From graduation to entering the workforce, uncertainty seems to be a common theme for 2020 graduates. What’s it like on the other side, and how are recent alumni handling it?
On March 17, 2020, APU students received an email from student services titled, “A Message from the President: COVID-19 Decisions.” The message informed students that the university would be transitioning to a remote modality and that student housing would be closed within the week.
While the announcement itself was tough for students, the extent of what was about to come was more than any of them would’ve ever anticipated.
Alexa Felberg, a recent APU alum who studied graphic design, was in her third year and an RA at the time.
“I realized that I just had to accept the unfortunate reality that my junior year on campus was coming to an end,” Felberg said. “It was difficult to be pulled away from it so suddenly.”
Madelaine “Madzy” Salamatin is a recent graduate of the APU nursing program. When she received the email, she was a senior in her second-to-last semester.
“Many of us believed it’d be over within a couple months and would go back to normal by the following semester,” said Salamatin. “Boy were we wrong.”
These stories are similar to those of so many other recent alumni: in an instant, the plans they had for their senior year and future careers were flipped completely.
Ruby McAuliffe, last year’s editor-in-chief of ZU Media and another recent APU grad, was in her second-to-last semester as well and already living off-campus when the email arrived.
She said since she was a little distanced from the APU community, it wasn’t as difficult hearing that she would have to finish the semester remotely. It was when the realization set in that the pandemic would affect her last semester that it got tough.
“I expected my senior year to be making long-lasting memories, surrounded by friends and doing a lot of lasts: last dances, last chapel, last Mexicali meal on Cougar Walk. I expected it to end with a grand celebration.” said McAuliffe. “Instead, I was in my living room watching the screen as my picture showed up in the live-streamed graduation.”
The uncertainty of these semesters made it even more difficult for those facing graduation. Since the future course of the pandemic was unclear, decisions were only able to be made for the near future, leaving many students in a state of foggy anticipation.
“Our expectations for this year are what made it so much harder for all of us in my cohort,” Salamatin said. “We all had great plans for 2020, but as the year went on I found myself frequently saying ‘as long as blank happens, I’ll be okay. I’ll be content despite losing our senior year.’”
How their remaining time at APU was spent, however, was only half of their worries. Graduates still had to think about their plans after graduation, entering the workforce in a time when entry level jobs are sparse and companies are cutting down their number of job openings.
“Opportunities are more limited as companies have downsized in an effort to stay afloat amidst the pandemic, which, in turn, has limited what opportunities are available to me and what entry level positions are open,” said Felberg.
The best these graduates could hope for was to apply to as many jobs as possible, and hope that at least one would respond.
“Many jobs you apply for might not even send you a response back, so sometimes it feels like you didn’t even apply in the first place,” said Salamatin. “Or on the other hand, their response times can take up to months.”
McAuliffe said she submitted over 60 job applications, but only a handful of companies responded to her.
“I thought I would be able to land a job easily. I was editor-in-chief of ZU News, managing editor of ZU Magazine, I did an internship at LA STYLE magazine, I wrote for Teen Vogue and I also got some PR experience,” said Ruby. “I thought I was pretty good, but it wasn’t easy. The field is very competitive and so many people are doing those great things as well.”
This hostile job market mixed with the uncertainty created by the pandemic led to a feeling of anxiety in the seniors.
“The biggest challenge of finding a job post-college was the feeling that it wasn’t happening fast enough, or that I wasn’t doing enough, or that I wasn’t successful because I couldn’t find a job,” said McAuliffe. “But finally I said, ‘God, I want this done on my timing, but that’s not what you want. I need to just lean into you and find my worth in you and not in a career and not in a job.’”
A week later, a friend from college told Ruby about a job opening at a public relations agency she worked at called Dan Klores Communications (DKC). Ruby applied, and on the day she graduated, she got a call from the DKC saying they were hiring her as an account coordinator for their lifestyle team.
As a nursing student, Salamatin has faced an onslaught of setbacks during this time, delaying her from taking her nursing boards and joining a graduate program at a hospital. “It feels like a waiting game, and it’s out of our control,” she said.
Salamatin is currently working at LAC+USC Medical Center in Los Angeles as a senior student worker, which, she said, is a transition job until she can apply as an RN. Her outlook on this transitional time of life is inspiring.
“Our last year of school was definitely far from our expectations, but we also learned the most about ourselves during this process and about how to adapt to the change,” said Salamatin. “I found a new appreciation for the little wins we have in our day to day life.”
Felberg is putting what she learned in the graphic design program to use as a media and design intern at a nonprofit called P.S. Arts which brings art education to public schools in Los Angeles. However, her internship ends soon, which means she’s looking for jobs again.
In the current state of the job market, Felberg said it’s especially hard to find paying design jobs. However, she still believes that her years at APU were all worth it.
“I would not trade my APU experience for anything,” said Felberg. “Although ending my final semester with remote learning was not ideal, I am very thankful for the three years I did get to interact with my classmates and professors, grow in my faith, and make lasting friendships while I was on campus.”
The COVID-19 pandemic has created uncertainties for those facing graduation both in the job market and in their plans for their last semesters at APU. It’s tough, and it’s definitely not ideal, but this is the moment they’ve been working towards; the moment these past years of school have equipped them for.
McAuliffe’s advice is to, “Have fun with it, it’s exciting. You are literally becoming an adult. You’re moving up in the world, and that’s pretty awesome.”