True Life | I’m on the #SASearch #17

Hey y’all.

Sorry for the lack of updating lately. I’ve been unmotivated when it has come to the job search lately. I fell in a sort of rut you could say and stopped applying to jobs. The job search is definitely something that can be extremely stressful and tiring and I think it finally hit me. 

At the moment, I’ve applied to 22 jobs. I’ve interviewed for 6 of them, got denied from 6 of them (ironically), have withdrew my application from 2 of them and I am waiting to hear back from the rest of them. I’m sort of in a limbo when it comes to some of the jobs I’ve applied too. I do have a list of about 10 or so jobs I want to sort through and apply to soon. I feel this rut ending which is a good thing.

In the meantime, I’ve applied to some full time positions that are not related to higher education/ student affairs. Although it may not be what I want, I do need a job by the end of the summer before those lovely student loans come in. I will continue to apply to student affairs jobs as the time goes on as I do want to work in higher education more than anything else. 

If anything new happens, I’ll make sure to update you all!

I do want to congratulate my co-blogger on finding a job! I know it was a process so I am sure you are happy to have it over with!

The New Girl #17

Summer Lovin' and Getting Job Ready!!

Hey everyone! Have I told you recently how much I love summer! There is SOOOO much time to do things! Alright, I'll admit, I've been looking forward to my summer ever since I walked across the stage at graduation but now that it is actually here, it was totally worth it! I can relax knowing that I graduated, I finished up my graduate assistantship, and landed a new job! Like I said in my last post, I really enjoy reflecting on my experiences, so here's what I've thought about the most this past week!

~Networking
Creating those lasting relationships!
So I'm so excited to share that my previous supervisor had moved on to her new job but also still keeps in touch with me! I've not only talked with her, but also with some of the student staff that I was able to supervise. Of course, now that we don't work together, they all added me on Facebook or twitter, or other social media applications. Some of them were brave enough to do it in the beginning of second semester even! We have been sharing how our summers are going and a few of my students have even asked how to get into student affairs! I've turned into a mentor and someone they look up to and it feels so great to share my passion with them and help them lay out some plans to find graduate schools and graduate assistantships available. I've also started reaching out to those who I will be working with and expressing my excitement for working for my new institution and staff!

~Materials Overload
What to keep and what to toss?!
So one of my strengths is Input if you are familiar with the StrengthsQuest, I tend to keep everything and collect all kinds of information. I'm hesitant to throw out all my graduate course materials but I know I don't need to hold on to everything. I'm trying to organize each course and decide what would be helpful to keep and look back at. I'm trying to summarize some of my papers and highlight key ideas that we talked about in each class so if there is a situation, I can go back to my graduate work and be able to pull out a theory that is applicable to the situation. It is a TON of work but I hope it will help me in the long run.

~Bright Future
Moving Forward.
I also have been thinking about my new job and the new city I will be living in as well. I've started to make a small notebook with places I'd like to see or events I'd like to go to so when I get an open weekend, I can grab a new co-worker, and get to know them better while getting to know the city better as well!

~There is still hope!
The light at the end of the tunnel.
I've also been hearing that a lot of my friends have been accepting job offers and starting to transition in to their new positions for the upcoming school year. It is always hard to get rejection emails one after the other, but it is important to remember that you need just one job. Not two or three, but simply just one person, one institution to believe in you. It will work out in the end so keep on keeping on and know that there is the right job out there, j=you just have to keep working and searching for it!

Until next time, you know you love the job search! XOXO The New Girl

The New Girl #16

Finding My Summer

My summer has come just as fast as my school year ended. It has been a while since I last posted but let me catch you up.

In my last post, I had let you know that I did receive my first full time offer and that I have accepted officially through Human Resources and completed my official contract letter. I'm so excited to get to know all the new people that I will be working with.

Reflecting on where I am at, I feel so blessed to have a job and to be done with my search. It really was a very stressful situation. I was mostly worried about where I would be working, who I would be working with, how far from friends and family I would be and what I would find to do to entertain myself when I wasn't working. I'm glad to now know where I will be at and who I'll be working with and for. I still have some friends who are searching and I know they are slowly running out of energy. I try to keep them motivated through emails and picture messages. I know they will get jobs and it is only a matter of time before they do. It truly is about fit I think and once you find the right "fit" you will be so glad you did!

I was able to Graduate and move back home to relax for the summer. It certainly has been weird for me to not have a summer job but nice to be able to sleep in and see family more.

I hope to keep you up to date as I slowly start to get ready on my plan for my move and how to make a good impression on my first day and with my future staff! More to come!

You know you love the job search, XOXO Graduated Girl!

True Life | I’m on the #SASearch #16

Updates Part 3

This afternoon, I had a phone interview for a student activities job here in Mass. I really like this position and this institution so I was nervous going into this interview.  Leading up to the interview, I made sure I was very prepared. Before the interview, I printed out my resume and cover letter, the job description, the mission of the school and the department and any information about things that were listed on the job description. I read it ahead of time to make sure I knew some things but it was good to have it printed out for the interview. They only asked me about 10 questions and it lasted about 20 minutes. I was able to ask them some questions as well to get a feel of what the job would entail and what or who I would be working with. I finished the interview with a good feeling so I’m hoping to hear back from them soon. 

