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Do you have a job for after college?

By Madison Cox

On May 6, 2011

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You walk off the stage with diploma in hand, proud to have accomplished four years of college, when you have a startling realization: what now?

For many college graduates, finding work is a lot easier said than done.

"If you don't have an internship, you don't have an in," said Jenny Rossi, a 2010 graduate of Lyndon State College.

Rossi earned two bachelor's degrees in English, as well as a minor in psychology. She currently works as a preschool teacher at Acorn Child Care in Shelburne, Vt., and waitresses on the weekends.

"It is rough to do this on your own," she said, adding that student loan payments have made it difficult to support herself.

Rossi said Career Services at LSC was helpful to her, fine-tuning her resume and helping with job searches.

Rossi would ideally like a career in copywriting, but in the current economy, finds writing jobs scarce.

"Start job hunting in advance," she said for recent graduates seeking employment, "It'll take much longer than anyone will ever think."

Rossi is not happy with her current job situation and hopes to find something in her field eventually.

"I took this one out of desperation," she said. "I felt lucky when I was offered this job."

Some graduates find employment in their fields more quickly.

For Renee Kelly, a community outreach coordinator at LSC, networking played a big role in finding employment after college.

Kelly is a 2009 graduate of LSC who grew up in Stannard, Vt., where she earned two bachelor's degrees in psychology and human services, as well as a minor in business.

During her sophomore year, Kelly did field work at a local head start, and later interned at the Vermont Commission on Women in Montpelier.

After graduating, she went on to work as an early head start home visitor for Northeast Kingdom Community Action in the child and family development program.

"Networking and the references I was able to get out of those experiences were extraordinarily helpful," Kelly said of her employment search.

According to Kelly, having experience in her field upon graduation helped her find a position she was interested in.

"I think that internship definitely helped secure my position here," she said, adding that she plans to stay at LSC. "I'm really excited to be back on campus."

Steven Merrill is another alumni of LSC, who like Kelly, found his experiences during college helpful in his job search following graduation.

"The biggest reason I got jobs was networking. It's really about getting to know people," he said.

Merrill, who is originally from Jericho, Vt., graduated from LSC in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in natural sciences, as well as two minors in geology and chemistry.

During his time as a student at LSC, Merrill took advantage of the services students have available for job searching.

"I found career services really helpful," he said, adding that Linda Wacholder, the director of career service helped him create a resume.

Merrill works as a chemist in the organic program at the Vermont Department of Health laboratory, where he has been employed for over a year.

He had previously worked at the Department of Health in 2007 as a temp until the job was cut. However, he says networking there helped him. When a position opened up in 2010, the department reached out to him.

"One of my ultimate goals was to become a chemist and I've reached it," he said. "I feel like I have a good job and I like it."

Wacholder agrees that networking gives recent graduates a big advantage in the job market.

"I think the best thing is to do networking. That will facilitate leads," she said. "Actively engage in the job search."

She also says taking advantage of internships and work in the field a graduate is interested in is key.

"Have some kind of experience to promote to future employers," she said.

Wacholder says there are some basic ways to improve chances of employment.

"What everyone should have is a decent resume and a working draft of a cover letter," she said.