How to Enhance Your Career Prospects Before Graduation
/LinkedIn
If you have not already made an account, go do that. Once you figured out what city you want to live in post-graduation, look at companies you would be interested in. You can filter according to your LinkedIn connections for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd connections to that company. Send a message or email to that person to inquire about getting you connected to someone who works at that company or to a connection who knows someone who works at that company. This strategy has worked for many people to help them get an interview! Also, you can use this method to message people to schedule informational interviews about your career interests. Informational interviews are a great way to get a connection to a prospective career or to determine if a career will be a good fit for what you are looking for.Professors
These are people with lots of experience in their fields. If you are interested in doing something similar to what they are doing, then head into their office hours and strike up a conversation. They could give you opportunities to work under them or refer you to someone in their network.Networking Events
Your university likely holds networking events or job fairs where you can meet representatives of companies. These are great opportunities to get invited to summer internships or post-grad careers. Not many students are aware of this - but Binghamton University offers fully-funded weekend trips to NYC, Boston, and other cities to connect with alumni and employers at dinners and open bars. Admission is limited, but the experience is priceless.Enhance your interview skills
Practice answering the most common interview questions and the most common questions for your specific career. The most difficult question for interviewees is “tell me about yourself.” People usually struggle with where to begin and how to make it relevant to the job. A great strategy for answering these behavioral questions is to use the STAR method, which stands for Situation, Task, action, and result. During interviews, you want to answer questions by giving a short story about something you have previously done and then tying it into why it makes you a great candidate for the job. At Binghamton University, the Fleishman Center offers mock interviews and a program equipped with feedback after you answer interview questions. The questions they give can be filtered on the level of experience required for the job and what profession you are in.