Getting that much-needed experience for jobs is just as hard as landing the job itself. In fact, companies seem to have this catch-22: they won’t hire you unless you have experience and there isn’t much experience to be gained if they won’t hire you. So how does a newly-graduated student jumpstart his or her career?

Becoming an Entrepreneur
Building a business may seem very demanding and filled with capital risks, but not all of them are alike. As a starter, your very best clientele are usually your family, friends, and colleagues. There are even a number of places that will help you in starting a business: such as 970 Businesses You Can Start Today and Resources for Young Entrepreneurs. There are even small business administration courses targeting entrepreneurs.

Apprenticeships
Seeking out an apprenticeship may help with experience—and these definitely pay more. The apprenticeship system usually trains the student for a certain skill. Fields in the manufacturing, aerospace, construction, transportation, and hospitality industries employ thousands of college graduates in apprenticeships. You can find some apprenticeships at State Apprentice Agencies.

Temp Agencies
Many companies actually use temp agencies to get temporary employees. Often these temporary jobs are just the preliminary step in securing a full-time, long-term employment with the company. It also helps gain experience, even if the company decides not to employ you full-time. You can find a temp agency through RateATemp, or post your resume on Net-Temps.

Job Bidding
Job bidding sites are a popular way of gaining experience for some pay. These sites usually have various job postings from different companies willing to take in new employees. Most of the time, past job experiences are not necessary. A few of these places include BidOnJobs.com, Project 4 Hire, and Elance.

Internships
While internships don’t necessarily pay a huge amount in compensation (some don’t pay at all), they do give valuable hands-on experience that can be added to your resume. It also gives new college graduates a chance to see whether or not they like their occupation and would continue doing it as a long-term job. You can find internships at InternWeb.com and MonsterTrak.

Networking
Joining a networking site such as LinkedIn, Konnects, and MyWorkster and having a professional profile handy can put you in the way of Fortune 500 Companies and then some. Many employers check these networking sites for potential workers, so that may be a start.

Certification
There are over 1,600 certifications available for those wanting to add to their resume (according to the Certification and Accreditation Programs Directory). The more relevant the certification, the better your chances at getting the job. To find out more about these certifications, check out the Glossary of Computer Certifications. If you have a specific one in mind, find it using the Certification Finder.

Blogging
While relatively new, blogging does have an effective way of letting the employer know about your expertise in a certain subject. If you get lucky enough, you might even be able to find certain outlets that pay you while you blog! A few places that might be of interest are PayPerPost, the ProBlogger Job Board, and ReviewMe.

Volunteer
Volunteer work may not entail money, however this is almost always a guarantee as far as experience goes. A volunteer is always welcome, and it is a major plus if you volunteer for a job that gives relevant experience to the career you want. There are plenty of places you can find volunteer work in: Volunteer Match, Volunteer Solutions, and Volunteer.gov are just a few of the places to look.

Co-Op Opportunities
If there’s still no luck with jobs, it might be a good idea to go back to school and look for co-op opportunities. These are usually ways to gain both experience and college credit and take place during a semester or the summer break. Indeed.com and Simply Hired have various co-op opportunities for college students. You can also find some at Nonprofit Jobs Cooperative.

* Information derived from Education Portal