By Alyssa Locklar
Senior Staff Reporter
From sophisticated speech to perfected resumes and proper dress, landing a job in 2011 is not a process that can be done sitting down. Recent college graduates are entering a job market with a lot more expectations then ever before and need to be prepared in every category.
“The first thing that you must recognize is that the competition is brutal and you have got to find a way to differentiate yourself,” said Jan Brakefield, assistant professor in the department of consumer sciences. “Every year you have to ask yourself, ‘what new writing skill or role can I acquire?’ or ‘What professor can I work on a research project with? How can I rub elbows with people who are in successful positions in my chosen field?’ It’s all about leaving here with credentials that no other students have.”
Brakefield said in addition to placing yourself close to professionals in your chosen field, students should establish themselves among their peers and professors who share similar interests and maintain portfolios of student work from classes or internships.
“It is a personal responsibility,” Brakefield said. “It’s about you managing your own life. I think students have this ‘Oh well it will all work out’ attitude and then are disappointed when it doesn’t actually work out as hoped. Taking a proactive approach really makes the difference.”
Today’s employers are not only looking for students who went above and beyond in both their education and networking, but they are looking for college graduates who can speak, write and act like adults in a professional environment.
“Employers are ‘buying’ college students because they expect them to know how to write and how to speak,” Brakefield said. “Even in emails you need to make sure you are not using juvenile, casual vocabulary. The difference is monumental.
“Another thing that is so important is that you demonstrate the adult behavior to delay gratification,” she said. “Highly successful adults share that as an important quality. They put off pleasures today for that big carrot tomorrow.
“That proves to the employer that you didn’t waste two or three nights out partying every week. And proves that you were able to see that your first job and commitment was to be a successful college student.”
Most employers will not initially invite potential employees for an in house interview. Instead, they get their first impressions from the documents you provide them.
“Unfortunately, since you can’t expect to come face-to-face with most potential employers, your documents are your marketing showpiece,” she said. “Your resume, your cover letter and your professional business cards need to scream ‘I am high quality, work ready and someone you want to see in person.’ Your documents have to dazzle them. They cannot have any misspelled words, poor sentence structure or lower-level vocabulary.”
Potential employees have to not only have all of their documents but they must also be sure to include all of the right information that hiring managers are looking for and cut out any irrelevant material.
“Now, with some employers taking 30 seconds or less to review a resume, highlight your accomplishments and work in-and-out of the classroom, especially if you’re light on professional experience,” reported Jennifer Icklan, a CNN producer in a May 2011 article.
Icklan said hiring managers are looking for internships, part-time jobs, volunteer and class work and involvement in on campus activities and groups. She also said a survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers showed that hiring managers recruited a large percentage of their past interns for full-time positions last year, recommending that college graduates keep in contact with former employers.
Once potential employees documents have served their purpose and they have landed an interview, Icklan said that you must pull your end of the deal.
“When it comes to the interview, CareerBuilder says some of the biggest mistakes employers report are college grads coming in with no knowledge on the company, acting entitled, dressing inappropriately, and not turning off their cell phone during the interview,” Icklan said.
To help prepare students for their lives after college, the University of Alabama’s Career Center offers multiple resources that help with nearly all aspects of the job search.
“The Career Center is a really useful tool that more students should take advantage of,” said Gary Khandjian, a recent UA graduate. “They will help build and critique your resume and you can even schedule mock interviews where you go and have an actual person interview you so that when you go to that first big interview you have already done it once before.”
In addition to mock interviews and resume critiquing, the Career Center helps students select majors, search for jobs, apply to graduate schools and change careers.
