Kim
When you're fresh out of college is it best to work for a while, travel, or go straight to Grad school?
I'm curious about the current state of the job market as it pertains to the hiring rate of students fresh out of college with their first Bachelor's degree. Do most employers favor new grads who've worked while in school? If so, how do students who have little work experience due to being committed full-time to their education go out and get jobs after graduating? Also, from the perspective of grad schools, do they prefer students fresh out of undergrad or is it best to work for a year or two before applying to grad schools so your resume is more substantial? Do they care about your resume or just your academic track record? #graduate-school #college-admissions #job-search #college-jobs #recruiting #hiring #employment #job-market #job-application
4 answers
Tiffany Conaway
Tiffany’s Answer
1. I'm curious about the current state of the job market as it pertains to the hiring rate of students fresh out of college with their first Bachelor's degree.
- Not to sugarcoat things, the job market right now is admittedly going to be difficult to get into, especially if you don't have any existing work experience. With that said, it's never too late to focus on side hustles, building your knowledge on specific areas of interest, taking this time to network with people who interest you based on their current or past roles etc. Viewing this as a time to hustle and expand your knowledge will greatly benefit you in the long run.
2. Do most employers favor new grads who've worked while in school? If so, how do students who have little work experience due to being committed full-time to their education go out and get jobs after graduating?
- The unfortunate answer here is, companies much more prefer your work experience over how well you've done in school. They want someone who ideally has balanced both internships and school as it shows you are an all around great candidate. Some fields specific to science or engineering highly prefer that their candidates have strong GPAs and projects from classwork to show. The best advice here is you have to find a way to balance it all as especially in business, companies prefer candidates who have had past experience.
3. Also, from the perspective of grad schools, do they prefer students fresh out of undergrad or is it best to work for a year or two before applying to grad schools so your resume is more substantial? Do they care about your resume or just your academic track record?
- I would only think about grad school if you truly want to pursue higher education in a field that requires you have a masters. Otherwise you are setting yourself up for additional student debt with no guarantee of job prospects. Grad school shouldn't be something you do because there isn't any other option available, it's only something you should pursue if you truly want higher education in a specific field.
-Resumes are incredibly important in showing what you've done and why it's relevant for the job. It's meant to be a starting point for conversation to pique interest in you as a candidate so it is important as it's your first foot into the door typically.
Leah Philllips
Leah’s Answer
Students who have little experience working, whether that be an internship, full-time job, or even volunteering, will likely have some trouble finding an entry-level job following graduation. So many job openings require prior experience in the industry you want to work in. It can be a catch-22 of sorts- you cannot get a job without prior experience, but you cannot get experience without securing a job. That seems to be the trend across all industries.
In my experience, grad schools really value experience in whatever concentration you want to pursue, whether that is made during undergrad or in the time after graduation. Trust me when I say they do not solely look at your academic record, but evaluate your entire college and post-college career. If you can't get internship, volunteer experience, or job experience during your undergrad, get some the year or two afterwards and you'll greatly increase your chances of getting a better job or acceptance to grad school.
Hope this helped!
Hi, Leah! Thanks for answering my question. I agree, getting more work experience before applying to grad school, is likely the course of action I'll be taking. Hopefully, this will help any other students who are in this position as well.
Kim
John Cline
John’s Answer
Kim,
In my opinion, I think they are all good options. When you travel you gain very valuable knowledge about the world. You see different cultures and grow excited and empathetic towards different experiences. When you work, you gain professional skills and start applying yourself towards a goal. When you get further education you continue to learn and grow, and earn a degree. Your career will be 30-40 years long, most likely. Taking a year (or several) to figure out what you want to do, will not dis advantage you in the long term. Everyone I meet here at Google has had a completely different career and journey to where they are (some more conventional and some are very adventurous). Good luck!
Hi, John! Thanks for your response, I appreciate it.
Kim
Of course. The fact that you are asking these questions tells me that you are going to do well in "the real world"!
John Cline
Victor Pinto
Victor’s Answer
I think they all are good options, depending on each person. I personally recommend working before pursuing more education, one of the reasons is that work experience will allow to practice what you have learned already and also look at other realistic problems/solutions that you usually dont learn in school. In addition, many times it has happen that people were set on studying a particular field, but after being exposed to the workforce, they realized that they enjoy other career interest, so they change their career goals. Lastly, traveling could also help you clear your mind and be more focus on your studies, but it all depends on your particular situation.