Employment Guide: Some graduates wait before heading to 9-to-5 jobs

In today’s world, the stress of finding a job after graduation can be enough to make graduates want to toss up their mortarboard, then throw it all away and join the circus. Which, if approached correctly, would not be the worst decision some students can make.

Unorthodox post-graduation jobs and volunteer programs can broaden horizons, teach real-world life skills and make for a memorable job interview.

With programs like World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms and unusual job-listing sites like Odd Job Nation, students can find opportunities that will take them around the world and build their resumés for when their explorations end — without fetching a single cup of coffee or ever filing a paper.

Employment development specialist Trisha Hyatt from the Office of Career Development and Placement Assistance recommends that students do not initially delay finding a job position in their field after graduation, since time away from their fields makes it harder to secure a job when they return.

Pitt biology professor Nathan Morehouse is an example of someone who took on a series of unorthodox first jobs that can still lead back to a professional career with the right mindset.

Morehouse graduated from Cornell University in 2000 with a degree in biology. During his last semester at Cornell, Morehouse took 18 credits, completed 10 to 20 hours a week of research and managed a coffee shop, among other things.

“I over-worked myself as an undergraduate,” Morehouse said. “I was just kind of burnt out.”

Unsure of whether or not he wanted to remain in biology, Morehouse did not pursue graduate school or a job in biology immediately after graduation. Instead, he boarded a plane to Kodiak Island, Ala., and immediately began working 140-hour weeks at a salmon fishery.

It was the adventure he had always dreamed of, and he was able to take skills he learned at his fishery job and apply them to his career today.

“We worked really, really long hours. It’s really challenging and you have to learn stress mechanisms and the capacity to steel yourself and have strong resolve,” Morehouse said. “Those kind of things have been very helpful for me, because I’ve worked long hours as a scientist, as well. … [Salmon fishing] taught me the capacity to persevere and work really hard on something that was important.”

For students who wish to follow in Morehouse’s footsteps, Hyatt said whether or not going on a similar adventure will hurt a student in the long run depends on each individual’s circumstances.

Hyatt used a hypothetical example of a graduate with a degree in marketing pursuing an unorthodox job, such as salmon fishing or working on an organic farm. She said if a student were to keep up on marketing trends and apply marketing principles to a job at the fishery or farm, he or she may have little trouble returning to his or her field at the end of their program.

Hyatt suggested that students should instead volunteer for local organizations and assist with marketing efforts to stay current with the industry.

Hyatt noted, however, “Your degree does not always dictate what career track you take — your experience does. Student’s majors in college become less relevant as they gain experience in different fields. … One does not have to be in the same industry to learn professional development skills. People who make career changes can certainly take many transferable skills into their new roles.”

Morehouse’s thirst for adventure was not quenched by the fishery job, and he left the job at the end of the summer to travel to Vancouver Island, British Columbia, to work on an organic vegetable farm.

After working at the farm, Morehouse returned to the United States and began busing tables in a French restaurant in New York City. While the job was conventional compared to his previous work experience, it was something he had always been curious about.

Three weeks into his busboy job, Morehouse scored the highest out of the entire restaurant wait staff on a quiz meant to measure knowledge of wine pairings and various other aspects of the restaurant. Morehouse was promoted to general manager and wine steward of the restaurant.

An advocate for constant self-education, Morehouse said that even though he was not conventionally studying biology during these jobs, he still saw biology and applied it to everything he did. It is all about the student’s perspective.

“The restaurant was about what happens to living things. … That whole situation is very much about the biology of the vines and the vineyards, how you time things based on the time of the year and the climate conditions and soils,” he said. “Alaska and the seas are teeming with amazing creatures. I was interacting with living things all the time. On the vegetable farm, I was interacting with vegetables and animals and fungi and all sorts of things.”

Although Morehouse found his job at the organic farm through friends, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms arranges for volunteers to work on organic farms for four to six hours a day in exchange for room and board.

Volunteers can choose from 70 different countries to visit, but are responsible for paying their own travel costs. Volunteers also have the opportunity to choose the length of their stay on the farm, from two days to six months.

In addition to connecting graduates to far-off adventures, WWOOF administrator Amanda Pearson said the program “provides practical skills and encourages independence in terms of food production and consumption. … These are skills for life.” 

She added that WWOOF programs help to inspire confidence and self-esteem and that a potential employer would welcome these attributes.

The fishing, farming or restaurant industries might not interest everyone, but there are other ways to land an unorthodox job after graduation.

Odd Job Nation is an unconventional job-listing site founded by Jeremy Redleaf, an actor, writer, director and producer for TV and film.

On his website, Redleaf described Odd Job Nation as the ultimate resource for part-time opportunists. Redleaf said in an email that odd jobs can be financial life rafts for recent college graduates.

“[Odd jobs] can also provide experience dealing with untraditional bosses and even serve as fodder for job interviews. What employer wouldn’t want to hear about the summer you spent assisting a magician?” said Redleaf.

According to Redleaf, the site receives over 100,000 visitors a month. The job listings are grouped together first by state, then by city or area. Seventeen Pennsylvania regions are listed on Odd Job Nation, and about 125 job listings are currently posted in the Pittsburgh section.

Odd Job’s Pittsburgh listings have offered a multitude of curious work positions, such as pet product demonstrator, professional handyman, magician’s assistant and female fire eater.

Jobs of this nature are not typically thought of as part of a young professional’s climb to success, yet Redleaf maintained that now is the perfect time to pursue an odd job that is emotionally fulfilling, if not conventionally resumé-building.

“If that means eating fire, eat fire!” he said. “It’s the people who lack the courage to pursue their odd happiness that end up getting burnt.”

Hyatt said the Office of Career Development and Placement Assistance recommends students research whatever makes the most sense for their career path and passion.

“One does not have to be in the same industry to learn professional development skills,” said Hyatt. “People who make career change can certainly take many transferable skills into their new roles.”

In regard to resumés and job interviews, Morehouse thinks unorthodox jobs will not be a setback to applicants.

“I don’t think it has hurt me to have had these experiences because I think that it makes me a more grounded person,” said Morehouse. “When I was interviewing for a job or applying, I could draw on those experiences.”

“People that are constantly worried about having all of their ducks in a row might just find themselves losing something to someone who has done something unusual or outstanding or noteworthy.”

If a student does not have a professional job waiting for them after graduation, it is not uncommon for them to return to their parent’s homes. Morehouse recommended that students stay hungry for adventure and not let life slip by in such a way.“Go out. Explore. See what’s fascinating to you, because there is nothing that replaces passion for something. If you already found your passion in something before you begin exploring, you will see it in everything you do.”

“If you are still seeking your passion, the best place to find it is on a new trail,” he said.