Children around the world grow up dreaming of flying to Neverland or meeting Flounder “under the sea.” As adults, the next best thing became the chance to work at a company surrounded by magic carpet rides and Wonderland. While vacationing at Walt Disney World can be the highlight of a year, employees can enjoy the magic year-round.
Katie Nolan, a UI advertising graduate, received the news in February that she was accepted into the prestigious Disney College Program for fall 2020 in Orlando, Florida. Nolan had endured a rigorous application process with many interviews and assessments. She had been up against 50,000 applicants, knowing only one-fifth would make it.
Nolan had elected to spend the summer after graduating at home in Northern California to prepare for the 60-hour work weeks ahead. Her unemployment was intended to be a resting period following an exhausting four years of college.
When COVID-19 hit the United States, Nolan watched her future plans slip away.
“All summer long they had been updating us, saying ‘you will have a job, you will have a job,’ and then when it came down to it, they had to close the program two and a half weeks before my fly-out date to Florida,” Nolan said.
As the pandemic led to a global hiring freeze in March 2020, post-graduate opportunities dried up for upcoming UI graduates. This market would only begin to reopen months later with an unfamiliar electronic face, requiring new job-seeking techniques and expectations for students hoping to enter the workforce.
In Nolan’s case, employment that had been guaranteed before the pandemic was revoked as Disney cut jobs nationwide.
“I was really upset because I had always dreamed of working for Disney in some capacity for forever,” Nolan said.
The Disney College Program closure left Nolan with a loss of direction.
“I felt like everything that I had worked to was stumbling out of reach,” Nolan said.
Today, she has regained a positive outlook.
“I have a choice in what I want to do and that’s how I take the power back,” Nolan said.
Though she didn’t have a choice in putting her Disney dreams on hold, she chose to pause her job search to process career priorities, taking a part-time social media internship and reaching out to connections for advice. Her steps made incremental progress towards her larger career goals.
Nolan’s fellow recent graduates faced an additional slew of complications ranging from bouts of unemployment to starting at a new company remotely.
Applying for jobs or internships can be exhausting and unrewarding. Yet Carol Hoffman, a UI graduate in operations management and marketing, refused to end up in a position she didn’t enjoy in exchange for a stable job.
Hoffman learned this lesson during the summer of 2019 when she worked as a sales intern in Seattle.
“Being unsatisfied in that experience, I don’t want to have that same application process where I’m being constantly disappointed then clinging to the first thing that shows any potential,” Hoffman said.
Hoffman elected to be picky when it came to accepting a long-term position within her field. Yet she recognized the need to adopt a “take anything” attitude when offered a summer position at a local gift store in early June.
She knew she was overqualified for the position, but later realized the value of that customer service experience when she applied it to her business degree.
The reality for many recent graduates became taking a position they are overqualified for.
Bailey Carpenter, a UI graduate in international studies and criminology, had been unemployed since March when she had to quit a job in Moscow to move home after the campus shut down. She took a barista position at a Boise coffeehouse in June.
Carpenter enjoyed the lively and welcoming atmosphere behind an espresso machine in downtown Boise for half of the summer. She spent the remaining month relaxing on a beach in San Diego when a close friend offered an opportunity for free housing with an ocean breeze.
Following four years of working alongside classes, Carpenter felt a break was required. On top of that, the pandemic lowered the spirits of recent graduates that had lost the typical senior year experience.
Former ASUI President and fellow graduate Jacob Lockhart spent his summer by the water as well. On Lake Coeur d’Alene, Lockhart spent time with friends and family while his job search went on in the background.
Eventually, vacation came to an end. Recent graduates began prioritizing their professional goals. Returning to Nampa, Idaho, at the end of August, Carpenter faced another period of unemployment. Then, on Oct. 14, a friend’s referral landed her a job, not her dream job, but at a company, she was thrilled to be a part of.
Her new position as customer experience representative at a children’s toy company was the perfect end to her job search. Carpenter had enjoyed a relaxing summer that culminated in a position at a company that aligned with her values.
Despite finding a combination of personal and professional success following the pandemic, uncertainty loomed.
In August, Lockhart moved to Boise for a receptionist position at a law firm. If asked one year ago, he would have been surprised that he hadn’t gone directly to law school. But he needed a break from college for a while, something he’d decided even before the pandemic hit.
The process of working his way up the ladder slowly was a shock to the mindset of instant achievement our generation has grown up with, Lockhart said.
“This is something I find myself thinking about fairly often, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves at this age,” Lockhart said.
At the law firm, Lockhart said he is on the path to becoming a lawyer while allowing himself to enjoy a work-life balance. For upcoming graduates, he recommends a similar approach. By taking your time, Lockhart assures that doing so will grant future insight, without missing out on soaking up life’s experiences.
In a situation as unique as a global pandemic, traditional mentors such as parents or professors may not have the most relevant advice for upcoming graduates seeking guidance on their future. Thus, 2020 graduates themselves are an important resource as people with hands-on experience searching for a job during a pandemic.
Jen Smith, a career advising liaison for the UI College of Business and Economics and the College of Art and Architecture, highlights the tips and tricks that she has found among recent graduates that find themselves in situations like Nolan, Hoffman, Carpenter, and Lockhart.
Greater flexibility is paramount when your first choice is no longer an option, according to Smith.
“I’m seeing a few more grads taking internships than you normally would,” Smith said.
Managing your expectations upon graduating can be valuable in an environment with fewer post-graduate opportunities. Smaller steps towards a dream job can become a realistic compromise.
While recent graduates were shocked by the pandemic, current students still have time to prepare, Smith said.
Many organizations are also more prepared now than they were at the start of the pandemic, offering a variety of remote job options for students. Smith said these remote options are incredibly important to Idaho students, widening the scope of jobs available.
However, beginning a position remotely brings on obstacles of its own and Smith suggested students and alumni in this situation attempt to retain the same mindset that would be upheld in an office setting. Smith suggested setting up weekly calls with supervisors, planning virtual coworker events, and asking plenty of questions.
For upcoming graduates, there is a daunting task ahead.
“It only takes one yes,” Smith said.
Thus far, 2020 graduates have found small and large professional victories following graduation, providing a hopeful outlook. Additionally, Smith has found that most alumni who graduated in 2008 endured a similar downturn but are working in their desired field today.
By looking to the past for answers, UI students will find road maps to achievement in their futures.
Story by Hanna Jackovich
Photos by Dani Moore & Courtesy
Design by Danielle Hawkins