Tips For Student Job Seekers

Student job seekers have been dealt a pretty bad hand by the economy.  Despite this, there is some good news.  According to the August Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report, the unemployment rate for college graduates is only 4.3 percent.  That is much lower than the national rate of 9.1 percent.  This doesn't mean college students shouldn't just sit back and relax.  There is a lot of work they can do to make sure they are all set when they get their degrees.

Procrastination is a bad habit that many college students know very well.  These same students usually find out that this habit leads to inferior results.  This same rule applies to the job search.  Just because you are still a year or two away from graduation doesn't mean there aren't things you can do to get ready.  On the contrary, there are plenty of things college students can do to enhance their standing come graduation:

• Take up an internship in addition to your courses: There is no substitution for experience.  You are going to need something to put on your resume, and listing the classes you took isn't going to be enough.  There are plenty of internships that provide college credit, so you can gain valuable work experience and speed up your graduation at the same time.
• Network, network, network: Networking can be the most difficult task in the job hunt, so many students avoid it all together.  This is a mistake.  The sooner you start building solid connections in the career you are interested in, the better chance you have of getting into that field.
• Get involved in extracurricular activities: Look for on-campus groups or clubs that are relevant to the kind of job you want.  These activities can be just as useful as internships for gaining experience.
• Use your college's career center: Campus career centers are an extremely valuable resource: Make sure you take advantage of it.  I have written extensively on this subject, so make sure to read my post to find out why these programs are so useful.
• Think seriously about your career goals: What do you really want to do for a career?  This is a hard enough question to answer and, quite frankly, it's hard to know what your true passion is immediately.  That doesn't mean you shouldn't start thinking now.  Don't be afraid to try out things you aren't initially excited about.  You never know when it will all start to click.