Many of today’s graduating students are ill prepared to even look for a job. While we see this a lot in India, this might be the case in other places too. This article seeks to help those graduates, especially from India, who are looking for a job but have not been successful so far.

Let’s face it. In today’s job market, the life of a fresh graduate is not exactly enviable. There are hundreds of thousands of job seekers in the market today and many of them have experience that you don’t. How is one to survive and succeed in such tough times?

It’s quite simple really. Our research has shown that many of your fellow graduates, except those from very good colleges, are not getting the basics right. Therefore, by getting your basics right and you are going to be ahead of the pack. We believe that it’s going to put you right at the top 10% of the graduates.

So, where do you get started?

First, you need good communication skills. For over half a decade we find so many companies and industry bodies crying hoarse about the need for students to improve their communication skills. Since these skills are the first and hugely important step for making themselves (students) job ready. Surprisingly, informal surveys done by us have revealed startling figures – at least 50% of the student population has not even heard that communication skills are important and only 10% are doing something about improving them. Without communication skills, even if you are best at a particular skill, how will you communicate that in a resume or an interview?

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Second, you need an effective resume. If you have copied your resume from a friend and modified a few things here and there, then it is time to send it into the recycle bin. Start afresh. A resume needs to reflect you. What you can do for your employer. While those who get a job just by the virtue of their resume don’t exist (or are very rare), we know a lot who are rejected because of a poor resume.

Third, you need a plan. As the saying goes, “if you are failing to plan, you are planning to fail”. A little thought and you can see how true this is. Just like you need a career plan, one needs a job search plan. Without a plan, you are just going to randomly apply for jobs, which is like shooting arrows into a bush hoping that you will hit a bird. You have to be really lucky to be successful with such a strategy. By creating a plan, you will not only be able to organize your thoughts but you will also be able to understand exactly what kind of a job you are looking for, where and maybe in which company. So, prepare your plan by:

  •  First identifying what job or jobs you want.
  • Then, figuring out what locations you would like to work ordered according to your preference. (Do remember that for some specialized jobs which are limited to specific companies in specific locations, you will NOT be able to choose.)
  •  Then, start making a list of all the companies in the places you chose.
  •   Segregate them into first, second and third choices.
  •  Find out more about the companies that are in your first choice list. You will want to know what the company does, how big the company is, how well they are doing, are they hiring fresh graduates, if there is anyone you know working there, are there any HR consultants working with the company, etc.

If you are able to identify any HR consultant or an employee working in a company that you want to be a part of, contact them immediately and request their assistance. Most professional HR consultants like us do not charge candidates because our clients pay us. So, it costs only a phone call or an email to get in touch with such firms. Going through an employee referral works the best because companies increasingly prefer that route.

A few more tips before we end. Many of you might have already posted your resume on a job portal. That does NOT mean that your job is done and magically jobs will come to you. Your efforts should continue because a job portal is only one of many tools that you need to use to land your ideal job.

You have to be prepared for an interview. Since most of you are being taught to be positive thinking, you may be imagining yourself getting a job offer after sending your resume. However, unless you prepare yourself for the interview, you will be left daydreaming. So, please take the time to brush up on your subject matter basics as well as some familiarity with the company information.

Networking is the most important tool in today’s connected world. By establishing a network early in your career, you can not only greatly increase your chances of landing a good job, but also have a highly successful career.

With your preparation meeting with opportunities, you will be making your own luck. So, get ready to succeed.