Posts tagged with recruiting.

How to stand out during the fall campus recruitment season

Cassandra Jowett, editor, TalentEgg.ca, September 18, 2009 at 4:22 PM

The Globe and Mail's Back To School page

Cassandra Jowett

 

On college and university campuses across Canada in the coming weeks, some of Canada's top employers will be holding information sessions, attending career fairs and reaching out to students in every possible way. Do you have a plan of attack yet?

While we find that most students are far too busy settling into the new academic year to even notice that these events are taking place on campus almost every day, employers still compete with each other each fall to attract Canada's top young talent.

(For more information on the fall recruitment rush, see Students: the job hunt starts now.)

If you're interested in attending the recruiting events happening at your school, don't forget to:

Check your career centre's website

Details on the dates and times of each information session and career fair should be listed in calendar format on your school's career centre website. Do a bit of research on each company, take note of the info sessions and fairs you would like to attend, and see if they'll fit into your busy schedule.

Call or visit your career centre ahead of time for more specific information

Career centres often post only the most basic information on the website: date, time and location. Talk to someone who works at the career centre about:

  • what types of roles the companies you're interested in are hiring for. Are they relevant to your past experience and what you want to do in the future?
  • which programs those companies are aiming to recruit from - they often target only one or a few programs or faculties
  • who (as in the individual people) will be representing the companies you're interested in at your school?

Customize your résumé and cover letter for each company

If you were able to get the person's name from your career centre, address your cover letter to them. If you were given multiple names, print multiple versions of your cover letter and then give out the appropriate one once you find out who you're talking to. This attention to detail is something campus recruiters tell us consistently impresses them.

Customizing your résumé for the type of job the company is hiring for is equally important. Do not submit a generic resumé listing everything you've ever done.

Target your relevant education and experience for that industry, company and job so the recruiter can take one look at your résumé and know that you're a good fit for the company and the roles they're hiring for.

It's just a starting point, but make a good impression

The number one thing recruiters complain about regarding students at information sessions and career fairs is that they're totally underdressed. Just because you have to check out the career fair between your 8 a.m. class and 1 p.m. lab doesn't mean you should show up in jeans and a T-shirt - or worse. Dress business casual. You might look a bit silly sitting next to your classmates in their pyjamas, but you'll make a good impression on your potential employers.

Find out when you can follow up

Even if you just have a five-minute informal phone meeting with a recruiter because they want you to jump through hoops to get through the application process on their website, you will stand out among the hundreds of other people who just submit a generic application.

Talking with recruiters beyond the information session or career fair will also allow you to ask any follow-up questions you might have about the company or the job opportunity. Remember, you have to ensure they're a good fit for you just as much as you're a good fit for them.

Most importantly, don't forget to ask when they will be making a decision about the role and say that you're looking forward to a formal interview in the near future.

For more insights on the fall campus recruitment rush, check out this recent Q&A with TalentEgg founder Lauren Friese and recruiters from Sun Life Financial and KPMG, who answered questions on the September recruitment drive: Your questions answered about the September campus recruitment drive.

Tagged with recruiting, campus, fall, stand, out | Comments (0) |

What's with all the doom and gloom?

Lauren Friese, president, TalentEgg.ca, June 15, 2009 at 1:44 PM

  Lauren Friese

For the past six months, students, grads and journalists have asked me the same questions over and over: “What’s the outlook for 2009 grads? Shouldn’t they be scared?”

It’s a common assumption, but it comes from looking at only one side of the current economic climate.

My answer: It’s complicated.

From where I’m sitting, recent grads looking for work are theoretically in a good spot.

Yes, we’re in a recession and yes, the job market is currently flooded with people who have more experience than you, but that’s just one economic force (albeit a powerful one).

Every other force out there is pointing to the fact that hiring new and recent grads is actually a very smart, forward thinking, ‘new economy’ thing to do.

As new and recent grads, you are relatively inexpensive, you don’t come with all the baggage (a.k.a. bad habits) that more experienced workers have and there’s a big contradicting economic force at play: the upcoming baby boom retirement!

The news gets even better when we stray from theory and look at the actual patterns we’ve been experiencing at TalentEgg. Not only has there been a steady stream of high quality entry-level job opportunities popping up on the site, but we’ve also had a lot of interest from employers planning their September student recruitment campaigns. Employers are competing to stand out as top places for YOU to work!

Surely, this can’t be bad.

So why is there all this fear in the media and among students and recent grads?

If you ask me, the real problem isn’t the economy but rather the expectations that have been set for grads, and 2009 grads in particular.

The expectations are telling you, new and recent grads, that, if the economy were in better condition, there would be jobs waiting for you (wrong) and you should therefore be scared because you are in a unique position, unable to find work weeks after graduation (wrong).

Your biggest enemy: Misconceptions of timing

There’s a dangerous misconception among students that May, June and July are good times to be looking for jobs – that somehow, employer interests will align with your own and suddenly 300,000 new jobs will become available at the exact moment exams end.

This would be convenient, but unfortunately it is not the way Canadian ‘campus recruitment’ works. Instead, soon-to-be grads should start job searching in September of their final year.

Why September?

Well, remember how I said employers are competing to impress you?

Part of that initiative involves rushing to campus in September in order to be first in line to grab top talent. In the UK, this strategy even has its own name – “The Milk Round”.

While this tactic may be completely misinformed – September is when the top students on campus are auditioning for plays, joining clubs, trying out for sports teams and generally gearing up for the school year – it’s the prevailing strategy of many of Canada’s top employers.

The fear is unnecessary

The dire situation you appear to be facing is not unique to this particular year. Let me repeat: The frustration new and recent grads are facing is not unlike the frustration felt by new and recent grads every year.

While top Canadian employers may expect you to be ready to interview in September of your final year, if you missed the “September Milk Round,” you’re not alone. The recruiting that takes place in September leaves the vast majority of students without firm offers of employment before graduation every year.

And this is okay because the best kind of career prep really starts months and years before September of your final year. It occurs when you learn to play the saxophone, start and promote a rock band with your friends, commit to raising money for charity, are promoted to leader of an on-campus club, join the student council or, in my case, take a shot at becoming a world-famous actress. Given that most students and new grads don’t have relevant work experience, the most impressive qualities you can showcase on your resume are your life experiences and your demonstrated passion for the career path you’re pursuing.

Assuming that you have interests and you can convincingly show employers those interests – and more importantly, the actions you took in order to pursue those interests – you have the makings of a compelling resume and a real competitive advantage in the work force.

The bottom line

As a new or recent grad in 2009, the challenges ahead of you are not particularly unique. You spent 3-4 years earning a degree, which indicates work ethic, an ability to learn and potential in the workforce. You likely have little or no relevant work experience and you’re probably a little bit worried.

But if you re-think the current economic climate in Canada – where employers are not only looking for less costly human resource solutions, but where good employers are planning and actively recruiting in light of the upcoming mass exodus (retirement) of a large proportion of their of work force – things start to look a bit sunnier for you, the new and recent grads of 2009.

Add your voice in our poll on whether you think '09 grads will be able to find a job.

Tagged with economy, assumptions, recession, gradutes, september, employers, new, search, recruiting, job, campus, resume | Comments (31) |