Letters & Opinion
From graduation to work
The Pointer
rking163@uwsp.edu
The jury’s still out on whether the job market is going to stabilize, but one thing is certain: Employers are putting the brakes on hiring; for all of us that are due to graduate this May, this is not good news.
With the number of layoffs and hiring freezes that have occurred and are continuing to occur, this means more qualified applicants are chasing fewer job openings. With this knowledge in hand, what are all of us new graduates to do?
I have consulted a couple of experts and have come up with these key suggestions.
Cover letter: The cover letter is your first and sometimes only opportunity to grab an employer’s attention and let them know why your resume is worth reading.
“Your cover letter needs to address all of the qualifications that an employer has asked for,” said Dr. Chris Sadler, UWSP’s director of graduate studies, Dr. Chris Sadler. “For this reason, if your cover letter is generic or poorly written, you can pretty much blow your chances for an interview.”
Always address the letter to a specific person. If you do not know the correct spelling of their name, title, address, e-mail and phone/fax number, call the employer to get it.
Begin with the purpose of your letter, stating the specific position for which you are seeking. If you were referred to the company, indicate by whom, using the name of your mutual acquaintance.
Make the reader aware that you have done your homework and know something about the company and how it fits with your interest, objectives and strengths. Tie your qualifications to what you know about the organization and the position you are applying for. Then refer them to your resume for more details.
Resumes: Though a good resume may not always get you a job, a bad one will certainly keep you unemployed. So, it must be well thought-out and carefully prepared. The main purpose of your resume is to obtain an interview. What makes a good resume? It should be a summary of what you have already achieved through your education and work experience and what you can contribute to a prospective employer. It’s up to you to let them know what you can bring to their company.
Don’t limit yourself to online searches; online search engines have significant limitations. With more and more companies using prescreening software in the attempt to find the right fit for their jobs, our resumes may never reach the decision makers. What is even worse is that most of the jobs that are available aren’t even being advertised.
Networking, networking, networking: OK, while I was at the Public Relations Student Society of America’s national conference last October, we were asked, “if you fall will your net work.” Now don’t take this in the literal sense of the phrase, read between the lines.
Ideally, anyone who is looking for a job should do so through networking. Whether it is through contacts you have made during your internship(s) (you should have at least one), friends of your parents, mentors, instructors within your college and any volunteer organization you may have come in contact with, these are the key people who will have some knowledge of jobs that are not known to the general public.
If you are looking to work within a specific company, the first thing that you should do is contact that company’s human resources department and ask for an informational interview, with a vice president within the area you are looking to apply. However, when you do so, treat this as a real interview and be prepared to answer and ask questions about the industry, company and position that might be open in the near future.
During the informational interview and any other interview that you land leave modesty at home. If you can establish yourself as an up-and-coming expert in your field you will make yourself more desirable to a prospective employer. This does not mean that you should stretch the truth. The idea is for you to set yourself apart from the rest of the field and gain credibility.
Remember you are up against a number of qualified graduates and professionals. Do yourself a favor and do the job search well.
