What do I want to be when I grow up? As a kid, the options seem infinite and exciting. But, now that we’re in college, and “grown up” is literally right now, the prospect of choosing a career is terrifying. I spoke with Madeline Anderson, a recent UW Business School graduate, who was offered a job with a Silicon Valley network security company, to be a Business Development Representative. Everything about the job sounded perfect: it was with a great company, pay, and she would be working with millennials! The only problem—it was at a satellite campus, in Texas. For a Pacific Northwesterner, the south can be a very daunting place. I was super curious about how Madeline arrived at her decision, and she gave some great advice and ideas about moving into a career after college.
Age: 23
Originally from: Washington State
Major: BBA in Business
Job Title: Business Development Representative
First, Madeline told me about her experience in college that led her to find this job. While she was in college, she had several high-profile internships with tech industry leaders (including Amazon!) This, combined with her sales certificate from UW’s business school, was enough of a background to qualify her for basically any job in the tech industry. Next, it becomes a game of who you know and how well you can network. Madeline, between her internships and leadership position at her sorority, was pretty fantastic at networking. So, in her senior year when she began looking for a job, she reached out to her contacts, who introduced her and got her an interview at the network security company, who ended up offering her the position.
When deciding if this was a place she could work, Madeline highly considered pay (duh), as well as career-trajectory and her timeline, and potential learning opportunities. For her, the biggest factor was the company culture. She says for millennials, this is SUPER important to look into. She suggests reaching out to people who have interned or worked in the same position you’re looking into, to help you get the vibe of the company. After considering all of this, Madeline decided to take the job and move to Texas.
And she lived happily ever after? Not quite. For starters, Madeline found that Texas is literally nothing like Seattle. There are no mountains, no Seahawks, and all social events are eating and drinking (lots of fun, she notes, but not great for the bod). Secondly, her campus is a satellite campus, so it did not have the Silicon Valley company culture that she loves. And, while she believes that sales is super important and beneficial, she doesn’t think it is a lifetime career for her.
So, what can we take from this? That we should never leave the Pacific Northwest if our lives depend on it? Madeline says that she is actually glad she is in the position she is in right now. She is working with an industry leader, has great benefits, and gives her an opportunity to grow and thrive. It helped her realize that her passion lies with marketing, rather than sales. Madeline says that after college, you might not immediately get your dream job, but you always need to keep that job in mind, in order to create a plan to get there. And for her, this job is just a step along the way to her dream job.
We should be empowered to network, get great paying jobs that give us opportunities for future growth, and never stop dreaming big. While that “grown up” reality is looming closely in the future, there is nothing to fear. Take control, and be confident in your skills and worth as an employee and as a human being.