Isn’t spring wonderful? The weather is sort of warm for this time of year, the birds are chirping and there is some resemblance of grass scattered between the roads and concrete.

But along with all the wonders of spring comes something else, something that can be both terribly exciting and horribly terrifying to many of us here at NIU & GRADUATION. For those of you who have planned ahead, had plenty of internships and have gone to the numerous job fairs, graduation is a wonderful thing. There’s the whole no-more-homework thing, plus the benefit of knowing that some form of stable income is coming soon.

Then there’s the others. The people who have no clue what they are going to do with their lives after walking across that stage. The people who haven’t entered the doors of a job fair, much less actually looked for a job. Sad to say, but I belong to this category & to a lesser extent, no less & but I’m there anyway.

So, being a procrastinator at heart, I have spent numerous nights stressing over if I will find a job that fits my major or if I will have to end up telling my parents that I am going to “take some time off for myself” and work at my local gas station. Yeah, I’ve been worrying, but have I actually pushed myself to get out there and look, I mean, really look? No, not really.

There are a good three weeks left to my life here at NIU. Now that I’ve finally decided that now is the right time to start searching for my dream job, which I doubt I will find anytime soon since the job market pretty much sucks for me at the moment, I’ve come up with a little list for my fellow comrades of things to do and places to look for jobs. Lord knows I wish I had started earlier, and if I didn’t have my co-workers and family pushing me to make a move, I still would be in the land of procrastination.

1. Go online

Yes, it sounds easy, just connect and search right? It’s not all that simple. There are about a zillion places to look when in pursuit of a job, but finding some good and helpful sites is a whole other journey. Of the numerous sites to choose from, personally my favorites for job searching are (in no particular order) flipdog.com, monster.com and, of course, findjobs.com. Now for more specialized field searches, many people may choose to look elsewhere, but I only know sites for my major, so basically I’m useless there.

The great thing about these three sites is that they are just so easy to maneuver in. For example, findjobs.com has a list of other sites to look for jobs, which always is helpful. And both flipdog.com and monster.com let a person search for jobs and even post a resume & the latter of which always is great to do. I haven’t heard of many people posting their job applications and resumes online, mostly because they don’t think that it will make any difference. But I did find one sole person who, after posting her stuff online, had a huge response from numerous employers. Hey, it might just work, so why not try? These Web sites are just the thing for the late-searching people like myself &it’s easy, it doesn’t take a lot of time and, for those of you who want to get the heck out of DeKalb, there are postings from all over the country.

2. Go back to school

No, I’m not saying the hopeless job cavorters should flunk that final and go back to Math 101. I mean that universities, this one included, can help students, believe it or not, find a job. Go to the Career Planning and Placement Center, Campus Life Building, Room 220; the Career Resource Center, CLB 235; the Job Location and Development Center, CLB 230. Basically, go to the Campus Life Building, and you’ll get some sort of career guidance. It’s really that easy & just go to the darn building or call (This option probably would be better so that an appointment can be made. People really don’t like mass amounts of people storming into offices).

3. Talk to a professor

Duh, how simple is that? Professors are close to the most ideal people to ask about finding a job. Why? Well, they are teaching you to go out and get a job in YOUR field. Clause: Not all professors are that great to talk to in the first place, so be wary of whom to choose.

4. Read

“Oh, God! I thought I never would have to read again after college! High school was bad enough.”

Sorry to say, but no matter what the major of choice is, there always will be reading involved. So what does this have to do with getting a job? Get a newspaper and look through the want ads. Some jobs may not be the greatest, but a gem could be lurking underneath the “Septic Tank Scrubbers Wanted” ad. It’s good, it’s old fashioned and it’s cheap.

5. Look

Not all employers put out want ads or place job listings online. Sometimes you just have to ask to receive, or so the saying goes. I may have a job with a company who never called me to see if I was interested or placed an ad.

So listen, people, it’s not too late. There’s still plenty … er, some … OK, there’s not a lot of time left, but there’s still time nonetheless. Get out there. Graduation is, scary as it sounds, right around the corner. Keep looking, and fight the urge to wait until the last-last minute to get that job.