Companies step up new grad recruiting.

• Position: Employee recruitment survey - Brief article

Those donning caps and gowns this year may have more to celebrate than their new college diplomas. Forty-one percent of executives surveyed say their firms are more active in recruiting university graduates now than they were five years ago. Only 13% report slowing their college recruiting efforts, reports Accountemps, a Menlo Park, Calif.-based specialized staffing service for temporary accounting, finance, and bookkeeping professionals.

"As the hiring environment has become increasingly competitive, demand for recent graduates also has risen," notes Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps and author of Managing Your Career For Dummies. "Yet, the best positions still go to the most resourceful job seekers. An active employment search that includes extensive networking can help candidates learn about unadvertised job openings and determine which organizations have the most to offer them."

Messmer recommends new graduates look beyond compensation and job title when evaluating employment offers. "Education doesn't end with graduation. The first position out of college should...