Introducing the Infographic Resume

As if creating a resume wasn't hard enough--now you have to include graphics?

That's what some people are doing in the latest resume craze: infographic resumes. Check out this post to learn more.

I think that's a lot to digest for recent college grads. I would definitely skip the whole professional timeline if you don't have enough to add. Otherwise, you're just at like, one bar. Just sayin'.

5 Reasons You Should Start Your 2012 Job Hunt Today

Is your New Year's resolution to find a new job? Well, you may not want to wait until that ball drops!

Check out this article by Michelle Goodman--it's got some good reasons on why now is an opportune time to start searching and networking.

Are you looking for a new job in 2012?

Flying Freelance? Maybe Not Yet

I was interviewing a woman today for an article I am working on about breaking into a specific field on a freelance basis. Instead of tips on how to get in once you have a degree, the article is geared towards people that have some professional experience and want to "go freelance."

I never wanted to be a freelancer when I graduated. To me, the priority was to get a full-time job. I think many grads today have the same aspiration--probably even more so due to the economy. With jobs so scarce, you are probably longing for a 40-hour-a-week gig. But there are some out there that are more business-minded than I was when I graduated and realize they can start their own business. Of course, there are pros and cons--the main issue going the entrepreneurial route is that you do not have any experience. That experience and just the industry know-how you gain on the job--at least for me--was priceless. I could never have been the writer I am today had I not worked as a reporter.

Do you have the freelance bug--or would you prefer to get a traditional job for a few years before you even think of starting your own business?

New Grads Changing Careers...Already?

Ms. Career Girl recently had a post about changing careers. It was interesting (she makes it all sound so easy!), and it got me to thinking about how many new grads are contemplating this.

I'm not talking about changing jobs, which can be just as risky. I'm talking about scrapping it all to take a different direction. And why not...it's your life, right?

Here are a few things to keep in mind if you are thinking about transitioning to a new career!

• Determine why you don't like your current career. Is it just the job you are at? Many times you can switch roles and use other skills, maintaining your interest in the field.
  
• Research the new career path. Why do you think this is the career you want to be in? What will it take to enter the field, and get to where you want to be? Do you want to be a hands-on worker or a manager? Will you need to relocate? What's the market like in this career field? Who can you talk to to get a feel for the career before taking a job in the field? Can you "try on" a job in the new field or take an internship?
  
• Think about finances. Can you financially afford to scrap it all right now (assuming you have a decent job) and get a new job in the new career field? Would it serve you better to stick with your current job? What's your timeline like for progressing to the new field?
• Revamp your resume. How can you play up your applicable skills and experience to create a winning resume targeting jobs in the new field?
  
• Think about it. What ramifications will you encounter if you get a job in the new career field? What benefits will there be to switching careers?
  

Now's a great time in your life to explore new things. Just make sure you think things through completely. Often times, people don't like their current jobs and leave a field completely--you may just want to switch jobs, not careers.

But if you know you're in a field you don't like, and there's one more enticing, you've got plenty of options to make a smart career switcheroo.

Are Twentysomethings Expecting Too Much?

By Hannah Seligson

Illustrations by Jesse Lenz

When my grandmother was 18, she dropped out of college to get married. A career wasn’t a priority for her; matrimony was. This fall I’ll tie the knot at age 29, slightly younger than average for a bride in Washington, where the median age for a woman’s first marriage is 30.

My grandmother, who lived in Connecticut, had her first child when she was 18 and another at 20. With childbearing out of the way and a full-time nanny, she went on to launch a career in politics and at age 28 became a state senator.

As a friend recently mused, “I wish I could have had my kids at 22 when I was nothing in my career. Of course, I wasn’t married or financially secure then.” Now she’s 31 and married, and she recently got a big promotion. “It’s just a really inconvenient time to have kids.”

There are obvious downsides to getting married and having children young—for many women, it short-circuits their careers entirely—and women have made huge gains in the workplace since my grandmother’s time. But the cruel joke of modern womanhood is that my career will probably peak just as it’s time to start a family. This raises more questions: How long should my fiancé, Andrew, and I wait? Should we risk running out my biological clock and needing fertility treatments? If we can afford them, that is.

Speaking of money, how would we afford children if we stay in DC, one of the most expensive cities in the country? Andrew and I have both chosen careers motivated more by our interests than by our paychecks—I’m a journalist, and he works on international climate-change policy at the State Department.

Even without student loans to pay off, we find it hard to save as much as financial planners say people our age should. I’m often reminded of the acronym DINK—dual income, no kids—which should probably be changed to DINA: dual income, need another. Sure, we could move to a less expensive area of Washington or take a job for the salary, but we’re young and not ready to settle. We want to see if we can make life work on our terms.

We’re like lots of others in our generation who—since their parents first turned the television to Sesame Street or sang along to “Free to Be . . . You and Me” in the car—have believed we can achieve anything we set our minds to.

Are we expecting too much?

Read more here.

Rutgers: Recent college grads large percentage of unemployed

Rutgers: Recent college grads large percentage of unemployed

A recent study from Rutgers University says that recent college graduates make up a good portion of the country's unemployed. As of right now, the unemployment rate is hovering just over 9 percent.

Of those who are unemployed, 14 percent are looking for full time work. The director of the Rutgers Workforce Development Center says that college graduates are vulnerable when it comes to finding a job. Lack of experience and competition with older skilled workers add fuel to the fire.

The study also stated that three out of four people surveyed said they wished they had done things different in college, like taking advantage of more internships and to have started the job hunting process before they had graduated.

Follett's Marketing Genius Gives College Kids a Chance to Show Marketing Skills

Hey marketing peeps--want to get some big-time exposure and a paid internship?

Follett Higher Education Group is already looking for next summer's interns who can develop the best $1 million marketing idea. Now in its second year, the Marketing Genius competition challenges college students to create a national marketing campaign with a budget of $1 million for more than 800 Follett bookstores.

The team named the winner of Marketing Genius will have the opportunity to put their campaign into action during a paid summer internship with the integrated marketing department at Follett's corporate headquarters.

And you thought you'd never like your college bookstore!