Marketing Graduates Struggle to Find Jobs After College

Tips to gaining an advantage in a competitive industry

Why Marketing Majors Struggle to Find Jobs

Just earned a brand new marketing degree? Ready to start your career as a marketing professional? It won't be as easy as you think.

It is hard to predict the future of the marketing industry, as it is technology-based and ever-changing. Last year’s views and strategies are different than present ones, and to succeed one must stay current and master new marketing trends and tactics.

During college, marketing majors hone their skills with lectures and textbooks. And for what? With the marketing industry's constant evolution and technological changes, a marketing degree can become devalued and useless when job hunting. As a result, marketing majors have been having a tough time finding jobs. 

After spending 10-30 years in the classroom and not in the real marketing world, one can question if your professor can even teach about the current trends in marketing or if the school's curriculum even reflects today's current trends. They can certainly read about SEO, social media, content marketing, video marketing, video SEO, and inbound marketing, but in reality, they've never lived in that marketing world.

 
Companies are Hiring for Marketing in 2017 - But not Marketing Majors?

According to a 2014 study by McKinley Marketing Partners, 64% of the participating businesses said they were hiring at least one person to help with marketing activities that year. When the companies were asked about the future of their marketing activities, 75% of respondents suggested they would be maintaining or increasing their hiring of marketing positions in 2015 and beyond.

In addition, the study suggests a shift in the type of marketing positions that companies are looking for. Instead of hiring people for more traditional marketing positions, companies are looking to hire digital and content marketers. Furthermore, this study suggests that companies are filling these roles with people who have backgrounds in areas such as graphic design, writing, electronic media and website design. Meanwhile, people who are educated in general marketing, communications, and project management are getting fewer job opportunities.

Besides the demand for marketers with digital and content-focused roles, the survey also showed that 85% of companies were looking to hire marketing data analysts and SEO/SEM experts.

How Marketing Majors Can Gain a Competitive Edge

How are marketing graduates supposed to know what skills they need to enter an industry that doesn't hire because of constant change? Sure, companies are looking for people with more specialized skills for future marketing positions, but not all is lost if you are working towards a degree in marketing. There are many ways that marketing majors can become more specialized and boost their value in the eyes of companies today.

Minors/Specializations

• Choose to pursue a minor or specialization that can give you an edge over the competition

• Graphic Design, Video Production, Website Design

• Content Writing, English, Creative Writing

• Public Speaking, IT, SEO, Marketing Research

Internships

• An internship is a great way for college students to gain experience and learn about the current marketing trends today. The right internship can provide real-world marketing experience and give students an edge over the competition when looking for a job. As an added benefit, a lot of companies end up hiring their interns after they graduate. Almost all colleges/universities have departments dedicated to finding internships and jobs for their current students.

Clubs/ Events

• Joining a club or marketing/running events can help gain experience and add value to your resume.

• Host charity events

• Provide Marketing and Promotional Activities for other clubs or organizations

• Become President or an Executive member of a club

Freelance Projects/ Jobs

• Doing projects or freelance work for local companies or businesses is a great way to show off your skills and develop a portfolio for yourself. Some services you can offer to a business include:

• Social Media Management

• Advertising

• Graphic Design

• Blogging

Google

• Staying up to date on new marketing techniques, trends, and systems is a key component to success in today’s marketing industry. 

  Google has a commanding grasp on today’s marketing and SEO activities and it is always changing. A good understanding of Google Analytics, Google Adwords, and staying current on any Google updates are all desired qualities for marketers today.