First Time Job Hunt Tips

No, but seriously, you’re not the problem. It now takes the average 2026 graduate between six and nine months to land a role in their field, and almost nobody tells you that before you start sending applications. Your degree lays the foundation, but it is not a job search strategy. 

We linked up with Rachel Zaslansky and Lori Briller, authors of Straight from the Grapevine: How to Crush Your Job Search, and trust us when we say that this is the career advice for recent grads we all needed at 22.

Why Your Entry-Level Job Applications are Disappearing

Here’s the thing. Most applications never even reach a human. An algorithm is filtering you out before anyone reads a single word. The fix? Tailor your resume to each job posting using keywords pulled directly from the job description. Yes, every single time. Yes, it’s tedious. Yes, it works. This is the number one job search tip for college students that nobody tells you before graduation.

Networking Tips That Don’t Make You Want To Disappear

If the phrase “networking tips” makes you want to close this tab, valid. But here’s the reframe: it’s literally just having a real conversation with someone who works somewhere interesting. A DM, a coffee chat, one genuine question on LinkedIn. Gen Z searches for authentic connection, not scripted interactions and the same applies to how you show up in your job search. Just be curious. That’s the whole strategy.

How To Get a Job After College When Nothing is Working

Sent fifty applications and heard nothing? You’re not failing. You’re playing the wrong game. Volume alone isn’t a job search strategy. Targeted applications, warm outreach, and showing up in the right digital spaces are what actually move the needle for recent grads entering the market right now. Work smarter, not harder. We mean it.

Salary Negotiation for Beginners (Yes, Even You)

We know it’s awkward. Do it anyway. Not negotiating your first salary doesn’t just hurt your first paycheck. It follows you everywhere. Every raise, every next offer gets benchmarked off what you accepted before. One slightly uncomfortable conversation has literal compounding returns. This is the career advice for college students that pays off for decades.

The “Right Now” Job is Not a Loss

Hot take: taking an entry-level job that isn’t your dream job isn’t settling. It’s getting in the game. Experience, a paycheck, and actual clarity about what you want are things you can only get by doing something. The dream job is usually three moves away from where you start. Start somewhere. No excuses!