After years of pessimism about job opportunities, college students have cause for hope, says Phil Gardner, director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University.
Employers are ramping up their presence on campus, a sign that the job market is improving.
This improvement, however, is happening gradually. Gardner shared advice for current students looking to land a job after graduation with The Center for Michigan, a Michigan-based think tank.
Land an Internship
Today’s job market demands far more of entry-level employees, Gardner says. His generation expected to be trained after they were hired at their first job, and to stay on there for at least six years. Nowadays, employees don’t feel the need to stick around for many years, but their employers expect them to arrive already trained for the job at hand.
The answer: internships. Begin an internship as a student to gain new experiences. Gardner suggests students find something challenging, even if it doesn’t necessarily match up with the job they’re seeking. And the majority of those job recruiters on campus are looking for interns — there’s been a “heavy surge” in internship opportunities for current students.
Universities around the country urge students to try internships that give them hands-on experience in particular fields. Boston University’s Center for Career Development, for example, points out that internships can help students determine whether a particular field is right for them, but also give them more confidence in their abilities and help them make valuable professional contacts.
Start the Search Early
“Students need to develop a good job search strategy early on. They can’t start just before graduation,” Gardner tells Bridge, The Center for Michigan’s news blog. A list of guidelines from Virginia Tech Student Services states that it is important to begin searching for jobs early to avoid missed opportunities. Many companies begin searching for entry-level employees months before they expect to fill positions, so students can maximize their options by searching well in advance of graduation. And try a number of search methods, Virginia Tech advises, as no single job-search method will show every opportunity.
Communication Is Key
Gardner notes that students need to hone their communications skills to help land those jobs, gain a variety of experience such as studying abroad and learn to talk to adults “that are not their parents.”
University career offices, like the University of California Berkley’s CAL Alumni Association, suggest students practice marketing themselves, and learn to ask questions of potential employers, especially questions about the job or the industry.
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