Soon-to-be college graduates who get an early start on their job search are more likely to become and to stay gainfully employed for as many as five years beyond their graduation.
That’s not surprising, said Ed Venit, the managing director of EAB, the academic data research company that conducted the survey. The findings are in agreement with what previous research revealed, he added.
“The surprising thing is how few students do the things that are beneficial,” he said. 
Thirty-four percent of students surveyed started the job search six to 12 months before graduation. A little more than half of that percentage started looking prior to the year before their graduation date.
The maxim, “the sooner, the better” is demonstrated in the case of students who start their job search one year before graduation-according to the survey, those students had a 15 percent higher Gainful Employment Score.
Students who started their job search between 6 months and 12 months before graduation had a 10 percent higher Gainful Employment Score.
But what is considered ‘gainful employment?’ EAB researchers asked.