In other news, I have a list of about 10 jobs I want to look through and see if I want to apply too. This job search has become really tiring and I’m trying hard not to give up or get too stressed about it.  I would love to have a job already and know where I will be headed before the summer ends. I would love to know if I’ll be staying in Mass or moving out of state. I would love to be able to tell my boyfriend, hey we’re moving to (Insert City or State Here) by the beginning of July or August. I’m a planner, an organizer by nature so not knowing is killing me.

True Life | I’m on the #SASearch #15

Graduation!

As of Saturday, I can officially say I am done with graduate school!

Graduation was at 9:30 in the morning on Saturday. I was so excited and nervous at the same time. Graduation itself was actually really nice. It lasted about two hours and it was beautiful outside so that was good. There were a lot of people at graduation to support the 700 graduate students that had finished this year. It was a great feeling to see my family there and to hear them cheering me on.  My boyfriend, who lives in DC and my Stepdad, who lives in FL, both came up to watch me cross the stage which was a great feeling.

These past two years have definitely been amazing. There were so many people that helped me make it through these two years and make them a great experience. I don’t think I would have been able to make it through without the support of some amazing people.

•  My mom – because she supports me through anything and everything I want to do. She is also my back bone through everything.
•  My boyfriend – because he let me vent to him whenever something went wrong or went well for that matter too. He also was my constant motivator throughout the two years.
• My classmates and program advisor – since they were going through the same thing, they were able to sympathize when I was feeling off or feeling like this may not be for me.
• My internship supervisors – because they allowed me to have great experiences. They let me try 5 different areas of higher education & student affairs to let me see what I thought was the best for me. They also gave me some great advice along the way. 
•  My friends & family – for allowing me to take a break from grad school. Sometimes I need a day to myself and they were there to remind me of that and to take one with me.

I can’t believe that I am officially done. It doesn’t seem real. However, I know the feeling won’t last too long as I plan on going back to get my Ph.D. or Ed.D. soon. I can’t get enough of school apparently.

The New Girl #15

Oh Happy Days!!!

I am so excited to share with you all the I received a job for the upcoming school year! Wahoo!! It feels so good to be done searching and know that my hard work has paid off. 

It was an interesting process to say the least. I went to the Oshkosh Placement Exchange and interviewed with this school back in February, went to an on-campus in April, and now accepted a position this May! The process of receiving an offer over a phone call was something else too. I was so excited I screamed! I know super professional(sarcasm) but I was so excited! I probably scared the woman on the other end of the phone, but not enough to make her regret offering me a position. I'll be starting Mid-July so I will have time to enjoy my summer and soak up the sun before I move on to my new position and my third institution I have worked at. 

A little more about the process: I received a phone call on Tuesday morning with the offer. After screaming in the employer's ear, I asked for time to consider the offer as I was very excited for the offer but wanted to really consider what I was going to be devoting myself to. I was given til Thursday to call back with my answer. I then set out to review the job description and clarify the position one more time. I also reviewed the benefits as I would now be moving off of my parent's insurance and onto my own. I looked also at the pros and cons list I had made on my way home from the on-campus visit. I called the office back first thing Thursday and accepted the offer verbally over the phone. Within the next day, I received an email with my written offer, I printed it and just mailed it back to the office yesterday(Monday)! 

To all those still searching, keep your head up! I know my supervisor is still searching and she has been getting a lot of phone interviews and on-campus offers out there. The hiring process goes in waves so don't give up and keep looking for new openings as the summer is upon us and you never know what could happen! 

To all my loyal readers out there, thank you for partaking in my experience and my first job search. It has been quite the experience and I'm glad I could share it with you!

You know you'd love to have a job! XOXO Graduate Girl

True Life | I’m on the #SASearch #14

Rejection

“We regret to inform you that you are no longer being considered for this position.”

“We appreciate the time, energy and effort involved in your application for this position. However, School Name regrets to inform you that we are unable to pursue your candidacy further on this occasion.”

“The search committee has completed its initial evaluation, and, at this time, we are moving forward with other applicants we feel have all the required and preferred qualifications we seek for this position.”

Within this past week, I’ve received three rejection emails from schools I have applied to. Let me tell you, it sucks. I know it was going to happen seeing as I can’t have every job I’ve applied to, however I didn’t think it was going to be as bad of a feeling as it is. Two of the schools that I got rejections from, I really liked the position so that added more hurt to the letters.  I’m going to use these as a motivation for when I do get interviews from other schools. I know that there is a job and school out there that will be a great fit for me. 

Sorry this one is so short. I just needed to get it off my chest. Getting rejections emails suck, especially since you don’t get to know why. They just tell you thank you but no thank you and that’s it.

On another note, graduation is on Saturday!!! I am beyond excited!