"It's certainly the hottest job market for grads in the past five years," says John Challenger, chief executive officer of outplacement consulting firm Challenge, Gray & Christmas. "Students are receiving multiple offers, there are companies offering more perks — even some signing bonuses — that we haven't seen for some time."

According to the latest survey conducted by job-search service MonsterTrak, considerably more employers — 72% — said they plan to hire 2006 graduates this summer — up from 64% in 2005 and just a third of those surveyed in 2003.

That's welcome news, no doubt, but it doesn't mean that today's grads don't have to compete. The best jobs will go to the crème of the 2006 crop — those that are able to dazzle during their interviews. Oftentimes, those new to the job market make deal-breaking mistakes, without even realizing it.

Below are five common job hunting mistakes to avoid:

1. Searching for Jobs
The wrong way: Limiting yourself to the Internet.
The right way: Network, network, network.

So used to the almighty Internet, college grads often forget they need to cast a wider web if they want to get ahead in their job search. Big mistake. "Finding a good job lays the foundation for the rest of your career so you want to take every advantage and resource you might have," says Challenger.

That means going beyond the listings on career sites like MonsterTRAK.com and CareerBuilder.com, or those distributed by your university's career center. Any career coach will tell you to let your favorite professors know you're still looking for a job, and stay in touch with any former employers where you have had internships or summer jobs.

The best resource to tap, though, is right at home: mom and dad. "The fact that your parents know people in the adult world who are working and might be willing to see you is really valuable," Challenger says.

But know where to draw the line. "I've been hearing lately about job candidates getting their parents too involved," says Alexandra Levit, a career coach and author of the book "They Don't Teach Corporate in College." "It's good to tap your parents' network, but having your mom call the HR person and ask why they haven't called you back — that's completely contrary to the perception you want to give," she warns.

2. Landing an Interview
The wrong way: Dear hiring manager...
The right way: Research and personalize.

It's not uncommon that a job listing doesn't mention a specific person to whom cover letters should be addressed. But that's no excuse for starting your letter with "Dear Hiring Manager" or, worse yet, "Dear Sir," says Lauren Kahn, founder All About Careers, a Chicago-based career-coaching service.

"Between the Internet, telephone and voicemail, they should be able to know I'm the correct person to contact, they should be able to know I'm female, and they should know my name," she says.

Resumes should be equally tailored to the specific job opening. Avoid objectives like "finding a job in marketing" and mention the specific company and position you are applying to.

Putting education before job experience or listing job experience in chronological order are among the other common mistakes college grads make, Kahn says. When you only have six or seven seconds of a recruiter's time the most relevant information should be up on top. (Don't sweat this too much, though: Recruiters do understand that recent college grads have spent most of their previous four years studying — not working.)

3. Dressing the part
The wrong way: Flip-flops and skimpy tops.
The right way: Overdress.

Many twenty-somethings take their trendy outfits to job interviews: a fashion faux-pas that could take you out of contention before you even sit down for the interview, says Levit. "You've only got three seconds to make a first impression," she says. No matter how relaxed the company culture may be, you should be more dressed up than the average person in the office.

"I wish I'd had a camera with me over the years," says Kahn, reminiscing of college grads she has interviewed for jobs at her company, as well as those she has coached. "One girl came in an off-the-shoulder top that had this feathery thing...it would have been more appropriate for a night club!"

So dress professionally: Even if you're interviewing for a job at a teen magazine or TV show. "You could go to work for MTV and on Friday you could wear shorts and flip-flops, but for the interview you wear nice slacks and a shirt that covers your stomach," Kahn concludes.

Finally, remember that the most conservative suit will be forgotten if the recruiter finds lewd photos of yours on MySpace, Friendster or any other publicly available Internet space, says Anna Ivey, a career and graduate school consultant to college graduates. "Just last week I talked to a recruiter who canceled an interview with a candidate he really liked...until he found her MySpace page, which contained inappropriate photographs and trash-talked her current employer," Ivey says.

4. Acing the Interview
The wrong way: Rambling on about yourself.
The right way: Listen, listen, listen.

When you've just graduated from college, you don't have that much job experience to talk about. Still, a lot of young job candidates don't stop talking during the interview. "Grads have a hard time putting their ego in check," notes Challenger. "A lot of times students come in and want to talk too much."

Instead, they should be the ones doing the listening, he says. Consider the interview an opportunity to ask questions about the company and the situation you'll be in if you start working there. (Of course, be sure to learn as much about the company as possible and don't waste the interviewer's time with questions like "What kind of services do you specialize in?")

Questions about career growth and opportunities always make a good impression, says Marjorie Brody, a career coach in Philadelphia and co-author of "Help! Was That a Career Limiting Move?" "People don't want to think you're just coming in as a stepping stone and you'll be gone in a year," she says.

5. The Aftermath
The wrong way: Leave the interview and forget about it.
The right way: Send a thank you note.

Career experts disagree on the topic of thank you notes. Some advocate the typed letter that succinctly outlines the major points mentioned during the interview and why you'd be a good fit for the job. Others, like Kahn, prefer something more personalized. "Look around the interviewer's office. If she likes cats, try to find a card that shows you paid attention to what they're interested in," she says.

Whether it's a card with cats or a letter typed on official stationery, one thing's for sure: You need to send something, preferably via "snail mail," says Challenger. "It's important to just do it, and do it quickly," he says. "It's the right way to complete that stage of the interview process."

URL for this article:
http://aol.smartmoney.com/consumer/index.cfm?story=20060509