Went back to Purdue for the School of Science annual alumni advisory board again.\u00a0 More interesting insights.<\/p>\n
While the tide seems to be changing, we have all heard (or lived) the woe’s of recent college graduates.\u00a0 Students graduating with many hopes\/promises of employment that never panned out.\u00a0 Compounding matters, we see that in some fields a masters or PhD is the minimum<\/em> entry bar.\u00a0 Some have even asked if a BA college degree has been reduced to the new high school diploma.\u00a0 The school you go to also seems to matter as we see huge unemployment rates coming from some degree-mill colleges.<\/p>\n So what is a potential student to do?\u00a0 The good news seems to be that for half the equation you should do what you should have been doing all along, and the other half is new but may well make your time at college better.<\/p>\n Stuff you should do when looking at a future college (or your own if you’re already there):<\/p>\n So what more is someone to do to really seal the deal?\u00a0 Last year, Purdue hired a social networking expert who was working on Purdue’s Linked-in and various other social networking sites.\u00a0 She came and talked to us – and she touted an idea that adds a new arrow to your quiver of employability.<\/p>\n It starts with a realization of the world you are now in.\u00a0 There are quite literally 1000’s of people around the country walking across graduation stages at the same time as you with the same degrees.\u00a0 You’re no longer unique just because you got a degree or even if you got a near perfect GPA. Instead, you need to now stand out from that crowd – just as you did when in high school.\u00a0 How does one do that?<\/p>\n You could get on the deans list and get a perfect GPA.\u00a0 Those do help – but in reality those kudos are not quite as important as you think they are to employers.\u00a0 Instead, we can take cues from very highly competitive fields: movies, design, and art.\u00a0 In those industries, a portfolio of great work and a name are keys to success.\u00a0 Sure, they need to have done well in their studies, but now employers are also<\/em> going to want to see what you can do.\u00a0 They have less time\/money to train, there are more people out there applying, and they want to know more than ever that a hire will pay off.\u00a0 Despite what you think, your college education just lays the groundwork for success – your employer still needs to get you up to industry-grade snuff.<\/p>\n New tips:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Went back to Purdue for the School of Science annual alumni advisory board again.\u00a0 More interesting insights. While the tide seems to be changing, we have all heard (or lived) the woe’s of recent college graduates.\u00a0 Students graduating with many hopes\/promises of employment that never panned out.\u00a0 Compounding matters, we see that in some fields a masters or PhD is the minimum entry bar.\u00a0 Some have even asked if a BA college degree has been reduced to the new high…<\/p>\n\n
\nFirst questions first – what you want to do in life?\u00a0 Not what major<\/em> you want – but what you want to DO<\/em> for a living.\u00a0 Where you want to be 5 years after school is over – envision a whole day from getting up to bedtime. Are you working with people?\u00a0 What things are you working on?\u00a0 Academia or in industry?\u00a0 Writing as much of this down can help you clarify.\u00a0 This, after all, is the whole point of school anyway.\u00a0 If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll never know if the steps you’re taking will get you where you’ll be happy.\u00a0 While going to college to ‘find yourself’ or solely for personal growth can be noble and good – it may also be a bit dangerous if you’re racking up a huge bill while doing it.\u00a0 Getting as much clarity of where you want to go (or if not that – at least what you DON’T want to be doing) goes a long way to preventing being tens of thousands in debt in a field you just learned you hate or isn’t what you want to do.<\/li>\n
\nWith step 1 done, now you need to find out what you need to know\/skills needed to do that work you described in #1.\u00a0 Talk to a good counselor from your perspective school, look at job postings for your desired position(s) on Monster and other job sites, look at resumes of those in the field on Linked-in, and talk with people in that industry or job.\u00a0\u00a0 What skills and education do they require?\u00a0 Do you even need a college degree to get into your field at the level you want?\u00a0 You’d be surprised which fields don’t need a college degree or that sometimes a degree actually forces you down a different part of the field than you want.\u00a0 If a degree is required, what major and what level\/specialization would get me into the field I most want?\u00a0 In some fields, a masters is the minimum bar of entry for getting hired.\u00a0 In others, getting a PhD actually closes doors to industry but opens academic work open to you.
