Getting Your First Job For Dummies

Find—and land—your first job! Finding a job can seem daunting, especially when it's a brand new experience. There's a lot to know, and often a lot of pressure. Written by the founder of AfterCollege.com, Getting Your First Job For Dummies is designed to take the stress out of the job search process and help you get an offer. In this book, you'll discover how to identify your talents and strengths, use your network to your advantage, interview with confidence, and evaluate an offer. Written in plain English and packed with step-by-step instructions, it'll have you writing customized resumes, conducting company research, and utilizing online job search sites, faster than you can say 'I got the job!' Determine what kind of job suits your interests and skills Write a compelling cover letter Know what to expect in an interview Effectively negotiate an offer Whether you're still in school or navigating the world as a recent graduate, Getting Your First Job For Dummies arms you with the skills and confidence to make getting your first job an exciting and enjoyable process.

Table of Contents:
Introduction 1 About This Book 1 Foolish Assumptions 2 Icons Used in This Book 3 Beyond the Book 3 Where to Go from Here 3 Part 1: Preparing Yourself Before the Job Search 5 Chapter 1: Mapping Out Your Job Search Strategy 7 Getting Your First Part-Time Job 8 Securing Internships 9 Finding Your First Job after College 10 Knowing the Importance of Your First Job 11 Getting exposed to an industry 11 Doing the job itself 12 Building your professional network 12 Setting a Goal for Yourself 12 Having expectations 13 Creating a timeline 13 Organizing Your Search with Online Tools and Apps 14 Using Google Calendar 15 Taking notes with Evernote 15 Using Google Sheets 16 Expanding your vocabulary with Thesaurus.com 16 Chapter 2: Highlighting What You Bring to an Employer 17 Identifying Your Skills 18 Translating your major into specific skills 18 Listing your soft skills 20 Uncovering your hidden skills 21 Getting feedback from your friends 21 Identifying areas for improvement 22 Detailing Your Experience 23 Taking note of volunteer work 23 Listing school projects 24 Showcasing notable sports and hobbies 25 Sharing your background 25 Chapter 3: Figuring Out What You Want to Do 27 Taking Self-Assessments 28 Playing Mercer Match 28 Using Paddle 29 Getting Insights through Career Discovery Tools 32 Utilizing AfterCollege’s Explore 32 Leveraging LinkedIn Career Insights 35 Identifying Jobs of Interest 36 Talking to friends about their work 36 Job shadowing 37 Writing someone about shadowing 38 Using the Occupational Outlook Handbook 38 Part 2: Starting Your Job Search 41 Chapter 4: Researching Employers 43 Comparing Large and Small Employers 44 Evaluating the advantages of a large company 45 Considering the advantages of a small company 47 Knowing if a startup is right for you 48 Learning about startups on Crunchbase 50 Working for a nonprofit 51 Finding Employers with New-Grad Programs 51 Rotation programs 52 Nursing programs 52 Sales programs 52 Identifying Employers of Interest 53 Gauging employee morale on Glassdoor 53 Gleaning employee insights on LinkedIn 54 Chapter 5: Getting Ready to Search for a Job 55 Enlisting Assistance from Your Network 56 Networking with LinkedIn 56 Leveraging Facebook 58 Going to alumni events 59 Talking to your teachers and professors 59 Getting help from family and friends 61 Obtaining Recommendations 62 Securing past employer recommendations 62 Writing someone for a recommendation 62 Approaching teachers for recommendations 63 Crafting your own recommendation letter 64 Requesting endorsements via LinkedIn 65 Asking for recommendations via AfterCollege 66 Using Your University Career Center 68 Attending career fairs 69 Signing up for on-campus interviews 70 Practicing with mock interviews 70 Utilizing other resources on campus 71 Deciding to Use Headhunters and Staffing Firms 71 Chapter 6: Searching for Jobs Online 73 Familiarizing Yourself with Search Techniques 74 Conducting a basic job search 74 Using keywords 75 Performing Boolean searches 76 Doing an advanced job search 78 Searching on Job Sites 80 Finding Jobs on Google 81 Setting Up Automatic Job Alerts 82 Setting up AfterCollege job alerts 82 Creating a LinkedIn job notification 83 Subscribing to school email lists 84 Using IFTTT notifications and Craigslist 85 Chapter 7: Building a Great Online Presence 89 Creating a LinkedIn Profile 90 Setting Up an AfterCollege Student Profile 92 Showcasing Your Expertise 96 Sharing on LinkedIn Publishing 96 Writing on Medium 96 Creating content on YouTube 97 Showing off your code on GitHub 97 Competing on Kaggle 98 Cleaning Up Your Online Presence 99 Searching for yourself on Google 99 Checking your credit report 100 Dealing with a DUI or arrest record 100 Tidying up your social media profile 101 Making Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram more private 101 Removing questionable pictures 103 Getting rid of controversial tweets 104 Choosing an appropriate email address 105 Part 3: Navigating the Application Process 107 Chapter 8: Preparing Your Résumé and Cover Letter 109 Writing a Cover Letter 110 Creating a Great Résumé 112 Formatting your résumé 112 Avoiding common mistakes 114 Identifying key résumé elements 114 Using action words 116 