first "real" job out of university : how long did it take you to get it and how?

[norgos]

I'm curious to hear about the experiences of others when it comes to getting the first "real" job in their career after they have graduated from university. I'm sure others would love to hear it too as some of us are still in school and this information would be quite helpful! When I mean "real", obviously means that it has to be within your field of studies, whether it is contractual, part time or permanent. Taking up a job in a call center or in the food industry isn't....unless you've done a complete turnaround in terms of your career chance. In that case you should indicate it.

Sometimes I hear about engineering students who score jobs before they even graduate to some who couldn't find jobs until 4-5 months after graduation. It seems to vary much when it comes to what field/what you're studying, so it would be nice to be as detailed as possible, including the number of resumes sent out each day!

Field:
Length of time since graduation:
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections?
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?):
Length of time at company before finding a better place?

[BogusJoe]

I hate to say this, but university and college students are so mislead by society that they think they're "supposed" to be there for the better of their careers. I was one of them.

In reality, universities and colleges put students into massive debt early in their lives, and there's no promises that any othese grads will ever climb out of this debt. 25K-50K in my opinion is inexcusable for schools to charge young kids for an "education" and it can seriously damage a young person's chance at moving ahead in life.

The flip-side is that in society, we're conditioned to believe that we need this post-secondary education to "make it" in this world.

This just couldn't be farther from the truth.

Employers are ALWAYS more interested in who you are, what you're like, what you can do, and what you have done. Your education papers are secondary to all this.

How many of you have been asked for your diploma in an interview?????? Never. Because it DOESN'T MATTER.

Why does a 25 year old need to be 50K in debt??? Only to land a 35K/year job and have to pay off this schooling debt for the next 5-7 years??

Here's a kick of reality to existing university/college students-- you can make 60K and more working 9-5 as a warehouse labourer in the right company with a union... so, an education is unneccesary if all you're worried about is money.. money can be made in fields requiring zero education..


Anyhow.

4-5 months after graduation seems like nothing to me. If you get a job doing what you like in that time, you're very lucky.

[Aristophanes]

Depends on what you count as a "real" job. Other than a full-time unlimited contract do you also consider short-term contracts, part-time work, etc.? Some people I know did a Bachelor's and ended up doing admin work. A few of them consider it as their career job whereas someone just say it's temporary until something better comes along. So, a "real" job is subjective.

My personal perception of a real "job" is one where you feel you are not in a rat-race, yet still possess the desire for personal/professional growth, and you're satisfied with the operational work.

Field: Sci + Biz
Length of time since graduation: -4 for part-time unlimited contract in consulting (during and right after studies), 4 months for full-time limited contract abroad
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Good old letter + CV. Never bothered to send anything online to be lost in the Abyss. Printed everything and done everything via snail mail.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 60k - 70k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Transfer internally perhaps, but pretty content as is

[vavaju]

My first job right out of university:

Field: C&O @ UW
Length of time since graduation: Had job offer during exams
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Employer found my resume on Monster. Didn't apply for the job (this was 2003, so it is prob different now)
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): $50 - $60k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? 3 years

[grego9198]

Here's mine

Field: Mech Eng (Ryerson Grad)
Length of time since graduation: ~ 1 month, started mid June 08
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Yes, workopolis posting. Actually got a few calls from Workopolis job postings after I accepted this position, I did send out about 100 or so resumes starting in Decemeber '07.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): $50-60k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? I've been here a year so far, no plans to look for anything else atm, pretty pleased with the job overall.

I found my job pretty quick, but I have a few friends who are at the year mark that still haven't found an engineering job.

[nhui06]

I hate to say this, but university and college students are so mislead by society that they think they're "supposed" to be there for the better of their careers. I was one of them.

In reality, universities and colleges put students into massive debt early in their lives, and there's no promises that any othese grads will ever climb out of this debt. 25K-50K in my opinion is inexcusable for schools to charge young kids for an "education" and it can seriously damage a young person's chance at moving ahead in life.

The flip-side is that in society, we're conditioned to believe that we need this post-secondary education to "make it" in this world.

This just couldn't be farther from the truth.

Employers are ALWAYS more interested in who you are, what you're like, what you can do, and what you have done. Your education papers are secondary to all this.

How many of you have been asked for your diploma in an interview?????? Never. Because it DOESN'T MATTER.

Why does a 25 year old need to be 50K in debt??? Only to land a 35K/year job and have to pay off this schooling debt for the next 5-7 years??

Here's a kick of reality to existing university/college students-- you can make 60K and more working 9-5 as a warehouse labourer in the right company with a union... so, an education is unneccesary if all you're worried about is money.. money can be made in fields requiring zero education..


Anyhow.

4-5 months after graduation seems like nothing to me. If you get a job doing what you like in that time, you're very lucky.

Very well written. It does depend on what kind of job you are applying for. Jobs like Accounting or anything specialized need a specific degree; that being said, the HR dept just does an initial scan quickly to see if you have it and won't dwell on it further; thats why they probably won't talk about it much in the interview (school experience). Trades jobs probably net you higher income and you don't need University because there is a small supply of people who can do it. Working in a union will also get you a nice pay. For those coming out of Uni with 50-60K, you guys are making me jealous haha. For me it took me around 4-5 months to find my job, and its not something I really want but its a job for now nonetheless.

