The Motivated College Graduate: A Job Search Book for Recent College Graduates

PART I

Preparation and Messaging

Chapter 1

Things to Know About Your Job Search as a Recent College Graduate

In the end, what we regret most are the chances we never took.

—Frasier Crane³

Job Search Methods

There are four generally accepted job search methods for recent college graduates that generate the most job leads:

1. On-Campus Career Fairs

2. Networking (through various means and sources)

3. Direct - Proactively Marketing Your Collegiate Credentials to Employers

4. Job Boards and Online Job Applications

All four methods could lead you to your next career position. However, some are more effective than others.

On-Campus Career Fairs

The on-campus career fair is one of the time-efficient job search strategies available to you. Career fairs are convenient and allow you to interact with a number of employers in a reasonably short period of time. For the employers, there is already a general interest in meeting you and your peers, otherwise the employer would not be attending.

Networking

Networking is an effective job search method. It is estimated that 60 to 80 percent of all jobs are found through some form of networking.⁴ However, networking as a recent college graduate presents some challenges because most graduates do not have a developed network of professional connections to tap into. Nonetheless, there are ways to successfully use networking as a recent college graduate.

Direct - Proactively Marketing Your Collegiate Credentials to Employers

This is a method where you approach an employer directly regardless of whether there is a known job opening. It can be very effective when properly executed. This requires preparation and effort, and it will differentiate you from the vast majority of other recent college graduates.

Job Boards and Online Job Applications

This method tends to be the least effective and the statistics are not promising. It’s been referenced that for every online posting there are 118 applicants.⁵ The odds of you getting a job from an online job posting are less than one percent.

Should you even bother to apply to jobs posted online? Yes, though selectively. If you find a posted job opening that you are clearly qualified for, attempt to identify the actual hiring executive. Contact that person directly using the techniques described in this book (from the Direct approach referenced above). If that is unsuccessful, then apply for the position online.

If you know the specific industries you are interested in, follow specialized job boards used by employers in those industries. This can increase your chances of success.

But most importantly, control your expectation of success when applying for jobs posted online (job boards) and do not rely upon it as your main job search method.

This method will not be specifically discussed in the book except by occasional reference.

What the Coaches Say:

In your experience, what are the most effective job search methods for recent college graduates? (E.g. On-campus career fairs, networking, job boards, etc.)

Regardless of career level, new college graduate or chief executive officer, a recent survey reveals 85% of ALL jobs are filled via networking (LinkedIn Recruiting & Hiring, 2/29/16). College students can network at campus career fairs, yes, but their best strategy is to identify, nurture and grow their Circle of Champions, friends, family, colleagues and peers within their network. Then, add Prospects, 2nd and 3rd level connections and Activators, 1st connections, in targeted companies to their network. Other ways to build a Circle of Champions are to join industry associations as a student member, network at community events, and connect and interact with alumni via LinkedIn. Use the Circle of Champions to ask for introductions to 2nd or 3rd level connections or to people in their Circle.

Dr. Cheryl Minnick, NCRW, CCMC, CHJMC, CAA

I recommend all students attend job fairs to start talking to a broad range of potential employers. They should have a great introduction about themselves (elevator pitch) and have a plan prior to attending since many colleges post which employers will be there in advance. I also recommend students join associations in their career field, as many will have reduced membership fees or none for college students. For example a student wanting to be in Human Resources should join the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM). Networking is always critical. New grads, like all people, should be networking their inner and outer circle.

Ellen Steverson, NCRW, GCDF, CEIC

Your Job Search Arsenal: Considerations, Tools, and Tactics

The following is a reasonably comprehensive, though not necessarily an exhaustive list of considerations, tools, and tactics for a college graduate job search. The checklist is designed as a visual reminder of the tools and tactics at your disposal. Use it as a checklist as you prepare for your search as well as action items as you proceed. Read the chapters in this book for in-depth information.

It’s recommended that you review this list every once in a while as a reminder of what you should be doing or can be doing to advance your job search.

★ Clean Up All Social Media Before Starting a Job Search

Take this fact very seriously: Around 33 percent of employers have rejected candidates based on information discovered on social media.⁶ This is significant! Consider the ramifications—you put in years of effort, focus, and perseverance towards your college degree. You got good grades and worked as a summer intern. But a potential employer rejects you (and you may not even know it) for unprofessional or inappropriate information on your social media sites. All of your time and effort is blown. And, there’s no recovery once it happens.

