Survey Results Detail What Top Entry Level Employers Want Most

CollegeGrad.com today released the results of its survey on what employers want most in hiring new college grads. Which is more important to entry level employers ñ the college you graduated from? Your GPA? Or what you majored in? According to the survey results, the answer may surprise you.

The criteria that the employers ranked as most important are as follows:

#1 ñ The student’s major (37%)
#2 ñ The student’s interviewing skills (25%)
#3 ñ The student’s internship/experience (16%)
#4 ñ The student’s GPA (6%)
#5 ñ Other miscellaneous qualifications (6%)
#6 ñ The student’s computer skills (4%)
#7 ñ The student’s personal appearance (3%)
#8 ñ The college the student graduated from (3%)

As the results of the survey show, 37% of employers ranked a student’s major as the top priority for hiring consideration. Also very important to employers were the student’s interviewing skills and their internships or experience.

This is great news for students who worry that they didn’t attend the right college or that their GPA is not high enough, said Brian Krueger, President of CollegeGrad.com. The results of this survey show that these are not what most employers are looking at first.

What does it mean that an employer first looks at a student’s major? We seek qualified candidates pursuing degree programs that focus on skill sets that are of greatest interest to us, said Leslie Chappell, Director of University Relations at Lockheed Martin.

Diane Martin, Associate Director for Career Services at the University of Washington elaborates. The academic major determines whether a student is granted an interview, but there is a combination of attributes that determine whether a student is hired.

In order to differentiate among candidates with the same major, or who meet the initial qualifications, employers look for soft skills that will complement the degree. Steven Jungman, Division Director of ChaseSource, LP points out, While some positions we recruit for require specialized degrees in Information Technology or Engineering, when we interview Business and Liberal Arts graduates, we identify social traits and other soft skills in candidates who meet or exceed the already set forth qualifications.

Once job seekers are granted an interview, they will need to sell their soft skills as specific experience in order to stand out above the crowd. A candidate’s ability to transfer their experience into examples during the interview is ultimately going to increase their success in landing a position, said Marie Artim, Assistant Vice President of Recruiting for Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

Rob Brooks, Director of Career Services at Mount Ida College agrees. Entry level candidates must be able to illustrate to an employer how their value will outweigh the employer’s investment in providing salary, benefits and training.

While many positions require a more specific major or skill set, other positions are open to a variety of majors. We welcome a wide variety of majors, from business and marketing to liberal arts, into our Management Training program, said Artim. We look for a well rounded background that includes experience and activities that build leadership, communication, customer service and business skills.

This year, more than ever, employers are seeking a well-rounded, balanced candidate with a high level of business savvy that often comes from a co-op or internship experience. Top skills include excellent communication skills, problem solving capabilities, initiative, flexibility, and enthusiasm about the company.

Krueger advises maintaining a positive can do attitude for interview success. The most valuable member of a team is the person who can be counted on in any situation, the person who truly strives for excellence in everything they do, said Krueger. I will take the team player who is achieving at 100% over the flashy superstar who is coasting at 50% efficiency any day of the week. And so will 99% of all hiring managers.

The survey information was gathered while compiling the list of more than 500 Top Entry Level Employers for 2006. More information on the survey results along with the list of Top Entry Level Employers are posted at www.CollegeGrad.com

Distributed by HR Marketer.com