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Job Market Tests New Grads' Mettle

Tribune photo by JIM REED

Graduates, such as those who attended fall graduation at the University of South Florida on Dec. 13, will be competing for jobs with not only peers, but with experienced workers who have lost their jobs. That makes networking crucial, experts say.

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By LINDSAY PETERSON and ADAM EMERSON

lpeterson@tampatrib.com aemerson@tampatrib.com

Published: December 22, 2008

TAMPA - New college graduates are entering the worst job market in decades, job counselors say. But it's not hopeless - if they're smart and aggressive and use the advantages that other job seekers don't have.

"There are fewer jobs and more candidates," said Drema Howard, the director of the University of South Florida's career center. "But employers will still be hiring."

Last month's unemployment rate indicates how challenging it will be for recent graduates. Florida's unemployment rate rose to 7.3 percent, the highest in 15 years. In Hillsborough County, the unemployment rate rose to 7.4 percent in November, up from 4.3 percent in November 2007.

Jennifer Marshall followed Howard's career counseling advice after graduating in the summer, and she managed to find the kind of job she wanted, directing child care grants at the Tampa Metro YMCA.

But she had a few stumbles along the way.

She left one interview thinking the job was hers, but it went to someone else. When she asked the interviewer what when wrong, she was told she wasn't enthusiastic enough about the job.

In another case she neglected to update her resume before responding to an opening and didn't even get an interview.

"Those were hard lessons to learn," Marshall said. But she didn't repeat the errors.

In this market, employers aren't going to waste their time with people who don't precisely meet their needs, Howard said.

The resume is crucial, she said. Rewrite it for each employer to show you're right for the job. "Don't leave it to the employer to guess."

Once you get the interview, Marshall said, research the company. "Know your stuff. Know what the job is going to be and have something to say about it."

Before her interview at the YMCA, she took some time to think about the questions her interviewers might ask, about her long-term goals, for instance, and bad job experiences in the past. "Get your stories ready before you sit down," Marshall said.

And dress up. "If you want people to see you in a professional position, you have to dress that way."

Howard said job hunters should start early, before graduation.

"Before graduation, you're still a student. After graduation, if you don't have a job, you're unemployed," she said.

Also, students have access to internships, as well as university career counseling and job fairs.

But employers don't always advertise open positions, said Tim Harding, the University of Tampa's career services director. So students need to network, to "be in the right places and really market themselves."

Nathan Davison, former president of USF's student senate, doesn't graduate until next May, but he's already searching the USF job boards for positions in marketing and advertising.

He has been warned that he will be competing with not only recent graduates but with experienced workers who have lost their jobs. "I'm not going to have the same resume as someone who's been in the field for 10 years. I'm going to have to figure out ways to shine above everybody."

Davison developed a lot of contacts in his student government job. He already has one offer to join a political campaign team after graduation, and he's considering it.

"I don't want to just take a job because it's available," he said. "The biggest thing I'm going to do is be very receptive, and not turn away a good opportunity."

That's the right approach, Howard said. "Explore every option. People have a vision of what they want, but the reality is that the market is changing."

But the job picture is not completely dim, she said. Opportunities are still strong in health care. "Accounting is still fairly stable. Engineering seems to be pretty stable. ... We're seeing a bit of a second wave in" information technology.

Also, people who are willing to move have an advantage, said Wayne Wallace, director of the career resource center at the University of Florida. "The recession is not equally painful across all 50 states. We are expecting a lot of pain in Florida, but there are options outside the state."

If the job search fails, there's another option, Wallace said: graduate school. This fall's graduate school fair at UF had a record turnout, he said.

Marshall couldn't find the job she wanted after getting a bachelor's degree several years ago. The degree she got this summer was a master's in public health.

It did help her in her job search, she said, but it wasn't the clincher.

"It was my experience, and the interview."

JENNIFER MARSHALL'S JOB-HUNTING TIPS

•Polish your resume to emphasize how you're right for the job.

•Get experience in the job area, even if it's through volunteering.

•Get to know the company or organization before the interview.

•Anticipate the interviewer's questions.

•Dress up.

•Be aware of body language; don't fidget.

Reporter Lindsay Peterson can be reached at (813) 259-7834.

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