Tips for tough times: How to turn that new degree into a steady paycheck

By Jason Walker and Rey Ramirez, Co-founders of Thrive HR Consulting

Across 2020 and 2021, U.S. schools will award roughly 2 million associate’s degrees and 4 million bachelor’s degrees. Recipients of these freshly printed accreditations are now seeking jobs in one of the most challenging times ever.

The last 30 years have witnessed several waves of job market difficulty. The worst of these were the dot-com bust (starting in 2000), the Great Recession (2007), and now the COVID-19 pandemic (2020). Although these may be the toughest times in recent memory, we will get through it, and there are several things you as a recent graduate can do to navigate today’s tough job landscape.

Getting the first assignment

When starting out, the biggest obstacle is making yourself stand out from the crowd. This requires leveraging all the resources at your disposal. One of the most effective ways for a new graduate to find a job or internship is tapping into the college’s alumni network. Alumni are great resources for maintaining social connections, landing introductions to others, and generating interest for you and your talents within your network. Pursue these connections through your college alumni office or the plethora of virtual alumni networks that live online, including on social media.

Leverage LinkedIn. Post regularly to your page. Talk about what is going on in your field and discuss the latest trends. Let people know you’re looking for work or an internship and explain why somebody should hire you.

Attend online conferences to keep informed and current in your field. When you get the opportunity to introduce yourself, be sure to (gently) let people know you are a looking for an internship or job. Project confidence, not desperation.

Capitalizing on internships

Those lucky enough to be paid interns in the current environment must stand out so they can turn their internship into a full-time position. How?

Volunteer for work. Step in and ask to participate on every possible new project. Most often, you’ll get refused, but management will appreciate somebody who is not simply sitting on the Zoom call but plugged into the conversation and wants to be part of the team. Enthusiasm and effort are great ways to stand out in a virtual environment and will likely lead to a lot of extra experience.

Use your technology skills to help others on your team. If you know how to use Slack or understand Agile practices better than some of your teammates, offer to help them learn. While helping them, present chances for them to reciprocate and teach you. Chances are they will appreciate your willingness to contribute as well as your ability to listen and learn.

Be easy to manage. Show up on time. Participate in calls. Meet deadlines. Do the little things that make a big difference to managers and teammates. It sounds trite, but being somebody who handles details sets a great example. That’s the type of person companies want to hire.

Be available. Yes, it sounds cliché. Still, you’d be surprised how often people fail to turn up, even in a virtual world. Respond to emails quickly. Pick up your phone when you see your boss or a peer call. Simply being dependable will make people call you and bring you into projects because they know you are present.

All of this requires hard work and patience. However, even applying a few of these steps — and preferably all of them — will increase your chances of securing that first internship or career-launching job.

— Article courtesy of Thrive HR Consulting, a Silicon Valley, Austin, TX and Denver, Colorado-based, minority-owned HR Advisory that provides fractional CHRO Support and value-based HR support. Rey Ramirez and Jason Walker are Co-Founders of Thrive HR.