[robster77]

First job out of school back in 2000 was with HP. Got the job becuase I had a co-op there for my Bcomm and they liked my work. Gave me my pick of three positions that were open. I chose pricing analyst since it was working with the product manager and marketing folks, so you got to see all the cool stuff coming down the pipe. Starting salary was $45K from what I recall.

[the_messiah]

Here's a kick of reality to existing university/college students-- you can make 60K and more working 9-5 as a warehouse labourer in the right company with a union... so, an education is unneccesary if all you're worried about is money.. money can be made in fields requiring zero education..



Ask yourself this before you consider what this poster said, would you want to lift 50lbs boxes rest of your life? Also its near impossible to move up after you hit 60k in a place like this. I have several family members and friends that work at full time factories and trust me, you do not move up and you are stuck.

If you get laid off, where else are you going to go? do you really think having 5-10 years experience at a factory looks good? ANYONE can get a factory job, and experience doesnt count for **** in labour intensive jobs.

Also, Labour jobs are difficult on your body, and your body will break down sooner or later, where as if you sit in an office, sure you'll get stressed, but man its alot better than developing a hernia.


Again, the above poster is completely right, you can make good money with no education, but it is very limited.

Now this post is intended for factory jobs, not trade jobs

[gheart008]

I hate to say this, but university and college students are so mislead by society that they think they're "supposed" to be there for the better of their careers. I was one of them.

In reality, universities and colleges put students into massive debt early in their lives, and there's no promises that any othese grads will ever climb out of this debt. 25K-50K in my opinion is inexcusable for schools to charge young kids for an "education" and it can seriously damage a young person's chance at moving ahead in life.

The flip-side is that in society, we're conditioned to believe that we need this post-secondary education to "make it" in this world.

This just couldn't be farther from the truth.

Employers are ALWAYS more interested in who you are, what you're like, what you can do, and what you have done. Your education papers are secondary to all this.

How many of you have been asked for your diploma in an interview?????? Never. Because it DOESN'T MATTER.

Why does a 25 year old need to be 50K in debt??? Only to land a 35K/year job and have to pay off this schooling debt for the next 5-7 years??

Here's a kick of reality to existing university/college students-- you can make 60K and more working 9-5 as a warehouse labourer in the right company with a union... so, an education is unneccesary if all you're worried about is money.. money can be made in fields requiring zero education..


Anyhow.

4-5 months after graduation seems like nothing to me. If you get a job doing what you like in that time, you're very lucky.

Your post has some truth to it, yet has so misconceptions as well.

Most companies nowadays won't even consider you without a post secondary degree of some sort. Yes it's true that experiences are more valuable, but considering we're talking about the age group of young professionals, it's that degree that gets them in the door in the first place.

At my company, we won't even consider you without a degree as that's one of the pre-reqs.

Anyways, back to the OP, the biggest thing is making sure your resume is top notch. Also make sure you don't use a generic resume for all your applications, but customize it to the job you're applying for.

I'm speaking from experience here. When I applied for the career job I'm working at now, I didn't even get an interview as I was using a generic resume and cover letter.. A month later, I saw the exact same job posting on another job site, but within that month I had smartened up and had done a major face lift with my resume (completely different format and content categorization). I customized it further for that listing, and ended up getting the interview. Have been working there since.

[drey2k]

Well I currently work in my first job, but it is not what I really want to do, and it's not exactly within my field (I'm a Finance grad working in accounting).

Field: Accounting
Length of time since graduation: 5 months
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections?: Through craiglist
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 35k to 45k
Length of time at company before finding a better place?: Been here 8 months, looking for other work.

[Nyte]

Field: Computer Science
Length of time since graduation: -6 months (for current job), -7 for others.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? A bit of both. It was kind of an accident. Went to a recruiting event (invite only) just for fun, wasn't really looking for a job at the time; had other offers and companies I was looking at.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 70k - 100k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? I'm happy where I am.

[jpargo]

I agree with OP. I think more students should be made aware that university degree in itself is useless. I think I would have being much better off if I known this fact when entering university instead of finding out in my 3rd/4th year.

I was solid student and naively I thought graduating would pretty much land me a good paying job. If I had known that my degree itself was not enough I would've had gone about it in a different way. For instance I had good enough grades to go CO-OP route but instead chose to add a minor instead. This was huge mistake because most people I know who had good jobs out of school pretty much had their positions lined up before they graduated.

I think this even more the case with recent immigrants. Since networking is huge part of job finding, they are hugely disadvantaged because of lack of networking available to them.

Field: BComm
Length of time since graduation: 2 years. I was not unemployed for two years. I found a job unrelated to my field right out of school making about $40K. I think this probably slowed down and hampered my efforts to find my "first real job" as I had less time to look for another job. Many people suggested I quit my job and devote 100% of my time looking for another job. I'm glad I didn't do that because as much as I hated the job I was doing, 1) I was making money to reduce my debt 2) It actually helped me land my first real job and I developed many skills in which I thought were useless at the time but has since helped me. So my advice is to new grads is don't sit around waiting for the perfect job, take the first good opportunity that comes along and work hard to leverage that first opportunity to a better job.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Base salary of 60K
Length of time at company before finding a better place? I'm happy where I am currently but probably in 2-3 years I should be finished my MBA (which the company is paying for) and I will look for better opportunity within the company or outside of it.

