Critical First Job Tips: Key Job Search Advice -- #1

Q-TIPs: Critical First Job Tips
Key Job Search Advice -- #1

These job and career-related tips -- for all students and recent grads searching for your first real jobs -- have been gathered from numerous sources throughout Quintessential Careers and organized here for your convenience.

College students' biggest mistake is pursuing money rather than their dreams according to nationally known speaker and author Gary Tuerack. "That's a fatal mistake," Tuerack said in the Q&A interview he did with Quintessential Careers. "And statistics show that those who do what they love end up being the millionaires in society."

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College students, it won't be long after you're back on campus in your junior and senior years that you'll want to start thinking about checking out career fairs. Attending a career fair is just one of many steps in the career exploration and job-search process. Employers participate in these events to meet job seekers and recruit employees. They can provide general information about career options, as well as specific information about current openings. Job seekers can attend career fairs to look for a job, gather career information, and/or develop a network of career contacts. MonsterTRAK.com provides a set of Top 10 tips for attending a career fair.

Also take a look at these Job Expo and Career Fair Resources.

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Should new college grads and others be worried about the downturn in the economy? Author Donald Asher observes that college recruiting dropped by 50 percent in the last recession, but this fact was little reported in the media. In the Q&A interview Asher did with Quintessential Careers, Asher cautioned that "all job-seekers should understand that companies will not carry them through the next downturn. These are the new rules, and both sides have to deal with them, both when they are to their advantage and when they are not. If you are an integral part of the value chain of a profitable enterprise, you'll be fine, but if not, it will be time to worry."

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The Web site Jobcircle has a nice article on company research called Ten Things You Should Know About Researching Companies. The article has great advice, such as starting your research early, talking to people who work at the company, checking your facts, getting the scoop from impartial information providers (such as WetFeet) and seeking out media coverage of the firm.

And don't forget two great Quintessential Careers resources: For company research, it's our Guide to Researching Companies. And for direct contact with companies, check out our Directory of Company Career Centers.

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Recruiting Trends reports that federal agencies may now use student loan repayment as a recruitment incentive. The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has authorized repayment of up to $6,000 per person per year up to a total maximum loan repayment of $40,000. Janice R. Lachance, OPM director, says, "OPM is committed to meeting this challenge using innovative and flexible new tools. This new regulation gives agencies a tool similar to ones used by the private sector."

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The value to a college student of being partnered with alumnus/alumna or other professional in his/her field as a mentor is priceless according to Marcia Merrill, career advisor at Loyola College, MD. In the Q&A interview she did with Quintessential Careers, Merrill said: "Students (mentees) get to ask their mentors questions about the 'real world.' Mentors report that it's very rewarding to help someone, remembering what it was like when they were trying to decide on a career. They invite the students to job-shadow them in the workplace to see how it really is and experience firsthand what it's like to be an attorney, doctor, or counselor/psychologist. Having a mentor can be the first step toward deciding on pursuing a given career. Many students begin with making networking contacts and grow into working part- or full-time for their mentor or their mentor's contacts. Internships often result as the student gains the experience needed to make a career decision. A college career center is only one way of seeing about getting a mentor. Usually colleges have an Alumni Network for this purpose.

"If you're not affiliated with a college, you can find mentors by looking at the association that corresponds to your field of interest. Examples: Society of Women Engineers, Association for Sociological Research, American Management Association, American Institute of Physicists, to name a few. Every major/career field has one or more associations dedicated to that particular area of interest. Most have Web sites that outline membership benefits, usually including mentor programs. There are several online e-mentoring Web sites, such as Mentornet.com and asktheemployer.com, to name a few. Not having a formal mentoring program within your workplace is not an excuse. You could start your own!"

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If you are a new grad or other jobseeker who is a little freaked out by the number of interviews required of you in the typical hiring process, be aware that most companies interview candidates two to three and sometimes four times before offering a job. Notes Diana LeGere of Executive Final Copy, "The more money you make, the longer the process. Relax! You should actually do much better on the next two or three. After all, you feel great! Who wouldn't feel magnificent after putting his or her best foot forward? You are being considered for a wonderful new position. The initial screening interviews were just enough practice to get you calm and feeling on top of the world. Go back to your notes, study, rehearse and know your lines. The next opportunity is likely to be in front of the top echelon of the company. That's exciting because he or she is the decision-maker."

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To survive in a more competitive economy, author Donald Asher notes that job-seekers "must be better prepared so as to compete better in the job market. In the Q&A interview he did with Quintessential Careers, Asher said that better preparation means candidates "need to research the careers they are entering and find out what type of skills and qualifications they need for the type of job they seek. Each profession requires certain skills, and they should be certain they are taking the appropriate courses and/or receiving adequate training to prepare them for their career. Then I advise everyone to have some computer skills and good writing skills as these skills are often overlooked, yet necessary for nearly every job. They are basic skills that employers look for when hiring in this day and age but often find lacking in job candidates."

