As a continuation to Part 1 of this article, you’ll find 5 additional ways to help others help you find a job.
Job Networking Groups
Attending large job networking groups and events is key to success in networking to find jobs.
In Atlanta, for example, they have several of these job networking groups, with the largest being Roswell United Methodist Church (RUMC) www.rumcjobnetworking.com. It is one of the best ever and has been around for over 25 years! I’ve personally met so many people that I’ve developed relationships with and it’s such a great way to increase your network that graduates can’t pass up an opportunity like this to potentially find your first (or next) position. They offer:
- Bi-monthly Career fairs with various employers that are seeking to hire candidates on the spot
- Career training and workshops on various job topics,
- Free Linkedin photo,
- Free resume and Linkedin profile reviews by experts,
- Professional career closet that enables individuals to get a free professional outfit for interviews
- Motivation, inspiration and encouragement by keynote speakers
- Over 100 professional volunteers in various industries that are willing to give an informational interviews and advice to job seekers.
They offer so many sessions during each 2-week event, that you can’t possibly attend all of the offerings at one event. You have to keep going back to experience everything.
In addition to all of the above benefits, they have a very active email list that sends out several positions in different industries every day! I find that people that are in this group really care about helping others find jobs, so graduates to seek out these types of networking opportunities in their cities. What’s important to note here is that if you don’t have these kind of networking opportunities in your area, perhaps you should be looking to move to a different area. Sometimes it takes moving away to find what you need. You can always move back later, but you have to be willing to make small changes to get what you need.
Another big one in Atlanta is C3G – Christ Centered Group that is a job networking group sponsored by Northpoint Community Church in Alpharetta. https://northpoint.org/c3g -This group also has a very active email list to which jobs are posted. These two are my most recommended in the Atlanta area. I’ve been through both programs.
I would encourage joining these groups on Linkedin as well and get connected to people you meet at these events.
Join Professional Industry Organizations
Becoming a member of professional industry organizations while you are in college is highly recommended. Often times the student memberships fees are drastically reduced and you can enjoy the same benefits that professional members have, in addition to having a direct access to these professionals.
One example is the I.T. industry being HOT in different cities, such as Atlanta. Healthcare IT and cybersecurity represent the #1 & #2 in the nation, so a graduate with this degree would be advised to join professional organizations in this field. In Georgia, I would HIGHLY recommend joining TAG (Technology Association of Georgia). http://www.tagonline.org/ One of the regular speakers for the RUMC job networking group (mentioned above) is on the board of this organization and can provide a discount off of TAG membership, so again, networking is a must!
Get More Training Outside of the Degree
Another major industry on the rise is Big Data and Business Analytics. There is a HUGE shortage of people with these skills sets in the US and they are sending the jobs overseas. With that said, there is free training on Big Data – https://cognitiveclass.ai/ – and there is so much information out there on MOOCs – Massive Online Open Courses that offer free training on just about anything you could name. Just because it’s free training doesn’t mean it’s not valuable and it just shows that they are keeping their skills up.
Linkedin also has Lynda.com and if you are on Linkedin, you get a free trial to Linkedin Learning (formerly Lynda.com), and it’s a great site to get up-to-date training on just about anything you could imagine. Check your local library to see if they have a subscription to this invaluable resource. In the Atlanta area for example, several library systems (i.e. Dekalb County, Cobb County, Atlanta-Fulton Library) have subscriptions to Lynda.com and offer this service FREE to those that have library cards in their respective system. Even if you are not eligible to get a library card for free (as a resident of the county or educator in the county), it’s more than worth it to pay the annual fee to get a card in that system. Check out the other resources and benefits available in that library system to get the most bang for your buck.
Volunteering
I also promote volunteering at some of these large events at professional organizations as a key strategy into getting into a company or getting to know the right people that can get jobs.
Look Outside of the Industry to Find Jobs
Lastly, it’s suggested that graduates look into other industries that they wouldn’t traditionally look to find jobs in their field. For example, education (all levels), non-profit, local, state and federal government, maybe even starting their own company (at least part-time if that’s a desirable option) are places to find jobs outside of companies that specialize in the career field.
Again, it’s important that the person “schools” people on helping them find positions, so more specificity in the type of company they want to work with, the type of position titles we can be on the lookout for and what areas they are looking for. Specificity is the key to building a team of advocates that can help connect them to successful jobs : )