[norgos]

Here's a kick of reality to existing university/college students-- you can make 60K and more working 9-5 as a warehouse labourer in the right company with a union... so, an education is unneccesary if all you're worried about is money.. money can be made in fields requiring zero education..


(just so you know, I'm from Quebec and education is practically free here compared to places like Ontario, which is why debt isn't one of my worries...)

I just have to add that even though I can get better paying jobs doing harder labor, sometimes it isn't necessarily about money; some people actually do enjoy studying what they do in school and would want to have a career in the field of engineering or business.

Also, from a more practical point of view in terms of our physical limitations, sure, working in a warehouse could make me big bucks but I don't think it's good to do it for 10-40 years of your life until you retire.

Working at a desk job can give you mental stress, but working the overnight shift in a warehouse can contribute to physical stress along with mental stress. My dad is an example of working hard labor jobs and doing night shifts over the past 10 years and it caused him to have high blood pressure which unfortunately took his life.

If you're going to do something you hate just for the sake of money, then you might as well take a job that isn't hard labor. Dealing drugs is most profitable, but is it worth your life and safety? no.

I also do believe that your degree is important. I highly doubt that you can pick someone off the street to do work in engineering or finances...and we all know those type of people are a very small percentage, thus it'd be stupid to apply it to yourself and take such a huge gamble.

Your experience counts more, but your degree is what allows you to have experience in the first place. It proves that you're at least disciplined enough to complete it. Most employers don't know jack **** about you and the only indication is through your education and most of them would rather take a someone with bachelor's than someone with only a high school degree anytime, especially for an entry position.

[Prinsesa]

gsfgg

[andrew2good4u]

Field: Social Work
Length of time since graduation: None, started right after school was done.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Prof referred the whole class, lol, my work experience helped a LOT too.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): $55K to $65K
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Well, let's see what the future holds lol

So much money as a new grad social worker? I was under the impression they were underpaid

[rockthecasbah]

Field: Social Work
Length of time since graduation: None, started right after school was done.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Prof referred the whole class, lol, my work experience helped a LOT too.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): $55K to $65K
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Well, let's see what the future holds lol

Weren't you at $50-55k from your post just on June 21? Did you get a 10k raise since then?

And nevertheless that's rather good especially if you work at an NGO. I don't know about the avg salary for social workers in NGOs but for other positions, the pay seems substandard (I was interested in working at an NGO back when I first graduated).

[nyrz]

Field: Social Work
Length of time since graduation: None, started right after school was done.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Prof referred the whole class, lol, my work experience helped a LOT too.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): $55K to $65K
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Well, let's see what the future holds lol

clarify: you have a Bachelor (university degree) in social work?

can you tell what your job is like- if you like it, etc.

thanks.

[Prinsesa]

fsgfdsgdfg

[dubey]

Field: Computer Science
Length of time since graduation: -6 months (for current job), -7 for others.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? A bit of both. It was kind of an accident. Went to a recruiting event (invite only) just for fun, wasn't really looking for a job at the time; had other offers and companies I was looking at.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 70k - 100k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? I'm happy where I am.
Does this post make sense to anyone? Or have you just graduated multiple times?

[Nyte]

Does this post make sense to anyone? Or have you just graduated multiple times?

I'll clarify. -6 is for the job I actually took. -7 is for the first offer I got.

[drey2k]

These salaries seem very inflated to me...

[rfd_incognito]

These salaries seem very inflated to me...

That is because salaries are about 20% lower in Vancouver but real estate is more expensive! Just compare starting CA articling positions Vancouver - 36,000, Toronto - 45,000.

[MrGamma]

I got my first real job out of college the year I graduated. I realize college is a little different depending on who you ask.

I started my own business about 1 and half years after that by partnering with other more established people in the field.

I know some people who worked years as bartenders, wait staff, ect for years before finding a "real job" but not all them managed to hang onto it...

Depending on what you went to University for... and which type of classes you took. I have always been told that college or PolyTechnics prepare you for the workforce more appropriately than University does.

We never hired University students at the places I worked... unless it was for unskilled labor...

[yesstyle]

so what reputable colleges are there in Ontario...

is Seneca the most reputable?

[Jabb]

I got my first real job out of college the year I graduated. I realize college is a little different depending on who you ask.

I started my own business about 1 and half years after that by partnering with other more established people in the field.

I know some people who worked years as bartenders, wait staff, ect for years before finding a "real job" but not all them managed to hang onto it...

Depending on what you went to University for... and which type of classes you took. I have always been told that college or PolyTechnics prepare you for the workforce more appropriately than University does.

We never hired University students at the places I worked... unless it was for unskilled labor...

I'd say this is highly dependant on which industry youre in. An example for college work would be graphic design or auto technician work. Management is more likely to have done a Bachelor's.

[TooSoonJr]

I'm curious to hear about the experiences of others when it comes to getting the first "real" job in their career after they have graduated from university. I'm sure others would love to hear it too as some of us are still in school and this information would be quite helpful! When I mean "real", obviously means that it has to be within your field of studies, whether it is contractual, part time or permanent. Taking up a job in a call center or in the food industry isn't....unless you've done a complete turnaround in terms of your career chance. In that case you should indicate it.

