7 Tips for Securing a Job Right Out of College

So you’re about to graduate from college and you want a job as soon as possible? First of all, congratulations on getting through school. Now, it’s time to follow some sage advice about maximizing your chances to land a great job.

Here are 7 tips for securing a job right out of college.

1. Join a Trade Group

Search around on Meetup or ask people you know about a trade group related to your degree. That way, you’ll rub shoulders with people who probably have the exact type of job that you’re looking for. They’ll know when there’s an opening with their company and you can get a jump start on applying for the job before it’s widely advertised.

2. Use Your School’s Career Service

Your tuition covers more than the just the cost of class. You’re also paying the salaries of your school’s career service staff.

The people who work for the career office at your college or university literally spend all day looking for ways to place graduates in jobs. The more grads they can place in a job, the better they look and the better the school looks to prospective students in the future.

3. Find a Mentor

Find someone who’s already been there and done that. Look for somebody who has a similar degree to your own, has found a job, and is willing to work with you to help you land a job. Touch base with that person at least once a month. Let him or her know how your job search is going and ask for advice about what you can do to increase your chances of getting hired.

4. Get an Internship

While you’re in school, you should intern at a company. If possible, stay with that company until you graduate. You might find that there’s a full-time job waiting for you at the same company where you interned.

Also, working an internship is a great way to save money in college. Just be sure to avoid using those college credit cards too much.

5. Start a Blog

It’s the Information Age. If you want to make any kind of a statement to prospective employers, you’re going to need to start your own blog.

Basically, your blog should be very similar to your resume. It should also include articles you’ve written that are related to your college degree. That will show people you know your stuff.

6. Create a LinkedIn Profile

In addition to creating your own blog, you should also have an online presence on LinkedIn, where people are specifically looking for talent like yours. Make sure that your profile is complete and includes a professional picture (no selfies).

7. Use Multiple Job Boards

Here’s a surprising piece of information: not every job in the world is on Monster. In fact, Monster is one of the more expensive job boards for companies that are looking to hire someone. If you’re looking to work for a startup or small business, you should look on job boards besides Monster.

Now that you’ve made it through college, it’s time to get a return on your investment by securing a great job. Just make sure you do what’s necessary to make it easy for employers to find you.