How come most Ateneo graduates (recent ones, i believe) seem to be very flighty workwise? i admit, i am very much guilty.... i've had 3 jobs and it seems that i haven't found my calling yet.... :confused:

hehehe. same here.

i've had 5 jobs. the difference is that for each job i had, i thought was my real calling.

same field, different specializations.

what field are you in if i may ask?

I think after college, many fresh graduates really don't know what they want. Other schools, on the other hand, train their students to be very specialized and thus they follow a very specific career path such as CPA. Also, many companies who present on campus do not really talk about the jobs in detail but rather they talk about their companies in general. One thing you can do to find the "best fit" job/company is to go out and talk to people in the industry. In business school, these are called "informational interviews" where the student drops by the office of a professional and has a casual conversation. This will give you a better understanding not only of the job but also the company's culture and the peole you will be working with. If after the interview, you think you will be happy working in a specific company with their people, then you can expect better job satisfaction.

I think one of the problems with recent grads is that they are just too spoiled. And part of the blame goes to the college for promoting the myth that Ateneo graduates should expect jobs that immediately gives them charge over a lot of responsibility.

Let's face it. Most of the grads (my batch included) just don't want to start from the bottom. They "EXPECT" to have mid-level positions, salaries, etc.

I brought this up to one of my professors in college. Honestly, to promote the myth that Ateneo grads deserve or should expect high salaries upon graduation, to expect that they can "choose" the jobs they want to enter even during a recession... the school is living in an ideal and sheltered world.

On a personal note, I've been with my company (first job) for the past 6 years. I also have lots of officemates who have also been here for that long. We are surprised ourselves at our "loyalty".

i'm in sales now... was into marketing and banking before....
:confused:

It's not a problem exclusive to Ateneans. It's quite global actually. They even have a specific term for this problem. They call it the "quarter-life" crisis. In general, it says that today's college grads who are in their mid-twenties are undecided and uncertain about their careers and other plans in life. They go from job to job in the hopes of finding their "true calling." Some say that today's college grads are a generation of spoiled brats. While others say that we've simply learned from the mistakes of those who've come before us. We simply don't want to end up bored and resentful in an uninspiring career when we suddenly hit 40. Then there's another camp which says that it's not something unique to this generation. Our parents also went through something like this at some point in their life.

I tend to agree with the last camp. I think it's quite normal. Where does it say that we're suppose to know what we want to do with our lives by the age of 24? I just met a 36 year old woman who's shifting to a job that has no relation whatsoever to her previous job. And with the pressure of having a family slowly being lifted from today's youth, I think we'll find more people who'll be adventurous with their career choices.

Hi Princess! It seems we have more in common other than fondness for the champs... I have the same dilemma as yours. It's pathetic how almost every day I try to search the Internet for job openings and mind you, I use my PC in the office. Oh well, I still believe that it just takes time, patience and perseverance to finally find our calling.

Hey I think I know you.

Anyway, it's true that Ateneans have this notion that they have the option to choose what they want. But the truth also is that Ateneans are 'half-baked', meaning there's no specialization of skills involved, unless you minor into something (say, Japanese Culture, Marketing, etc.) unlike other schools which have programs like Marketing Management, Industrial Engineering, Accounting, etc.

yes bluesman... i think i know you too...

Believe it or not, this is the same issue w/ other presteigious schools whose curriculums follow the generalist mold - Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, Dartmouth, etc. These schools do not even have undergrad programs in business. In business school, I have classmates from Ivy League undergrad programs who changed jobs up to 4 times over their pre-MBA career. However, over the longer term, they have placed prominently in investment banks, consulting firms, and executive rotational programs just as Ateneans have done. It is this broad background that prepares them for seeing the bigger picture rather than the details of one specific component. Nevertheless, it does pay to know what you're getting into before jumping in. Talk to people in the indistry and get their perspectives first.

To begin with, what self-respecting school will dare offer a course that will "teach business"? There is one goal and one goal only in business and this is making money. That students like reyesaa are made to jump through all these hoops before being made "eligible" to compete is a travesty designed by an entrenched establishment to perpetuate a system that will never make Filipinos/Ateneans wealthy.

I understand how totally "awed" you are reyesaa by the formidable educational institution I assume you are currently enrolled in but don't get too smug and comfortable (judging from the inordinate amount of sage advice you have lately been dispensing). The real world is out there and it will eat you alive if you do.

I agree w/ you that the real world has much to teach. I've been working in it for 5 years after college before getting here and not once have I switched companies. I have also seen colleagues switch jobs many times and there is nothing wrong w/ that. It is ruthless but the trip can be less painful, if not exciting, if you somehow prepare yourself before jumping in. There is indeed a travestry somewhere but then again, those who make the best use of their education can turn travestry into opportunity; thus it is not so much the educational institution that "awes" me but rather the opportunities that it can present if education is used properly to ones advantage.

[ October 25, 2002: Message edited by: reyesaa ]

thanks for introducing me to that term. now i have an alibi for feeling low.