Sometimes I hear about engineering students who score jobs before they even graduate to some who couldn't find jobs until 4-5 months after graduation. It seems to vary much when it comes to what field/what you're studying, so it would be nice to be as detailed as possible, including the number of resumes sent out each day!

Field:
Length of time since graduation:
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections?
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?):
Length of time at company before finding a better place?


1. Accounting
2. Received offer of employment in September of my 4th year. Had to quit as a full time student and complete my degree on a part time basis (took 3 semesters to finish up or 12 months)
3. Company came my university to recruit graduates.
4. Been with same co for over 2 years, they started me off at your avg starting salary (40k+)...base. With all perks: pension/bonus/tuition paid for/designations paid for, add another 12k a year.

[CrimsonGuardian]

1. Accounting
2. Received offer of employment in September of my 4th year. Had to quit as a full time student and complete my degree on a part time basis (took 3 semesters to finish up or 12 months)
3. Company came my university to recruit graduates.
4. Been with same co for over 2 years, they started me off at your avg starting salary (40k+)...base. With all perks: pension/bonus/tuition paid for/designations paid for, add another 12k a year.

See, now this sounds believable.

Thank you very much for telling the truth about your salary, unlike most people on these boards that inflate their base salaries as fresh grads.

[scan]

See, now this sounds believable.

Thank you very much for telling the truth about your salary, unlike most people on these boards that inflate their base salaries as fresh grads.

You mean all fresh grads don't get 100K salaries?

[CrimsonGuardian]

You mean all fresh grads don't get 100K salaries?

'Tis the way the world works, son.

You've got to get out of the RFD world.. Get to the real world, know what I'm saying? ;)

Otherwise you'll actually start to believe the lies/trash that people spew here, especially fresh grads and their claims of their over inflated salaries in this turbulent and downturn economy.

[abu_sme]

1) Marketing/ Operations Consulting
2) Found on college job board
3) Interview on last day of exams, job offer while on vacation in Hawaii.
4) 60K
5) Been with them for 2 months. My boss is never around and neither is his supervisor so I have no boss telling me what to do. I like this job but I am going to leverage the experience to get a job in Western Australia when my contract is up, unless they renew and then I will reconsider.

[Arcturus]

I graduated late 2008, finished in the summer semester. I took 4 weeks to travel. When I got back I took a nap for about a month, and finally hit the pavement near the end of October. Just in time for the economy to go into a deep freeze. I had to take a job selling phones at Walmart. I spent the next 8 months sending out resumes from my parents house. In that time I got 3 interviews. One through good old fashioned footwork, but the other two were through connections. I wanted to do things on my own, and did not seek hookups until April. But in the end I got hooked up into a nice government job in my preferred field and my degree was a key factor.



Field: [Engineering]
Length of time since graduation: [10 months]
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? [Connected]
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): [50K-57K]
Length of time at company before finding a better place? [N/A]

[dubjk]

I would think that I was fortunate to land a job so quickly, since it appears that the subsequent year's graduates had trouble.. and obviously its even worst now.

Field: Geography
Length of time since graduation: 2-3 months
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? alone, saw it on job sites
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 40k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? im still there, and looks to me i'll be hanging tight until things get better :|

[peter_ross]

I highly recommend any Co-op program, so you get a taste what you like (or don't like). I had 6 Co-op terms (pretty clear which university I am coming from :cheesygri), and I got my full-time through my 6th Co-op term (Year 4).

Field: Engineering
Length of time since graduation: Graduated in 2002
Found alone? Via Co-op
Salary: Starting 73K. After 7-year, 105K+bonus. Mind you, it's a private co.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Still there. Hard to find a place with same skillset with comparable salary.

[Troodon]

'Tis the way the world works, son.

You've got to get out of the RFD world.. Get to the real world, know what I'm saying? ;)

Otherwise you'll actually start to believe the lies/trash that people spew here, especially fresh grads and their claims of their over inflated salaries in this turbulent and downturn economy.

Not everyone who posts in this thread are recent graduates. Someone with a computer science degree who graduated during the tech bubble could have easily earned 70K for their first job.

[bananaman]

Field: Engineering
Length of time since graduation: Received offer in Feb.2008, graduated in May 2008, just in time before the recession.
Found alone? Yes. I googled a list of GTA companies related to my field, and went through their careers sections and submitted resumes/cover letters. Though, I would argue my previous internship experience got my foot in the door.
Salary: 50-60k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Still here. The job is exactly what I wanted to do upon graduation so no plans to leave.

I consider myself fortunate because when I read the job description in their career section, I knew I had to get it. I immediately booked an appointment with my university's career center to help me tailor my cover letter and resume for this company. Did reasonably well during the impromptu phone interview and prepared for 2-3 days straight for the on-site interview. I had midterms and projects due, but I wasn't going to let this opportunity slip away.

Though, that didn't stop me from applying to other companies. I was aggressively submitting resumes and cover letters until I signed an offer. And even then, I was still doing more interviews long after I signed the offer.

