Best Practice: Know Your Niche and Your Subject Matter
College students and recent grads need many of the same career services provided to older clients, but consultants working in this area must also understand the special needs and opportunities of those beginning their careers. Particular issues with which the expert must be familiar include:

• Typical student paths from college to career
• The “smart moves” students must make in pursuit of career success
• The relative importance of major, GPA, study abroad, leadership, related experience, experiential education, service learning, internships, and connections
• Services typically offered by a college career center
• Which employers recruit in the college market and how they handle recruiting (e.g., campus visits, resume drop, just-in-time hiring)
• Online career resources and services available free or for a fee
• Services available to alumni and services available from alumni, e.g., an alumni networking database

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Understand College Students and Recent Grads and the Needs of Gen Y
College students often have insufficient life experience to know what they want to do for their life’s work and may have difficulty assessing their interests, values, and career objectives. What they say they want from you may also be very different from their real needs. Sometimes it takes dealing with a young person’s immediate objective, e.g., help with finding an internship, before you can help them step back and look at career issues with a broader perspective and more reflective eye. Be aware that young people are used to having 24/7 communication, immediate attention, and lots of feedback. Be clear about your expectations and the expected end result.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Appreciate Options and Opportunities Available to Students and New Grads
A college career expert appreciates the fact that the job market, options, and opportunities are constantly changing for new grads. Who, for example, could have predicted—even ten years ago—the existence of jobs like Light Bender, Geriatric Care Coordinator, or Search Engine Optimizer. No prediction in the world can tell you whether the job your client wants today will be available at the time and in the location he or she wants it at graduation. The best approach with young clients is to teach them to continually build skills and assess their experience. When they find their first position, it may not be ideal. Once they have mastered the position, however, and are looking for their next assignment, help them figure out what they liked and disliked and gradually help them move more towards areas of interest and expertise.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Build a Partnership with Your Clients
It is virtually impossible to work with a client who is not committed to doing the work required for career success. Avoid clients whose parents are footing the bill and simply want you to find them a job. Cherish clients who will work with you over a period of time, are interested in developing career search skills for a lifetime, and are willing to fine-tune their approach when their current strategy is ineffective.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Teach Three Key Skills
The most important lessons students and young grads need to learn are how to:

1. Think like an employer. The career search is not about the applicant; it’s about what the applicant can do for the employer.
2. Find your hook. If the applicant can find something that sets them apart from other applicants—for example, a knowledge of Arabic, when applying for a position in an energy company that does a great deal of business in the Middle East—they will immediately jump over other applicants who might look better on paper.
3. Network. Particularly in tight job markets, the ability to network can help a student or new grad get her resume in the right hands or her foot in the door.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Teach Career Strategy
Most career centers teach students how to assess their interests and values, prepare professional documents like resumes and cover letters, and apply for on-campus jobs. A college career expert creates significant value when she teaches clients to think holistically about their career search. Some of the most useful skills for a student to know are

1. how to get the attention of the employer
2. how to make the most of your connections
3. how to avoid and overcome common pitfalls
4. when to be persistent and when to hold back
5. how and when to negotiate for salary and benefits
6. how to make good career decisions, not just for a first job, but for a lifetime

Students need to present their qualifications and aspirations well, both orally and in writing. They must be able to build good rapport with their potential employer and understand where they can add value, and they need to have the right attitude: positive, pragmatic, persistent, and prepared. But they also have to understand that saying “I’ll do anything” is a negative, not a positive. The perfect career strategy means knowing exactly where and how you can provide value to an employer.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Walk the Talk
The average length of time a graduate spends in his first job is less than 2 years, and most graduates have at least two or three jobs in their first five years after graduation. They will likely change not just jobs, but careers, multiple times, requiring an entrepreneurial attitude and a willingness to consistently assess goals and attributes. College career experts need to recognize the realities of careers in the 21^st century and embrace a similarly reflective and entrepreneurial attitude in the way they approach their work with students. As students and young grads need to develop their networks, so do college career experts. When you’ve built your network, be generous in sharing it (as appropriate) with your clients.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Keep your Finger on the Pulse
The college career expert has to be constantly in tune with a changing career world. That means keeping track of unemployment statistics, monitoring growth in certain career fields and locations, and understanding the evolving relationship between education and career. An expert builds connections and relationships with other leaders in the field, regularly fine-tuning and sharing advice and ideas. A good way to demonstrate up-to-date knowledge is to present workshops, contribute to articles, participate in online forums, and write books.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Under-Promise, Over-Deliver, and Charge Accordingly
There are many different entities in the college career “space,” from career centers to online job boards to career search databases. It is essential that the college career expert know the value she provides to her clients, even if she is supplementing existing resources. Some experts charge less because the clients are younger. This is a bad idea. No college or university ever reduced their rates using that rationale, and nor should you. Know what you can provide to your clients and what they can expect out of your working relationship. Your clients may be young, but the value you provide to them early on can affect their career strategies and success for a lifetime.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR

Best Practice: Embrace your Clients’ Dreams
What your clients want to do at 22 may be very different from what they want at 32, 42, or 52. But a college career expert’s job is to discover each client’s passion at the time of engagement and find avenues and strategies to help them achieve their dreams.

Contributed by Sheila J. Curran, BA, PGCE, SPHR