Q TIPS:
Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips
Job-hunting tips from the November 8, 2004 issue of
QuintZine.
High-school seniors with college plans aren't sitting back and taking it easy. Today, the competition
among students to earn a spot at a post-secondary institution is more competitive, which has students
working harder than ever just to make sure they get accepted to the school of their choice.
Read more from the Star Tribune.
Going to college can improve a worker's ability to earn a higher income, but the experience of going to
college can also teach valuable skills for success at work and in life. A recent study found that college
grads not only earn more than workers with a high-school education, but they also participate more in their
communities and have higher levels of self-esteem.
Read
more in the article from The Arizona Republic.
While the prospective college Class of 2009 is busy applying to colleges, the Class of 2005
is feeling a bit gloomy about its post-college job prospects. CollegeGrad.com recently
released its survey results on employment expectations for next spring's grads. Only 29 percent of college
seniors recently surveyed expect to find employment by graduation. The remaining 71 percent expect their job search to continue
through the summer, for six months or even more following graduation. Some students attribute their low
expectations to a poor job market, while others are just waiting to begin their job search until after they graduate.
The economy is not the only factor in the expectations that college seniors have of the current job market.
Many students struggle with the "experience" dilemma. Frank Prioleau Jr, who will graduate in December 2004
with a computer-science degree from Limestone College explains, "I have gotten letters saying I don't have
the experience needed. How can I get experience if no one gives me the chance?"
Career center advisors repeatedly lament the fact that students do not make their job search their
first priority. "There is not a universal impetus for resume and job hunting until the last minute,"
said Mary Banks, director of the Business Career Center at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
"The most frustrating excuse that I hear regularly from college seniors is that they are just too busy
with their coursework and their athletic teams to spend time on their job search!" said Grady McClendon,
director of Career Services at Webber International University. "In other words, their job search doesn't
seem to be very high among their priorities."
High-school seniors with college plans aren't sitting back and taking it easy. Today, the competition
among students to earn a spot at a post-secondary institution is more competitive, which has students
working harder than ever just to make sure they get accepted to the school of their choice.