One of the biggest mistakes I found with my classmates was that they started their job hunt until the end of 1st semester. I started my job hunt as soon as I finished my internship and went back to school. I had a few interviews before Christmas, but didn't receive any offers. But in retrospect, these interviews prepared me well for my future interviews after Christmas.

[bluegirl123]

wow... you guys seem to be making the $$ :)

Field: computer science
Length of time since graduation: 16 months
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? found the job posting..then remember i knew someone who worked there who hooked me up with the interview. I actually already have a job offer at a previous co-op place, but commute was a deciding factor.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): started at low 40s, now currently at mid 40s (close to high 40s with bonus)
Length of time at company before finding a better place? still with the company.. not sure if i want to move or not...


Are the salaries in BC significantly lower than the other provinces?

[aac85]

i say in general....yes, they are typically the same, if not lower for the lower mainland

factor in high living costs makes it worse

[Anomaly_X]

Field: Healthcare (studied Kinesiology and Gerontology at Uni)
Length of time since graduation: Graduated in early 2008, but signed the job offer a few months in advance.
Found alone? A friend got me an interview with a hospital that he worked for when he was in Coop
Salary: Starting 55-60k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Still there. But moved to the main office after 8 months

I think that it was pretty fortunate this job fell into my lap as I didn't have any back up plans if I didn't get this job. On top, jobs in the healthcare sector are pretty stable too.

[Huge Westinghouse]

Some of these starting salaries are absurd. 55K+ for entry level social work? Huh?

[typoprone]

Field: Psychology (BA)
Length of time since graduation: 13 months :o
Found alone? Applied online.
Salary: 40-45k :o
Length of time at company before finding a better place? N/A since I'm only starting next week. Very nervous/excited.

[Huge Westinghouse]

Field: Psychology (BA)
Length of time since graduation: 13 months :o
Found alone? Applied online.
Salary: 40-45k :o
Length of time at company before finding a better place? N/A since I'm only starting next week. Very nervous/excited.

You should feel ashamed that you aren't hauling in a 100K+ starting salary like many of these other freshly minted BAs...:lol:

[murdoc2k]

You should feel ashamed that you aren't hauling in a 100K+ starting salary like many of these other freshly minted BAs...:lol:

Considering that he can even find a job right after he graduates during a recession, I would say he should be proud of himself.

[corvettefan]

I graduated in the Fall 2008 semester from an Ontario University. Our University probably has the worst career department in Canada, we had a hard time getting jobs in our field even as co-ops. Although I landed my job on my own, I had to relocate to Alberta for that. And now after almost a year, my batchmates are making the move west and a few of them have been successful recently.

Field: Mechanical Engineering
Length of time since graduation: 1 month
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? yes, on workopolis
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 55-65k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Have a contract with the company, might switch if I find a better position.

I actually got a few more interview invites after I started working, but I think I made a good decision grabbing the first offer I got. And this is where it gets funny, during the interview when they asked me about my salary expectations, I had said about 40-45k since I had zero experience, but they ended up offering me 55-65k in my offer letter, so I was quite grateful to them.

[lightning_king2000]

Field: Psychology (BA)
Length of time since graduation: 13 months :o
Found alone? Applied online.
Salary: 40-45k :o
Length of time at company before finding a better place? N/A since I'm only starting next week. Very nervous/excited.

What is this new job?

[jmah1]

Field: Healthcare (studied Kinesiology and Gerontology at Uni)
Length of time since graduation: Graduated in early 2008, but signed the job offer a few months in advance.
Found alone? A friend got me an interview with a hospital that he worked for when he was in Coop
Salary: Starting 55-60k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Still there. But moved to the main office after 8 months

I think that it was pretty fortunate this job fell into my lap as I didn't have any back up plans if I didn't get this job. On top, jobs in the healthcare sector are pretty stable too.


what do you do btw ? (yes kines student)

[BlueHurley]

The salaries in this thread are so inflated. A fresh grad with a diploma in social work and another in marketing are making 60k? Wow, maybe I picked the wrong major in university.

[Prinsesa]

dfgdfhdfhg

[Huge Westinghouse]

Maybe I should show you my .pdf paycheque -_- Let's just say that I really lucked out lol and both diploma + degree holders go for my position.

Hey, who knows. Maybe you do, in fact, make more money as an entry level social worker than most civil engineers and architects make at their first job. But I doubt it.

Regardless, it doesn't matter a whole lot because this is a message board. It's not like anyone is going to try and negotiate a higher salary with their new boss based on the salary info they've gleaned from this website.

[Churo1]

Maybe I should show you my .pdf paycheque -_- Let's just say that I really lucked out lol and both diploma + degree holders go for my position.

No one wants to see your photoshopped paycheck.

The salaries in this thread are so inflated. A fresh grad with a diploma in social work and another in marketing are making 60k? Wow, maybe I picked the wrong major in university.

Judging from the salaries posted, I believe that most of these people are either delusional first year undergraduates or over-ambitious high school students.

[mastercool]

Field: Entrepreneur (Did not go to university/college)
Length of time since graduation: N/A
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Built business from scratch
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 2-3 million per year. Last year cleared an easy 2.3 million bucks.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? [N/A] I like my current job.

Yesterday I was partying it up at the playboy mansion, hanging out with models, and chilling with Donald Trump. Living the life.

