Count Cards

When you meet new people or make new collections, don't be afraid to ask for cards. There is no better way to ensure you will remember their name or email address than to take their business card. If you meet somebody and they express interest or willingness to talk to you, ask for their card so that you can take the initiative to follow up. Once you have their card though, make sure you actually do take the initiative and follow up. Collecting cards won't do you any good if you just collect them and don't do anything with them.

This might also help others who are trying to network through you. Even if they aren't looking for career opportunities like you are, but are looking for a product or service, if you have business cards you can pass the name along. Networking is not just about helping yourself - if you want to network through other people, you should be able to help others network. Networking is not about using people - it is about having connections and being able to help others as well as yourself.

Dress the part

The way you look has a huge impact on your job prospects. I know we'd all like to say that what you're wearing doesn't matter and it's your work ethic and skills that are paramount. That's true to a point, your work ethic and skills are paramount, but be real, you aren't going to get a job if you go to the interview in sweat pants. It is possible though to over dress for an interview. Try to keep it pretty traditional and conservative, but very business professional.

Men: Athletic socks and sneakers are NOT appropriate even though they are comfortable. Wear a suit with a tie. If you're going to an interview for a more creative type job, maybe throw on a brightly colored shirt and a patterned tie, but don't wear a line green suit.

Women: Your party clothes are not professional. That skirt may be black but it's about 7 inches too short. Wear professional attire, approximately knee length on the skirts or wear pants, and a nice top with a jacket maybe.

Dress for the job that you'd like to have, not necessarily the one that you are applying for. But don't be defined by your outfit. You want your skills and work ethic to shine to the recruiter, not your metallic shirt.

Always be Prepared

It is important to prepare for each and every interview or meeting that you go to. The questions might be repetitious as you continue to have informational interviews and continue to go on job interviews, but the answers will vary from time to time. It's important to have some standard answers that you can recycle, but some of the details should change depending on the job; you always want to customize your answers to questions depending on the job or organization.

If you're in an informational interview you will probably still be asked, "Tell me about yourself." This is when you should respond with your elevator speech, a thirty to sixty second description of you who are professionally. This elevator speech will pretty much be standard, though when you go on job interviews you can try to tailor it a bit to the job description.

There are some standard interview questions that you will begin to learn as you interview. You can also do some research on these on the internet. Begin to have some standard examples for these questions, create a general outline that you can keep, but before you go on an interview use your outline and make your responses more relevant to the job for which you are interviewing. For example, if you are really proud of a project you worked on professionally, you can always use that project for the "Tell me about a time you were successful," question, but highlight different aspects for different interviews.

No matter which answers you recycle, and which you use for the first time, you should always be prepared with experiences that you know for a fact you will highlight during an interview. Make sure the experiences you want to talk about are the ones that are most relevant to the job at hand. Go through your resume ahead of time, and create an outline as to how your experiences directly tie into the job description. This will help you to more fluidly answer the questions.

Become Known

Networking is so important, especially in today's economy. We've all heard the expression, "It's not what you know, it's who you know." I hate to say it, but to some extent this might be true.

It's really never too early to begin making connections with professionals and organizations that you are interested in. Do research on organizations in the area. What kind of company do you want to work for? Do you want to work in a multi-national corporation, or do you want to work in a non-profit? Spend some time reading about the organization on their website, look for newspaper articles about things they have done. Talk to people you might know who work, or have worked with an organization. If you find that you are interested in the company or industry, make a couple phone calls or send a couple emails and ask for an informational interview. This will give you a chance to briefly experience the office culture and it gives you the opportunity to build a relationship with somebody that already works there.

It's easy to begin expanding your personal and professional network. Start with people you know. What do they do for a living? What types of industries do your family members and family friends work in? Don't be afraid to ask people you know for contacts - I was able to set up a few informational interviews in California from asking colleagues for contacts. Use these opportunities to build relationships though, don't send one email or go to one meeting and think your done. Stay in touch and make a positive impression, your name may rise to the top of the list when new opportunities become available.

Woke up Working

This is the first of hopefully many posts relating to the transitions from college to the work place. The coming posts will contain many tips and tricks for navigating through the application process including resumes and cover letters. It will also provide advice for making a smooth entry into the office by dressing the part and being able to appropriately socialize with coworkers. There's a lot that goes with graduating college and joining the full-time work force. I hope to provide some personal experiences to make it easier for others. Take it with a grain of salt if you'd like, this will by no means be the end all and be all for professional advice, but hopefully it's another perspective to help you make the best decisions for yourself.

I graduated from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a minor in French Studies. I was a leader on campus, involved in several student organizations and I worked in our Career Services Office. I made a decision in August/September 2008 to graduate a year early - right before the recession hit. Needless to say the job hunting process was exceptionally difficult in those months. I am beyond thankful that I can say right now that even though times were and still are tough (knock on wood) I have not been unemployed during this time.

College is great; it's a ton of fun and it provides you with the skills that you'll use as a professional. It's easy to get caught up in college, though, and not look beyond Thirsty Thursday. Don't get me wrong, enjoy college, make the best of it. But as graduation draws nearer don't forget to think ahead. Soon, you'll have a degree and you'll have to pay money to the student loan people, as opposed to them paying you. It's imperative to start searching early. Begin making connections with professionals in your field, start researching companies, it's never to early to get your name out there. Start planning a professional wardrobe, new clothes can be expensive so buy a piece at a time. Use the resources that your university makes available to you such as career services offices, job posting databases, networking events, workshops, et cetera. It's becoming increasingly difficult to graduate with a job already lined up, do all that you can do to make sure you are one of the few who can walk in the graduation ceremony on Saturday and walk into the office on Monday.