Graduate Employment Plan: Checklist Report

Introduction

Graduate employment offers special opportunities for new graduates to gain important skills (Alpaydın 2015; Mason, Williams, & Cranmer 2009). Such programs allow new employees to work through several divisions within an organization, thus helping to create an all-round employee (Beenen & Pichler 2014). The following Graduate Employment Plan Checklist offers important insights for graduates:

Checklist

• Develop an action plan

1. Develop goals and timelines
2. Focus on increasing self-awareness by assessing personal strengths, skills, work preferences, and interests (Decker 2014)
3. Download application forms for graduate employment opportunities

• Research companies

1. Attend graduate career events and fairs.
2. Participate in employer information sessions.
3. Identify organizations affiliated to the university.
4. Use the world wide web to visit company websites and recruitment online directories.
5. Research on industries and identify the major players, competitors, and trends (Jackson 2014).
6. Research on graduate salary trends.

• Prepare Applications

1. Prepare your resume and cover letters for each individual graduate application submitted.
2. Book appointments with recruitment agencies for resume review.

• Apply online and prepare for assessment centers/interviews

1. Render the application through email or online recruitment portal of the company.
2. Attach resume in the form of a word document, Pdf or as specified by the company since some companies may require other formats.
3. Dress in official outfit or as specified by the company.
4. During the interview session, answer questions with clarity while sticking to the necessary points (Roberts & Roach 2009).
5. When answering questions, always look into the eyes of the interviewer(s).

References

Alpaydın, Y 2015, ‘Identifying Higher-Education Level Skill Needs in Labor Markets: The Main Tools Usable for Turkey’, Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, vol. 15, no. 4, pp. 945-967.

Beenen, G & Pichler, S 2014, ‘Do I Really Want to Work Here? Testing a Model of Job Pursuit for MBA Interns’, Human Resource Management, vol. 53, no. 5, pp. 661-682.

Decker, S 2014, ‘Careers’, Communications of the ACM, vol. 57, no. 11, pp. 106-119.

Jackson, D 2014, ‘Factors influencing job attainment in recent Bachelor graduates: evidence from Australia’, Higher Education., vol. 68, no. 1, pp. 135-153.

Mason, G, Williams, G & Cranmer, S 2009, ‘Employability skills initiatives in higher education: what effects do they have on graduate labor market outcomes?’, Education Economics, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 1-30.

Roberts, S & Roach, T 2009, ‘Social Networking Web Sites and Human Resource Personnel: Suggestions for Job Searches’, Business Communication Quarterly, vol. 72, no. 1, pp. 110-114.