Graduating college students can be an excellent source of new hires. But if you’re still recruiting on campus the way you did 30 years ago, luring students to your career fair booth with free pizza and T-shirts, you’re never going to attract the candidates you want. You also won’t get far by paying for email lists and sending recruiting blasts. So what can you do? Here are a few ways to boost your campus recruiting game.

Send Personalized Emails

Email can be a great way to make initial contact with candidates, but you need to take a strongly personalized approach. Here’s how:

• Read profiles: Get to know the student before ever reaching out. Read their LinkedIn profile along with their social media. Find out what sorts of projects they’re working on and where their professional interests lie. Tailor your message based on what you learn.
• Issue a challenge: Top engineering students love to work on problems in their area of interest. If there’s something your company has been struggling with or thinking about changing, ask for their thoughts. This boosts engagement right away while also providing a new set of eyes for your current challenge.
• Skip straight to the interview: If you’re interested enough in a specific candidate to send a personalized email, isn’t that person worth 30 minutes of your time? Instead of making them jump through hoops, offer a short phone interview right away.

Make Internships Amazing

Internships can be a great way for engineering students to gain experience, but they don’t want to spend six months making coffee and doing drudge work. Put them on teams with full-time engineers and allow them to fully participate. Connect them with mentors and take a personal interest in their progress. Not only might some of them progress to full-time employment with you, but when they get back to campus, many of them will become loyal brand ambassadors.

Enlist the Help of Interns and New Engineers

No one can talk to a college student like a peer can. When you hold campus recruiting events, invite current or former interns, or new engineers on your full-time payroll, to speak. You can also ask them to make short videos for your website. When students see someone just like them singing the praises of your company, they’ll be more likely to listen to what you have to say.

Build A Forward-Thinking Engineering Team With PEAK

If you are looking for talented engineering professionals who can help your organization achieve its goals, contact the experts at PEAK Technical Staffing today to learn how we can help you access cutting-edge talent.