Resources for New Graduates Assist With Future Plans

The pomp and circumstance is over. The caps have been thrown into the air. Students have said goodbye to friends and professors. They've graduated from college. Now what?

Many students find themselves asking this question once the excitement of graduation time has died down. Knowing about resources available can help to quell the rising panic students may feel when they aren't sure where to go next.

Landing a job you actually like

Many are optimistic about the prospect of finding a job after college.

According to a Monster.com survey released April 29, 2011 graduates are ready to make moves in their careers. Of those surveyed, 82 percent believe there is a dream job for them and 83 percent surveyed are actively pursuing that job.

Although Internet job search resources like Monster.com, LinkedIn, and CareerBuilder can be useful tools, in an age of online applications and resume readers, sometimes the trouble is standing out in a sea of qualified applicants. One way to do so is to go the old-fashioned route.

Darlene Gillard-Jones, President and Founder of Gillard Jones Agency, a public relations and communications agency, suggests getting more personal when applying to various positions.

"There are computers scanning resumes now and people skimming information to narrow down applicants," she says. "Try to get a personal contact or a specific person to send your information to. Taking the time to send a written letter and a printed resume can make a difference. Making a phone call also can get you noticed."

This may require some extra effort on an applicant's part. Research both publications and online to find out who is in charge of the area where you want to be. For example, if you want to work at a magazine, "find out who is editor-in-chief, the managing editor who hires and fires, etc." says Gillard-Jones, who previously worked for publications such as Essence, W Magazine, ELLE, and Women's Wear Daily. "Directing your info to them gives you a better chance of having it seen by someone who can actually help you."

When a job search doesn't go as planned, another option to consider is a post-graduate internship. In a May 5, 2009 article from the Wall Street Journal entitled, "Giving Internships a Post-College Try," career expert Donald Asher said, "There has never been such a high level of graduates taking internships."

Applicants can seek out companies that they may specifically want to work for or try search engines such as FastWeb.com to look for internship opportunities, either in a paid or un-paid capacity, and learn more about a company. However, graduates don't want to settle for just any internship. Ideally, a post-grad internship should help a graduate to learn about a company, establish professional contacts, as well as provide work that is meaningful to their chosen career goal. In the same article, Asher said, "the goal, short of a coveted job offer, is to make sure there is a work project with a finished product and a highly positive letter of recommendation at the end of the internship."

Your online presence

More and more employers are looking at the web presence of potential employees when making their selections among candidates.

Sites such as GoDaddy.com and BlueHost.com are web-hosting services that can be used to create an online profile, a digital business card to house your resume, portfolio, and other work, to be easily accessed by potential employers. Wordpress.com and Blogger.com can allow people to start free online blogs that can house a student's work and commentary to show engagement in his or her field of choice. It also increases a graduate's web presence.

Employers also look at other sites when considering hiring someone for a position warns a March 29, 2010 CNN.com article entitled "Young Job Seekers Hiding Their Facebook Pages." A Microsoft-commissioned survey found that "70 percent of recruiters and hiring managers in the United States have rejected an applicant based on information they found online," according to the article.

Dan Eggers of Partners Marketing Group in Marietta, Ga. noted in the same article that his company is among the 79 percent of U.S. hiring managers found in the Microsoft survey to "have used the internet to better assess applicants." Inappropriate photos or discriminatory comments, he notes, "will land your resume and cover letter in the garbage."

Making it all happen

Renée Kizer has been a spiritual life coach for more than 25 years. She and her husband run Center for Awareness, which offers spiritual life coaching, conscious connected breathing tools, and relationship support counseling, among other services.

Almost 12 years ago, Kizer says, she met author, inspirational speaker, and spiritual teacher Dr. Iyanla Vanzant through a mutual friend. Kizer and her husband now work with Vanzant as senior faculty members at Inner Visions Institute for Spiritual Development in Silver Spring, Md. where they have helped coach hundreds of people.

Renee Kizer notes some key things new graduates should keep in mind.

1. Celebrate Your Success – "You've accomplished something!" Kizer says. "Take a moment to reflect on this fact. It will help motivate you to your next move."

2. Integrate Success into Your Mind Body and Soul – "Meditating on what your hard work has helped you to accomplish can help you hold it in your memory and build it as a habit."

3. Get a Vision– "It is important to have a goal on which to focus," she says. "Write out what you love doing—besides partying—and what is meaningful to you. If you do something you love you will be good to go."

4. Think of Accomplishing Your Goal in Steps – "Look at the big picture and break it down into smaller action steps. This will help to pull you forward, because you are able to see progress. It also will keep you from getting overwhelmed and, more importantly, help you avoid magical thinking."