Why recent college students fail to use their degree.

The main reason why students tend to have a hard time getting into a career path that they are interested in is because they fail to see the road map that will get them there. Having spent four years reading textbooks and digesting theory and best practices in their given field has ultimately built a picture that is not grounded in reality.

After many failed attempts to apply for that manager or analyst position, they come to the sudden realization that they need some income. Student loans are about to kick in and the family starts getting nervous, so the student starts applying to just about anything.

the usual arguments kick in that sound something like this

“I hate it how you have to have experience to get experience”

He/She ultimately gets hired in some other field most likely sales, reception, retail or some admin type position. Over the next years they switch from job to job which leads then into a career path that they are not very happy about.

This could be easily avoided by simply planning a few things and crafting their resume template properly that will help get them there.

These few steps should give you a guide on how to do just that.

1)      Find out what your ideal position is that you would like to eventually have on your resume.

Do you want to be a senior software developer, or software architect? Would you like to be a business analyst or the chief financial officer?

Do some brainstorming on what you’re interested in or what makes you happy. These few questions should help.

A)     What would you do if you could not fail

B)      What title or position would make you feel proud

C)      Picture what you would want your workday to look like, with great detail starting from the time you wake up

2)      Action Step : Connect with people who did just that

Don’t tell me that you don’t know anybody, we are lucky to have everything at our fingertips these days. Here is how to go about this quickly.

A)     Create a LinkedIn profile

B)      Once you have filled in the info somewhat and slapped a picture on top your next step is to find that search box.

C)      Type in the position that you want and you will get a list of about 20 people who can show you exactly how.

D)     Connect with them and simply write them the following.

1. “I’m impressed with your work history and would love to be in your shoes one day. I am a recent graduate and very interested in being a “Whatever that may be”. How did you get started in this field and do you have any advice for somebody just starting out?

E)      Our goal here is not to think that this person will help us magically, instead we are simply doing some research. Don’t be afraid people like talking about themselves so use this to your advantage. We basically have two things we want to find out.

1. How did they get there?

i.      Look at their career path; see what jobs they started out with, pay attention to their technical skills, their education, and their certifications. If you do this for the next 10 people you will notice a few commonalities. Take good notes

1. What groups are they part of?

i.      Take a good look at the groups they have joined and do the same.

3)      Summarize your findings and put all that information to work today.

Looking at all these profiles will enable you to start seeing trends. You will notice that maybe 8 out of 10 people have SQL knowledge. So go out and buy that “how to guide” and spend the next month really dedicating yourself to learning that skill. Suddenly you have that on your resume and improve your resume template.

Maybe all the technicians tend to hold a certain license or certification, so go out buy the books sign up to take that certification and obtain it. Update your resume template

Most importantly find a common position that they all started out with. Maybe that manager position that you want started out working in a sales related role. So find out what the common entry point is.

4)      Rewrite your resume template completely towards that entry level role.

This means your professionally summary should include the love and passion you have for the industry.

Every bullet point under experience and education should be tailored towards specific bullet points of that job description.

This means it they want excel, brag about your excel skills, (get a book and learn it well)

5)      Apply to only 3 positions per day

This will relieve the pressure and stress by setting achievable goals for the day and will give you time to really focus on each position. Don’t worry about missing out on a few listed positions, or not doing enough. Tailoring your resume will have so much more success so take it easy and do it right.

6)      Stop being lazy and focus

We are not done, applying alone won’t do it. Follow up with an email, call the company and try to speak to hiring person.

7)      Things to do in the meantime

A)     Continue to learn, and keep increasing your technical skills especially those closely related to all the profiles we took a look at.

B)      Call nonprofit organizations and volunteer to be in a position that you would gain relevant experience from. If it is marketing ask to help their outreach program, if it is office related volunteer to help out there. Many nonprofits will let you gain incredible experience everything from website coding to fixing their computers and being part of their marketing team.

C)      Join affiliations or societies that are closely related to your industry

D)     Make it a goal to read at least two articles per day relating to your field.

Following these tips will create an easy to follow road map for you. It may be hard in the beginning but you will always keep the end goal in your head which will keep your focus on your career path. Don’t take that subway position because you need money, move in with your parents, eliminate expenses, boot strap and work for 10 dollars per hour if that is what will give you a solid platform to get to the next step.

Don’t stay in job for too long, even one year may be too long, if the next step up is within your grasp and you can leverage the previous experience to get there then make the jump and don’t hesitate. Don’t get comfortable and always keep reaching

Do you work in a field that is unrelated to your degree or steering you in a direction that you don’t want to be on? Let me know

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