sounded in theory ... once you start -- it is going to lose its
glitter and glitz. You have to make your own goals and projects
sometimes to keep things interesting. Also, no matter how much money
you are making -- something is going to break, you will have to go to
the doctor, a check will be lost in the mail, etc."
-- 2001 general-business major
"I wish I had begun my job search DURING school, rather than waiting
until after I had graduated."
-- Anonymous
"I think recent college grads believe that it is simple getting a
job; but it is not! Don't expect to get a job overnight. It takes
time. I've been on interviews and been up for positions [where the
process] lasted for weeks! Networking is key."
-- Colleen Holuk, marketing specialist, Stromberg, LLC, 2001 Stetson
University grad
"Experience is essential to landing a good job after college. I wish
I had been more serious getting experience rather than worrying so
much about finishing school quickly."
-- Anonymous
"I did not receive adequate career counseling that enabled me to make
a good choice on future career plans/goals."
-- Anonymous
"I wish I knew more about workplace people skills. Basically, how to
deal with the complexities of working in a large corporation and the
bureaucracy that can complicate tasks. Also more computer IT and more
foreign-language skills."
-- 1999 finance grad
