How to Get Grads Off the Couch and Into the Workplace

Sept. 7, 2009 — -- With summer over, it's time to get new college grads off the couch and on the road to launching a career. But it won't be easy.

Employers expect to hire 22 per cent fewer graduates from the class of 2009 than they did from last year's graduating class, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers. And even that number may be optimistic.

There are five things every parent can do to nurture -- not nag -- your grad to job search success.

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Agree that your new grad must wake up each morning as if reporting to work. The work now is to find a job. Be realistic: a first job isn't the dream job, nor does it have to be connected to a major (most people don't work in their college major); the goal is to simply get to work.

Every kind of experience counts, so don't plan to hold out for the perfect position.

Agree that steps must be taken every day to job search full time -- and yet nobody can search 24/7. So maybe mornings are devoted to specific search activities and afternoons move on to something else.

Share your own candid career experiences. Explain that you too have had to endure job searches during your career. Coach your kid by rehearsing answers to common questions that will no doubt come up: Tell me about yourself, what kind of work do you want to do, and what are your career goals.

Suggest resources that could spark ideas. For example, a trip to the local bookstore to browse career titles can offer ideas on job search tactics and could open them to fresh ideas on potential careers. Tell your son or daughter to contact the college campus career services office to ask which companies are recruiting new grads from his or her major, and also reach out to 10 alumni from the last five years to ask for help or informational conversations.