[andrew2good4u]

Field: Entrepreneur (Did not go to university/college)
Length of time since graduation: N/A
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Built business from scratch
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 2-3 million per year. Last year cleared an easy 2.3 million bucks.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? [N/A] I like my current job.

Yesterday I was partying it up at the playboy mansion, hanging out with models, and chilling with Donald Trump. Living the life.

lol

[Macross_Freek]

Field: Engineering
Length of time since graduation: Finished school end of April and officially graduated in June. Job start date is July.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Manager from previous intern placement recommended me for an interview with another team in the company.
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Base salary 60k
Length of time at company before finding a better place? N/A

I was pretty fortunate to have my previous manager as well as some other co-workers at my internship helping me look for positions. I tried to apply directly to other companies but didn't even get interviews.

The job itself isn't really degree related but neither was my internship (software). Goes to show any kind of co-op or intern experience is valuable at least in my experience since my former co-workers liked me enough to help me.

[banban]

Field: Business Admin (Bachelor's)
Length of time since graduation: Found before I graduated
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? They found me, I think I had posted my resume on Workopolis or Monster or something
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 35K on the dot
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Six months

Graduated in 2005, 35K isn't a lot of money (it is decent when you're still living at home) and I find it difficult to believe that companies think anyone with a brain will become the most loyal employee at that salary.

Ended up leaving after six months to work for another company and got a 10-15K raise if I remember right.

As for the bit about coming out of school with debt. To go and work somewhere for 40K with OSAP bills doesn't allow you to live very well. I almost think that they expect you to live without rent (aka with the parents) for a number of years.

[_RFDealt_]

Field: Medical Sciences
Length of time since graduation: Finished school end of April 2008.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Applied to any healthcare related jobs on the job bank website and was able to find a job as a clinical assistant at a medical clinic 2 months after graduation. (and this was after e-mailing my resume to about 40 different places)
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Unfortunately, I make $25,000 annually.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Hope to start the job search soon.

I got the job as a filler for a year off while applying to medical school. Turns out, I didn't get in this year so I have another year stuck in a job making $12 an hour with an Honors degree in Physiology (with distinction). Needless to say, I am extremely jaded.

If anyone is looking at this thread in high school, look at colleges and trades. You get a job after you graduate, it's awesome. Or do a degree in Engineering or Nursing. There are thousands of us BSc grads who have absolutely no qualifications to do anything (but it was damn hard).

If anyone has any advice for me as to where I should apply, let me know, I can't stand looking at that paycheque for much longer.

[changturkey]

It's that bad for BSc?

[got_it_4_cheap]

Field: Entrepreneur (Did not go to university/college)
Length of time since graduation: N/A
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Built business from scratch
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): 2-3 million per year. Last year cleared an easy 2.3 million bucks.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? [N/A] I like my current job.

Yesterday I was partying it up at the playboy mansion, hanging out with models, and chilling with Donald Trump. Living the life.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a154/corina_m/balliinnnyp5.gif

[nfuz]

Field: Business Administration - Accounting major diploma (3years), no degree
Length of time since graduation: 0days, bridged in to a federal department on graduation day
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Yes, FSWEP
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Started at 49,500. currently at 53000 after a year
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Still with them

[skyblue12]

Field: Medical Sciences
Length of time since graduation: Finished school end of April 2008.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Applied to any healthcare related jobs on the job bank website and was able to find a job as a clinical assistant at a medical clinic 2 months after graduation. (and this was after e-mailing my resume to about 40 different places)
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Unfortunately, I make $25,000 annually.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Hope to start the job search soon.

I got the job as a filler for a year off while applying to medical school. Turns out, I didn't get in this year so I have another year stuck in a job making $12 an hour with an Honors degree in Physiology (with distinction). Needless to say, I am extremely jaded.

If anyone is looking at this thread in high school, look at colleges and trades. You get a job after you graduate, it's awesome. Or do a degree in Engineering or Nursing. There are thousands of us BSc grads who have absolutely no qualifications to do anything (but it was damn hard).

If anyone has any advice for me as to where I should apply, let me know, I can't stand looking at that paycheque for much longer.

Couldn't agree more. A BSc is a purchase of knowledge, not the application of it. The only hope is professional school, which is pretty stupid when you have to take the BSc and hope to get accepted.

[carabunny]

Field: Human Resources, Graduated with a HBSc from UofT, entered Seneca college right after
Length of time since graduation: 0, transferred to full time after coop was over.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Seneca's coop program
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): PEANUTS. ~22k, hourly rate on contract, but more experience than most organizations will give you as an 'entry level job'
Length of time at company before finding a better place? 2 years, now I'm at a top 100 organization where my role would start at 43k... i do less and get paid more. :)

[reflex]

Field: Medical Sciences
Length of time since graduation: Finished school end of April 2008.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Applied to any healthcare related jobs on the job bank website and was able to find a job as a clinical assistant at a medical clinic 2 months after graduation. (and this was after e-mailing my resume to about 40 different places)
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Unfortunately, I make $25,000 annually.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Hope to start the job search soon.

I got the job as a filler for a year off while applying to medical school. Turns out, I didn't get in this year so I have another year stuck in a job making $12 an hour with an Honors degree in Physiology (with distinction). Needless to say, I am extremely jaded.

