College to Pro Archives - The Voice of Job Seekers

Is it Realistic to Leverage a College Degree to Obtain a Job?

Congratulations to all of you who obtained their college degree this season! Is your degree leverage for employment? Since it is graduation season, and many college graduates are moving forward with life, how many are actually employed with a job in their major? Too early to tell of course, but those of us in the career space watch these stats as an indicator of the condition of the job market.

The Data on the College Degree

One Forbes article says that unemployment and underemployment for college graduates is a myth. In 2016, some studies showed some law schools with up to 31% of their graduates were unemployed. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics latest report doesn’t feature any of the college graduate employment numbers yet.

Regardless of the number, it is still a wait and see. Nor can anyone use it as an excuse to successfully find a job without doing everything possible.

The Return on the College Degree

My oldest son graduated in December, and in January he was off to the Air Force. That was his plan for the last two years. But he also had two internships before graduating. His plan is to attend graduate school in the next year or two, but in the meantime his job will take him on quite a few travels. Like many graduates, the first plan is to experience, and then explore. And there is nothing wrong with that.

I reflect on this because three years ago, my friend Keith Townsend and I talked about the Return-on-Investment of a college degree. Every few years, I think this is a discussion worth revisiting for any year. At that time we created a video to coincide with the podcast–I think it’s worth watching.

Getting a college degree is a personal thing for some, and for others it’s family expectation. It is worth the discussion to evaluate your career trajectory if it is worth the investment of time and money. But those of us who advise clients if a college is a must have, we will likely answer, “it depends…”

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

by Mark Anthony Dyson

2014 Job Preparedness Indicator Survey with Alexandra Levit

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For the second year (the third year on the blog), we are featuring the results of the Job Preparedness Indicator Survey done by DeVry University’s Career Advisory Board. A large part of the survey studies the job skill gaps and provides job strategies and recommendation mainly for college students and Millenials. Alexandra Levit is one of the workplace/career experts and executives on the career board. She provides an overview of the survey findings and job strategies for young job seekers.

I would love to hear your thoughts and comments about the survey. What do you think about the findings of the survey? There are three ways you can share your thoughts. Let me know if it’s OK to read or replay your message on the show:

Call and leave a voicemail at 708.365.9822
Email: [email protected]
Go to TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com/71, press the Send Voicemail button on the left, which will activate your laptop microphone, then leave a message

Alexandra Levit is a friend of the blog and podcast as for the last three years, she has volunteered to share the Career Advisory Board’s findings on various studies. Here are the other conversations we’ve had in the past:

We discussed some of the following findings of the survey:

Only 7 percent of hiring managers report that “nearly all” or “most” job seekers have the complete set of skills and traits that their companies need to fill open positions
Hiring managers appear to do little to no training of new hires
High integrity of candidates is favored more than ever as a needed attribute of the entry level candidate
Although a global perspective is a must local candidates are considerably favored – Hiring managers are unlikely to look for candidates who are not local at the time of hiring
Adequate business writing skills are needed without much training or monitoring
Hiring managers want candidates who are quick and perpetual learners, again minimizing or eliminating training time

Job strategies for job seekers:

Millenials must show the ability to communicate clearly orally and in writing. Because of truncated social media messaging, many are not demonstrating the acumen for business writing
Be ready to absorb new material quickly. Hiring managers are looking to spend minimal time in training
Look much closer to home for opportunities. Employers will continue their search for candidates until a viable one becomes available
Must have high integrity. Employers need candidates and new hires they can trust
Perpetual learner. Certifications, continuing education, and expanded learning is essential

About Mark Anthony Dyson

by Mark Anthony Dyson

2 More Career Podcasts to Help Your Job Search

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This week, I wanted to share my MUST LISTEN TO career podcasts and hosts. Both are career practitioners but from different perspectives, and bring quality job search advice to their audiences. I hope that you will go and subscribe to their podcasts in iTunes, and engage their content as you see fit. Podcasts are the new talk show, and additionally in this show, we present two career podcasts that are educational in their approach for job seekers.

