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Job Seekers Are Everywhere

The media is full of doom and gloom, with reports of thousands applying for janitorial jobs. Employers are slashing positions left and right, consumers aren’t buying, corporate giants are dropping like flies and foreign nations are teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. There are bail-outs galore but few initiatives having a dramatic impact that will help job seekers. So what does a job seeker need to get ahead, given today’s competitive atmosphere and depressed job market?

First, do you have the education? The conventional wisdom was always that this meant a four-year degree at minimum. While college assistance is invaluable at providing networking contacts and possible internship opportunities, today’s job seeker doesn’t necessarily need to spend all their pennies on the college experience. “Most of the jobs for tomorrow don’t require a baccalaureate degree,” states Michael D. Moye, president of Lanier Technical College, “but they do require training beyond high school. You’d be amazed at the skill sets needed in today’s industries.” Technical schools range from two-month certificates to two-year associate’s degrees and provide more hands-on training than traditional universities. Air traffic controller, glazier, auto installer, refinery operator, customer service representative, sales rep, longshoreman, lineman, pipe fitter and truck driver are just a few jobs that require just a high school education or GED.

Next, you need to ask yourself if you have experience. What matters most to an employer examining a job seeker’s record is that the individual knows what it’s like to work on a team, as well as individually. They want you to have a track record of interacting with clients, accomplishing tasks and working under pressure. It seems like a catch-22, doesn’t it? “How do I get experience if I have no experience,” you may ask? Internship opportunities are an ideal place to start. Many are unpaid and offer only college credit, but if you’re looking in the accounting, consulting, insurance, consumer goods, hospitality, engineering or science fields, then you’ll likely find a paid internship to help you acquire the skills you need. Typically, when you finish your interning, the company will ask you to stay and all your problems will be solved! For a list of the best internships, check out Business Week’s list of “Top 50 Internships.”

Lastly, you need the job seeker tools to help connect you with the right job opportunities. According to Forbes, there are many free tools to help job applicants. Company and government job postings can be found at www.usajobs.com, the government’s federal job site. Online job boards like www.idealist.org, www.careerbuilder.com, www.monster.com, www.hotjobs.yahoo.com, www.vault.com, www.indeed.com and www.simplyhired.com are some of the best online job boards, although there are often specialized searches for each industry. Some people even find jobs through social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn or Twitter. Nothing beats old-fashioned networking; it never hurts to ask around.

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