If anyone is looking at this thread in high school, look at colleges and trades. You get a job after you graduate, it's awesome. Or do a degree in Engineering or Nursing. There are thousands of us BSc grads who have absolutely no qualifications to do anything (but it was damn hard).

If anyone has any advice for me as to where I should apply, let me know, I can't stand looking at that paycheque for much longer.

Damn did you graduate from Western? I'm entering my 4th year there now, hope I don't get screwed.

Why not try research? More freedom than a clinical assistant, probably pays more too.

[carabunny]

It's that bad for BSc?

i think it depends on what area of BSc you are in.
i mean, i'm a H.BSc grad yet I did it with Psychology, which is useless unless I go and do more grad school. I partied it up first year and flunked out of management, haha. In this world, it rarely is what you graduate out with but who you know in the real world.

[rekearb]

Field: Medical Sciences
Length of time since graduation: Finished school end of April 2008.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Applied to any healthcare related jobs on the job bank website and was able to find a job as a clinical assistant at a medical clinic 2 months after graduation. (and this was after e-mailing my resume to about 40 different places)
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Unfortunately, I make $25,000 annually.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Hope to start the job search soon.

I got the job as a filler for a year off while applying to medical school. Turns out, I didn't get in this year so I have another year stuck in a job making $12 an hour with an Honors degree in Physiology (with distinction). Needless to say, I am extremely jaded.

If anyone is looking at this thread in high school, look at colleges and trades. You get a job after you graduate, it's awesome. Or do a degree in Engineering or Nursing. There are thousands of us BSc grads who have absolutely no qualifications to do anything (but it was damn hard).

If anyone has any advice for me as to where I should apply, let me know, I can't stand looking at that paycheque for much longer.


Have you ever worked at a hospital before? Or done research work? Apply for a research assistant, even volunteering. Once you're in the hospital, network and meet researchers and look for a fulltime research assistant position.

For example, there's an internal job posting where I work that was looking for a research assistant for the anesthia department and the pay is 25/hr. Minimum requirement is a BSc or related degree, MSc preferred but I think even a BSc would be enough if you can demonstrate good work ethics etc,

[changturkey]

i think it depends on what area of BSc you are in.
i mean, i'm a H.BSc grad yet I did it with Psychology, which is useless unless I go and do more grad school. I partied it up first year and flunked out of management, haha. In this world, it rarely is what you graduate out with but who you know in the real world.
I'm going in to Biochemistry, so hopefully that's more applied.

[_RFDealt_]

Damn did you graduate from Western? I'm entering my 4th year there now, hope I don't get screwed.

Why not try research? More freedom than a clinical assistant, probably pays more too.

Haha, yes, unfortunately, I did graduate from Western (with distinction, lol, what a farce). If I enjoyed research, I probably would have entered into grad school but as it stands, I'm really set on med school and am hoping for something where I can work with patients.

Have you ever worked at a hospital before? Or done research work? Apply for a research assistant, even volunteering. Once you're in the hospital, network and meet researchers and look for a fulltime research assistant position.

For example, there's an internal job posting where I work that was looking for a research assistant for the anesthia department and the pay is 25/hr. Minimum requirement is a BSc or related degree, MSc preferred but I think even a BSc would be enough if you can demonstrate good work ethics etc,

It seems really tough to find volunteer positions at hospitals. I've tried at maybe 4 or 5 hospitals and they say they're full/not looking. But damn, you can't find jobs like that on job bank.

[rekearb]

It seems really tough to find volunteer positions at hospitals. I've tried at maybe 4 or 5 hospitals and they say they're full/not looking. But damn, you can't find jobs like that on job bank.


it's not TOO tough, if you got distinctions, i would assume you are a bright guy

make some macros and start spamming scientists related to your field, tell them you read their journals, enjoy their research etc, look for ones that recently got awarded funding,

actually, even just checking some hospital websites like Sunnybrook, Bloorview.... there's a few positions already

dont rely on the lazy ass HR department hahaha


In fact, you can also apply for funding from some places and ask scientists to hire you if you get the funding... i've seen this work before but it can be pretty hard to motivate yourself to do this if you arent interested in research =/

[_RFDealt_]

Field: Medical Sciences
Length of time since graduation: Finished school end of April 2008.
Found alone (if yes, explain how?) or had connections? Applied to any healthcare related jobs on the job bank website and was able to find a job as a clinical assistant at a medical clinic 2 months after graduation. (and this was after e-mailing my resume to about 40 different places)
Salary (give a range ie $25k to 35$, etc?): Unfortunately, I make $25,000 annually.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? Hope to start the job search soon.

I got the job as a filler for a year off while applying to medical school. Turns out, I didn't get in this year so I have another year stuck in a job making $12 an hour with an Honors degree in Physiology (with distinction). Needless to say, I am extremely jaded.

If anyone is looking at this thread in high school, look at colleges and trades. You get a job after you graduate, it's awesome. Or do a degree in Engineering or Nursing. There are thousands of us BSc grads who have absolutely no qualifications to do anything (but it was damn hard).

If anyone has any advice for me as to where I should apply, let me know, I can't stand looking at that paycheque for much longer.