If you are a college student, a recent graduate or a neophyte professional, then you must subscribe and listen to Dayvon Goddard (@ItsDayD2y), the host and Career Strategist of Secrets of the Hire podcast and blog. Those who are more seasoned would not only benefit Dayvon’s show, but also find more relevant content through Chris Russell’s (@ChrisRussell) Career Cloud Radio podcast. Both podcasts offer substantial value to your proverbial job search advice toolbox.

I like to hear your thoughts and feedback about today’s show in one of three ways:

Blog: TheVoiceofJobSeekers.com (Use the send voicemail feature)

Email: [email protected]

Voicemail: 708.365.9822

Soon-to-be-graduates, are you taking the whole holiday break off from your job search. Why? There is much work to get done! Dayvon will share five strategies he performed during his school breaks and while classes were in session. Now, Dayvon works for the government, but previously had an accounting position in New York City. He graduated more than two years ago, so he shares what has worked for him so that you can apply it too!

Here are highlights from our discussion:

Start 3:37…

Dayvon shares 5 job search strategies soon-to-be graduates:

Internships. Since your college is a business, ask if you can intern for free. Yes, your university will help you with 5-10 hours weekly for experience.
Leverage Networking with Campus Leadership. Use the down time between classes to talk with the deans and executive leadership on campus. The relationship may result in a reference or a commendation letter. Dayvon also stated that it was important to be consistent.
Network with Social organizations. Not only join social organizations on campus but also take leadership positions that increase your exposure and responsibilities. These can often translate into work experience in an interview. When an interviewer asks, “Tell me about the time you led a team,” you can refer to that experience.
Utilize Career Services. It is an under-utilize resource in everything job search. Their resources are often limitless and also access to people, especially Alumni.
Utilize LinkedIn Now!!! 1) 300 million users 2) Employers are looking for you (70% of employers to recruit) 3) Recent graduates are NOT there (16% of college graduates) 4) Connect as many as you can (Dayvon received four job offers without applying to anything!)

Chris Russell is the founder of Career Cloud Radio career podcast at CareerCloud.com, in addition to his day job as a recruiter. Career Cloud is a site where you can utilize several tools for your job search built around social media. He considers himself as the “Mad Scientist of Online Recruiting.”

On his site you’ll find job postings, membership, and also houses the InstaJob and Talent Xray apps for your smartphone. His podcast is a top 25 business podcast in ALL OF iTunes as it’s downloaded more than 2,000 times daily. I found it originally back in 2008 or 2009 as the “Secrets of the Job Hunt (you can still find it under that name using the TuneIn Radio app).”

Here are some highlights from our discussion:

Start 27:13…

On his site, you can build a “social resume” which is a single page snapshot of all of your social media activity no matter what social media site it is. His tool, “jobs with friends,” connects all of your social media contacts to one database with job leads that potentially leads to referrals through those contacts

Not enough recruiters and employers are not taking advantage of Twitter and LinkedIn by interacting, and giving job search advice such as how to get a job at the company. Although statistics may say that more than 95% of recruiters are using LinkedIn doesn’t speak to the volume of activity and usage to find candidates
Chris explains how recruiters and employers are attractive to a candidate. He suggests using sharing links, writing a blog and showing your enthusiasm or expertise through discussions. As a recruiter, if he has two candidates and one is active on social media, and the other one isn’t, he will likely look at the socially active one first
We discuss the difference between 2009 and now that LinkedIn is currently a true personal website now that blogging is accessible to many of its users. Back in 2009 it was more of a place to house your resume
I asked Chris his opinion on how much someone should share on LinkedIn. Some share as much as they do Twitter, others share sparingly. Listen to his answer as there is much discussion in the career space on what is too much
We discuss the value of the local groups and becoming active on the relevant ones and your industry in general. Jobs are being posted in those groups and sometimes uncover unposted jobs

If you haven’t heard yet, we have a group on LinkedIn where you can join in on active discussion and lend your job search experience. I will post the latest shows there in addition to unpublished job search advice on the blog or our career podcasts. Let me know if you need to know more, use the contact information at the beginning of this post.

Again, check out and subscribe to these career podcasts as they fit your job search needs. Of course, subscribe to this one as your primary way to create the voice that employers will hear and hire.