If you're in a good college program and you're motivated and have internships throughout school, you probably have a job lined up for after you graduate by October or November of your senior year (assuming you're looking at big companies).

If not, maybe you have to start with a crappy, low pay position and move yourself up- or, if you can afford to, there is volunteering/internships. There are ALWAYS crappy, low pay positions.

• Resume: Make sure your resume highlights the positions and skills you have that APPLY to the job you are submitting it to. If you are including a coverletter, it needs to be specific to the hiring manager you are dealing with.

• Finding a job: Don't just look for jobs in classified ads. Understand what type of job you want and then reach out to companies you'd like to work at. Call the receptionist and ask who is in charge of hiring for the position you want. Get them on the phone. If you get voicemail, leave a brief voicemail. Get their email and send a brief email. Follow up 1x per week.

• Interviewing: Call 24 hours in advance to confirm. Be on time. Dress up. Bring your resume. Start with building rapport with the interviewer- talk about weather, or sports or the location of the office or compliment their dress... Ask questions about the job that make you look like you have an understanding of it: Not "how many hours a week is the job" or "are there good benefits"... Questions like, "are you using Access or SQL for your database", or "In my last position, I had the leeway to restructure IT processes where I saw we could be doing things more efficiently, for example... - Are the processes that you have fairly engrained, or do you think I'll have a similar opportunity here to build out processes based on the best practices I've learned through my experience". BE specific in your questions and answers to what you know about this company. BE interested in the company.

• Following up: Email a follow up to the appropriate people within 48 hours of your interview. You enjoyed meeting them and here are some reasons why you'd like to join their team... Unless they specifically tell you not to follow up- call them (1x per week is not annoying) to see where they are in the decision making process.

• Cast a large net: Even if you nail an interview, you might not get the job. It may not be your fault- who knows, maybe they have to hire the boss' nephew. Get 5 to 10 companies you are looking at- you'll be much more confident once you start getting multiple offers, and then you can pick and choose.

If you want a job, finding a job IS your job. You spend 40 hours a week connecting with potential employers and working on your resume, and you will have a job within the month (assuming you aren't a felon or very socially awkward)...

edit: also, before interviewing- always do your due diligence on the company. most companies you'll want to work for have websites. Read their case studies. Enderstand what products and services the company is offering and who their client base is. What ever questions you have about what they do and how they do it, the interview is the perfect time to ask! If you want clarification, explaining what you know about the company is a great way to show that you've done your research.