Right out of college, staffing firms were the way to go for me. Big companies seem to like hiring on a contract-to-hire basis because it avoids the unemployment

Right out of college, staffing firms were the way to go for me. Big companies seem to like hiring on a contract-to-hire basis because it avoids the unemployment risk if they hire somebody who isn't a good fit for some reason after the first 90 days. I applied for companies directly and ended up getting the exact same job through a staffing firm instead. For getting in the door, it's a big help starting out.