College grads, want a job? Don’t do this.

Written By: lapatton on April 16, 2009 No Comment

Employers ranked acting bored or cocky as the worst interview offense. (H L Windcrampe/FLICKR)

About 21 percent of employers are planning to reduce starting salaries for recent college graduates in 2009, compared with last year, as a result of the hyper-competitive job market, according to a CareerBuilder survey. Only 11 percent of employers hiring graduates will offer a bigger pay check than last year.

A mere 14 percent of surveyed employers plan to offer graduates a salary of more than $50,000 and 36 percent say they will pay less than $30,000.

But it’s not all gloom for recent college graduates. Proof that the market isn’t shedding jobs quite as quickly now, the U.S. Department of Labor said initial claims for unemployment insurance dropped to 610,000, or 8 percent, in the most recent week compared with 663,000 the week prior.

One troublesome sign in the initial claims report, released Thursday, was the jump in so-called continuing claims to a fresh record high of 6.02 million, indicating that jobs are hard to get for those who are already unemployed.

So what can candidates do to make sure they ace an interview? The CareerBuilder survey identified the biggest mistakes that college graduates make during the interview process.

First on the list, with 63 percent of employers calling this the largest interview faux pas: acting bored or cocky.

Rounding out the top five are:

Not dressing appropriately
Coming to the interview with no knowledge of the company
Not turning off cell phones or electronic devices
Not asking good questions during the interview

Melanie Murray, career specialist and assistant director of the career center at DePaul University in Chicago, has some helpful tips for those wanting to land a job.

Research the company first and know why you want to work there.
Research you. Know your strengths and skills related to that job.
Practice answering interview questions and do a mock interview.
Have five to seven questions prepared for the interviewer; two of them should be unique and related to the company you are interviewing with. Write them down and bring them to the interview.
Wear a suit, smile and show enthusiasm and confidence.
Ask for the job. At the end of the interview, tell the employer you liked what you learned at the interview and would like to work for them.

“First impressions are really important,” said Murray, who counsels undergraduates and alums at DePaul’s College of Commerce.

Additionally, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists job interview tips in its Occupational Outlook Handbook.

Tags: CareerBuilder, DePaul University, initial claims report, interview tips, interviewing, jobs, Melanie Murray, recession