Around this time next year, I will be a college graduate.
I honestly can’t believe how quickly the four years have gone by. I’m excited to see what my future holds but I’m nervous. Often, I think about how I will translate my four years of studying, writing papers, and taking exams into a successful career.
Will everything work out the way I want it to? I sure hope so because I think about my dream job every day. I think everyone does. My dream job is to become a head writer for a newspaper or magazine company.
As overwhelming thinking about the future can be, I have been reading the perfect book to help me navigate through my final year. In Cash Your Investment: How to Leverage Your College Degree Into a Great First Job, author Scott A. Eberwein helps college students land their dream job with advice on resume writing, job-search strategies, and interviews.
Eberwein secured a position with a reputable investment banking firm in New York City. When Eberwein was a college undergraduate, he faced many setbacks in gaining the attention of top level employers. He worked hard and developed specific strategies which aided in landing the position.
The first chapter of Cash Your Investment focuses on one’s mindset when getting ready to start the journey of searching for jobs. He writes, “In order to successfully navigate your end-of-college crossroads and land gainful, full-time employment in your favored field, overcome any insecurities that threaten to sabotage your operation” (3).
I agree that having a positive mindset can be the deciding factor on getting the job or not. Three years ago, I went on a job interview for a library position and began to have doubts. I thought, “What if the other candidates have a better resume than I do?” I snapped myself out of it because if I stayed with a negative mindset, I would not have performed to the best of my ability.
Since a resume is a working document it will require a number of changes. Eberwein featured three different resume samples. It was helpful to see the different ways that I could format my own resume.
College is surely an investment and in order to be successful after it, you have to put in the work. Eberwein suggests to start it by reorganizing your everyday routine. For your senior year, one shouldn’t completely neglect their studies but put job searching in the forefront by reserving time to do so.
After reading Cash Your Investment, I felt more confident in my ability to land a great first job after college. It’s always comforting to hear from professionals who had struggles but persevered and are now successful. Here’s the link to purchase Cash Your Investment.
So to my fellow soon-to-be college graduates, I offer this book as a way to motivate us all to step confidently into the real world. We have the skills to translate our diploma into the job of our dreams.
Hi everyone! My name is Shantal Marshall. I am senior at Mercy College, majoring in Media Studies: Journalism.