Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category
A Career Makeover for the Young Professional
Saturday, March 12th, 2011When you’re busy and you’ve established a routine, it’s easy to put career thoughts on the backburner. It’s like your health. If a body part doesn’t actively hurt, you’re not forced to pay attention. In the same way, your career may seem on track. If you’re doing well and there’s no evidence of trouble on the horizon, it’s tempting to keep your head down, work hard, and maintain the status quo. But if you do that, you may not see opportunities that better match your values and interests.
Once you start looking around you may also find that your concept of career is no longer accurate. Employees now move jobs and change careers regularly. And there aren’t hard and fast rules for getting ahead anymore. Mid-career professionals can learn something younger grads already know: When it comes to finding a path to your ideal position, you’re the one in the driver’s seat. Don’t count on anyone taking you along for the ride.
So if you want a career makeover, where do you start? Here’s a four-pronged approach. First, examine yourself. Second, identify a good fit. Third, think like an employer. And finally, get your own board.
Career Advice for the 2011 College Grad
Tuesday, March 8th, 2011For college seniors, graduation is no longer something on the distant horizon. It’s only a couple of months away. For the student still seeking post-graduate employment–as most are–that means there are only a few remaining weeks to work on career preparation before exams loom. It’s tempting to throw in the towel, and simply enjoy the remains of the college experience. But savvy students will take advantage of college resources to put a career strategy in place before they graduate. In doing so, they will set themselves apart from the competition, and reduce the time it takes to find a position. The following ten action steps provide the basic foundation for success:
2011 College Grads Still Face Uphill Employment Battle
Wednesday, February 9th, 2011High school seniors who matriculated at four-year colleges in 2007 have seen the best and worst of economic times during their time in school. As they prepare to graduate, many must be thanking fate for the positive developments currently emerging in the employment market.
There is cause for optimism. Employers are returning to career fairs, and according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the overall unemployment rate for college grads over the age of 25 has decreased from a high of 5.3% in July, 2009 to a seasonally non-adjusted rate of 4.5% in January, 2011.
But economic gains have, so far, not benefitted new college grads, whose unemployment rate in January stood at a decades-high 10.8%.
College Loans Should Come with a Uniform Warning Label
Monday, February 7th, 2011For the student applying for significant loans, the challenge of finding a well-paying job should be a cause for serious worry. The Department of Education estimates that in 2009, only 56% of students at private non-profit colleges were in repayment of their student loans four years after they graduated or left school. That figure dips to 54% for students at public non-profit institutions and plummets to 36% for students at for-profit colleges.
Perhaps it is time to put a warning label on every college loan that says: “This college loan may adversely affect your financial health. A college degree does not guarantee that you will receive a post-graduate job with a salary sufficient to repay your loans. Further, your debts cannot be discharged through bankruptcy.”
The Education of Fortune 100 CEO’s: An Update for 2011
Sunday, January 16th, 2011In an article titled “Do You Need An Ivy League Degree to Rise to the Top in Business”, dated September 14, 2009, I made observations on a recently released report of the educational background of Fortune 100 CEOs. That report has now been revised, and it is obvious that there has been much upheaval in the upper echelons of business. Twelve percent of companies on the 2011 list are new, and stalwarts like Motorola, Phillip Morris and Macy’s are nowhere to be seen. But in terms of education, the CEOs from the new companies, and new CEO’s of other Fortune 100 companies, have much in common with those who made the list last year.
Interesting facts for 2011 include the following:
• 18 CEOs have an Ivy League undergraduate education
Improving Employment Market Leaves New College Grads Out in the Cold
Sunday, January 9th, 2011There are numerous indications that the overall job market is improving. According to Indeed.com, a company that tracks job postings nationwide, 2010 saw an 88% overall uptick in listings over 2009. Some fields fared better than others: after significant declines in recent years, information technology listings in 2010 were up by 82% over 2009, and listings in the media rose by a similar percentage. Over 700,000 positions were advertised in health care in 2010. This positive trend is likely to continue in 2011. Michigan State’s Recruiting Trends, 2010-11 reports that employers of bachelors’ degree grads predict 10% more hiring this year.
But the good news in some quarters is tempered by troubling unemployment statistics for new college graduates.
More Jobs, Higher Unemployment: A Confusing Message for the Class of 2010
Monday, August 9th, 2010The Class of 2010 has graduated into the worst economy in living memory. Those with bachelor’s degrees are joining their under-25 peers in a job market where 11.7% of their cohort is unemployed. And, while other segments of the market recover, the situation for recent graduates is deteriorating. In July 2009, the unemployment rate for college graduates with bachelor’s degrees was 10.1%. A year later, it is 15% higher. Those who chose to “ride out the economy” when the job market first slipped, made a serious error in judgment.
There is no doubt that it is hard for college graduates to find work. But dig deeper in the Bureau of Labor Statistics data, and the news is less gloomy. More that a 100,000 more college graduates are employed in July, 2010 than were employed two years ago.
Careers and College Debt: Don’t Blame the Parents
Friday, June 4th, 2010There is no doubt that today’s college graduates often leave school owing more money than they can easily repay. Writing in The New York Times on May 28, 2010, Ron Lieber puts the blame on higher education, banks and families. Many families have, indeed, been loath to put the brakes on excessive borrowing for college, but I believe Mr. Lieber’s finger pointing at parents misses a very important point.
Parents allow, and even encourage, their children to borrow for college, because they believe higher education provides an economic return on investment in the form of a well-paid job. The better the school (so parents think), the more likely the student will access the path to prosperity. Small wonder that the parent profiled by Mr. Lieber supported her daughter’s desire to attend NYU, even if it meant borrowing many thousands of dollars. Numerous ranking systems are testament to the perceived value of a particular school.
Probe the prosperity assumption just a little, however, and it rapidly disintegrates….
College Seniors: Don’t Go To Graduate School
Monday, April 5th, 2010The Class of 2010 must be cursing their collective bad luck. For most of their college career, they watched employers wooing their older classmates with promises of high salaries and signing bonuses. Then they sat back, dumbfounded, as the Class of 2009 confronted the worst hiring situation in decades. Now, they have to face the fact that the jobs recovery still remains elusively over the horizon.
Careers and the College Grad: Predictions for 2010 and beyond
Saturday, January 2nd, 2010December 31, 2009: The Wall Street Journal’s lead story proclaims that 2009 was a banner year for stocks. This is great news for parents paying for their children’s increasingly expensive college education from hard-earned savings. Yet the good economic news disguises an ugly fact: unemployment figures continued to rise throughout 2009, only flattening out towards the end of the year. And, none of the experts expect a significant improvement in the employment picture anytime soon.
Based on my reading of the statistical tea leaves, along with anecdotal data from clients, I have five predictions each for college students, and for the career services offices that help them figure out and find their futures.