After graduating
from the University of Arizona I did what most recent graduates do, I started
my job hunt. Of course, I applied for graduate school. The applications fees
alone I couldn’t really afford, but just in case I got funded I figured it was
worth a shot. But I also know an advanced degree is not worth it if I have to
take on more debt. There are just too many horror stories, and if a good job
was to come along, you can bet I would jump on it. With that in mind I took a
few days to revamp my resume and my cover letter, making sure to update that I
had a shiny new Bachelor of Arts. I was proud, at least for a little while.
Right out of the
gate I was hopeful. I managed to score an interview fairly quickly, and though
the position was only part time, it was a good start. Everything was going
well, until the first question, “Can you explain your employment gap?” I was
completely unprepared. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been, but I’d never considered
that my last year of college, in which I didn’t work, would be seen as an
employment gap. It was an implication that I had been doing nothing. If I
wasn’t working, if I didn’t have a job, I certainly needed to explain myself.
Through out college
I had worked. Often at more than one job, and at one point three. However, even
working I couldn’t afford my undergraduate education, and I still took out
loans. It all takes a toll, and in my final year I wanted no distractions. I
didn’t consider myself unemployed. I was a student, and I even volunteered to get
experience for my resume working in museum collections. Which means I am a
collections assistant without the pay. The experience I gained certainly makes
it worth it, and it gives me something to do now that I don’t have school or a
job, but my employment gap only continues to widen.
When I was in school
I didn’t think much about what I would do after graduation. It was something
far away, and I believed I would fair better because I had a college degree. In
reality, I’m somehow not qualified enough for data entry, or answering phones,
even waitressing requires experience. I need an administration certificate, or
a degree in secretarial sciences, not a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, with
a minor in Classics. Maybe I chose poorly, but I’m not so certain it’s that
simple. My degree was writing intensive, taught me how to research anything,
and shows dedication to hard work. I didn’t just learn Anthropology in college,
though that is what my degree is in, I believe I’ve been prepared for hard
work, to do whatever is asked of me, and it shows that I can learn anything if
given the opportunity.
But that is also the
hard part. I need the opportunity, an opportunity that doesn’t seem to be
there. It would be different if it was just a few of us struggling, but so many
recent graduates are falling behind. Our lives are on hold because we can’t
afford to move forward. With debt, poor opportunities, and no health insurance
we won’t be buying houses or cars anytime soon. We’ll be holding off on
marriage, and children. All those things our parents had, that can drive the
economy forward, and that people expect of those our age. It’s all on hold, and
some of us fear it will always be.
