Graduates are entering a crowded job field, where one job could have 400 applicants. (John Lund/MNS)
WASHINGTON- It’s spring, and across college campuses, students are preparing for finals, graduation, and a job market that is not too promising.
Anna Zimbrick, 25, graduated this week and has spent months in hot pursuit of the hottest commodity among 20-somethings: a job.
“I spend a lot of time writing cover letters, pouring over websites, talking to people, but really not hearing anything back,” Zimbrick said. “Not knowing if your resume gets sent to some black hole or some job application system and you never hear anything back is not too fun.”
George Washington University career adviser Paul Binkley said graduates are entering one of the worst job markets ever.
“I would say that there are more students who don’t have a positive outlook or don’t have an opportunity set up for when they graduate than there was last year or the year before,” Binkley said. “I really think that they are going to find something but that its just going to take them longer on average than it would have in the past.”
George Washington University Career Services Director Paul Binkley says the health care and consulting industries are among the best fields for recent grads to find employment. (John Lund/MNS)
Binkley said the job hunting process could take as long as six months.
“But if they start networking and start asking people for informational interviews earlier say like in September or October, its very possible that come May, they’ll have a lot of really good leads,” he said.
To find good leads, Binkley suggests stepping away from the computer to meet actual employers in person.
“It’s going to take a lot more networking,” said Binkley. “I tell all my students and alumni that the more time they spend away from a computer and in front of people and getting to know them- the better it will be for them in the long run.”
Zimbrick said she enjoys the networking aspect of job hunting.
“Even if it hasn’t turned into a job yet, I somewhat feel like I’m making progress, and it’s a lot more fun than writing cover letters.
Looking for jobs while interning has made Zimbrick’s job hunt less stressful.
“Working at my internship has bought me time – getting paid and still working while looking for something full time,” Zimbrick said.
Internships and temp jobs might be the best way to go post graduation, according to Binkley. A recent Pew survey showed that in the last four years, the number of 18 to 29 year olds who had full time jobs fell from 50 to 41 percent.
“More employers are hiring more temps,” Binkley said. “They’re still a little gun-shy about hiring full time employees, and so they have temps which gives them the opportunity to be much more flexible.”
Binkley said it’s not unusual in today’s job market for 400 people to apply for one job.
Zimbrick agrees. “I do know people that have applied for like 600 jobs. No joke. 600.”
With such a crowded field of applicants, Binkley said it’s important to stand out. Rather than graduates simply listing their skills on their resume, he suggests writing about how they got them.
“Everybody can have those skills – not everybody can have them they way you did,” Binkley said. The best way to do it, he said, is to tell more of a story on your resume as opposed to just saying, “I answered the phones.”
Recent graduate Kate Sullivan took ‘standing out’ literally to make an impression on employers.
“I cut my hair really, really short- like a pixie cut- like a man’s haircut- as a way to distinguish myself from the other women who were in my age bracket,” Sullivan said. “This way, I would have a memorable face to the individuals I was meeting with.”
Some graduates like Brian Engel, 21, are opting to stay in school and get a higher degree with hope that will make them more marketable.
“I looked for jobs for a while, but I’ve decided I’m going to grad school,” Engel said
But Binkley disagrees. “I would say get the experience. You don’t want to be over educated and under experienced. For the most case, all things being equal, it’s better to be over experienced and under educated.”
As for Zimbrick, the hunt continues.
“You know, occasionally there are moments when I’m like, hmm… I don’t know what I’m going to be doing in a month or two. But I guess that’s just the situation right now. I’m not feeling panicked, yet. – ask me again in a month.”