How do you succeed in today's job market?...vol. I graduate in 6 months and have no leads.

Rootin4EverybodyBlack

Rootin4EverybodyBlack

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For those of you who've managed to find employment, I seriously want to know...how?
It's seems like only the exceptional students are getting job offers or interviews as I head into my final semester.  I have a 3.0 gpa (3.5 in my major, Business Management) and previous work experience in corporate.  Getting a interview alone seems nearly impossible unless you have a 4.0, or you're a Finance/Accounting Major.  

At this point I don't have the slightest idea what to do.  My school's career development office is useless, all they say is "companies don't really come looking for management majors" 
indifferent.gif
 and proceed to show me the door.

Any suggestions from people who are/were in similar situations?....anybody?

Edit: I live in the D.C. metro area, if location is in any way important.
 
I would suggest these few things:

1. Network- To get in the door with company in your field its all about who you know. I know where i am from (Denver) they have all kinds of social/networking events that take place at random hotel bars weekly and monthly. Thats a great place to start. You have to get your name out there and just be an overall like-able person.

2. Dont be opposed to taking a job outside you major. Sometimes you have to take the sucky job until you can get what you really want.

3. Dont be afraid to look for work in other states/cities, a lot new grads are scared to venture away from their comfort zone which holds them back in the job market. I know in DC, the job competition is tough (I have a friend out there that is an executive for NCAAP). She told me she had to reject new grads with 4.0s because the competition was so stiff. But most remember most employers are looking at you GPA as biggest means of judging you, its your work experience(Internships) and overall how you present yourself.  
 
Originally Posted by malikdagoat


It's seems like only the exceptional students are getting job offers or interviews as I head into my final semester.  I have a 3.0 gpa (3.5 in my major, Business Management) and previous work experience in corporate. 
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You'll be fine. Once you get on your applying grind you'll get something. You can use that 3.5 major GPA to your advantage as well. Start putting that instead of the 3.0 most firms would rather that from my experience. 
 
What have you managed. Is it easy for me to see? Can you show people evidence besides resume and degree that you have successfully managed?
 
In the same boat, graduated last year and cannot find work. It's beyond frustrating because all I ever come across are jobs that don't pertain to my major or what I want to do with my life. Been thinking about going back to school for a Masters but I don't know if I have the patience for that. I want to start making money, taking the next steps in my life, and it feels impossible to do so with this awful economy. I could go off in 300 different directions with this but I'm gonna keep it simple. Good luck to those of us in the same situation. 
 
Originally Posted by sooperhooper

I'm on the same boat except I've been out of school. It's rough out here g.
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Rough is an understatement bro. Graduated May 2008. Didn't get a full time job until 2009. Horrible hours, $12.67/hr. working a juvenile lock up. Verbally/physically abused on the regular. Finally got out of it in June 2011, thinking I could have locked up something within a couple months. Not so.... Savings has gone from $15,000 to $2,900 since June because of bills. The job market is miserable. Depression has been torturing me the past couple weeks. Job market is horrible. I truly feel bad for unemployed parents and homeowners. Must be hell. I'm a single dude living with his folks and I can barely cope. Hoping better days are ahead for myself and others.
 
Do this exactly and I can guarantee you will have a job:
1. Start working for free at a company that is in your industry.  You will have to create this opportunity by showing that you are hungry, I repeat, you must SHOW that you are hungry.

2. While working at company X, make sure every last person at that company knows your name and something positive about you-just remember a simple detail about each person you meet and bring it up in conversation and you will be golden. 

3. Let people that make decisions know what your intentions are: do you want company X to hire you full time? would you like someone at company X to make an introduction for you?

4. Use your network.  Don't be afraid to ask for a hookup, whether it is an intro or an opportunity.  

..

..

10. send your resume to job postings (this wont get you anywhere nowadays)

qualification: Average GPA, not from a special school, 5 job offers at graduation while my thirsty private school friends were left unemployed.  Make yourself that 1% man, good luck.
 
My only advice is to take any job you can get if you don't find something out of college.  I know working in retail or at a restaurant isn't ideal, but it keeps you busy and tells a potential employer that you're not a lazy slob.
 
Companies want to hire people who they feel they need, if you are wanted enough no company will "not" hire you. So having that mindset could help you find ways to get to that level. Of course no company will feel they need you if they dont know you and now a days interviews and resume or references simply aren't enough.

Getting that type of attention and exposure is an art in itself though, and different careers will need a different approach.

I'll say building relationships is very important, but having data or proof of what you've done and what your capable of doing accompanied with the relationships is extremely beneficial. Who wouldn't hire someone they absolutely need. Every single employer needs a certain candidate and interviews most of the times dont prove these things to employers.

Part of the problem is that those with degrees feel they deserve a job and thats a bad mindset to have, if you aren't having luck in your job search than to not build any type of history or progress in work is much worse than not making a paycheck, and as cliche as it might sound to start a company when you cant find a job, if you look at it in a strict monetary gain kind of way than it will seem like a bad idea, but the experience, connections, skills, etc will help in amazing ways because if you ever decide to work for someone else you will have the "proof" you need.