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To ensure you have some good stuff to list on your resume, take the advice of Jeff Gunhus, author of No Parachute Required:

Join clubs and organizations. Doing so makes you seem well-rounded and socially adept.
Take on leadership roles. Volunteer for lead positions because most employers seek leadership skills.
Organize an event. You show initiative, innovation, and organizational skills when you do so.
Do a meaningful internship. Gunhus asserts that an internship is the BEST way to help yourself after graduation.

Read our review of No Parachute Required.

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Ginny Rehberg, a Boston-based career consultant and executive coach, recently listed five ways that volunteering can boost your career and resume:

You can make new contacts -- so important since the majority of jobs come from networking.
You can develop new skills, including the so-called "soft skills," such as teamwork and awareness of diversity.
You can hone your ability to manage time.
You can learn to influence others without possessing and exerting power, which Rehberg cites as an important skill in the less hierarchical workplace of today.
And finally, the bottom line consists of great experience to list on your resume.

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According to author Donald Asher, today's employers "seem to be driven by two different trends. In the Q&A interview he did with Quintessential Careers, he described those trends this way: "(1) They are not at all hesitant to lay off staff, individually or en masse, and they aren't at all hesitant to close entire lines of business that are not profitable. (2) They are hiring precise skillsets, not bodies. They are desperate for workers, yes, but very specific workers. They will not hire someone who does not match specific criteria, and in the past they would have. This trend could unravel, however, if employees become too spoiled to work. The offspring of wealthy people seldom make wealth, or even retain the wealth they are handed, because they don't feel the need to strive. The same thing can happen to wealthy societies."

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Defining "cutting-edge" jobs as those that blaze new trails, Ferguson Publishing's book, 50 Cutting-Edge Jobs lists the following among its trailblazers: benefits administrator, bilingual consultant, biotechnology patent attorney, business valuator, chief information officer, chief knowledge officer, complementary medicine practitioner, computational linguist, computer animator, computer repair technician, computer and video game designer, desktop sound engineer, digital agent, environmental accountant, fiber optics technician, forensic accountant and auditor, forensic psychophysiologist, fuel cell technician, fusion engineer, geriatric social worker, grief counselor, health advocate, horticultural therapist, information broker, interactive media specialist, among others.

Buy the book today.

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"If you want to be a job seeker in this new millennium then use a visual medium, a portfolio," advised teacher and writer Martin Kimeldorf in the Q&A interview he did with Quintessential Careers. "A resume is from the last millennium. Both resumes and portfolios will help you focus your job search and provide you with the language you need during networking and interviewing. But please take a portfolio to the job interview," urges Kimeldorf.

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Seeking a career in information technology? Know what to expect. Although demand, salary, and perks are still promising, IT staffers are working longer hours but producing less, according to ZDNet, quoting a new report on global IT trends. The study, by research firm Meta Group, found that U.S. computer professionals worked an average of 45 hours a week this year, an increase of 36 percent from 1999. Working hours rose by 30 percent outside the U.S. Even with these extra hours, the high learning curve demanded by projects has affected productivity among technology workers. The average U.S. software developer produced 9,000 lines of code in 1999. This year, the average has fallen by 47 percent to 6,220 lines of code.

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One of the most dreaded interview questions (and it's not even really a question) is "Tell me about yourself." Eric Schlesinger of PFPC, a company that puts on career fairs for college students, provides this helpful template for responding (it's geared to college students but can be adapted by others):

"My name is _____. I will be graduating from ____ with a degree in ______. I have had some experience in __________ (industry/function) doing _______. Most recently, I _______. Before that I was ___________. My areas of expertise (core transferable skills) are ____________. My particular strengths are (relate to the specific opportunity you are interviewing for) __________________. I am interested in how I might contribute to your organization."

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The biggest "reality check" job-seekers face once they successfully make it into the workplace is that that they or their supervisor might be gone within nine months, according to teacher and writer Martin Kimeldorf in the Q&A interview he did with Quintessential Careers. "Therefore, one should keep a portfolio documenting accomplishments and learning on the job. You will profit from taking it to your next employee evaluation -- or your next interview -- whichever comes first," Kimeldorf notes.

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Not sure what you want to do? Consider one of the jobs listed among the top five best overall jobs by Jobs Rated Almanac:

1. Financial planner
2. Website manager
3. Computer-systems analyst
4. (tie) Actuary
4. (tie) Computer programmer

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The Occupational Outlook Quarterly is a newsletter with lots of helpful info for job seekers. Check it out at.

