As we recover from the pandemic, companies that pulled back on hiring in the fall and winter are looking for talent again. Whether you’re holding out for a dream job, or just starting your search now, here’s a guide to help you plan out your process and capitalize on a fresh batch of opportunities.
As we recover from the pandemic, companies that pulled back on hiring in the fall and winter are looking for talent again. Whether you’re holding out for a dream job, or just starting your search now, here’s a guide to help you plan out your process and capitalize on a fresh batch of opportunities.
1. Figure out what you want to do
Determine who you are and who you want to be. What excites you, and what would you be eager to learn on-the-job? Factor in feedback and lessons learned from any interviews you’ve already had. If your interviews within a certain industry were consistently a bad cultural fit for example, you should take that as a sign to look elsewhere. Similarly, if past interviewers noted you’d be a better fit in a different function, explore their suggestions and see whether that path would legitimately help you grow.
2. Figure out what opportunities are available
You should cast a wide net, but that net has to start somewhere. Try looking in:
Your institution’s career center: Career services should regularly update their database as new leads come in, so you should check their listings regularly
Third-party job boards are also a great place to look. These fall into two buckets:
General usage job boards, like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Indeed. These boards will have the most job postings by raw volume, but you’ll need to filter them by seniority to get the most relevant postings for your search. You can set up regular job alert emails based on seniority / industry / location to help custom-tailor your job search.
Internship or industry-specific job boards: Some smaller boards, such as Internships.com, specialize in internships, but are less comprehensive. Others, such as GoAboard.com and Idealist.org, highlight specific industries, such as non-profit management or international development. And if you’re interested in tech or start-up roles, the BuiltIn network allows you to customize your search within the start-up ecosystems of eight specific cities.
Careers pages for the specific companies you’re interested in. Before they hit LinkedIn or Glassdoor, many job postings are first published to each company’s custom career page. You can get a jump on new postings by setting up e-mail alerts with the firms you’re most interested in.
3. Figure out who can help you out
Right now, most interviews are being held ad hoc, outside normal on-campus structures. That makes networking doubly important: Once you’ve ID’d target firms, reach out to people who work there, starting with your first and second-degree connections, and then expanding to alumni from your college. These people can give you an insider’s introduction to their firms and potentially, help you out with a referral.
For advice on how to build your network quickly, check out this Toolkit post.