No Luck at Campus Placements?

Smriti was having sleepless nights. The worries kept her awake. The final semester was coming to an end and she would be completing her degree next month. While some of her batch mates had been placed, she and a few others were still struggling. As the campus placement drive had ended, there was little hope.

She would be moving with her parents next month if she’s left jobless. They are looking forward to it, but Smriti is not. Her aim is to be independent, to get a job, to have a life of her own.

She came to me last week asking for help. I gave her a few tips. I also jotted them down for my readers. So here you go:

1. Do not solely depend on Campus Placements: We all look forward to campus placements but it is not a good idea to depend solely on the campus. Look for means outside the campus, use your contacts, network with people, your college alumni, job boards, professional networking websites. Just spread the word that you are available in the job market. The employers are always on a hunt for good resources and if you are talented, you have a good chance of getting noticed.
2. Do NOT upload and forget: The first thing most us do when we look for a job is to upload out resume on job portals like naukri.com and monster.com However, I always recommend people that your job is not finished after the resume has been published. You must constantly keep updating your resume, so that the employer knows that you are actively looking for a job. For example, I will never call a person who has not updated his/her resume in past 4 months assuming that he/she might have got a job already.
3. AUDIT your online presence:  After the introduction of social media, micro blogging and professional media websites, the world has really shrunk. Most of the organizations do a thorough background check of their prospective employees. Do a thorough check of all your online profiles and if there is something you do not want your employer to see, just delete or hide it.
4. Make use of professional networking websites: LinkedIn is one such well known website. You can make your profile, join groups, subscribe for jobs, network on LinkedIn. Employers these days are extensively using LinkedIn for hunting talent

I hope it helps you and Smriti.