Today, it is imperative that you clean up all of your social media sites before you start a job search. It is recommended that the cleansing process begins a few months in advance of actual job search activities. This allows for plenty of time for deleted information to cleanse itself out of cyber-space. Then, after you have cleansed your social media sites, wait awhile and again, before engaging in active job search activities, double check all social media for inappropriate information. Re-cleanse as necessary.

Part of this cleansing process includes getting tagged into inappropriate conversations. You may need to inform your friends or block them from tagging you if necessary. If you have a pseudo (secondary) account under another name, perhaps it is time to close and delete it. Ask yourself, is it worth the risk of discovery to get passed over for a job, or even possibly fired? The answer is obvious.

Cleaning up your social media sites is not hard, but you must be thorough. Start by running a Google search on your name. Delete all inappropriate photos and written content wherever you find it. Consider tightening your privacy settings as necessary after all inappropriate photos and content have been removed. Run a search for yourself in each and every social media site which you have an account. Cleanse everything everywhere you find it! There are now services that will scan and scrub your social media for harmful posts. Check into www.repnup.com and www.scrubber.social.

Begin professionalizing your social media sites. Post new photos that represent you in a positive light. All new content should also have a positive spin or be professionally appropriate.

Your college life is evolving into your professional career life. Along with that, you must evolve your social media life to support your professional career life.

What Employers Look for and Discover on Social Media

It is undeniable that social media will play a role in your job search. The significance of that role depends largely on how much you use social media. But employers also use social media.

To help you better understand the role of social media in your job search, CareerBuilder. com conducts a yearly survey that asks hiring managers and human resource professionals if, how, and why they incorporate social media into their hiring process.

The results from a recent survey found that out of the 2,300 hiring managers and human resource professionals 70 percent of employers use social networks to screen potential job candidates (this trend has consistently grown over the years).⁷ That means more and more companies browse your social media profiles to evaluate your character and personality. What they find about you will influence their hiring decision.

In the survey, employers that chose not to pursue a job applicant after researching social media sites indicated the following reasons:

However, over 44 percent of hiring executives discovered information that improved a job seeker’s candidacy, including:

According to the research, employers utilize social media to gain additional insight into your behavior and personality outside the interview. They use all tools available to help ensure a good hire.

What the Coaches Say:

What is your advice about cleaning up social media sites before starting a job search?

Once, in an appointment with a student, I was talking about the importance of googling their own name in preparation for job searching in order to ensure all outward facing social media was in alignment with the image they wanted to portray professionally. The student shared, I haven’t checked that in a long time, let’s see what my name generates. I agreed and we googled their name. In the process of searching the search engine, a YouTube video popped up of the student, and he immediately turned red in the face. He then proceeded to tell me not to click on the icon, and I, of course, laughed with the student because it was a case and point of the importance of knowing what exists out there, and to clean up anything that could be deemed questionable by a future employer. Long story short, I encourage students and recent graduates to reflect on how they desire to present themselves professionally through social media, and remembering whatever they put out to social media is a representation of their values, identities, belief systems, and that ultimately, they don’t get to control how a person interprets what they see. It is better to be conservative and clean up their social media in order to present a polished and professional, outward facing image.

Jered Lish M.S., Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, GCDF

Before beginning a job search, conduct a 30-day social media cleanse. Check your social media privacy settings; add a vanity URL to LinkedIn, as well as an updated professional headshot and an un-polarizing picture to Facebook; confirm your contact data is correct. Pull or delete any political rants, unbecoming photos and content shares. Next, google yourself—potential employers do and they learn more about us through our social media which leads to judgment and application rejections. Identify and build a brand, market and manage that brand via your professional behavior, headshot, character, integrity, appearance, tweets and posts.

Dr. Cheryl Minnick, NCRW, CCMC, CHJMC, CAA

How Important is Your GPA When Searching for a Job?

The short answer: It depends.

A strong GPA (3.5 and above on a 4.0 scale) is clearly an advantage when searching for your first career-focused job. If you have achieved this level of academic success, congratulations! Your hard work has paid off. You’re in a good spot!

The importance of your GPA in your job search depends largely on your field of interest. Desirable employers in the fields of accounting, engineering, finance, science, technology, among others tend to use grade point average as a screening tool to limit the size of the overall candidate pool for sought-after positions. A high grade point average can qualify you for an interview with these selective employers, but it does not guarantee you a job. There are many other factors that come into play in securing employment beyond your GPA. (Much of this book is dedicated to those other factors to a successful job search.)

