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I worked in higher ed for years before gong back to school. Lots of the administrative staff kept those jobs for YEARS in every college I worked, that or transferred jobs between departments. Usually these are very steady jobs - it is not like colleges close often - and have decent benefits (especially if it is not a state school). Plus there are work-study students to help with the labor in almost every office, so there are not that many new staffing needs to begin with. And there is always the "trailing spouse" issue (new faculty members or newly hired executive level staff who want the university to find a job for their spouse). Add the young alumni who used to hold a work-study job and now need somewhere permanent to work after graduation. Then you have, like you said, the people who know someone on the inside, or the people who worked at a another college. This list represents 80% of who gets hired for a staff position at most colleges IMO.
I actually went to a college in which every student was required to work at the college. They were only allowed to work outside the college, or not work at all, during the summer. However, if you were a student then you had to work on campus or else you would be suspended/expelled for failing to meet their requirements.
They also got away with paying students $3.25 an hour b/c it was considered a "grant" instead of taxable income. The good news was we legally didn't have to pay taxes on it. The bad news was we couldn't earn more money working outside the school either (except during the summer) or else they would mess with your financial aid. So, I'm willing to bet that many universities are hiring students whether it's on a grant basis or actual income basis b/c it's probably more affordable. Heck, a student might be lucky to get $7.50 an hour while a trained secretary may ask for $10 an hour or more.
Also, schools are having to cut back on their spending due to the economy. Some schools are even hiring graduates because the graduates either worked at the university or b/c the university wants their "hire after graduation" numbers to look good so they can get more students to apply for their schools. A lot of hiring goes on internally or through recommendations from someone on the inside. I have a friend whose mom got a job a few years ago as a cafeteria lady, but when it comes to office work I think you have to know someone or have a very impressive resume.
It couldn't hurt to keep trying, but look into other forms of employment as well.
They also got away with paying students $3.25 an hour b/c it was considered a "grant" instead of taxable income. The good news was we legally didn't have to pay taxes on it. The bad news was we couldn't earn more money working outside the school either (except during the summer) or else they would mess with your financial aid. So, I'm willing to bet that many universities are hiring students whether it's on a grant basis or actual income basis b/c it's probably more affordable. Heck, a student might be lucky to get $7.50 an hour while a trained secretary may ask for $10 an hour or more.
The $3.25/hour wage wouldn't necessarily be bad if with this requirement the school lowered its tuition, which seems like that would be a part of the deal with the grant. If you do the math and figure out how much a student is saving even with only being paid below minimum wage, it would probably be worth it. Not to mention the students are benefiting from work experience they can put on their resume. At my school kids just go on food stamps instead of working. Definitely not as good.
The $3.25/hour wage wouldn't necessarily be bad if with this requirement the school lowered its tuition, which seems like that would be a part of the deal with the grant. If you do the math and figure out how much a student is saving even with only being paid below minimum wage, it would probably be worth it. Not to mention the students are benefiting from work experience they can put on their resume. At my school kids just go on food stamps instead of working. Definitely not as good.
It was good overall. The school actually had free tuition for almost everyone who attended. Part of the condition for the free tuition program was you had to work 10-20 hours a week. Plus, it basically ensured that everyone who successfully graduated had work experience. If you got fired, then you had to find a job on campus on your own, so it's not as though you could slack off and wait for the school to find you a new job on campus. It also meant that students who were used to earning minimum wage in fast food or retail had to cut their spending even more, but I guess overall that's good for budgeting? It's not a bad program, though it does mean that the school hired more student workers and less people like the OP.
Note: I'm pursuing administrative jobs, not teaching positions.
I've looked into getting a job at a local college/university for quite some time now. I graduated from college in 2007 and sorely miss being in an academic environment. (The business world, in many ways, leaves me unfulfilled.)
Except for one position I interviewed for upon leaving college, every application I've sent in has gone unanswered. My friend Tim, who also had interest in higher education, never got so much as a single call. He gave up and wound up working for a small business.
I've heard that unless you have a master's degree and/or someone on the inside who could give you a hand, you're out of luck. I've also heard that, given the dearth of teaching jobs out there, I'm likely competing with out-of-work educators -- not to mention counselors, advisers and the like.
Am I wasting my time, or should I keep firing off resumes for these positions?
Per my experience-- getting a job at a University is not any less difficult then finding a job at a decent corporation.
I have worked for a university system (public), a university, and a university health care system before--
What you are often times competing with is folks who graduated from college or are working while attending college-- the university can hire student workers fairly cheaply. My first job at the university system (the head body in charge of all the public universities and community colleges in my state) came from working there as an intern and temp.
Most of the folks I know who hold administrative and technical positions at universities were originally temps through the university's sponsored temp agency (most of the universities local to me have their own temporary staffing center).
Personally-- I did not like working for the universities. At the state run schools, the tuition benefits were miserly as was the pay.
If it is a public institution workers are same as many government workers-- hard to get rid of the nonproducers (job for life kind of thing), lower wages than what their skills could demand in the market, and lack of real mobility.
For example when I worked in compensation and recruitment for a university healthcare system, I could only base your offer on your actual years of experience doing the job you were being offered -- so seriously how many people tend to apply for the exact same job that they currently do? Most people I know keep trying to push to a more senior level, a different industry, a different niche in their own industry, etc.
I don't think it is anything unique to a university environment. I'm also trying to find a job in an employers' market and the attitudes are the same everywhere.
It's almost like trying to sell your home that you put a ton of money into. Your not going to get your money back out of it these days because its a (Buyer Market).
And the same goes with education and college degrees, your not going to get your money out of it because it's a (Employment Hiring Market) and they have a larger work force pool to draw from. With such a big lack of jobs, those who are getting hired, it's mostly because they know someone who knows someone, inside.
During the job orientation at Harvard, they mentioned that about 3% of external applicants were hired versus ~40% of internal candidates. The benefits are really good though, which is why people like to stay on for long periods of time.
Location: The Chatterdome in La La Land, CaliFUNia
39,031 posts, read 23,020,628 times
Reputation: 36027
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wordsmith12
Note: I'm pursuing administrative jobs, not teaching positions.
I've looked into getting a job at a local college/university for quite some time now. I graduated from college in 2007 and sorely miss being in an academic environment. (The business world, in many ways, leaves me unfulfilled.)
Except for one position I interviewed for upon leaving college, every application I've sent in has gone unanswered. My friend Tim, who also had interest in higher education, never got so much as a single call. He gave up and wound up working for a small business.
I've heard that unless you have a master's degree and/or someone on the inside who could give you a hand, you're out of luck. I've also heard that, given the dearth of teaching jobs out there, I'm likely competing with out-of-work educators -- not to mention counselors, advisers and the like.
Am I wasting my time, or should I keep firing off resumes for these positions?
As long as you meet the minimum qualifications, I would continue to apply. Often they do prefer masters degrees but unless it is specifically stated, I would apply by carefully targeting your resume/cover letter to address as many of the desired qualifications that apply to you. Once HR screens out for minimum quals, the selection committee reviews apps to narrow down the choices to those who meet the desired quals.
Location: The Chatterdome in La La Land, CaliFUNia
39,031 posts, read 23,020,628 times
Reputation: 36027
Quote:
Originally Posted by bisjoe
When my daughter was in college she worked part-time there during the school year, full time in the summer in the HR department. When they happened to have an opening right before she graduated they offered her the job full-time. She passed on it because she wanted something better but apparently many jobs are filled that way.
Yes, this does help a lot.
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