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"The secret to a successful job-search campaign is target marketing," said Debra Feldman, specialist in cyber-savvy strategic job-search consultations, in the Q&A interview she did with Quintessential Careers. "If you can be a marketing whiz, then you can get yourself the job you want by correct positioning, clever promotion, and savvy selling propositions," Feldman points out.

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Want to succeed at your first job once you've landed it? Better sharpen your so-called "soft skills" according to a survey of employers reported by the BBC. These soft skills, which employers say are often lacking in entry-level hires, include:

taking initiative
communicating effectively
making decisions
solving problems
building relationships

Nearly 80 percent of employers said employees with these "soft skills" would find it easier to move up the corporate ladder. They say real-world experience, say a year between high school and college or an internship during college can help build those skills. Read the full article.

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One of the best sources of networking contacts for college students is the guest speakers that come to talk to your classes. These professionals are a vast untapped resource. One of our students who was interested in a career in pharmaceutical sales went up to a guest speaker from that industry after the presentation and introduced herself. She asked the pharmaceutical rep if she could send him her resume. He agreed, and she kept in touch with him throughout the next semester before she graduated. By the time she claimed her diploma, she had lined up a $40,000 a year job with the drug firm.

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"In a temporary world of work, think of yourself as a portable container of skills," advised teacher and writer Martin Kimeldorf In the Q&A interview he did with Quintessential Careers. "I favor this image because the word 'portfolio' means a portable collection. I invite people to adopt what I call a "portfolio mindset," which, briefly, means making a portfolio, reading and studying those career books that make sense to you . . . then put it all into play! Don't wait by the keyboard or the phone -- go out and hit the bricks!" Kimeldorf suggests.

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For those interested in the global job market, check out Quintessential Careers' section on jobs across the world.

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It's no longer totally a man's world in information technology. "It is a label that people in information technology (IT) can't seem to shake: the nerd stereotype," writes Sherri Pfeil in Employment Review. "And unfortunately, many girls are still taught early in life that women are supposed to learn how to cook and play with their dolls while boys play with computers. Even little girls' favorite doll, Barbie, displayed a lack of knowledge in technology when she proclaimed, 'Math is hard.' Although men still dominate the IT industry, more women are joining the ranks and climbing up the corporate ladder today."

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Think summer is not a good time for job hunting? Think again. Summer can be a great time to job-hunt. Competition is minimal because job-seekers assume hiring decisions will be postponed until fall. While the assumption often proves correct, the groundwork for hiring can be laid in the summer -- through effective networking. Just as parties and networking opportunities increase during the Christmas holidays, picnics, barbecues, beach parties, and outdoor sporting activities provide sizzling summertime networking occasions. Vacations can be planned around the possibility of relocating one's career to another locale and networking while on vacation. New fiscal years often begin in June or July, making new hiring possible.

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When looking for a job out of state, it is a good idea to check out the local colleges' career-planning Websites, advised career counselor Doris Flaherty in the Q&A interview she did with Quintessential Careers. "As always, some Web sites are more informative than others, but I usually come up with several good leads for the geographical area of interest. Any college usually has more focus on its surrounding area since the majority of the graduates will find work there," Flaherty says.

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College students need to be particularly mindful of approaching the job search from the employer's point of view and talking about what THEY can do for the employer -- NOT what the employer can do for THEM. We've seen college students fall into the trap of telling employers their demands in career objectives on resumes, in cover letters, and during the interview. Remember, the employer is not out to satisfy all YOUR hopes, dreams, and aspirations; instead, the employer wants to know how YOU can help the organization's bottom line.

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Brian Krueger, author of the excellent College Grad Job Hunter, says that the job-interview question that college students most often blow is: "Why did you choose your college?" Your response should demonstrate not only sound decision-making skills but should describe how the education you obtained at your specific college will benefit the employer.

Find even more job-search advice and tips in Critical First Job Tips: Key Job Search Advice -- #2.

Review all our Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips.

Maximize your career and job-search knowledge and skills! Take advantage of The Quintessential Careers Content Index, which enables site visitors to locate articles, tutorials, quizzes, and worksheets in 35 career, college, job-search topic areas.

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Q-TIPs: Critical First Job Tips Key Job Search Advice -- #1

These job and career-related tips -- for all students and recent grads searching for your first real jobs -- have been gathered from numerous sources throughout Quintessential Careers and organized here for your convenience.

Review all our Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips.

Maximize your career and job-search knowledge and skills! Take advantage of The Quintessential Careers Content Index, which enables site visitors to locate articles, tutorials, quizzes, and worksheets in 35 career, college, job-search topic areas.

Q-TIPs: Critical First Job Tips
Key Job Search Advice -- #1