That's the catch for many new grads: you're fresh out of school, what do you put down on a resume, which is heavily slanted towards work skills and experience, not school work? The key is to work on this problem while in school, while you still have time.
Employers want to see what you can do for their business. So while it is obviously important to do well in school and to graduate, it's just as important to try to take advantage of opportunities that help develop what employers want to see: specific work-related skills of yours that they can use. Working as an RA and being fraternity treasurer and holding the presidency of the business club are all great things. But 99% of employers out there are going to hold relevant, real-world working experience in much higher value with new grads and entry-level workers.
Of course you probably aren't going to have much work experience when you're fresh out of school. This is why internships can be a great way to differentiate yourself from other new grads and entry-level workers because (1) it gives you something to put under your 'work experience' section; (2) it gives you the chance to develop work-specific skills that you can note; and (3) it allows you to develop professional contacts, all things employers want to see.
While in school, it's also valuable to work on research that has real-world applicability if you can. Many college instructors get funding from industry or government to do research that either outside employers themselves are interested in or that the research field itself employs a lot of people. Just working as a research assistant or lab assistant for on such projects or tasks can give you a lot of the same benefits as a formal internship or even lead to an internship.
It also can help to develop what are more vocational or ancillary skills that will help you stand out in the crowd. For instance, knowing how to administer Unix systems or how to run NMR machines can be huge pluses for computer science or chemistry grads, respectively. Or knowing how to use statistical software for biology majors. Or even how to run computer networks if you are an English major. All these things are often done by technicians in many workplaces. But knowing how to do them also gives you a leg up on other new grads since it makes you more usable to employers.
When you think about the field you want to go into after college, think also about developing the skills that the more vocational people in that field have, thoses who might answer to someone in your position. Having those skills will often give you a leg up on other new grads or entry-level workers in that field.
Of course, you these suggestions only work for students if you are still in school. It's difficult to land internships while not in school and working on academic research is out of the question for non-students. So the key is to hop on these things while you are still in school. Once you finish, you pretty much lose out on the professional work experience opportunities afforded to students.
All college students really need to think about (1) attaining professional work experience and (2) developing work-specific skills over and beyond what they are taught in school and think about doing this while still in school. It's simply not enough nowadays to get a degree and land a job. Employers want to see what you've done in the profession and what specific work-related skills you have developed, too.
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