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Graduating in 10 Days-Looking for a Job in DFW

3,727 Views | 21 Replies | Last: 6 yr ago by StorminAg
cread12
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AG
Howdy Ags!

I will be graduating in 10 days with a B.A. in International Studies-Commerce with a Minor in French Language and I am looking for a job, preferably in the Dallas area but am willing to consider positions in other parts of Texas. I have taken several marketing classes and have experience with business development but I am having issues getting responses to job applications. I have great analytical skills, I work hard and enjoy working with other people. I studied abroad in France this past summer and have also been to several other countries including Spain, the U.K., Italy, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico. I have also been doing free-lance photography and photo editing over the past six years and would be interesting in positions that require those skills as well. I am also a member of the Corps of Cadet, Fightin' Texas Aggie Band, and C-Company! If you have connections or know of positions that would fit this description or you would like to know more about my experience let me know!

Thanks & Gig'em
ww
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AG
Have you gone through the career center? I'd say that should be the #1 resource for graduates to be. It may limit your potential employers, but it's the easiest way to get in with a company (unless you have the inside track through someone at a company already).
cread12
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AG
I have tried using the career center before but they were not much help with directing me toward anything specific. They directed me to the HireAggies site but that has been even more useless.
Texags is garbage
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Have you had a few sets of eyes giving you feedback on your resume? I had mine professionally done recently and it's a night and day difference.
Chipotlemonger
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AG
I'd echo this, get a resume review. And if you didn't have a typical internship some recruiters might pass you over... so it's definitely important in that case to get the resume well.

Make sure you're going to job fairs and I would continue to use the career center. Network with some of the recruiters and company's before you submit the final job application.
AgResearch
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AG
Time to expand your search radius.

My first job out of school took me 1200 miles out of my comfort zone.
JimbosHatBarelyFits
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AG
CIA
cread12
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Thanks for the responses! I have had several eyes look over my resume including professional resume critiques and the career center (multiple times). I visited career fairs both in the fall and spring this year and still did not have much luck. I did not have a formal internship but the study abroad experience is just as valuable, or so I've been told. I am staying open to any and all opportunities at this point as long it is not a cold-call sales position. I have looked into the CIA, FBI, and State Department but have not had much luck on that front either!
powerbelly
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Quote:

I did not have a formal internship but the study abroad experience is just as valuable, or so I've been told.
For the love of god don't verbalize this in any interaction with potential employers.

Vacationing in Europe is not anywhere near equivalent to having a real internship.
JamesPShelley
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cread12 said:

Thanks for the responses! I have had several eyes look over my resume including professional resume critiques and the career center (multiple times). I visited career fairs both in the fall and spring this year and still did not have much luck. I did not have a formal internship but the study abroad experience is just as valuable, or so I've been told. I am staying open to any and all opportunities at this point as long it is not a cold-call sales position. I have looked into the CIA, FBI, and State Department but have not had much luck on that front either!

I'm wondering if your resume isn't painting you as a jack-of-all-trades, master... Your post identifies with that. I would recommend taking stock assessment of your knowledge, skills, abilities, and experiences. Next, identify what exactly you want to do, and make certain your resume resonates with the requisite candidate qualifications and requirements. Only when your resume aligns with the opportunity will you see an improvement in callbacks.

Best wishes.

PrincessButtercup
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AG
I work at a marketing firm in DFW. I think we are still looking for another writer or editor.
Buck Compton
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AG
JamesPShelley said:

cread12 said:

Thanks for the responses! I have had several eyes look over my resume including professional resume critiques and the career center (multiple times). I visited career fairs both in the fall and spring this year and still did not have much luck. I did not have a formal internship but the study abroad experience is just as valuable, or so I've been told. I am staying open to any and all opportunities at this point as long it is not a cold-call sales position. I have looked into the CIA, FBI, and State Department but have not had much luck on that front either!