Update: Just got laid off this afternoon. lol. How crazy is that?

[ashs]

after graduating from York in 07, I got a job supplying in Peel in the 07-08 school year. In sept 08 I got an occasional teacher assignment for a semester. The following semester Feb 09 I got a full time contract position in Peel.

Took me just under 2 yrs to get the full time position I wanted :-)

[andrew2good4u]

after graduating from York in 07, I got a job supplying in Peel in the 07-08 school year. In sept 08 I got an occasional teacher assignment for a semester. The following semester Feb 09 I got a full time contract position in Peel.

Took me just under 2 yrs to get the full time position I wanted :-)

What are your teachables?

[cassandraj]

Field: Went to school for journalism, currently working as a writer/editor for TalentEgg.ca (http://www.talentegg.ca)
Length of time since graduation: Less than three months
Found alone or had connections? Found alone. I got a sales/marketing internship with the company last summer, continued to do work for them through my final year of school, was offered part-time position in February and started full-time May 1.
Salary: I'd prefer not to say, but it's definitely not bucketloads of cash.
Length of time at company before finding a better place? I'm still working there and I envision myself working there for a while anyway because I love my job! :D

[ashs]

What are your teachables?

Business and Social Science.

[steevee]

Inflated salaries? Maybe not. Self-selection bias, anyone?

[chris0101]

Inflated salaries? Maybe not. Self-selection bias, anyone?

Unfortunately, we have no way of verifying either.

[Troodon]

Inflated salaries? Maybe not. Self-selection bias, anyone?

Why do people keep talking about inflated salaries. The average salary of posters is about $45,000-$50,000. That's normal for recent graduates.

[Justine]

Why do people keep talking about inflated salaries. The average salary of posters is about $45,000-$50,000. That's normal for recent graduates.

That is a really good wage in my opinion, especially when a lot of grades can't find decent jobs. Me included.

[Troodon]

That is a really good wage in my opinion, especially when a lot of grades can't find decent jobs. Me included.

Hmmm that's interesting. Maybe employers did not cut wages but simply hired less...

[Justine]

Hmmm that's interesting. Maybe employers did not cut wages but simply hired less...

That makes sense I guess.
Oh unemployment how I loathe thee.

[Dark-Colonel]

I'm confused ...

These salaries that I'm reading are probably gross ... not net income, because net income of 40k+ as a recent grad just seems a little too much (unless you have really good connections I guess).

[Quiggie]

The salaries in this thread are so inflated. A fresh grad with a diploma in social work and another in marketing are making 60k? Wow, maybe I picked the wrong major in university.
I am assuming that these fresh grads actually had coop or internship experience in their field before, so they did not start at entry level positions.

For example, a U of Waterloo comp-sci coop student will have 2 full years of industry experience by the time he graduates. That is far from entry level, so a salary in the 50-60k range or even higher is not unreasonable.

[Quiggie]

I'm confused ...

These salaries that I'm reading are probably gross ... not net income, because net income of 40k+ as a recent grad just seems a little too much (unless you have really good connections I guess).
Well of course, everyone always quotes their gross salary, what's so unusual about that?

[Aristophanes]

Well of course, everyone always quotes their gross salary, what's so unusual about that?

Sounds right.

Better yet, we should all start quoting our gross salary in Zimbabwean currency.
I make 21,000,000,000,000,000,000 ZWD (pre-redemonination). I don't even know how to count that.

[Dark-Colonel]

Well of course, everyone always quotes their gross salary, what's so unusual about that?

I didn't know that, hence why I was confused lol.

I figured it was gross, but wasn't 100% on it.

[Nyte]

I am assuming that these fresh grads actually had coop or internship experience in their field before, so they did not start at entry level positions.

For example, a U of Waterloo comp-sci coop student will have 2 full years of industry experience by the time he graduates. That is far from entry level, so a salary in the 50-60k range or even higher is not unreasonable.

No, that's still very much entry level. It just means entry level in your target position vs something else related.

[Quiggie]

Entry level means no experience. If you have 2 years of exp in your field, you are not entry level, you are junior or maybe intermediate.

Entry level - no experience
Junior - up to 2 years exp
Intermediate - 2 to 5 years
Senior - more than 5

[Nyte]

Entry level means no experience. If you have 2 years of exp in your field, you are not entry level, you are junior or maybe intermediate.

Entry level - no experience
Junior - up to 2 years exp
Intermediate - 2 to 5 years
Senior - more than 5

To me, entry level is bottom of the ladder for your position - basically where they put all the new grads and people with little to no experience.

[Troodon]

Is there any discrimination among the graduates or are all graduates given entry level positions simply because they don't have enough experience? There's not much incentive for me to work hard if I'm just going to be placed in the same position as someone with a C+ average.

[grego9198]

Is there any discrimination among the graduates or are all graduates given entry level positions simply because they don't have enough experience? There's not much incentive for me to work hard if I'm just going to be placed in the same position as someone with a C+ average.

I'd imagine that's generally the case, I don't see how a company is going to give you an intermediate position just because you got an A average in University. Real world experience is usually worth more than grades.

I know that the other engineer that started a few years before me had a slighter higher starting wage (+2-4k) than what I got and he had his master's.

You'd better stop working hard now :P