The New Graduate's Guide To Job Search

Business & Management
#1

As graduation approaches, chances are you’re starting to consider the ways you can turn your hard-earned education into a meaningful and rewarding full-time job. As you begin to plan your post-college career path, the first step is to consider which direction you’d like to take your educational credentials.

Think about what you really want to do at work. Depending on the type of educational path you’ve chosen, you might plan to apply your degree directly in a role that requires your specific expertise, you might have a wide range of professional options available to you, or you might choose to pivot slightly toward a field, industry or role that complements your educational background.

In any of these cases, you’ll need to get specific about the job you’re looking for: both to decide where to focus your search and so you can confidently answer interview questions about why you’re attracted to a particular role.

To learn more about the ins and outs of certain industries and jobs, talk with your favorite professors or work with your academic advising center to identify opportunities to shadow professionals in your field for a day or week.

Key takeaways

  • Take stock of what you’ve accomplished in your academic career and internships, your personal aspirations and what industries you’d like to pursue.
  • Think about the skills you feel most confident in and those attributes that make you unique—these can be valuable selling points for potential employers. It’s common for students and new grads to have limited work or internship experience. If this is true for you, consider any roles you’ve had in your community or school, volunteer work you’ve done and other experiences where you applied your skills and interests.
  • Before you begin your job search, review your social media profiles and check your privacy settings. Potential employers may look at these pages.