I have no idea what the future holds for me. Everyone wants to know what is next. I believe that as a senior this is a common experience, but I have come to dread these questions. One of the most prominent questions that I am facing right now is about job opportunities.
There is a huge pressure as commencement looms. The answers to where I will be living and working are still up in the air.
I am trying my best not to become discouraged with the countless cover letters I am sending out, but I also do not want to disappoint those in my life that have supported me this far.
I want to be a journalist. That is something that I have been working towards since I was in high school. I have been regularly applying on sites like Indeed and LinkedIn, and yet it just feels as though I am falling behind.
I thought I would have a lot more figured out by now, but it would not be adulting without a few bumps along the way.
Almost every job opportunity in journalism requires three to five years of experience in a major market or publication. For some reason, these are marked as entry-level positions. This of course narrows my job market to the actual entry-level positions I am applying for.
The job market continues to evolve and the requirements that graduates need in order to be hired out of college fully depends on the desired career choice.
Before, an entry-level job would provide the experience needed to build a career. Now it appears that internships have begun to replace the experience of an entry-level job.
I have only had two internships in my time here at Lasell University, which is typically the norm for most majors on campus. However, my two semesters of internships do not provide the required length of experience to get me an entry-level position in the field of journalism.
This is what I appreciate most about my time with my extracurriculars on campus like the 1851 Chronicle, POLISHED Magazine, and the Student Government Association. All of my extracurriculars have exposed me to different mediums in the field of communications. They assisted in gaining my internship opportunities and preparing me for my future more than any course here has.
I am still holding out hope that I will have a job opportunity by the time that I graduate, but I am more conscious now than I was in my first year at Lasell on just how difficult entering the workforce will be.