Job search consultant offers six tips to help new grads find a job

Utilizing social media and websites like Linkedin to find job opportunities has become increasingly important for job seekers. (Photo courtesy of Degrees2Dreams).

After graduation many 20-somethings are choosing to move home to help navigate a tough job market. But one workforce veteran is offering advice for those willing to go the extra mile.

Recent and soon-to-be college graduates face an uncertain future once they enter the job market.

But even in the uncertainty of the current job market, some are devising creative plans to be noticed and hired. John Wilpers, a veteran journalist and founder of Degrees2Dreams, says finding a job in this market is really all about having and following a specific plan. 

"I've worked over the last four years (and) I've had about 250 interns. What I’ve come to learn is that you've got to do six things and you have to do them in sequence,” Wilpers said.

Wilpers created a six-step plan for job seekers to help land a job:

1. Clean up your digital footprint: Make sure there’s nothing out there that would embarrass you or disqualify you from a potential position.

2. Create an interactive Resume: Using QR codes at the top and bottom of a resume can take the hiring manager to a video of a potential candidate or to the candidate’s best reference.

3. Develop a professional ‘me site’: Create a website that features writing, videography and anything else that can be digitized in an online portfolio.

4. Start a 'passion blog’: Creating a blog is “the most powerful tool — to demonstrate skill set, industry knowledge, and get on the radar of the people who can make a difference,” Wilpers said.

5. Launch a social media marketing campaign: “Go out and make sure everybody in your field is aware of who you are,” Wilpers said. By utilizing Twitter lists, you can target the right people.

6. Do informational interviews: In creating your blog, you can become a journalist in your field by interviewing those who could become a potential employer. And ask them "questions about key issues in the industry,” Wilpers said.

Part of the problem, Wilpers says, is 75 percent of all resumes are thrown out without anyone ever seeing them because of applicant tracking systems. 

“It's the answer of companies to the flood of resumes and the reduction of HR people,” he said

The system scans resumes, searches for keywords and throws out ones that don’t match requirements specified by the hiring manager.

Though Wilpers doesn’t think there are fewer job opportunities for 20-somethings, he does say it’s important to change the way a graduate or college student looks at the world.

“If you look at the world the way your parents do, there are classic jobs and you apply for classic jobs the classic way. You can't do that anymore,” he said

Before, networking involved relying on other people to make connections, Wilpers said.

"Now you can make those connections yourself using Linkedin, social media and you can create your own network,” he said.

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