Another day another dollar, except when you’re a postgraduate looking desperately for someone, anyone, to hire you. Then, there are no dollars.
My mornings have been spent scouring the Internet and checking emails. In fraught need of different scenery, I sit at a local coffee shop filling out online job applications.
Its patrons are current college students, street sleepers or weathered motorcycle men enjoying the mid morning sun. I fit right in with my messy bun, workout shorts and oversized T-shirt (not Greek related).
Organic fruits are freshly juiced and blended in the background, while hipster coffee is being squeezed through expensive pressers. The air is obscure due to the dark brick walls, thick wooden tables and the only natural blocked because it’s not early enough in the day to beam through the windows.
As I sip on ‘blended #1’ I contemplate where my life is headed.
“Will I ever find a job?”
“Of course, don’t be so dramatic.”
“What if I’m a waitress forever?”
Don’t be silly, you have a degree!”
“Are my social media pages haunting me?”
“Shannon, your most embarrassing pictures are on MySpace and they were deleted a long time ago.”
The statistics aren’t in my favor; only 27 percent of college graduates land a job in their desired field. The most hope one can have is that a job miraculously falls into your lap, preferably before student loans start its withdrawal from your already suffocating bank account.
“Network. Network. Network.”
It’s all I ever heard the last two years of my undergraduate degree. Professors, public speakers or guest lecturers were all obsessed with networking. I figured it was important and ran in circles making connections throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
If it was an internship, I got it. If it was a meet and greet, I did it. If it was an open event to college students, I signed up. You name it I did, went and tried it.
“It’ll help me get a job. I won’t be a part of the statistic. I’ll have a job with my degree after I graduate,” I’d say with motivation.
The Metroplex is supposedly the number-one hot spot for college graduates, according to Forbes. It’s also in the top ten of places to live in the United States. I currently beg to differ.
It’s been almost two months since I began applying for jobs. The outcome is as dismal as the day before I started to apply. My hard work has resulted in multiple insurance agencies “recruiting” me for “competitive salaries,” which in the biz means, based off commission.
My email inbox has been championed the “thanks, but no thanks” collector of denials and contacts I had “networked” with haven’t responded to any of the polite, yet titillating, email inquiries.
A women my husband works with at a fitness company can’t find a better job than front desk attendant, because her resume proclaims she has a Master’s Degree.
When did accomplishing an academic achievement become detrimental to your resume? This bit of news came as a swift kick in the pants. I just graduated with my Bachelors. I literally can’t even think about graduate school, yet.
I reflect on YouTube sensation Jenna Marbles. A young woman who couldn’t find a job after graduation and became a viral hit through vloging instead.
I hear there’s a woman hawking her degree on EBay for the best offer. College experience included. For a hefty price you can purchase the full college voyage with campus tours, popular hangouts and bars, and full access to drunken texts you regret from the night before.
Am I destined for this same fate?
Maybe.
“Every no is one step closer to the yes.”
This sentiment has almost become as deterring as “be sure to network while in college.” Is this myth only one with years of experience can crack the code and then gain permission to tell hopeful candidates?
I never understood why professionals preached job searching is hard. I planned ahead and full heartily believed I’d have a job offer before or immediately after graduation. Ignorance is truly bliss. Where are all these jobs one speaks of? Can you ask them if they need a strategic communication major?
At least I have my health.
Ramblin Randol 