When Adam Dince MBA '17 set out to write his first book, he didn't do it for fame and fortune. (Dince is the director of digital marketing at Arrowhead Holdings in Blaine, Minnesota.) He did it to help new college graduates land their dream job.
The St. Kate's MBA program will celebrate the book, Hopeful to Hired: How to Score the Job You Want Straight Out of College, with a launch party in Rauenhorst Ballroom on the St. Paul Campus on November 14, 6 to 9 p.m. All are welcome. (Admission is free for St. Kate's faculty, staff and students.)
Here are his thoughts about the book:
Q: Tell us a little about the purpose of your book.
A: Many college students fear not being able to find a job in their field of study after graduation. Massive amounts of student debt and economic uncertainty exacerbate students' concerns about their future. How can students prepare themselves for career success after college?
In Hopeful to Hired, I cover everything undergraduate and graduate students need to know now so that they are ready to find their dream job when they begin entering the workforce.
Q: What encouraged you to get started?
A: For the past four years, I've had the honor of mentoring 25 undergraduate college students at varying degrees of involvement. I've met most of the students through speaking engagements like the Ad2 Student Ad Summit. Out of these mentorships, I've learned a few things about today's student and job market:
- It's extremely competitive. For example, a student I mentored was one out of 5,000 applicants for a highly coveted internship.
- Students don't start getting ready for their job search until it's far too late.
- College prepares students academically but most can't scale their efforts to help students prepare the right way for their job search.
- Student influencers (e.g., parents, family and friends) aren't playing an active enough role in getting their student ready for post-college success. Many don't know how to help.
After achieving success with the students I've worked with, I realized one thing: In order for students to be prepared to score their first job after college, a paradigm shift is required; a paradigm shift where students start preparing for their job search while still in school — not just academics. And not just a few months before graduation — as soon as possible.
After graduating from United States Navy Basic Training, our drill instructor, Chief Lowe, gave me the best career advice I've ever received. He said,
"Dince, if you want to succeed in the Navy, it's not good enough to just do your job. If you want to get promoted and prolong your Naval career, you must always prepare yourself for the next step. If you see someone doing the job you want, learn how to do that job better than the person doing it. It might require you to work nights and weekends. But, if you want it bad enough, you'll do it."
I've made it a point to always prepare for the next step in my professional career. Sometimes I'm preparing for the next step and three or four steps further down the road. And that's the paradigm shift I'm talking about. In order to be in the best possible position to land that dream job after graduating, students have to start preparing while in college.
Students should think of college as four years of opportunity to prepare themselves to land their first job. Hopeful to Hired is the go-to resource for career preparation.
Q: Describe your long-term vision.
A: While selling 100,000 copies of Hopeful to Hired would be amazing, I didn't write it to achieve wealth. I wrote it to help students to successfully transfer from college to professional life. Ideally, Hopeful to Hired will become a movement that makes a difference in people's lives for many years.
For example, at the book launch event, we're going to facilitate a networking event between college students, new graduates, recruiters and employers. I'd like to see this become an annual event. An event that's much more than a job fair. An event where professional relationships are started and mentorships are developed. An event where the student paradigm changes from hopeful to hired.
I have identified a few exciting paths for the future of Hopeful to Hired, so join the community to stay up-to-date on the latest.
Additional details:
To learn more, visit https://hopefultohired.com.
To attend the Hopeful to Hired book launch event, register for free at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/hopeful-to-hired-book....
Republished from the St. Kate's MBA blog.