Looking at a sample résumé 119 Getting Résumé Help 120 Taking your résumé to your college career center 121 Using TopResume to improve your résumé 121 Chapter 9: Applying for Jobs 123 Starting the Application Process 123 Using Applicant Tracking Systems 125 Finding Someone to Refer You 126 Tapping alumni from your school 126 Checking the Status of Your Application 128 Part 4: Acing the Interview and Getting the Offer You Want 131 Chapter 10: Before the Interview 133 Preparing for Your Interview 133 Starting with the employer’s website 134 Using Wikipedia to research the employer 135 Finding competing companies on Owler 136 Seeing employer numbers on Yahoo! Finance 138 Digging into a nonprofit’s finances via GuideStar 140 Researching who will interview you 140 Learning about the job you’re applying for 141 Practicing for the Interview 142 Introducing yourself 142 What to ask 143 Answering questions 143 Familiarizing Yourself with the Interview Process 144 Initial screening interview 145 On-campus interviews 145 Interviewing with the hiring manager 145 Interviewing with team members 146 Becoming Familiar with Interview Platforms 147 Interviewing via Skype 148 Interviewing via Google Hangouts 148 Using video conferencing 149 Interviewing via phone 150 Chapter 11: The Interview 151 Nailing Interview Etiquette 151 Dressing the part 152 Arriving early 154 Getting rid of your chewing gum, food, and drinks 155 Handling lunch interviews 155 Eliminating distractions 156 Making a Great Impression 156 Starting a conversation 156 Minding your body language 157 Making eye contact 157 Asking the right questions 158 Avoiding the wrong questions 159 Answering Difficult Interview Questions 160 Talking about yourself 160 Addressing your lack of experience 161 Talking about why you’re interested in the job 163 Focusing on your accomplishments 163 Delving into setbacks and how you overcame them 164 Listing your top qualities 164 Acknowledging areas of improvement 166 Problem-solving during the interview 167 After the Interview 168 Following up 169 Writing a thank-you note 169 Checking on your status 170 Chapter 12: The Offer 171 Determining What’s Important to You 171 Salary 172 Taxes and withholding 172 A brief guide to benefits 173 Bonuses, commissions, and stock 175 Experience 177 Flexibility and work–life balance 177 Company culture 177 Employer brand 178 Negotiating an Offer 178 Dealing with an on-the-spot verbal offer 179 Gaining leverage with multiple offers 179 Researching salary information 180 Negotiating other perks besides money 181 Accepting an Offer 181 Sample offer letter 182 Declining an Offer 183 Dealing with Rejection 184 Replying by email 185 Getting feedback on why you didn’t get the job 186 Chapter 13: Relocating for the Right Job 187 Evaluating the Cost of Living 188 Calculating cost of living on PayScale 188 Researching cost of living on NerdWallet 188 Deciding Where to Live 189 Finding out how walkable your city is with Walk Score 189 Finding an apartment on Craigslist 190 Finding housing on Apartments.com 190 Letting your Facebook friends know you’re looking for a place to live 191 Tapping into alumni networks 191 Making Sure You Have Things to Do 192 Meeting like-minded people through Meetup 192 Turning to TripAdvisor 192 Discovering entertainment on Thrillist 192 Finding food on Yelp 193 Getting Around a New City 193 Public transportation 193 Car sharing 193 Carpooling 194 Part 5: Starting Your First Job 195 Chapter 14: Learning as Much as Possible from Your Job 197 Setting Up Check-Ins with Your Boss 198 Being Proactive and Taking on Projects 199 Knowing What Others Do on Your Team 200 Taking Advantage of Learning Opportunities 200 Going to lunch-and-learns 201 Subscribing to email lists 201 Joining online collaboration groups 202 Taking advantage of tuition reimbursement 202 Learning through online courses 203 Participating in training 203 Chapter 15: Building Your Professional Network 205 Having Lunch with Your Colleagues 206 Participating in Group Activities 206 Collaborating with People on Other Teams 207 Viewing Your Customers and Clients as Colleagues 209 Maintaining Your Network Online 209 Part 6: The Part of Tens 211 Chapter 16: Ten Sites for Finding Your First Job 213 Indeed 213 AfterCollege 214 LinkUp 215 LinkedIn 215 University or College Career Centers 216 AngelList 216 Glassdoor 216 Craigslist 217 Internships.com 217 Association Websites 217 Chapter 17: Ten Places to Gain Skills and Become More Employable 219 Coursera 220 Udemy 220 Lynda.com 221 Khan Academy 221 Codecademy 221 Udacity 222 General Assembly 222 Galvanize 223 Skillshare 223 Community College 223 Chapter 18: Ten (Or So) Potential Benefits Besides Salary 225 401(k), 403(b), and 457 225 Health Insurance 227 Flexible Spending Accounts, Health Savings Accounts, and Commuter Spending Accounts 227 Bonus Plans 228 Profit-Sharing Plans and Profit-Sharing Retirement Plans 229 Restricted Stock Units 229 Stock Option Plans 230 Tuition Reimbursement 231 Index 233

About the Author :
Roberto Angulo cofounded AfterCollege, the largest online marketplace in the U.S. where college students and employers can connect. He collaborated with the Obama Administration on the launch of Summer Jobs+, which successfully created more summer opportunities for youth ages 16–24. He is also cofounder of US2020.org, a STEM mentorship program.