You’re finally out of school and into the “real world.” If you’re still glued to your PC watching YouTube all day, get up and go find a job, you lazy bum!

Kidding aside, every new graduate (or newly fired) faces the grand adventure called a job hunt. Okay, so maybe not those summa cum laude geeks who had job offers even before they got their diplomas. However, for the rest of the guys and girls who had lives in college, you have a grand experience of a lifetime - to find a great job and a great workplace. And it all starts through a job application.

First off, where to look for a job. You basically have so many avenues for job searches. You can consult.

• Classifieds - Check out the paper. Many companies still send out advertisements in papers for classifieds. Get our a red sharpie and start marking those jobs you think are worth a shot.
• Online Classifieds - The web is also a viable place to look for jobs. Many classifieds services are available to help you land one.
• Phone a Friend - When looking for a job, check out if the companies your friends work for have openings. Referrals do count. Some companies even award employees for referrals. So don’t be afraid to ask. They get the bonus, you get a job.
• Corporate Websites - Most corporate websites have job postings so better Google up on companies that suit your field and see what’s in store for you.

Weigh out the job descriptions, requirements and your own qualifications. While it does help to be optimistic, gunning for a managerial position without any experience is a sure waste of time. So try to be realistic. If you think you’re up to it, then go ahead.

Next, what to prepare. After finding out the relevant openings, you need to prepare some of the things:

• Resume - Personalize your resume. Be concise but be sure to highlight your education, honors and awards, job history (part time works count), and skills. Concise means about 2-3 pages. Try to do some very neat and professional designs if you’re versed in a bit of desktop publication. If you’re printing out a copy, do it with good-quality Letter size paper. Colors could be white, off-white or beige. Avoid pink and scented ones. Those don’t come too professional.
• Cover Letter - Write about what position you’re interested in and your qualifications. Know to whom the letters should be addressed.
• References - Put in some diverse references too - perhaps one from a former professor, an older friend who’s working in a similar environment, and one from your community.

After you’ve prepared the paperwork, it’s time to send them out. Most companies nowadays prefer to receive them through e-mail. So it’s better to create a professional sounding e-mail address (not bigmacdaddy@pornstar.biz). Same sense, put your resume as an attachment. The body of your e-mail serves as your cover letter. Companies usually respond to qualified candidates for screenings, interviews and tests. So better check your e-mail often.

If you plan to send these out personally, get dressed as if you’ll be there on an interview. I’ve heard many stories of applicants who get ushered in for on-the-spot interviews on the day they handed in resumes.

Keep track of all the applications you’ve sent out. If you get invites for interviews and tests, better schedule them too, you don’t want to be messed up during those days. It’s better to schedule an interview a day.

If you ever decide to defer your application, better inform the company. It’s in bad taste to just apply and drop it faster than you would a bad mate.

Next step… the job interview.