The median time a job seeker spends looking for a job has increased from 3.6 months to 4.4 months from the second to third quarter of 2008. In fact, it’s not unusual to hear of perfectly qualified individuals remaining out-of-work for six months. Additionally, in the third quarter of 2008, 13.4% of job seekers relocated to find work (which is up from 8.9% in the first quarter). Despite these grim statistics, one recruiter reminds us that “All too often, job seekers allow themselves to get mired in the doom and gloom of a failing job market. However, if they can remember to approach a job search with a mindset of ‘all I need is a single job offer’ then they will undoubtedly be successful. Once the glamour of the summer internship and college experience has worn off and it’s time to get a job, it’s time to have a realistic assessment of your skills.

First, do you have the education? If you dropped out of high school and suddenly feel like your options as a job seeker are severely limited, you can join the 17 million students who went back to get their General Education Diploma (GED). The test itself measures high school level intelligence in social studies, math, science, reading and writing. You can view sample questions and read more about getting your GED to help job opportunities at www.acenet.edu. Once you have your GED, you may want to consider pursuing vocational school education and internship opportunities, where you will enjoy hands-on activities and practical application.

Next, you need to ask yourself if you have experience. What matters most to an employer examining a job seeker’s record is that the individual knows what it’s like to work on a team, as well as individually. They want you to have a track record of interacting with clients, accomplishing tasks and working under pressure. It seems like a catch-22, doesn’t it? “How do I get experience if I have no experience,” you may ask? Internship opportunities are an ideal place to start. Many are unpaid and offer only college credit, but if you’re looking in the accounting, consulting, insurance, consumer goods, hospitality, engineering or science fields, then you’ll likely find a paid internship to help you acquire the skills you need. Typically, when you finish your interning, the company will ask you to stay and all your problems will be solved! For a list of the best internships, check out Business Week’s list of “Top 50 Internships.”

Lastly, you need the job seeker tools to help connect you with the right job opportunities. According to Forbes, there are many free tools to help job applicants. Company and government job postings can be found at www.usajobs.com, the government’s federal job site. Online job boards like www.idealist.org, www.careerbuilder.com, www.monster.com, www.hotjobs.yahoo.com, www.vault.com, www.indeed.com and www.simplyhired.com are some of the best online job boards, although there are often specialized searches for each industry. Some people even find jobs through social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn or Twitter. Nothing beats old-fashioned networking; it never hurts to ask around.

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