Pandemic Life of a Soon to Be College Graduate

by Callum Lee

4/21/21

            One of the worst things about the pandemic is that I’ve got too much time to think, about my career, my life, my relationships. All the after-college crap that I’ve got to deal with that’s just looming on the horizon, super pressing and urgent since I’m about to graduate in a couple months. I’ve never really known what I wanted to do with my life, mostly because in high school, everything just seemed so clear cut. If you were good at science, you decided on doctor. If you were good at sports, kinesiology. Anything else, like history, art, English, you had to be a teacher. Because what else could you do with those social science and arts degrees? Even now, staring down the end of my education, I can’t say the path is any clearer to me, but I guess I’ve narrowed things down.

            I know I’m interested in publishing books, working with writers, making books and that sort of stuff. I like being close to that creative vein, close to the words and inspiration from being around like-minded individuals. And my uncle also mentioned copywriting for companies, how it’s a solid job. It sounds like a lot of desk work, but whatever makes money, right? Whatever helps me move out of the house? I applied for the internship at the company he works at, so hopefully that’ll pan out.

4/25/21

            So, it didn’t work out. I got an email from the internship, letting me know that I didn’t get it. I know I should be used to it: I’m 21 years old and I’ve only had 2 jobs in my life and neither lasted long (due to the company closing or COVID-19). At least they sent a consolation email, to let me know that it’s not them, it’s me, but good luck on your future endeavors anyway. I think it stings a little more because compared to my engineering friends and business friends who already have jobs lined up after grad, I’m lagging behind. And there’s nobody to blame but myself, for not applying to internships earlier or not having enough experience because I’ve only had two jobs in my life. I know I’ve been privileged, lucky enough to take it easy during college and not have to work in order to attend.

            In theory, my life shouldn’t be hard. I breezed through high school, through college with decent grades. My parents paid for my college tuition and my rent and my groceries up until third year, when I got a real job. I know I can move back home after graduation, so there’s no life-or-death urgency to getting a job. But I also know I’m always hard on myself. What’s going on externally shows nothing about what’s happening internally, which is where all my hard work and conflicts and struggles have been. Mentally, I’ve always been strong, determined, willful. But now, I want to be ambitious. I want to apply that drive towards my future. I can still change.

It’s not too late.

www.linkedin.com/in/callum-lee1/

Why a Recent Grad Could Be Your Best Candidate

In our line of work, we have found so many great candidates with so much potential yet many positions out there require some experience for certain jobs, this is especially true in healthcare. When considering your next hire, consider hiring a recent college graduate, it could be just the right decision for your company.

Below are a few  reasons why:

1. Training- Teach and mold as you see fit for your company
A major advantage of hiring a recent college grad is that you may very well be the first to train them professionally. They may have had internships in college but as an employer you will be the first to  actually implement processes and policies in the workplace. They  will soak up all they have to learn in respects to  your systems, how your company does things, and what works for you. Hiring a new grad is a great opportunity to mold positive habits rather than trying to undue bad habits, this is  a huge advantage.

2. Ready, willing and able
At ultraHealth we are always are looking for fresh new ideas, new skills, and new perspectives to our team. We have been able to implement this with our college interns. Our hopes are to assist them in their job search after college while gaining meaningful experience. But for the graduates ready to work, they want to prove themselves as assets and contributors to the company’s overall mission and values. For employers,  this is a great chance to hire that up-and-comer who is  motivated and talented and ready  to make an impact to your company.

3. Emphasis on diversity and culture
From many of my previous articles and interviews, a common theme has been culture and improving overall or maintaining positive culture. Hiring young talent could be great PR for the company. Young people want to love where they work. Through word of mouth, it is culture that will drive young people to  want your  workplace to become “the place” that job seekers want to go to for innovation and ideas that embraces diversity. Hiring recent grads is where this pays off, they will share their satisfaction online, and various social media platforms that may attract other great talent to want to work at your company.

4. Technologically savvy
With a younger work force, you will rarely ever have to worry about technology learning curves.  With recent college grads, they’ve grown up around technology – and it will make it that much easier to become familiar with company . This will save the employer so much time on training and will allow the recent grads time to focus on working hard and establishing their place in the company.

5. Motivating your current staff

Sometimes complacency is a problem at work, this can be especially concerning when innovation and growth is such a big part of the company mission and culture. Hiring a rising young star, that  is a go-getter with confidence could help in  motivating current complacent employees. There is always the risk of creating division between the top performers who have been there for quite some time and the eager newcomers, still, both should be encouraged, because those eager newcomers can very well turn into your top superstars as well.

At ultraHealth Agency we have 3 great interns; Cynthia Aparicio, Collette Ussery, and Aubree Ouellette. They have been with us for a few months now and have brought so much life to our company and fresh ideas to help grow our company. We decided to hire interns for all the reasons mentioned above, but more than anything we want to encourage them to keep reaching for their goals and aspirations and if we can assist in anyway, we are here to do so. Check out our college corner to learn more about these amazing women. They are ready to work and already have impressive accomplishments under the belts. Check them out, you’d be lucky just as we have been to hire them to be a part of your team!