Class of 08 Scrambles to Find Work
Posted on April 9, 2008 9 Comments
Today’s Wall Street Journal noted that “As the credit crunch roils financial markets and the U.S. economy sputters, new college graduates are plunging into the rockiest job market in recent years.”
The article reminds me of my job hunt after graduation; for months I sent dozens of resumes to every PR firm in Chicago only to be told, “We’re not hiring right now, but we’ll keep your resume on file.”
It was incredibly frustrating. I worked harder than most of my college friends to graduate in four years, magna cum laude, with a major and two minors. I had work experience in my field (an internship) and I had served in a supervisory role in my on-campus job. Yet in the Chicago market, I couldn’t even get an internship. I vividly remember stressing about it in a campus advisor’s office. “Just wait,” she told me. “Don’t settle for anything. Something perfect will come along.” Yeah, right.
On a whim, I interviewed with Accenture consulting. I heard it was good learning experience; if you could get through their rigorous interview process, you could get through any interview (and I wasn’t having luck booking interviews). One psychological profile, an on-campus interview and an overnight orientation program later, I was offered a job – a high-paying job, with health benefits and a fantastic vacation package. Despite the fact that it wasn’t what I wanted to do, I accepted.
A short time later, a PR firm called. They invited me to Chicago for an interview, and then offered me the internship a few days later. There was no hiring guarantee. The pay was $10 per hour and I received no health or insurance benefits. I took the job and called Accenture the next day.
At the PR firm, I spent a year as an intern, and though I loved every minute of it, my friends and family initially questioned my decision to turn down the consulting job. It wasn’t easy: During my internship I lived at my parents’ house in Chicago, with my brothers who were still in high school, the family dog and both my parents (and their rules). I was always broke. My best friends were all still in college, enjoying house parties and late night study sessions. In the meantime, many of those I graduated with returned to school, fed up with the business climate and the job market. I stayed at my company throughout the uncertainty, with my resume ready should I need it, but always hoping, praying, that my time would come.
And eventually it did. I was hired 12 mos. after my first day as an intern. It was an unusually long wait compared to the time recent interns have spent before signing on. But here we are again, in a tough job market for recent college graduates. Many will be wondering whether to take the high-paying job they don’t particularly want, while others will still be interviewing several months after graduation just to find something, anything, to pay the bills.
My advice for recent graduates is to follow your passion, despite the difficulties. The market may be tough, sacrifices will be necessary and your experiences will be 100 percent different from your friends who graduated during the past few years that were able to negotiate for their salary and benefits (IGNORE THEM!). You may work in telemarketing for a few months or sign on with a temp firm until you can find something more fulfilling (it’s not that bad, I’ve worked for both). But you can’t ever give up your search. If you know what you want and you feel strongly about your career, you owe it to yourself to go for it.
If you’re in the job market, and you’re following the news, you know it’s bad out there. But there are some signs urging grads to stick with it, like this quote thought from Sarah Quarterman, head of campus recruiting for Merrill Lynch. She says:
“Everyone learned the lesson that [hiring freezes weren't] the smart thing to do because students that get hired from campus are a pipeline for the organization,” she says. “What a lot of firms experienced in 2005 and 2006 was a shortage of talent at the VP level,” typically five or six years out of school.
The same thing happened in my industry (public relations). Because so many dropped out of their never-ending internships in 2001-2002, we experienced a strong demand for supervisors with five years of experience around 2006. Those of us who stayed in the industry through the recession were able to capitalize on that shortage because we stuck with it. Those who opted to go back to school or pursue different careers couldn’t take advantage, nor could they get back into the field after a five year departure.
To be sure, not everyone will have the luxury to pursue their dreams during the economic downturn. But if you’ve worked hard to graduate this summer, don’t be discouraged automatically by the articles you read, and throw the towel in just because you can’t get an interview. Persevere. Overcome the obstacles. It may be a little less comfortable in the short-term, but you’ll be glad you did in the long run.
P.S. Don’t listen to just me, cause I’m no expert. Though I like to dispense advice (just ask my friends), you can probably only consider this blog to be entertainment. Talk to your friends and family, and listen to your gut before making any big decisions. Weigh all your options and decide what’s best for you. Only you can choose your path in life! Thanks and sorry for the unpleasantness in the fine print.
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9 Responses to “Class of 08 Scrambles to Find Work”
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April 9th, 2008 @ 6:31 am
I have a bunch of friends graduating this year, and all are scrambling to find good jobs right now. Even here in Seattle, unless you’re a programmer, it’s still a tough market right now.
April 9th, 2008 @ 10:47 am
I’m just 90 miles away at Notre Dame (working on a PhD) and the undergrad seniors are freaking out too!!!! Shoot, even the job market for those with a PhD isn’t that great right now….although better than it is for the undergrads (since companies are choosing PhD level candidates over the regular B.A./B.S. candidates). I tell all my undergrads to go and do postgraduate work!
April 9th, 2008 @ 12:59 pm
I graduated in IT in 1999. It was a tough job market with Y2K staring us right in the face. The job market from what I can see it typically tough for most college grads at all times. The bottom line is regardless of how
the job market is doing it comes down to educations AND SKILLS. I live in the Detroit area
which has been basically pronounced dead in many senses. At the same time, people I know are finding jobs and making more money because they have skills and experience. I agree wholeheartedly to follow
your dream and what you have an aptitude for in this life. The economic benefits will come
later regardless of how the economy is doing at the time.
April 9th, 2008 @ 10:04 pm
I suppose I can be somewhat thankful, then, that I’ve got a few years until I graduate. Fingers crossed that things improve between now and then and I won’t have to worry about not being able to find a good job.
April 10th, 2008 @ 1:24 am
I entered the IT job market in Chicago during late-Fall of 2000 with many of my fellow state university graduates. The tech market was hot back then but completely tanked a year later. The result? 99% of my school buddies lost their jobs in IT, Finance, Marketing, even Sales. We were all ‘on the beach’ together scrumming up our resumes and collecting unemployment.
Looking back, it was the best thing that could have happened to me. I learned that no job is permenant and that I always needed to keep my skills and education marketable. For those making the difficult decision between a job they would love and a job that would pay bank, I would give them the same advice as the Budgeting Babe. Its not about where you start but rather where you finish. Stick with your guns and do what interests you. And yes (hope I’m not offending any PF bloggers) no amount of money you have in the bank will make you truly happy.
April 10th, 2008 @ 4:05 am
In some respects, I had a similar experience upon graduation a few years ago.
Although I work in an entirely different field (public health), it took me a year to finally land my first “real” career job with benefits.
What did I do in the meantime? Held on to a part-time research job and picked up a second part-time job at a specialty market. Scraping by for so many months certainly taught me to be frugal. And it’s given me confidence in my ability to be independent and take risks.
May 6th, 2008 @ 4:54 am
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