To effectively plan your job search, it is important to understand how different industries recruit new employees. Tuning into industries’ and employer’s annual recruitment cycles can be instrumental in your job search. Understanding the recruitment peaks doesn’t mean waiting out the rest of the year. It is important that you are actively seeking employment opportunities, not finding excuses to avoid looking.
For those job candidates graduating from college with undergraduate or graduate degrees that are seeking full-time employment, pay particular attention to the on-campus recruiting calendar of major employers on your campus. This will give you an opportunity to interview with employers without leaving campus.
Summer Jobs/Internships:
For summer positions, some employers with post available opportunities as early as mid-fall quarter of the previous year. Early January is also an active time for employers looking to hire for the summer. Early application submissions are driven by the type of position, location of the position, number of applicants and the number of positions available.
Typical Recruiting Timelines by Industry:
- Investment Banking, Finance, Consulting: September – December
- Engineering, Technology: September – January
- Education, Nonprofit, Government: December – May
- Advertising, Marketing, Media, PR: March – August
Quarter-By-Quarter Summary of the General Calendar of Most Employers:
First Quarter: A New Year’s Wave of Hiring
Major hiring decisions are made when people are in the office. These follow closely on the heels of the holidays and summer. Big hiring months are January, February, September and October. Strong hiring periods, such as the first quarter, when demand for talent may outweigh the supply of qualified candidates, may be an excellent time for job candidates that are interested in upgrading their job responsibility and pay.
Second Quarter:
Second quarter is an excellent time for hiring for jobs that are dependent upon fair weather outside. The tourism and hospitality industries often hire in the second quarter in preparation for increased summer business. Major industries classified as information, financial services and professional and business services hire heavily in this quarter
Third Quarter: Vacation Time
Hiring tends to slow down in July before picking up in late August. As this is typically a slow time for recruiting, a recruiter may have more time to review a job candidate’s qualifications.
Fourth Quarter: Busy then Slow
The fourth quarter has an increase in hiring for holiday retail employees than a lull during the Thanksgiving to New Year’s period. During the fourth quarter, the supply of active job seekers typically is lower resulting in a higher chance of getting hired by a recruiter that is focused on filling positions before year end.
