Trudy Steinfeld: Follow Your Dream

During the midst of an economic recession, when the job market is more challenging, it is understandable that some students (and their families) remain interested in fields that offer the best prospects for employment or pay the highest salaries.

While employment, financial security, and career mobility are extremely important, says Trudy Steinfeld, executive director of the Wasserman Center for Career Development at New York University, it is important that you also pursue a career that will bring you a great degree of personal satisfaction. Striving to achieve balance, identifying and discovering the career path that is right for you, and following your dream (however you define that) are worthy guiding principles.

More concretely, she says, it is essential to be flexible and willing to learn, to remain open to possibilities, and to use multiple job-search strategies. Fully utilize your College Career Center, and tell everyone you know what job you are looking for or what you are considering. This market is all about positioning yourself for future success. For the near future, you may need to adjust your mindset about the job you will eventually accept, but be confident in the fact that the economy will not stay this difficult forever and it is important to "position" yourself to move up within the organization you join or to move out to a better opportunity when the job market improves.

Although getting the job you want may take longer than you would like, as a new graduate here are some things she asks you to consider:

• Make sure you continue to meet with a career counselor. The support of a trained professional can make all the difference in a job search. It will help keep you focused and motivated.
• Entry-level hires are less expensive than more experienced job seekers and many employers are realizing that they need new talent to turn things around at their organization. This should result in the college market coming back faster than the experienced job market.
• Most students are flexible, savvy, multi-taskers and have experience from internships, part-time jobs and their college experience. You can leverage this by being able to apply for jobs that may not be an exact fit, but to which you bring many of the skills that an employer would value.
• You should be applying for a minimum of 35 positions a week in which you have a legitimate shot (meaning you meet at least 50 percent of the job requirements).
• Networking is key. You never know where the job is coming from, so increasing the number of people and organizations your are in touch with will improve your chances for success. Job fairs, industry forums and conferences provide additional ways to make contacts and find out about opportunities that may not be advertised elsewhere.
• Utilize job boards and web sites, but know that the odds are not always in your favor. To try to get noticed, make sure that the elements of the job description that match up to your qualifications are emphasized clearly in your resume and/or application.
• Target employers that you are interested in, whether they have a job listed or not. There is always an unadvertised job market and sometimes jobs are created for someone who is the "right fit" for an organization.
• Prepare for your interviews by doing research on the organization and make sure you practice answering some expected questions.
• Make sure that you have "cleaned" any social networking sites your belong to. You would not want an employer disqualifying you for a photo or something else that you have included in one of these sites.
• Follow-up with everyone you contact regarding a job, whether it's a mentor, an alumni contact or an employer.
• Keep up your energy level and make sure that you work on the job search every day. Looking for a job is a job in itself, but you want to make sure that you do it well to ensure success.
• Never give up. In the vast majorities of unsuccessful job searches, the job-seeker becomes too quickly discouraged, and does not allow his search to gain traction. By remaining resourceful, flexible, and persistent, success is only a matter of time.