\nI’ve seen many a folk get badly burned by mismatching their desired area of work and their degree.\u00a0 One fellow desired to do social work ran off and got $100k in debt to get a PhD when all they needed was a 4 year degree.\u00a0 I’ve seen folks get a degree in a major to find out what they wanted to do could have been done with a simple certification.\u00a0 Yes, there is always the pursuit of learning for its own sake – which is always good.\u00a0 But don’t confuse just getting more education with desired outcomes.<\/li>\n
\nNot to give offense to the professors at these schools – but if you’re going to Julliard to learn engineering, or going to MIT for inter-racial studies – you’re probably not making the best choice for your buck.\u00a0 Like it or not, I have seen the name of a school open doors.\u00a0 While they do not get you a job, but they very well will open you to an interview you might not have gotten before.\u00a0 You should pick the school on your list that has the best reputation for the field you’re hoping to get into (and that you can afford).<\/li>\n
\nThis is the pragmatic side.\u00a0 You should be able to ask and see the placement rates (and hopefully) the average salary ranges of those getting hired.\u00a0 If they have a career center, you should be able to get a list (or at least a good idea) of what companies come to hire from the school.\u00a0 If there is nobody on the list you want to work for, or the placement rates are bad (under 50%), you better consider looking elsewhere.\u00a0 It will also tell you what you should expect to earn your first few years out of college and be a good basis on how much debt you should\/shouldn’t be getting into.<\/li>\n
\nA good rule of thumb is that you should only take on the amount of debt that you would hope to earn in a year’s average salary for your major (disregarding taxes\/etc).\u00a0\u00a0 A doctor?\u00a0 $100,000 in debt might be totally acceptable.\u00a0 An engineer?\u00a0 Depending on the type – maybe $30k-60k.\u00a0 If you start going over this amount – things start getting more difficult.\u00a0 I recently saw a guy well over $100,000 in debt getting a PhD in social work who will be making $25k-35k\/yr.\u00a0 He will barely be able to pay off the interest each month and his hopes of starting a family are pretty much nil unless he marries someone who can help with that debt.\u00a0 Don’t get yourself in over your head – you can end up paying for it the rest of your life.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n
\n<\/strong>If possible, build a portfolio of your work you can show off.\u00a0 This is essential in any art field – and becoming more so for other fields.\u00a0 If you’re a programmer: got any apps you wrote that you can throw on a laptop or mobile device and show?\u00a0 A demo reel?\u00a0 Do you have any news articles\/clippings of work you’ve done or been part of?\u00a0 Pictures of things you’ve done you can show on an iPad?\u00a0 Websites of open-source projects you’ve worked on?\u00a0 Being able to physically hand something to an interviewer\/prospective hiring manager is HUGE.\u00a0 It’s tangible proof you can and have done things.\u00a0 This one alone has sold us on a candidate at my place of work.\u00a0 Here’s a link that might help you know what to put and not put into a portfolio.<\/li>\n
\nThis is already happening in Computer Science.\u00a0 Graduates distinguish themselves by finding and contributing to an open-source project they like, leading a group in their field, presenting at conferences, writing web articles on specific topics, having a body of programming work and applications they can show off.\u00a0 Hopefully (if you’ve found a field you actually like to study), this shouldn’t be a terrible burden – even if you only do this stuff in the summers\/breaks.\u00a0 You are trying to build and do things that can build up #1, and #3<\/li>\n
\nLike it or not, social networking is here to stay.\u00a0 The first thing that many, many employers do is Google you – so you need a robust and professional ‘brand’ for your name.\u00a0 You absolutely should have a Linked-in account that is professional looking, filled out, and used regularly to make connections with people in your field\u00a0 At networking events when exchanging business cards, ask if you can connect with relevant people via linked-in.\u00a0 A blog, a personal website, Facebook and Twitter are also good.\u00a0 Spend some time on them an update them with relevant content.\u00a0 Your portfolio, interesting links and discussions on your field, etc.\u00a0 Make a habit of this – it’s real obvious when someone just starts updating those sites when they’re looking for a job (i.e. no posts for 3 years then a flurry every day).\u00a0 You want what they find to be professional and appropriate.\u00a0 A history of entries relating to your field shows you’re actually interested in it. This work, unfortunately, starts well before you are job hunting.\u00a0 Actually, it started from the day you opened an account on the site.
\nI don’t want to give a lecture, but drunken pictures of parties and your stance on controversial\/illegal activities isn’t what should be showing up.\u00a0 Let’s just be clear: Nothing you posted on Facebook or other social media site is private.\u00a0 Nothing you put on Facebook or other site can be completely deleted.\u00a0 People can copy pictures, link against your content, take screen-caps of your IM’s, and quote you on other sites – and you have no way to stop them.\u00a0 Just don’t post anything you don’t want employers to read or see.<\/li>\n
\nAll the above do this, but we haven’t talked about one final thing.\u00a0 This particular tip hasn’t changed; but it’s not the indie 90’s anymore.\u00a0 Don’t be fooled into thinking your personal appearance is an individuality thing – it’s a reflection of your knowledge of the field.
\nDress<\/em>: Dress nicely, yet appropriately casual\/professional.\u00a0 It shows they know about the field enough to know what is considered the ‘norm’ and shows respect for it and the employer.\u00a0 You’d also be surprised how even a good photo of yourself on your profile can change things when someone is determining whether to email you based on your profile.\u00a0 Again – appropriate is the key word.\u00a0 Too fancy makes you look like a tool, too casual makes you come off as sloppy and unprofessional.
\nAppearance<\/em>: I hate to have to say this, but take a shower, get a haircut, trim unsightly hairs, clean your nails, etc.\u00a0 Make sure your nice clothes fit you and you look natural\/comfortable in them.\u00a0 Wear them out for a day a couple of times before going to the interview so you can find any trouble spots and learn how to eat without spilling things on them. Even in the frumpy fashion world of computer science, being at least able to wear a button-up shirt with non-tennis shoes can give you a leg up.
\nSpeech<\/em>: Practice your answers – in front of a mirror or camera if you need.\u00a0 You must spend a good bit of time going over and being able to talk well about every single thing on your resume.\u00a0 Expect to be quizzed on it all.\u00a0 Keep your speech light, be clear and concise, and show excitement.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n