What the Coaches Say:

What is your opinion regarding the importance of a G.P.A. and its influence on a graduate’s job search?

Some employers recruit students based on G.P.A. Most understand that what you learned and how well you work with others is a better predictor of job success. If you are not in the top 10% of your class, be prepared to explain your G.P.A. Did working to pay for college impact the time you had to study? Did you choose challenging classes or a major where top grades were harder to earn? Do you excel in your field but not on tests? Explain why the mitigating factor will make you a better employee, and how you learned to work harder and smarter and focus on goals rather than on grades.

Lorraine Beaman, MA, ACRW, CARW, NCRW, CEIC, MCD

Depending on the job a graduate is pursuing, a high GPA may be a requirement. For example, some highly competitive roles or employers may require a higher GPA to use as a screening process to reduce the list of potential candidates to consider for any position. Because a new graduate does not have a lot of experience, companies will rely on their performance in college as a gauge of how the candidate will perform on their job and how they will approach their work. In general, many companies will target a GPA of at least 3.0. However, the key is to understand that the GPA is used more as a filter than as a rule. If a candidate has a GPA that is less than 3.0, it does not necessarily mean that a company will not consider them; it just means that they should have some other qualities that will let them stand out and be competitive to the employer so they will still be a contender.

Juliet Murphy, MBA, MA

For many employers, the first item of interest is the actual completion of the degree, followed by GPA and other factors. Completion of the degree is a demonstration of perseverance, work ethic, focus, dedication, and delayed gratification. All are sought-after qualities that employers look for in new hires. The thing to remember is employers are looking for skills that will translate into making or saving the company money or achieving organizational mission goals. A GPA is a factor but not an accurate way to measure for those abilities. Having soft skills like communication abilities, problem solving abilities, creative thinking, as well as previous experience through internships or working through school can be more valuable to an employer than a GPA.

According to The Chronicle of Higher Education and American Public Media’s Marketplace, relevant work experience is more important than academic GPA to many employers:

Employers place more weight on experience, particularly internships and employment during school vs. academic credentials including GPA and college major when evaluating a recent graduate for employment.¹⁰

This reasoning makes sense. If a college graduate has a successful track record performing the tasks (or some of them) required in a position, it is a clear predictor of success regardless of academic GPA.

When it comes to your job search, your academic record will be a factor. However, it is not everything. Your job search success will likely turn on three additional things beyond your academic record: First is your ability to demonstrate value to an employer by referencing your previous work or internship experience. Then, proof of character traits and soft skills such as work ethic and honesty. Finally, the hiring decision will be influenced by cultural fit. That is, the subjective determination by an employer that you will blend into the company’s culture.

So how important is your GPA? It matters to qualify you with some companies in some industries for an interview. Beyond that, depending upon the employer, it can matter less. This can be good news for those with less than a stellar GPA. Work experience, character traits, and cultural fit tend to influence the hiring decision beyond the GPA.

What the Coaches Say:

What are your thoughts regarding the importance of a G.P.A. and the overall success of a college graduate’s career?

Research has consistently shown there is not a direct correlation between college G.P.A. and career success. College coursework provides the basic knowledge for entering a profession; it is hard work, commitment to continuous learning, and drive that are the key to professional success.

Lorraine Beaman, MA, ACRW, CARW, NCRW, CEIC, MCD

I think students should try to earn the highest grades possible. However, life happens and for those who have a lower GPA and still finish, they can still go on to earn just as much as someone with a high GPA, as long as they have the internal drive, work ethic, and abilities to advance.

Ellen Steverson, NCRW, GCDF, CEIC

GPA matters during college, on internship, graduate school, professional school (medical, pharmacy, etc.) and first job applications, but after that nobody asks―they prefer to judge you on your accomplishments in the boardroom not the classroom. Success itself is subjective—a stellar GPA could indicate success, but the act of graduating college could be success to a single mother, or graduating college without debt to a military veteran. We often correlate success with financial gain, but perhaps success is living the life you want, having a strong loving family, doing the thing you want to do, or being proud of yourself. If this is true, then GPA is far less important than visionary career and life planning.

Dr. Cheryl Minnick, NCRW, CCMC, CHJMC, CAA

How Important to Your Career is Your First Job after College?

Your first job is important.

Your first job after college is important because it is your starting point. It should be a professional-level position, meaning a position that requires a college degree as a qualification for the position.

