A. No, because taking time off will be hard to explain in an interview and can make you less employable. Kathy Kane, senior vice president for talent management of Adecco Group North America in Melville, N.Y., says that because of the state of the economy, new grads think they have a free pass to take it easy for a while, but they don’t. “When I look to fill a position, I’m not looking for someone who’s been sitting around with idle hands.”
It’s easy for unemployed college graduates to feel sorry for themselves and mope, but they shouldn’t fall prey to that, says Dan Black, Americas director of campus recruiting for the professional services firm Ernst & Young in New York. As a recruiter, Mr. Black says he looks for those who have been “keeping themselves meaningfully busy.”