Watching President Obama’s speech to the students at University of Denver this afternoon, I couldn’t help but feel there were some things missing. I understand the purpose of his appearance and the topic at hand. He made a lot of great points and I agreed with most of what he said. I even had a chuckle or three. But I couldn’t help but think about all of the things college students are not hearing. Not just from President Obama, but from their educators, mentors or parents too. While the President touched on points about fair opportunities to find jobs out of college, affordable student loan plans and even entrepreneurship as an option, I think the overall message is a bit more complex than just those speaking points.

OK here’s the deal, from my perspective that is. There was a time when students assumed, rightfully so, that as long as you did a few internships, got good grades and sent out tons of resumes during senior year, you’d all but be guaranteed a job after graduation. I’ve watched numerous news reports of disillusioned students and soon to be grads lamenting over the fact that “the jobs just aren’t there“. I can’t accept that. Even with a dismal economy, high unemployment rate and gridlock in government, I just refuse to accept that. What I’m seeing from my seat is a failure to adequately prepare students for their futures. Now in all fairness, when I went to college (way back) my parents said do your work, get good grades and worry about adult stuff later. I’m willing to bet other people’s parent told them the same thing. Back then big companies coming to campus was big. Students who made it past the first round knew they’d be getting job offers.

Fast forward to 2011, we can no longer tell students that. We live in a different type of world today. Adults have had to shift and rethink their strategies to stay afloat (and relevant) in the market. These kids are not being sent into the world with adequate life training. There is almost no preparation in financial planning, career management or entrepreneurship. Sure, colleges are jumping on the entrepreneurship bandwagon now. But most of these programs are highly competitive in some colleges. Nobody is teaching them about networking. Sure, they expose them to people and peers in campus events. But they’re not teaching relationship building skills. Nobody’s really teaching about investing. Nobody’s really teaching them how to plan their careers and what it takes to manage the career going forward. I’m not saying we need a good old fashioned home economics course (maybe we do). Who’s teaching them about politics and how it relates to them on a personal, economic, and social level (outside of the PoliSci classes that come with the curriculum)? Politics has shifted tremendously in the last few years. A great deal of students get most of their political education from their parents or what they read on social media. That’s just not enough to allow them to make real informed decisions about their futures.

So what am I saying? I’m saying that we have to do better. These kids are not adequately prepared for real life, and it’s partly our (collective) fault.

Recruiters have to get into the schools and help prepare these kids for the real world before graduation. It can’t be just when there’s a job fair. Partner with the career services department and help mentor these kids. Steer them down the right path. Give them some insight on what it takes to be successful during the interview process. Focus on grooming the most promising students for a spot in your organization. It may not be for next month, but if you build a mentorship and keep an interest, you have a young workforce in the making. One of my clients has something called “Paper School” that they’ve implemented at a local college. Students in related majors get to learn all about the business of paper making. These promising students more often than not are recruited upon graduation.

Local entrepreneurs, get more involved with mentoring. Offer more educational internships to let them learn the business and see what it’s like “in the real world”. Help groom the next generation of entrepreneurs. Don’t just use them for free/cheap labor. Give them a learning experience. Whether or not the’ll want to work for your company upon graduation is irrelevant. Stimulating the talent pool will stimulate the market. “They” keep saying there is not enough good talent out there (which I personally think is a bunch of bull). So let’s partner with colleges to get more students into internships. That way instead of outsourcing, we can look right in our own back yard for up and coming talent.

Career services officers, expose students to a career curriculum and give them real networking opportunities. Push administrators to offer career management classes, and no “how to build a resume” is not a real course. They need to understand how to package, market and present themselves in today’s environment, and that includes using social media as a complimentary platform. They have to know how to leverage their skills, resources, network and experience (including internships) to get jobs. Show them that entrepreneurship is an alternative for them. Have a resource library that’s up to date and offers human resources that go beyond the scope of the school’s abilities (you can do this by partnering with local experts). Make it a little easier for them to launch their careers. Partner with businesses to bring more opportunities to campus. Offer experts an opportunity to bring preparatory workshops and seminars to campus. And stop only asking “celebrity names” to come speak. Bring in people with real life experience and expertise, not just people who get paid big bucks to talk about it. And offer more networking events and share local events as well.

We have a collective responsibility to ensure this next wave of the workforce is prepared and ready to make opportunities regardless of what’s going on in the government. Whether through a job path or entrepreneurship, everyone who graduates from college should not just know they have options, but also how to find and exercise those options. So we can point the finger at Bush, Obama, Congress or whomever. But we failed our kids as a nation by not adequately preparing them to have back up plans and a hunter’s heart. We failed them by not telling them to never rely on a sure thing like a degree. We failed them by not being able to show them how to function IN SPITE of government or the economy.

Til next time,

Adrienne Graham
My kid was prepared…always have a backup plan 

Do you like this article and want to reprint or share? You can, as long as you include this in its entirety:

Adrienne Graham is the Founder & CEO of Empower Me! Corporation (www.empowerme.org). She is a strategist that helps people grow their career, business or network in any economy. She is the voice behind Views from the Top Radio Show, and the creative visionary behind Empower Me! Institute and Empower Me! Magazine. Her writing and shows focus on Career Management, Networking Strategies, Entrepreneurial Success and Small Business Management. You can also find her causing a ruckus on Forbes.com.