I'm wondering if your resume isn't painting you as a jack-of-all-trades, master... Your post identifies with that. I would recommend taking stock assessment of your knowledge, skills, abilities, and experiences. Next, identify what exactly you want to do, and make certain your resume resonates with the requisite candidate qualifications and requirements. Only when your resume aligns with the opportunity will you see an improvement in callbacks.

Best wishes.


I echo this. Don't tell an employer you're open to anything. Have a story that says exactly why your experience prepped you for this opportunity. Have 3 or 4 versions of your resume if needed (keep them separate), and submit the correct one for a marketing opportunity, then a different one for a state dept. resume.

The state dept. hiring process for example is a months-long hiring cycle.
Texags is garbage
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OP seems to be open to constructive criticism and feedback. Lots of good information on here for any new grad. Advice I didn't take upon graduation.
vikitor14
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Quote:

I work at a marketing firm in DFW. I think we are still looking for another writer or editor.

I don't want to hijack this opportunity, but I am open to new opportunities at the moment. I have a BA in Comm and am currently in the marketing department at my company. I would love to connect on LinkedIn and/or send you my resume.
PrincessButtercup
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Sure. Send me your email princessbuttercupta@gmail.com
CaptainKidd
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@princessbuttercup
I am looking to get Into marketing myself.
I sent you an email too.
edwardsk2003
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I'm honestly curious:

When you invested 40-60k and four years...to earn a B.A. in International Studies-Commerce with a Minor in French Language

What type of job were you looking to get when you graduated.?


I'm not being sarcastic... I just never would have had the balls to invest my money and time that way. I am legitimately curious if there was a job or career you were planning for when you invested that money and time into college.
Aggie@state.gov
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The state dept. hiring process for example is a months-long hiring cycle.


Longer than that. and we're not currently hiring......
Buck Compton
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AG
Aggie@state.gov said:

The state dept. hiring process for example is a months-long hiring cycle.


Longer than that. and we're not currently hiring......
Well, I know several state locations who were hiring for overseas positions. But yeah, months as in at least 9 sometimes.
histag10
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AG
Quote:

I studied abroad in France this past summer and have also been to several other countries including Spain, the U.K., Italy, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico.


Is all of this on your resume? The study abroad- was it through the French department at A&M, or did you actually study abroad and attend certain classes at a French institution, which you then transferred back to A&M? Big difference, as most minors or majors in a foreign language require a summer session abroad (or recommend it). Its led by a professor in the department from A&M, and you are basically with a bunch of kids from A&M the whole time.

Also, listing where you have traveled is not particularly helpful, other than to paint you as someone who likes to travel. Did you do anything in those places that would translate to experience or a skill? If not, it doesnt need to be brought up in the context of trying to find a job.

Focus on what you have done, whether academically or through jobs held in college, and focus in on a specific job. I agree with having multiple resumes. As a new grad, your resume should be fairly short and sweet (keep it under a page). Personalize every cover letter, and tweek your resume for each job if necessary.

Also, most .gov type jobs are horribly long hiring processes. I recall being told in college that if we were wanting to hire on with the government out of college, we needed to start our application process at the beginning of our senior year.

Good luck to you.
OldArmy07
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AG
Is there something very specific that you'd like to do? Internships are mutually beneficial in that way - it shows experience working in a similar environment to what you'll be working in, and also helps you to figure out what you're interested in for the first part of your career.

To echo what others are saying above, your resume needs to convince an employer that your education background, extracurricular activities, and international trips make you more able to perform a job for them better than other people.

There's a lot of experience on this board that would be willing to review your resume with a specific job in mind if you ask!
NoahAg
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What type of job were you looking to get when you graduated.?
I'm curious too. It seems like you pursued a degree with some specific objective.

Two people I know w/ International Studies/Affairs degrees (not from A&M) aren't doing anything related to that. So I wonder why they went that route. One is in real estate. The other is back in school getting a literature degree and trying to be a writer.
StorminAg
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Be willing to move where the work is. Anywhere. You'll find you love the experience and you can grow your resume to eventually either land somewhere you originally wanted to live or find you like the new area. You're young, enjoy not having anything tying you to a certain locale.
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