A College Degree & Internship(s) Aren’t Enough

By Heather R. Huhman | Published: May 3, 2011

It’s time to face the harsh reality that the world of work has changed dramatically in recent years. Argue all you want about why and how unfair it is, but good luck changing things “back to the way they were.” If you think about it, the workplace has always been changing and evolving. You’re probably just noticing it more now because you’re ready to join the workforce.

Throughout your life, you were probably told that a college degree would guarantee you a job after graduation. Nope. Once you started college, everyone told you to get as many internships as you could and that would guarantee you a job after graduation. Wrong again.

Let me give you an analogy.

If you bought a treadmill, would you be guaranteed to lose weight? As a former treadmill owner, I can tell you the answer is “no.” In order to lose weight, you have to use the treadmill–it can’t just sit there collecting dust. And trust me, complaining about the fact that you’re not losing weight doesn’t help either! Instead, you need to get off your butt and accept the fact that weight loss will only happen when you take the appropriate action with the treadmill: burning more calories than you consume.

The same applies to your entry-level job search.

Trust me, you’re going to need the degree and the internships (just like the treadmill), but having them simply isn’t enough. The people who get hired do more than pull all their information together on a resume and submit it to a job board. They follow the steps I outline in my free e-book, Attention Job Seekers: Your Search is at Stake! 9 Steps to Becoming an Expert Marketer & Getting Hired in Today’s Digital World, and take other actions to go above and beyond their fellow candidates.

Not every single person deserves or is a good fit for every single job. Rejection is going to happen during your job search. Life is tough, but the good things in life are worth working and fighting for. Stop blaming the system and take back control of your career.

Do you agree or disagree? How did you land your first job out of college?

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  • http://www.fellowstream.com Deborah Fike

    Very well put, Heather. I had several internships, great grades, and a practical college degree, and it was still a struggle getting a job back in 2003. You have to own your career growth, and that often means searching long before you graduate and preparing for rejection.

    That being said, if you’re proactive at building a network, it makes things a lot easier. And you can do this as a student, if you’re willing to put in time to seek out alumni in related fields and use part of your educational time to research companies and do informational interviews.

  • Daniela Capistrano

    I agree that it takes more than a degree and internships to land an entry level position. I strongly push for every young person I meet to pursue higher education and to complete their degree (you need all the tools in your arsenal that you can leverage!), however my own experience was very different. I landed my first entry level position through a temp agency as a result of my high administrative testing scores (Word, Outlook, wpm, etc.) and personality. I had taught myself how to use those programs at home on my mother’s computer.

    After joining the temp agency at 17, (had graduated from High School at 16) I worked as an office admin at a special needs school. That position became permanent, and then I moved on to other administrative staff positions at other nonprofit organizations. At 20 I started organizing my own arts & film events and leveraged that experience to gain an internship in NYC after I moved here in 2004 (without being in school — it does happen!).

    From there, I volunteered at film festivals around the city and networked in other ways. I made many mistakes and took many risks. I landed my first paid production assistant position in 2005 and grew professionally through more networking and hard work. I still have not completed my degree but don’t regret my choices. I will eventually attain that goal but for now I’m happy being an experienced professional in my field of interest and know that I would not be here if I hadn’t completed internships (my own DIY versions of them), independently studied/taught myself marketable skills, networked my butt off, and stayed inform about industry news and opportunities.

    I don’t think my path would have been successful if I had wanted to be, let’s say, a doctor :) but for my own goals my choices did work for me.

    There are obvious issues not being addressed in this post tied to race/class that fortunately I didn’t have to deal with (being a fair skinned minority), but if you really want something you will rise above any challenge and find people who support your dreams. Racism persists but people of color (and I identity as POC) need to believe in themselves and never give up. Just as important, employers need to cultivate an environment that supports diversity and take an honest look at their own biases. My two cents.

    Cheers,

    Daniela Capistrano
    http://www.danielacapistrano.com