If you read my previous post (The Job Gods Have Spoken) then you know that this past Friday I had my first interview since starting my job search. While it wasn't necessarily an interview for a paid position, it was for an internship that could offer me a lot of good experience and the potential for a full-time position. However, though the interview went well (I was offered the internship position), I left saying that I needed to think about it before I accepted.
You might ask why I wouldn't jump at the opportunity to accept an internship that could offer me some good work experience and (hopefully...potentially) a full-time paid position. I had gone into the interview feeling really great and even left the interview feeling the same way. The people who interviewed me were impressed with me and my resume and thought that I could be a good asset to their growing company and additionally, that I had the potential to do a great job. This was really encouraging, considering it has been about a month now and I've had little activity in terms of interviews and job offer, despite multiple job applications and submissions. However, as with any decision that one has to make, I played devil's advocate with myself, because I realized I have now entered the era of big decisions (insert eerie Twilight Zone music here).
What I mean by "the era of big decisions" is now that I'm out of college and have my degree, I need to really figure out what I want to do with all of that education. I am going to be faced with many challenging decisions that will directly affect my every day life and the course of my career path. It's both intimidating and overwhelming -- and I suppose exciting to a certain extent. Of course, this is what plagued me during my drive home from the interview.
Yes, I was excited about being offered a position and I'd finally start getting some of that valuable work experience. And after being holed up at home with only my job hunt to fill my days, I am ready work and be busy again. But at the same time, do I settle for an unpaid position? I know I need the experience, but I also need to start making money and start being more independent. I can't live under my parents' roof forever and more than anything, I need to buy a car so I can actually drive to an internship or job and not have to arrange a driving schedule with my mom and brother to have car access. I would be devoting at least three days a week to this unpaid internship, leaving me with only four days of the week to attribute to working another job.
When I think about ultimately where I want my career to go, this internship is not necessarily 100% in line with those career goals. It's not as if taking this internship would prevent me from being able to set my career on the path I'm considering, but if I'm going to settle for something unpaid -- shouldn't it be a position where I can be mentored by someone who has a job that I want? Or that is in the direct field I want? These are the things I've been contemplating.
I know I can't be picky in this job market. And truthfully, I'm not. But this is an unpaid position. If it were a paid position, I'd probably take it. It's not 100% in line with what I'm looking to do, but it would give me some skills that would make me an even more valuable candidate for another job. The fact that not only would this be unpaid and not in the direct field I'm hoping to pursue, but that I would have to continue my job hunt for something part-time -- those are some formidable factors that I'm up against.
These are all of my thoughts as I continue my job search and think about this pending offer. Would you take the position? Or would you keep looking? It's only been a month, should I be jumping at this opportunity or persevere in my search for something entry-level and paid? Big decisions.
You might ask why I wouldn't jump at the opportunity to accept an internship that could offer me some good work experience and (hopefully...potentially) a full-time paid position. I had gone into the interview feeling really great and even left the interview feeling the same way. The people who interviewed me were impressed with me and my resume and thought that I could be a good asset to their growing company and additionally, that I had the potential to do a great job. This was really encouraging, considering it has been about a month now and I've had little activity in terms of interviews and job offer, despite multiple job applications and submissions. However, as with any decision that one has to make, I played devil's advocate with myself, because I realized I have now entered the era of big decisions (insert eerie Twilight Zone music here).
What I mean by "the era of big decisions" is now that I'm out of college and have my degree, I need to really figure out what I want to do with all of that education. I am going to be faced with many challenging decisions that will directly affect my every day life and the course of my career path. It's both intimidating and overwhelming -- and I suppose exciting to a certain extent. Of course, this is what plagued me during my drive home from the interview.
Yes, I was excited about being offered a position and I'd finally start getting some of that valuable work experience. And after being holed up at home with only my job hunt to fill my days, I am ready work and be busy again. But at the same time, do I settle for an unpaid position? I know I need the experience, but I also need to start making money and start being more independent. I can't live under my parents' roof forever and more than anything, I need to buy a car so I can actually drive to an internship or job and not have to arrange a driving schedule with my mom and brother to have car access. I would be devoting at least three days a week to this unpaid internship, leaving me with only four days of the week to attribute to working another job.
When I think about ultimately where I want my career to go, this internship is not necessarily 100% in line with those career goals. It's not as if taking this internship would prevent me from being able to set my career on the path I'm considering, but if I'm going to settle for something unpaid -- shouldn't it be a position where I can be mentored by someone who has a job that I want? Or that is in the direct field I want? These are the things I've been contemplating.
I know I can't be picky in this job market. And truthfully, I'm not. But this is an unpaid position. If it were a paid position, I'd probably take it. It's not 100% in line with what I'm looking to do, but it would give me some skills that would make me an even more valuable candidate for another job. The fact that not only would this be unpaid and not in the direct field I'm hoping to pursue, but that I would have to continue my job hunt for something part-time -- those are some formidable factors that I'm up against.
These are all of my thoughts as I continue my job search and think about this pending offer. Would you take the position? Or would you keep looking? It's only been a month, should I be jumping at this opportunity or persevere in my search for something entry-level and paid? Big decisions.
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