How to land first job following graduation

MEGHAN WALSH mwalsh@cjn.org | @themeghanwalsh

Justice, Justice you shall pursue!

Sarah, we are so proud of you, your perseverance and hard work through this journey to achieve this milestone! Please use all you have learned to bring justice to the world!

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Mom, Dad, Jordan, Eliana, Samson and Delilah

University of Pennsylvania Law School

Many college students have their next steps at the forefront of their minds. Whether they are just starting school and don’t yet know what career eld they want to enter or are nearing graduation and searching for a job, career guidance at colleges is a great service that helps them explore their options, sharpen their professional skills and network with potential employers.

Debbie Aron, director of nonpro t management programs and liaison to the Midcareer Fellowship at Gratz College in Melrose Park, Pa., and Brittany Wampler, director for career development and exploration at Cleveland State University, discussed how colleges help their students explore career opportunities.

“A lot of our students – they’re graduate students, and they’re not traditional graduate students – they don’t come straight from undergrad,” Aron said. “I would say in terms of support, since we do not have a traditional career counseling department, the program directors –and the relationship that the students have with their program directors – becomes even more important.”

Aron explained that because Gratz is a small school, it allows for a more individualized experience when it comes to career counseling.

“When my students are ready to graduate and they’re looking for the next job up, then I’ll look at their resumes,” she said. “So, there’s resume prep or we’ll do workshops related to resume prep. In addition to that, last year in our summer institute, we had someone who did a prep for your LinkedIn pro le.” is type of social media preparation is important because sites like LinkedIn o er access to professional groups and job opportunities, she said.

A lot of students at Gratz are pursuing graduate degrees and are already working, Aron reiterated. ey are pursuing higher degrees to work at higher levels and possibly receive higher salaries. By consulting with students, sta at the college can get a sense of what their goals are and guide them accordingly.

She advised students to take advantage of the resources available to them.

“What I’ve found is that students are often hesitant to really tap into their network,” Aron pointed out, adding that it’s the best way to nd a job.

Although students seeking employment can “apply blind” online via job search engines, using their networks gives them a “leg up,” which is important, she said.

“Call people up, email them and say, ‘I’m at this stage of thinking about where I want to go,’” she suggested.

Even socializing in a way that is not connected to work, such as having lunch with someone, can be a good way for a student to get information about what that person’s job is like and gauge if that is something they would also be interested in doing, Aron explained.

“Ultimately, our goal is to break down the barriers that students experience on their path toward career by providing support and whatever it is that a student needs to track toward their goals,” Wampler said.

Such support that a school can provide may be nancial aid by way of scholarships, funding for on-campus internships, and programs that help connect students with organizations in the community for o -campus internships, she said.

Sometimes, nding a job after college can be challenging, she acknowledged, but this does not have to be a bad thing.

“I like to frame challenges as also opportunities for growth and learning,” Wampler said. “Certainly, every challenge – with applying to multiple positions, with learning that process of networking and landing that rst destination position after graduation – it can be intimidating.

“It can feel daunting. It can feel like you’re not sure where to turn and that’s really where our o ce comes in, in terms of helping students – via career coaching and support services – so that they don’t feel alone; so that they feel that they have a team of people that are supporting them until they land that position.”

Because many layo s occurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, job security has become a concern for many students in search of employment, Wampler pointed out.

“I think, ultimately, people want to land a position where they feel they will be stable, nancially supported and where they might have the opportunity to grow,” she said.

Many colleges also continue to o er their career advisory services to alumni, giving them the option to seek help from their alma maters when they are searching for a new job, she noted.