Unexpected Future for 2020 Seniors

The coronavirus has caused several 2020 seniors around the country to fully stop or put on pause their future plans. Many students had hoped to network with professors or hand in job applications before the semester ended.

Seniors found themselves returning home a few months earlier than originally planned.

“It’s hard to go from being on your own, doing your own things,” stated Dr. Marni Amsellen in a 2019 Refinery29 article, “falling back into the old habits and patterns of living under your parents’ roof.”

COVID-19’s Effects on the Job Market

Although many senior students are home with families there is still an uncertainty about how the rest of the semester will play out and what the future holds for them.

In a cbsnews.com article. Gregory Clark, a Stanford University graduate, had his job application put into a hiring freeze.

“I was talking with a potential employer a few days ago, and they told me that they actually couldn’t go forward in the application process because a hiring process had been instituted,” Clark said.

Many businesses and job corporations have closed down entirely because of the coronavirus pandemic leaving less jobs available for seniors who were hoping to get a job related to their major after graduation.

In a cnbc.com article ,Natalee Cruz, a hostess who worked at a New York City restaurant stated, “It doesn’t feel like I can look for other jobs right now. There’s just so much uncertainty going on and I don’t think this is necessarily a hiring market.”

Future Job Market Hope

There are still jobs available during the pandemic, even if they are not a senior’s first or ideal choice.

Danielle Davis, an 2019 Olivet graduate said, “Your first job after graduating doesn’t have to be a forever job. Most of us think after college that we want to figure it out now but sometimes though we don’t have the leisure to do that and that’s okay.”

Although the path of seniors getting their dream job right after college looks a little different currently, there are jobs available that might lead them into the right direction for what they want to do later in life.

“Without the option of face-to-face meeting or career events it’s more important than ever to embrace and utilize the power of technology whether using LinkedIn, Handshake, and even personal social media accounts to build your personal brand,” Poppy Miller, director of career services at Olivet, said.

Though the rest of their senior year didn’t go as planned for seniors and the future is full of mystery and uncertainty, there is one thing seniors can do which is being patient. Being patient for jobs and being patient for whatever the future may hold for them and the rest of the world during this uncertain time in history.