- Paola Lopez, Graduating Senior
photo credit: Paola Lopez
LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J.—As the semester winds down and students are studying for finals, one particular group is anxiously awaiting their May 2012 graduation, a day that felt like it would never come.
As incoming freshman in 2008, the class of 2012 couldn’t begin to imagine the kind of experience they would have at Rider University, let alone the affect the school would have on them and their future.
Yes they’ve studied the methods, terminology and practices of their future careers, but are they really prepared to enter the real world with that alone? Most professors stress the importance of internships, the more the merrier, but career services and internship advisors suggest that students start later in their college career which could either be a positive or a negative. A positive being that they learn more about their chosen profession and gain a contact, a negative if they decide it’s not for them and have to start back at square one.
“I had two internships while attending Rider. Both internships have greatly helped me get a direction to see if I really enjoyed doing that job or not,” said Christina Potter, a senior Communications Speech and Interpersonal major at Rider University. “Last summer I worked for Johnson & Johnson in the Public Relations field and this past fall and spring semester I worked at a nonprofit event planning foundation right in Lawrenceville. After these two amazing internships I had a better understanding of the real world and that maybe these particular fields [were] not for me. I am so glad I [had] these internships, it is probably the best thing anyone can do. Also, it is real work, not assignments out of a textbook saying ‘if you were in this job, how would you handle the x and y situation?’”
- Christina Potter, Graduating Senior
photo credit: Christina Potter
Students are finding experience to be invaluable, whether it helps in the future or not, and getting that internship or job should be an obligatory practice at Rider.
Potter expressed that she wished the University had a co-op program that was mandatory, “most of my professors were amazing and did a great job teaching and communicating the course, but getting experience is everything. Experience in an internship or co-op will help you with your career, not a textbook.”
With a mandatory co-op program, students would be able to get their foot in the door and gain contacts with-in their industry; with the job market being extremely difficult for college graduates, having their name and reputation out there would give them a leg up on the competition.
In an Associated Press (AP) article titled, ‘In Weak Job Market, One in Two College Graduates Are Jobless or Underemployed’ by Hope Yen, Yen states, “About 1.5 million, or 53.6 percent, of bachelor’s degree-holders under the age of 25 last year [2011] were jobless or underemployed.”
Many graduating seniors are afraid of what will happen once they are handed that diploma and are thrown into the daunting life of unemployment and job searching.
“Most students are aware of the scarcity in jobs. Also as a result of the rise in unemployment, competition has become more fierce because no longer are we competing with our classmates or other university students, but now we are competing with business professionals who have a variety of experience but have recently been laid off,” said Paola Lopez, a senior accounting major at Rider University.
An April 18 Huffington Post article titled, ‘Unemployed College Graduates As Vulnerable as High School Dropouts To Long-Term Unemployment: Report’ by Bonnie Kavoussi compared the unemployment rate of college graduates to the unemployment rate of high school dropouts saying, “Thirty five percent of unemployed college graduates and those with advanced degrees have been without a job for more than a year, the same rate as unemployed high school dropouts.”
With statistics like that, it’s no wonder why students feel the need to continue their education in graduate school and attain a Masters degree, a Law degree, a PhD, etc.; many hope that by the time their done with grad school the market will even out or their advanced degree will make it easier to gain employment.
“The scarcity in jobs today is causing many students to begin considering master programs or specialization to give themselves a competitive edge,” said Lopez.
Senior Public Relations major at Rider University, Morgan Todd agrees, saying, “Many people who have graduated get internships and not full time jobs, which is why I think people are scared. I would definitely consider graduate school because it will further my knowledge in a more specified area and I will gain credentials most employers in my field are looking for.”
- Morgan Todd, Graduating Senior
photo credit: Samantha Conforti
The delay in employment through graduate school or the rough job search along with the high cost of student loans has forced many college graduates to give up their dream of immediate independence and move back in with mom and dad.
“As a student your thought is always to buy your own apartment and become independent from your parents, but the constant increase in tuition each year forces you to prioritize your next move after graduation because of the major debt you have once you graduate,” explained Lopez.
Although it’s a hard reality, some students are coming to terms with this financial commitment. “I’m not afraid of the debt I have, I just will be working for a long time to pay them off,” said Todd.
There are mere weeks between now and graduation and every senior is feeling a mix of emotions.
“I’m very nervous because it is a big world out there with so many options to go for and ways to change your life,” declared Todd.
Lopez had the opposite to say. “I’m extremely excited to graduate college and begin the next step in my life; however I will definitely miss the summer, winter and spring vacations I had taken for granted.”
For Potter, graduation has a more sentimental significance.“My mom graduated from Rider, so she too is excited to see me walk in her same foot steps.”
As the day approaches, while many students will be starting their summer vacations and prepping for the next school year, graduating seniors will be saying goodbye to their college years and hello to the rest of their lives.
Contact information for interviewees:
Paola Lopez- (732) 778-9815, lopezp@rider.edu
Morgan Todd- (908) 268-5681, toddm@rider.edu
Christina Potter- (908) 752-9698, potterc@rider.edu
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