Outside of law and medicine, your G.P.A. is less important than you might expect.  But if you do have  a good grade point average, managed to hold a job, take on internships, and participate in a variety of extracurricular activities be sure to make this known in your resume to potential employers.  Here’s some good news from the National Association of Colleges and Employers:  current unemployment rate for recent graduates will be 8.8% which is down from  2010’s rate of 10.4%.  

To gain an entry level job in today’s competitive market try to set yourself apart by trying the following tips:

1. Boost your resume by avoiding terms of self aggrandizement like “excellent” and “outstanding.”  For example, if you had a job, what things did you do to make the work flow better?  Use words like, completed and improved to describe your role at your job.   Include volunteer positions and work related experience to boost your resume.

2.Join, interact with and clean up social media by taking your profiles to the private setting to show a level of professionalism.  All public media accounts should be consistent with a responsible and knowledgeable theme, it is important to be  consistent throughout from your twitter account to your face book postings.

3. Highlight your internships by checking with your superior and asking what can be  blogged about projects and successes at your internship.  Just launching a blog in the first place will show initiative, if done well, your creativity and communications ability will give you an advantage over other job seekers.

4. Use your best judgment when touting your G.P.A.  List your academic accomplishments in the education section, especially if you graduated with honors. Your G.P.A. shows your willingness to learn and your chances of future success on the job, but is just one factor to be considered before being hired.  Modesty is the best policy.

5. Extracurricular activities are very important to employers hiring graduates, customize your resume by listing those activities that may be most relevant to the position for which you are applying. Avoiding the obscure interest or activity will help to avoid any controversy during your interview or selection process.  An interviewer may share a common interest, creating a commonality with you, this could push you to the head of the list, knowing that you would be able to bring that interest and dedication to your new job.