No Man Is an Island
It seems most issues of Advance contain at least one letter from a new graduate, bemoaning the fact that regardless of the field, there's a Catch-22 wherein you need experience to get that first job, but you can't get that first job because no one's willing to give you experience. Just perusing the message boards here, it's also a common topic of discussion.
So how do you beat that conundrum? Obviously, the first advice people give is to be persistent. Put in your application and follow it up often--not enough to be a pest, but often enough so that they might start to think of you the next time there's an opening for a newbie. If your education is good enough, all you really need is the opportunity to test and show them your potential, right?
Another tactic that seems crucial to me--and yet rarely discussed--is networking. But. . . how do you network when you're a "nobody" in the field? Well, you figure out where the veterans are and you plop down in the middle of them and soak up everything they care to impart. Professional organizations usually offer student rates, but these days you don't have to invest a thing if you simply google your way around the internet and find a well-run message board. For MTs (and some coders), the best site out there is MT Chat, which is frequented by some of the grande dames of the biz, n00bs, students, and frequently, people who just stumble in looking for information on the field. If you sidle in and observe a good while, you can pick up a lot of information about everything from techniques for improving your skills to heads-up on job openings. You can't necessarily tell which posters are the vets because they don't make an issue of it, but most are pretty compulsive about answering questions. The board has a reputation for not tolerating fools gladly, but don't let the occasional directness scare you; most of the crusty ones have a chewy marshmallow center and feel very strongly they have a responsibility to share their knowledge with the next generation. Many employers read the forum--both to get a feel for which posters to avoid as well as which ones are good prospects (yes, you can post with a silly user name, but it's often very easy to match them up to actual applications. . .) Not only is there a forum there with job openings, there are often offers made behind the scenes. There are a couple school forums and instructors are very free with their advice. Coding is not as established there, but enough to be a valuable addition to your arsenal.
Your specific field should also have resources like this. For registrars, the NCRA has a jobs board that not only allows you to peruse openings (including internships), but also allows you to post your own résumé, to help match you with prospective employers. Now that the new certification requirements are changing, I suspect they will be working harder to fill those openings.
Advance itself has recently added a facebook page to help network. I have to admit I've not ventured to stick myself on facebook or any similar networking sites (yet) and I'd wager a guess that the majority who have joined this one are probably fairly young. Still, it seems a brilliant way to network, especially as so many of us are telecommuting and never actually get a chance to mingle on the job or at professional gatherings.
I'm sure there are other avenues to network I've not even thought of yet (I tend to be kind of stuck on the internet as my main venue, and I find it's a great equalizer), so I'd love to hear other suggestions. Yes, it's frustrating and sometimes it's very therapeutic to write that letter to the editor or post on a message board and just whine out of frustration--but in the end, the only way to ensure you get that big break is to become proactive and actually DO something. Don't feel helpless and isolated--think how you can build a bridge to connect with others who might give you a hand up to make that big leap.