Definitions:
*pro bono- done for the public good without compensation
*C.P.A.- certified public accountant
Recently, not many college graduates have been getting jobs after graduating. According to employer's estimation, the number of college graduates that get hired has declined by 21.6 percent and is planned to drop 7 more in the present year. Despite these discourging numbers, Lesley Mitler has a possible solution to this problem. She is a "long-time recruiter for Wall Street and a former C.P.A." and she has a "get them off the couch" strategy. She is getting paid $400 an hour to coach recent college graduates on how to land their first job. Her business, Priority Candidates, has teamed up with Greenberg Educational Group, a tutoring company in New York that already specializes in SAT prep and college advising." This program was most likely executed in response to words stated by authors like JEan Twenge, who think college graduates are incapable of progressing though their own futures. Jean Twenge wrote "Generation Me" which suggested that the newer generation is not prepared for the challenging job market. She also noted that the newer generation expects others to do the work for them. So far, there is only one student taking the course, despite the 25 parents that showed up at the orientation. Because of Ms. Mitler's program this Boston College graduate is looking forward to being involved in music public relations and leaving her music publishing days behind.
Although Ms. Mitler had a good idea, I don't think it will be very effective as of right now. Since we are still in mid-recession, it will be hard for most college graduates or their parents to pay her $400 an hour. The fact that she only had one student out of 25 should prove this point. True, college graduates need jobs, but so do 10 percent of other Americans. It may also be true that some college graduates are lazy or distracted with websites like Twitter, Facebook, Skype, etc. but there are lots of others who are persistently looking for jobs.
Students may need a job in order to pay the $400 an hour, in which case the program would not be needed. I think it would be even more helpful if Lesley Mitler provided this program for free, so that more college graduates would be helped by the information given during the program. By making it a non-profit, free service, she could help college graduates across America, not just one. But why hasn't she thought of that? Is her motive really to help college graduates get jobs or to get mor money for herself? In my opinion, her motive for doing this determines how succesful her program will be.
Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/06/nyregion/06bigcity.html?ref=economy
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hey alex. great blog. i like your background. lol. anyway...i recently attended this seminar at dominican universtiy. the seminar was given to future nursing students. the director of the program warned perspective students that it is very difficult to find a job after graduation and that many graduates are having to move out of state just to get a hospital position. i think this is totally crazy. do you think that businesses would rather hire an older wiser woman with experience or a young "fresh out of college" woman with more of an education? see its hard, especially now during the recession.
ReplyDeleteHey Alex! this is a very interesting blog. I must say this blog makes me a little scared for life after college. I did not know this was the fate of many college grads. I totally agree with you about Lesley Mitler and her program. From this blog entry it does sound like she is trying to only make a profit instead of helping college grads. I just can not fathom how she is trying to help college grads get a job by charging them $400. The problem is they are unemployed and can not afford that let alone other things like a home or an expensive wardrobe! Anyways good blog and I absolutely agree with you!
ReplyDeleteHey A.J., (can I call you A.J. from now on it's kinda cool...)
ReplyDeleteI really like your blog and it is a bit strange that Mitler is charging $400 an hour for help. I definatly agree with you on this one. Charging that much is insane and one will need a job just to pay for it. Why do you think college graduates are finding it hard to find a job? My parents and other adults in my life always told me that education is important to get a good job, but it seems like even the good jobs are becoming a competition now that more and more people are going to college and graduating. Great blog!
Great blog Alex! I agree that it probably will not be very effective in the current economy. College graduates are most likely in need of money and jobs, and their parents after shelling out over $200,000 for college, are probably not very interested in paying $400 an hour. However, college graduates do need help getting off the ground because there are less and less people hiring grads without experience. Do you think that the job markets will soon open back up to college graduates?
ReplyDeleteGrrreat blog Alex =]
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. I do not think that this would be very effective right now because of the state the economy is in. Do you think that this plan will ever work?
Lizzie:: Thanks! lol. Before I read this article, I would've thought that businesses would want younger, "fresh out of college" employees because the knowledge is fresh in their brain,but maybe they're looking for the older and "seasoned."
ReplyDeleteDani:: Yeah this makes me a little scared for my after-college career too. This makes me hope that it doesn't take very long for my business to get off the ground, and she truly is being very counter-productive with the $400 fee.
Kristine:: Lol..sure you can! But I think it's becoming difficult for college graduates to get jobs because businesses may be choosing the "seasoned" professionals who have had years of experience. They may think it would be a risky chance to hire graduates "fresh out of college." Other than that, I'm not really sure.
Gabby:: I sure hope so. I think it would be more likely for jobs to accept more college graduates once this recession is totally finished. Hopefully by then, college tuition will be cheaper too! lol
Alyssa:: Thanks! I think that this plan will work more efficiently right now if she makes it a free service. Otherwise, she would have to wait until after the recession to help more people who are willing to pay that rediculous fee.
Heyy Alex!! good choice of a blog topic, but imust agree with Dani this does make me knid of scared of what life will be like after college. I have also been hearing about this issue, and about how the chances of gettying jobs especially in the feild of business is very hard for graduates, because of the state of the economy. Ihope it gets better, and people are able to get better jobs. But anyways good blog honey!!
ReplyDeleteBesides Lesley Mitler's possible solution, what solution do you have of your own that you find will be affective?
ReplyDeleteGood Job Alex, by the way. I liked this one. =]
- Ella
Whoa...$400? That's like a pair of Christian Louboutin heels. She's crazy!
ReplyDeleteI think you are totally right. I don't see why anyone would pay $400 to get help finding a job, and I agree that people would NEED A JOB in order to pay for her service...which helps them to get a job.
The first thing that came to my mind is how the average family would not be able to afford her "valuable" service. The families that are able to pay $400 an hour for this are the families that ALREADY have a lot of money and who probably already have well-paying jobs waiting for them because they went to a really expensive school.
First of all, why do you think she is charging $400 to students who are looking for jobs? Do you think she is also trying to MOTIVATE college students to work so they can afford her service to get a BETTER job? Secondly, what group does her service specifically target? Is it meant to be for college graduates of all social classes?
No wonder people can't get ahead...
*a used pair of louboutins at that...
ReplyDeleteOh nice topic Alex! Very good for us, since soon well be going off to college. I believe Ms.Milter has a good idea, but as you said 400 bucks an hour isnt cutting it these days. No one, especially someone who probably already owes student loans is gonna just give her 400 bucks and hour to have a little help in how to find a job. Jobs are scarce and I think it is more luck then anything now. My question is If she lowered her prices do you think a lot more students would be willing to get involved in this program?
ReplyDelete