With all the talk of degrees, debt, and no internships or jobs, even freshmen are worried. Hiring managers say that what matters most in a competitive job market is a visible authentic personal brand validated by experience. Despite all the free how-to advice, concerned families are paying thousands for early career coaching because they know students naturally procrastinate and that without a clear plan, easy steps, and some form of accountability their student won't invest enough time to graduate with an advantage along with their degree.
Their reasoning probably holds true for most students, unfortunately most students can't afford a coach. That's why we created GradPlan.com.
We are a professional development community for college students. Our members will be entering challeging entry-level job markets and want to build a competitive advantage while earning their degrees. The shared strategies and goals we facilitate empower them to succeed. Our step-by-step plan, intentionally designed volunteer work, and highly interactive Zoom meetups make it easy for members to work together on building up their experience, personal brand, and visibility.
Students have free access to quality how-to advice. What they really need is the right framework to put it to good use. The unique space we created to help our members engage and do great work costs less than $20 a month.
Employers value professional development communities and employees who seek opportunities to improve their skills. When they see Gradplan.com on your resume or social media or hear your impact stories in interviews, they'll know your values are aligned and you've been developing the essential and soft skills they're looking for.
70% of recruiters engage with candidates on social media daily and 89% say social media helps them understand a candidate's values. WorldMetrics.org
73% of hiring managers use social media to evaluate applicants, mainly to confirm cultural fit and verify application details. Resume Builder Survey
82% of hiring managers are more likely to choose a candidate with volunteer experience.
85% of hiring managers are more inclined to look past resume flaws when the candidate includes volunteer work, yet only 30% list it on their resumes.
92% of employers agree that volunteering improves leadership and professional skills.
41% of hiring managers consider volunteer experience equal to paid work experience. LinkedIn, Global Recruiting Trends
Volunteers have 27% higher odds of employment, and the employment boost is even stronger for individuals early in their careers. AmeriCorps
Not all degrees lead toward a competitive entry-level job market but if yours does you need to seize every advantage you can get.
Work with your old high school or a campus organization to create mentoring opportunities aimed at increasing student engagement and success. Inspire younger students by sharing stories about your own successes and failures.
Skills: empathy leadership, emotional intelligence, communication, motivation, networking, interpersonal skills
Align class projects or form collaborations to improve organizations you are part of, support the work of education and workforce development leaders, or help any program better serve students.
Skills: leadership, problem solving, critical thinking, collaboration, networking, teamwork, communication, work ethic
Create your own internship or learn how to use tools, data, workforce development initiatives, or resume and interview strategies to become a stronger job candidate. Then create opportunities to educate and lift others.
Skills: adaptability, empathy leadership, teamwork, motivation, problem solving, critical thinking, interpersonal skills
Helping younger students avoid pitfalls and find success, especially those you share a connection with, is highly rewarding. The feeling of pride and success that comes with it will motivate you to continue working on projects that build evidence of soft and essential skills employers are seeking. It's an easy and strategic place to start.
Increasing student engagement is one of our country's greatest challenges. The global cost of disengaged employees is $8.8 trillion annually. Adding projects to your resume that reflect engagement is one of your core values helps strengthen your brand. And projects that produce metrics about your impact will give your resume and interviews a boost.
Gaining experience and social capital by collaborating and volunteering helps you overcome the anxiety and self-doubt that comes with being a first-time job candidate. Creating your own volunteer work is also great practice for creating gig work. A degree matters, but experience, leadership, and initiative build confidence and set you apart.
You will recieve a sample plan and resource list based on the questionaire you submit at sign up. Our workgroup facilitators post a monthly schedule of their Zoom events. Each meetup is dedicated to discussing one of the 9 steps or 3 project styles you can choose to work on and multiple sessions time slots are available. Start working your plan and join Zoom meetups for help and to collaborate with others working on the same step.
Meetups help you block out time be productive. They don't include a presentation unless noted on the calendar. You'll learn a lot and stay motivated just by listening to students ask questions and hearing the advice the facilitator and other students have to offer. Facilitators also post open office hours you can pop into to ask questions and a library of helpful meeting recordings and video links is always available for whenever you find time to work a little.
Meetups connect students from different campuses, majors, and backgrounds. Interacting is a way to practice skills like introducing yourself at a job fair or networking event. Forming groups and working in breakout rooms on things like interview practice or to collaborate on volunteer projects is encouraged. Signing up for the same meetup again before you leave makes finding a time to work together again easy.
We know applying for jobs isn't what you want to think about as you start college just like applying for college wasn't what you wanted to think about in 9th grade.
But if you were one of the students who started early and did just a little every month, you likely earned scholarships and are at your dream school. If you started late and fell short on extracurriculars, you were likely stressed and missed some opportunities.
Start following the advice from hiring managers sooner rather than later. Whether you like to pace yourself, need to catch up, or have to really hustle, we hope you'll join our community so we can help you graduate with a job search advantage.
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