This blog post was submitted by Keith Petri, eBranding Me’s Founder/CEO. Keith is a graduate of Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY and Digital & Social Media Strategist at CNSLT.us. His studies in business, economics and studio art along with strong passions for marketing, technology and entrepreneurship led him to his current passion for social media and strong understanding of the new rules of networking. Through his prior entrepreneurial pursuits, recent blogging and extensive networking, Keith has seen the need for educating his peers on creating a positive online presence. eBranding Me is the culmination of his efforts.

__________

It seems like ages ago when I began my college search. Even as early as my sophomore year at Tenafly High School my parents forced me to begin taking tours of campuses. Tagging along at my older brother’s heels (a Senior in High School at the time), I anxiously awaited seeing the pre-approved dorm room of a current student – as it was the main attribute I was interested in for my undergraduate education, the freedom of living under my-own-roof!

Times have changed and I graduated from Skidmore College, a small liberal arts school in upstate New York. While the dorms are considered palaces (Princeton Review), I truly enjoyed the wide variety of classes I was eligible to take even while pursuing a Bachelor of Science Degree for Management & Business, with minors in both Studio Art and Economics. However, it was the classes I took outside of my focuses that I remember being the most valuable: Exercise Science, Introduction to Psychology, Personality and my favorite, Buzz – A Visual Culture of Caffeine.

Continue Reading »

eBranding Me and The Opportunities Project host a Workshop Series on using “The Art of Pull” to help soon-to-be graduates and young professionals successfully network with recruiters and employers to secure gainful employment.

The Opportunities Project and eBranding Me are joining forces to teach New York City job seekers how to use all the new tools available to them to achieve career success. Each seminar focuses on one particular tool that attendees can use to transform themselves into candidates sought after by multiple employers for their added value. The seminar series is called The Art of Pull because it focuses on a job search that attracts recruiters and employers to empowered candidates instead of the traditional method of simply applying to vacancy postings. Continue Reading »

This was a guest post provided to us by Elizabeth Cutten. You can find more of her work at FindCollegeCards, a college resource focusing on everything from credit cards to how to survive in college.

If you want to voice your opinion then Guest Post with eBranding Me. Find out more by visiting our Guest Post Guidelines page!

__________

The whole point of going to college is for the job at the end of the road, correct?  Well, even if you know everything on the planet about your upcoming profession, if you don’t know how to look for a job, there’s a good chance that you may be heading to the unemployment line.

While there may be 1,000 of jobs waiting for you when you get out of those college doors, there are some mistakes that you must avoid when sending out those resumes.  Hopefully these mistakes can help you avoid them, and give you a better chance at landing that potential job!

#1 Spelling errors – Nothing turns an employer off more than spelling things wrong.  Even the slightest spelling error is going to more than likely throw your resume in the trash bin.  Be sure to have parents, or friends glance over your resume.  It never hurts to have a second pair of eyes.

#2 You don’t qualify – If you received your degree in business, there’s a good chance that the computer programming company up the street doesn’t want you. If you can’t do the job, don’t apply for it.  My parents used to own a medical records company and people would do this all the time!

#3 Being too “cocky” – I hate to use that word but I see this everyday with resumes that I receive.  Most college students think they are entitled to the world, and think that they can do everything under the sun.  Let your actions speak louder than your words because an employer doesn’t want to hire someone that think they know more than boss. Continue Reading »

About the author: Diane Johnson graduated from the University of Utah and enjoys writing, particularly about travel and adult education.

__________

If you’re just getting out of college, or even if you’ve been in the workforce for a while, sooner or later you’ll probably find yourself looking for another job. It’s not your fault; sometimes these things just happen. And in today’s economy, being able to set yourself apart from all the other candidates for your dream job is essential to nabbing your ideal pay grade. Since you may not meet most employers until you go into an interview, your resume has to be the absolute best it can be, so you can present yourself in the best light possible. If you want to make your resume the best it can be, make sure that you sell yourself, write the resume with your potential employer in mind, and compose your resume for the position you want, not for the position you had.

1) Sell Yourself

Far too many people don’t want to sell themselves in their resume. They think that simply jotting down their past experience in the most mundane format possible will be good enough. Well, it’s not. Make yourself seem bigger than life. Be impressive. This is the one opportunity you have to get your foot in the door; don’t waste it by being mediocre. Present your best side, and do it in a way that sounds even more impressive than you may actually be. You’re not a janitor-you are an organizational and sanitary management technician. Continue Reading »

College admission should not be the ultimate goal of education reform.

The Opportunities Project and eBranding Me announce Solutions for Change in Education, a series of white papers that reveal the shortcomings of higher education’s lack of focus on career development initiatives and highlight potential solutions.

Download the first paper TODAY!

In 2011, new college graduates are facing multiple obstacles in their efforts to launch their first careers, including record student loan debt, prolonged unemployment, and growing employer dissatisfaction with their abilities. Because of expanded job searches coupled with large loan payments, most new graduates will not break even on their investment in their bachelor’s degree more than a decade after they graduate.

In “The Economic Achievement Gap: No End in Sight,” the first white paper in this series, authors Tracy Brisson, Keith Petri and Justin Mathews summarize alarming economic data that illustrates the true scope of the problems our students face in today’s economy and pose questions about whether college career centers can play a role in improving economic outcomes for new graduates. Continue Reading »