What Your Child Isn't Learning in College

Courses in Business, Literature, History, and Science do a great job of educating your child about specific disciplines, but how effective are they at preparing students for the “working world?” We’re finding the answer is…not so effective. As Career Coaches, our goal is to share valuable information to help job seekers be more marketable to potential employers. This includes raising awareness in areas where we see new graduates displaying a serious lack of judgment and savviness. The first step toward effective change is recognizing the problem and we can help with that! Here are 4 “Real World” things your child isn’t learning in college:

1. Workplace writing is the opposite of prose...and text messaging
Writing an email to follow up on a job interview is very different from those papers your daughter wrote on Global Warming, Market Analysis, and William Faulkner. On the flip side, professional writing is not the same as texting and requires not only complete words (i.e., no “CU later”), but fully formed sentences with proper punctuation and grammar. That said, workplace correspondence centers around succinct messages, addressing requests to the appropriate person from a political standpoint, and displaying a sense of urgency when communicating with customers. In other words, the way your child has communicated up to this point has not prepared her at all for written communication at work.

2. How to talk about his strengths in an interview
I’ve interviewed countless graduates who cannot articulate what they’re good at or why they want to work for us. It’s not because they don’t have strengths, it’s because they haven’t been taught how to talk about them in a way that translates into value for a potential employer. Help your child identify 3-5 strengths and then be able to explain why those strengths would be appealing to an employer.

3. The “hot jobs” aren’t so hot in the beginning
New graduates often have unreasonable expectations about entry level roles. Regardless of the degree, your child probably has a vision of what his first job will look like and that vision is unlikely to match reality. As you know, getting where he wants to be in his career is a process that requires hard work, extra hours, and delivering a LOT of consistent results. Since your child will probably be resistant to hearing from you on this point, find a great role model who can help your child understand what to expect and develop a point of view that performing well in an entry level role will accelerate his longer term progress toward the more glamorous opportunities he seeks.

4. Basic interview and office etiquette
Manners are seriously underrated. We see countless grads who don’t even seem to know that they should stand up when the interviewer walks into the room. The importance of a firm handshake, a thank you note, and acknowledging when you receive emails are other examples of basic etiquette falling by the wayside. Employers are looking for poised, enthusiastic candidates who know how to interact with people on a professional level. It’s expected that candidates will know to ask a few smart questions of every person who interviews them, inquire about next steps in the process, and thank us for our time at the end of the interview.

Helping your adult "child" navigate an entry level job search can be tricky, but addressing roadblocks like these will avoid frustration and embarrassment when jobs aren't forthcoming. November is Parents' Month at ePropelr, stay tuned for additional blogs and resources to help your graduate transition into a successful career!

Happy Job Hunting!