10 Tips for Landing a Job Today

We sat down with Career Services Director Matt Berndt, who has worked in university-level career services for 16 years and has seen the job market through good times and bad, to get his insight on landing a job in today’s economic climate.

You can get more career development and job-seeking insight, such as what not to wear, networking, writing better cover letters and more in the blog to which he contributes, “Hire Standards: Not-so-Random Observations on Life After College.”

Don’t forget the April 1 spring job and internship fair. Check out the Career Services event calendar for more career workshops and interview opportunities.

1. What are some of the biggest mistakes recent graduates make in their job hunt?

They start too late and they don’t tailor their job search to the hiring dynamics of the industry they are trying to enter. Not all companies hire the same way to fill all positions.  Job seekers—college grads and experienced professionals alike—need to search for jobs in ways compatible with the way companies hire. 

Job seekers also have to realize that it is their job to market themselves to prospective employers; they must be prepared to tell an employer why the employer should hire them. It is the responsibility of the job seeker to present their qualifications in ways meaningful to the hiring manager.

2. What advice would you give to a graduate who did not complete an internship?

Get some experience. Whether you have to do volunteer work or start your career with an internship after graduation, you have to show employers that you have applied your learning in some meaningful way. Graduates also should be prepared to explain to an employer why they didn’t complete an internship. Even if the reason is wholly legitimate, the student has to be able to convey that information to the employer. Lastly, adjust your expectations. Realize that students with a degree and internship experience will have an advantage competing for jobs—you might need to start at a lower level than you had originally hoped.

3. How important is your GPA when trying to land your first job?

That depends upon your field—the more quantitative the field, the more GPA can be used as an indicator of qualifications and performance. The more qualitative the work is, the less important the GPA will be.

Regardless, the job seeker has to be prepared to discuss their GPA when it comes up in conversation—and it will.  How you answer the question is almost more important than the answer you give.

4. I had to accept a less-than-ideal job that’s not in line with what I studied in school; how do I make the best out of the situation and build some skills that could be applied to my dream job?

Don’t let your major define who you are. Just because you majored in advertising doesn’t mean you are destined to work in advertising. There is a great big world of opportunity out there and most of it does not readily align with a college major. In fact, nearly two-thirds of people with college degrees are not working in their major field of study.

Focus on seeking employment in fields and industries that interest you, allow you to do what you’re good at and allow you to do what you enjoy in an environment you can thrive in. Don’t expect to get your dream job coming out of college—look for a job that will give you long-term opportunity. If you will only be happy with your dream job, your expectations are likely unrealistic.

5. How can a job seeker incorporate social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.) into their job search?

Job seekers can use Facebook and LinkedIn to augment their own interpersonal networking. They can be really valuable tools for professional networking, but if you are not careful what you say on these sites, they can also be your undoing. Remember: If it is on the Internet, an employer can see it and form a first impression about you. Ask yourself: What professional impression is my Facebook or LinkedIn page making?

6. News about the economy is dire. Recent graduates are now competing with more experienced professionals for the same job. How can new graduates differentiate themselves from their older, more experienced counterparts?

Recent graduates actually have an advantage over experienced professionals when it comes to entry level work; they are not over qualified, their salary expectations and needs are—or should be—lower, and they are more inclined to be managed than more experienced professionals. Regardless, once you have the interview, it is all about being able to tell the employer why you want the job and why you are the best candidate for it; if you can’t make that argument, you can’t expect the employer to form that opinion.

7. Everyone says networking is the key to finding a job; how do you make that first step in networking? Do you cold call someone at a company you’d like to work for?

That is a huge question without a simple answer. My most recent blog post tries to address this topic.

With that, the best place to start is with people you know and people who know the people you know. Here is an excerpt from our Networking handout:

Try to come up with a list of at least 15 people you would consider as strong contacts; people who know you and whom you believe would be willing to offer you advice and assistance. 

Start with these 15 personal contacts. If each of those contacts introduces you to three additional people you will have 45 contacts. If each of those contacts introduces you to three additional people, you will have 135 contacts. And, if each of those contacts introduces you to three additional people, you will have 405 total contacts.

While the process isn’t quite that mathematically clean, you get the picture: People who know you know lots of other people, too—any of whom might be valuable contacts for you if you can connect with them. Sociologist Mark Granovetter calls this the “strength of weak ties.” Your closest friends and family are your strong ties (people you know and who know you very well). Your acquaintances and the friends and colleagues of your friends and family are your weak ties (people you don’t know, but who know people you know and might be working in fields or companies that interest you).

For example: Your best friend (a strong tie) doesn’t work for a company you are targeting, but your best friend’s next door neighbor (a weak tie) does. If your friend introduces you to the neighbor, you will have a contact in that company.

Your mother (a strong tie) doesn’t work in event planning, but one of her co-workers (a weak tie) is a certified meeting planner and plans events for her company. If your mom connects you with her co-worker, you now have a contact that is a professional event planner.

As you can see, networking is a relationship-building process. It takes time, energy and attention, and it is an essential part of your search for employment.

8. In this day of Web 2.0, is the traditional resume still alive?

Absolutely! The traditional resume is the foundation of your job search in that it contains the core message you are trying to convey to potential employers and the evidence to back up your stated qualifications. Whether that resume is delivered on paper, in the body of an e-mail, as a PDF document, on a Web page, or as part of an online profile, the contents are the most important part. Crafting your resume gives you the opportunity to define your marketing pitch.

Writing a resume is not filling out a template or paying someone to write it for you. Not investing time and energy into crafting a resume is the biggest mistake people make. Writing a good, useful resume is not easy—it requires attention and focus. Yes it is still alive because eventually, you have to sit down face to face with a potential employer and sell your credentials, and you will need a resume with you to deliver that pitch.

9. Do you have any examples of a student getting really creative in their job search?

Not off hand, the most successful students are the ones who put in the effort, day in, day out, regardless of how creative they get. Plus, the level of creativity appropriate depends upon the position and industry one is seeking. 

10. What other advice would you give to a job seeker fresh out of college?

Don’t think this is going to be easy; that employers will hire you just because you have a degree from Texas; or that employers inherently know what you offer as a Texas graduate in your major.

Berndt is the director of communication career services for The University of Texas at Austin. In this capacity he directs the office of career services for the more than 4,200-student College of Communication, providing career development and job search assistance and services to students and alumni, including on-campus interviewing, resume referral, career advisement and job and internship development services. He joined the College of Communication in February 2000.

He has 16 years of university administrative and management experience in career services, student services, corporate and alumni relations, marketing, strategic planning, teaching and research. He also has three years of experience in corporate management, sales and marketing—primarily in the staffing industry.

He earned a master’s degree in communication management from the USC Annenberg School for Communication and a bachelor’s degree in broadcasting/mass media and German from the State University of New York - Oswego campus. Additionally, he studied overseas at the University of Würzburg, Germany and was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to serve as an English-language teaching assistant in a secondary school in Neumarkt, Germany. He is fluent in German.

— by Erin Geisler