What Graduates Should Consider When Taking a Job Offer
You’re about to graduate and have finally been offered a job that sounds too good to be true. Due to your desperation to graduate with a job lined up, you may feel obligated to immediately take the first thing that is thrown at you. However, you must weigh out certain pros and cons and consider several things before you impulsively tie the knot.
First, ask yourself if the job has training lined up for you. The first job you get after graduating will set you on the path for the rest of your life. This job must give you some sort of experience that will help you progress throughout your career. Make sure that your boss has a training program lined up for you, allowing you to experience and learn new techniques and ideas that will help improve your overall skills.
Next, think about how your degree will be used. As a graduate, you do not want to find yourself in a career that has nothing to do with your degree. You did not go through all the hard work of earning that degree for four years to end up in a completely different career. You do not want to take your first job and be stepping down, you want to step up! Make sure the job will give you some sort of a challenge. It is not necessary to accept your first job already knowing how to do everything- you will learn along the way; however, use your skills that you learned throughout school to help you to be successful in your job.
On the other hand, make sure you are not taking a job that is over your head. Before accepting the job, make sure you know exactly what it entails. Additionally, make sure you know how much support you will be getting. If there is something you do not fully grasp or understand, make sure you will be set up with some sort of training. If you take a job that is far too complicated or senior for you, you will end up finding yourself ‘taking the easy way out’ instead of fully completing a task. Make sure you climb the ladder to get to the top.
Something that is very overlooked when looking for your first job is how far the commute is. It is easy to look at your dream job that is over an hour away and convince yourself that it will all work out fine. It’s easier to say than actually do. Being stuck in hours of traffic during rush hour or in bad weather conditions will put a damper on your day and may affect you in the workplace. Make sure the commute is doable and will not be too difficult to deal with.
Lastly, make sure you like the people you would be working with. This is a place where you will spend the majority of time for the next couple of years. Be sure that you like the atmosphere of the job as well as the people that you will be spending your time with. If you do not see yourself forming good relationships with your co-workers, or you do not like the way the company is run, it may not be the job for you.
All of these things are great to consider when deciding whether or not to accept your first job after graduating. Although it is ideal to graduate having a job lined up- do not rush it!
