Masters of the University
Probably the most popular option for unemployed new college grads is further schooling. But unless graduate study truly enhances your job search opportunities, you are only delaying the inevitable job search, which will still need to be completed.
Why do so many students head off to grad school? Is it because they are so much more employable with the advanced degree (as most grad schools would have you believe)? Or is it to further enhance the academic and professional understanding of the field of interest? Unfortunately, no. The majority of college students (over 60 percent by a recent poll) choose grad school not for the educational opportunities offered, but because it is preferable to having to go out and find a job after graduating with their undergrad degree.
Yes, it does look much better to go on to grad school than to spend two years watching daytime TV and eating Cheetos while living in your parents' basement. If that is truly your only other alternative, go hide from reality for a couple more years in hopes of a better job search later. You can find your next degree program right here at CollegeGrad.com.
But next time, do your job search right from the start. In fact, begin to plan now so that you will be ahead of the game instead of behind it. Plan ahead so that you will have a job by graduation.
About the author: Brian Krueger founded CollegeGrad.com in 1995 and is the former Vice President of Global Talent Acquisition at Amazon.com, where he led a global team of more than 100 recruiters. He is the author of College Grad Job Hunter, the best-selling entry level job search book, and has interviewed more than 10,000 job candidates over a 20-year hiring career at Fortune 500 companies. He wrote the job search advice on this page.