FACT 6
Don’t let your job application be lost in an electronic pile.
Some online job boards post 450,000 new résumés every week. As a result, most jobs are secured by people who know people who can personally suggest a match between a job opening and a job seeker. The bigger your professional network, the more likely you are to land a job — IF you maintain that network and return the favors you have been granted by the people in your network.
Whom you know and what they think of you can be critical. And that includes your teachers. Here are the data:
- Up to 85% of jobs are secured through professional networking and personal referrals/recommendations.
- Networking will help young adults learn about various careers.
- Networking also helps job candidates learn how to successfully market their skills, connect to latest trends, and meet prospective mentors, employers, and clients.
- Young individuals with minimal experience who network among more experienced adults are usually not perceived as competitors to other workers, so buildng your network early is key.
- Networking is a two-way street in which individuals give help as well as accept help, thus building their personal reputations.
- Networking in person is often uncomfortable, but a necessary skill.
Students who participate in the Rainmakers Internship Preparation Program (RIPP) learn a lot about networking: how to network, how to build and maintain a professional network, and are encouraged to attend local business networking events with Chambers of Commerce.
At the end of their senior year, students who successfully secure and serve one of our re-invented internships (as defined by the Host Business) are eligible to receive a free, lifetime membership in The Rainmakers Club, an online community dedicated to networking and job acquisition. RNMKR