Who’s Hiring Recent College Grads: Resources for Entry-Level Job Seekers
This guest post is from CareerAlley.
“Education is what remains when one has forgotten everything he learned in school.” – Albert Einstein
You graduated when? It’s already January 2010 and you still don’t have a job?
Have you heard these words lately (like from your parents)? Okay, so it’s been months and you’ve been looking for a job (just like the millions of other job seekers out there) but you just haven’t found your thing yet. Maybe you played a few video games while searching on the web for your job, but mostly you’ve been job hunting.
So, what next? Unless you’re thinking about starting a snow shoveling service for the winter, it’s time to refocus your job search.
January is actually a good time to find a job. Everyone has finished their vacations (potential hiring managers that is), kids are back in school (less distractions) and the rush is on to fill those job openings that were out there before the holidays set in.
The best place to start when you refocus your job search is the basics, which of course starts with your resume and works through everything that is included in the Career Alley Job Search Marketing Toolkit.
The following are some great links to check out as you consider your new job search moves for the new year.
Resumes & Resources
- Recent College Graduate Resume – This list of links, from a great college career sites – www.collegegrad.com, provides a number of different resources to help you in writing or updating your resume. The links provide examples, templates and advice on references. This is the best place to start if you are reviewing or writing your resume.
- Recent College Graduates: Ignore Your Parents’ Resume Tips – A good article, provided by University Language Services, provides information to ensure your resume is “up to current standards” and does not reflect something that would have been good 20 years ago. The article is comprehensive and is filled with related links (including links on the right hand side of the page).
- Business Cards – Even if you’re unemployed, this is a great self-promoting tool to have with you on the go. Who knows what contacts you might make at an informal event when you don’t have a resume handy. Personal cards, with no employer listed, are a great way to get your name out there and show you are on the ball, professional, and serious about your job search. You could include your degree and special skills or interests, in a word or two, like “B.A. in Psychology with honors, ___ University, fluent in Spanish.”
Recruiting & Job Search
- Gradgrad.com – This site focuses on recruiting for college grads. It appears to work like most job search sites – sign up (add your resume), employers search for you and then, according to the site “add you to their list”. You can do a job search by several different criteria.
- Collegecentral.com – This site offers quite a few options. You can click on “student central,” which focuses on entry level jobs; “alumni central,” which focuses on jobs for recent grads; and “Career Services Central,” which allows you to connect with mentors. The site also has a job search kit, which provides resources on resumes, cover letters and interviews. There are also a very wide range of articles on the first page.
- Aftercollege.com – Aftercollege offers searches for internships and entry level jobs. You can register or just search. You can search by job categories, and there are a number of job tools on the main page. This site also has “endorsements” which are similar to recommendations on LinkedIn, which allows professors, managers or anyone you want to put in the good word for you.
- EntryLevelComputerJobs.com – As the name of this site implies, it is a job search engine that focuses on entry level tech jobs. You can post your resume, search for jobs, and peruse the information on the IT Resources page. The home page is divided into the main tech job categories for easy search.
- Honorrollonline.com – In addition to providing a newsletter, a blog and career advice, this site matches employers with college students and graduates. In order to enroll in their program, your school must have signed up to participate (you can check to see which schools are included). They also have a link to “Student Union” which is an online community and resource.
- NACElink.com – This is an alliance between NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers), employers, and a number of other associations. Clicking on the Student link takes you to a page that has links to the NACElink Network (job search and career center), Jobweb (employer profiles and job search articles), Jobchoice (career development and job search guide) and “Playing Fair” (rights and responsibilities as a job searcher).
- JobWeb – This site offers career and job-search advice for new college graduates. The main page has these sections: job search (for college students and alumni); research employers (some are listed on the page with a link for additional searches); market yourself (sounds like good advice); job market (top 10 majors in demand); as well as some additional links.
Career Advice
- Ten Careers that Pay More Than $50k the First Year – While money isn’t everything, unless you’re opting for volunteer work, it is an important consideration. Yahoo! Education provides a list of the top paying careers (starting salary) with links to additional information.
- Collegegraduatejobsearch.com – This site provides a broad range of articles, advice, and links to help Entry Level and College Grads in their search.
- eRecruiting.com – As per their website banner, eRecruiting is the “Nation’s Largest Network of Students, Employers and Universities”. You start by selecting the state in which your school is located, followed by the school name. It looks like you first need to get an id from your school (there are instructions on the screen). There is also a link for Employers to post their jobs. Ask your college career office for additional information.
- CollegeRecruiter – As per the site’s banner – “Featuring hundreds of thousands of internships for college students and entry level jobs for recent graduates.” You can post your profile by clicking “MyCollegeRecruiter” and following the links for registering. From the main page you can search for jobs or follow the links for internships (a pretty amazing list) or click on entry level jobs (another amazing list).
Good luck in your search!
Article courtesy of the Recruiting Blogswap, a content exchange service sponsored by CollegeRecruiter.com, a leading site for college students looking for internships and recent graduates searching for entry level jobs and other career opportunities.
As a recent college grad I know the feeling of not finding that job right after college. Resumes are everything these days. Try and find something that seperates you from the rest. This could even be a hobby. For me it was astronomy. My employer liked that i did something educational in my spare time. They were impressed when they saw it on my resume.
Great post! I know so many recent graduates who have gotten frustrated with the job search and are either returning to school or taking jobs outside of their fields. I wonder how this lack of entry-level experience will affect us even after the recession is over – will we have half a decade’s of college graduates lost with no industry experience and outdated skills?
Yes, January and February are two of the best months for job hunting as employers advertise a lot of commercial jobs. Good standard links to resources for graduates. You could add links about interview practice and physiology of a persons thinking. Increasingly employers are looking for a certain type of person that fits the position and the environment and some links in this nature would benefit readers.
Even with the economy as bad as it is, law enforcement agencies are still seeking qualified applicants. More and more police departments are wanting to hire college graduates.