Do what you can to find a position that fits your general interests and skill, realizing that your first job will not be glamorous. Anticipate junior level titles like trainee, associate, analysts, project assistant, and the like. As best as you can, try to get a job with an employer that has a good business reputation.

As you evaluate first-job opportunities, get a sense whether you will be given opportunities to do new and different things over the course of time. Try to avoid a job that is strictly mundane functions. You want to learn and grow professionally as much as the position will allow.

Your first job is important as your starting point and sets you up for the next job, which sets you up for the next, and so on. (See, What You Want to Achieve in Your First Job later in this book.)

Your first job is not that important.

Your first job is where you start. However, it will have reasonably little effect on how your career will end up over the course of the next forty to fifty years. As a professional, you will meet people and you will network. Business and job opportunities will come your way. These opportunities could take your career in directions you never imagined. Or, you will choose to explore new opportunities. It will be a journey!

As time passes, the importance of your first job will fade as your interests change, your jobs change, and life progresses.

What the Coaches Say:

How important is the first job out of college?

Your first job is the first step on a career path that can lead to years of fulfilling work or a series of forgettable jobs. Spend time determining your career goals before accepting your first job. Choose an organization in which you can take pride and where you will have the opportunity to develop new skills and take on interesting projects. It is not impossible to change the direction of your career or jobs; but starting off in the right direction will save you a lot of work and anxiety.

Lorraine Beaman, MA, ACRW, CARW, NCRW, CEIC, MCD

I would say the first job out of college isn’t as important as your first boss out of college. I encourage recent graduates to not only search for a job around interest areas, values and strengths but to also be diligent in seeking a supervisor who can serve as a facilitator of professional growth in your first position post college. This is particularly important for the post college job seeker to find a boss who can serve as a mentor and facilitator of their growth. With this being said, while interviewing for any position, I encourage my recent graduates to be inquisitive around the work values of the supervisor, along with learn their philosophy of professional development. Any insights gained in those areas can be an indicator of what their first job will mean for them, and it can make all the difference in how they grow and thrive in their first position.

Jered Lish M.S., Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, GCDF

People can put a lot of emphasis on the first job. However, having worked with students from high school through college, I can say it takes some people longer than others to determine the correct career path. So even if the first job is one you hate, it’s better to discover that and move on to something better than to feel paralyzed by fear of making the wrong choice so they delay working. We live in an era where career paths are allowed to change, so I recommend they learn from every job, what they like and what they don’t, keep developing skills, and then continue to advance forward accordingly!

Ellen Steverson, NCRW, GCDF, CEIC

What Employers are Looking For When Hiring New College Graduates

This is a difficult topic because the answers can vary widely from industry to industry and employer to employer. The contents for this topic are based on research of the topic, interviews with college placement professionals, and talent acquisition professionals.

The first thing employers are looking for is the most obvious—completion of a college degree. That achievement alone gets you to the starting line of a career and qualifies you for many career-focused positions.

Experience and applicable skills¹¹ are often cited by employers when interviewing college graduates. This is why internships can be so important. Summer jobs, especially those that are relevant to the position being pursued, also have significant influence with an employer. (There is much more on how to capitalize upon internships and job experience in your job search later in the book.)

Your major and GPA are varying factors depending upon the industry, employers, and position being pursued. For some employers, your major and GPA can be very important and a gateway into your career endeavors (Accounting, engineering, medicine, and many others). Or, they could be of far less concern. There are millions of college graduates who have successful careers in areas completely unrelated to their college major. It depends.

Soft skills and professional characteristics are far more significant in a successful job search than most college graduates appreciate.¹²

This is understandable since your primary focus in college was academic achievement. This is where employers look for examples of leadership ability, communication skills (verbal, written, listening), analytical or problem solving abilities. Closely related are professional character traits such as a strong work ethic, honesty, and integrity. Employers value soft skills and professional character traits.

Often overlooked by many college graduates is an employer’s need, spoken or unspoken, for someone with business acumen or organizational vision. This is your understanding of the bigger picture. It is your understanding that to succeed an employer must generate revenue from its customers or clients. The business enterprise must be profitable. In the non-commercial world, it is your understanding of the organization’s mission. It is the understanding that your performance in the position you are pursuing must contribute to the success of the company or organization (very likely achieved in conjunction with your co-workers).

Knowing what an employer looks for in a college graduate is important. You will have insight and a distinct competitive advantage against others who have not thought this