I like to think, "If I were an employer how would I do things", and the idea of not hiring someone of great value and letting them go to my competition or any other company seems like a big mistake to me.
 
Co-sign Jhobson, WR, and a lot of people never consider what Dior Paint mentions, which is always a viable option.
 
Originally Posted by malikdagoat

For those of you who've managed to find employment, I seriously want to know...how?
It's seems like only the exceptional students are getting job offers or interviews as I head into my final semester.  I have a 3.0 gpa (3.5 in my major, Business Management) and previous work experience in corporate.  Getting a interview alone seems nearly impossible unless you have a 4.0, or you're a Finance/Accounting Major.  

At this point I don't have the slightest idea what to do.  My school's career development office is useless, all they say is "companies don't really come looking for management majors" 
indifferent.gif
 and proceed to show me the door.

Any suggestions from people who are/were in similar situations?....anybody?

Edit: I live in the D.C. metro area, if location is in any way important.
Click to expand...
Most people haven't been through it, as they are still talking about 'shoes'.  I will tell you my experience and you can take it for what it's worth.

I finished my undergrad before the whole financial collapse, and it took me literally 1 year after graduation to land an entry level job.  Prior to that, I was interning, carried a part time job, and got active w/ my school clubs.  I did what most people suggested they should do, and that's preparition and taking on every opportunity that arose.  I went on company tours, interviews, events and I was one the last guys in my core group of friends/co-students to get a job.  

Was I successful? I don't know, but I do know I'm in a lot better shape than many people out there because I'm doing something in my field, and I have 'stability'.  Everyone talks big here, but the reality is a different story.  It's been 4 years since then and I look at my peers to guage myself.  Some of them are still working at Target, others went back for their masters, while others are in similar situations.

Fast forward to present time, I will tell you that there are LOTS of qualified individuals OUT OF WORK.  This ranges from CFA, CPAs, MBAs & many other sexy employment history applicants.  In the end, it comes down to cash flows and if you're out of work, you can't really do anything.  So guage what you will, at the very least I'm in a field that's related to my career, have insurance, have income, and most of all 'stability'.

My suggestion is for you to face your challenges, get real about 'life' and go from there.  Management degrees are worthless, as the management skill comes from experience in working under 'successful' managers.  I will never support the notion about it being WHO YOU KNOW.  In reality, I would place more emphasis on WHAT YOU KNOW.  WHAT YOU KNOW is concrete, it's experience, it's real. WHO YOU KNOW is another thing in itself.  You're going to need both, but +#@-kissing, networking only gets you so far, and people who have been in the real world, KNOW THIS.  You might think you got your job by networking, but if you dont' know SH8T, you'll end up on the streets.
 
Originally Posted by ryair max 1

Originally Posted by malikdagoat



Edit: I live in the D.C. metro area, if location is in any way important.
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VERY important...one of the best but competitive job markets. a lot of young, relatively recent college grads are coming to DC for work. if you have a strong resume though you should be fine.
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I graduated this past June and I still am looking for work. Proceeded to apply to different places for the first 3 or 4 months but after that I got almost no offers or interview opportunities.
I became very discouraged and my mentality was f it. I will just chill and do my own thing. I have come to realize that this gets boring very fast.
I want to live my life independently and to do so I need a solid job. So now just yesterday I decided to start the applying process all over again.
I mean I can go to grad school but i don't think it would help at this point. I am strongly contemplating law school but I'm not sure.
My major was healthcare administration btw.
 
I'm sure you can find some leads if you network. Hit up your friends and family...I got a 2 leads from this random guy at a barber shop who worked at Charles Schwabb, so I know you can find some type of lead.

I do fill you on your major, though. My boy graduated with finance/real estate degree and had to work some entry level data entry job until he hooked up with his friends mom doing fee scheduling for United Health Care...you never know whats out there and remember a job is just a stepping stone towards your career. I'm working the phones at Chase right now and I can't complain because I'm getting that financial experience I need.
 
Originally Posted by malikdagoat

For those of you who've managed to find employment, I seriously want to know...how?
It's seems like only the exceptional students are getting job offers or interviews as I head into my final semester.  I have a 3.0 gpa (3.5 in my major, Business Management) and previous work experience in corporate.  Getting a interview alone seems nearly impossible unless you have a 4.0, or you're a Finance/Accounting Major.  

At this point I don't have the slightest idea what to do.  My school's career development office is useless, all they say is "companies don't really come looking for management majors" 
indifferent.gif
 and proceed to show me the door.

Any suggestions from people who are/were in similar situations?....anybody?

Edit: I live in the D.C. metro area, if location is in any way important.
Click to expand...


D.C. area huh? What school did you graduate from?
 
These threads always come up. Do people not learn from them? And yet they continue going to school for the wrong majors.
 
Read Linchpin by Seth Godin.  It's one of the best career books I've read and will make a difference in the way you approach work AND life.  Also read 48 Days to the Work You Love by Dan Miller.  He has some great advice on finding companies you WANT to work for and ways to help you network and get noticed by recruiters.
 
I worked with a guy at Champ's that has had his marketing degree for a year and a half and is still at Champ's. He's gotten minimal interviews in this time period and every time they basically tell him he's their last option.
 
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