Nearly 2 million students will emerge from U.S. colleges with bachelor’s degrees this month, and many will enter a job market their parents barely recognize, leaving parents off-balance and hard-pressed to offer advice, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Lesley Mitler, a New York coach for young adults planning careers, says many parents rush their sons and daughters into landing a job—any job—after graduation, only to see them bail after less than a year. It’s better to wait for the right fit, Mitler says. She also says that students need to build practical skills much earlier than in the past, and take as many internships as they can before graduation.
The new rules of the post-college job search game: get workplace experience before graduating; build a network early; acquire technical, analytical and interpersonal skills not taught in college classes; avoid relying heavily on online job boards; build a robust LinkedIn profile; and seek out experienced adult mentors for advice.
