Job market yields mixed results for college grads

Thousands of colleges across the country are abuzz again as new and returning students have begun their academic studies. But one group that isn’t there is the class of 2012.

Recent college graduates have spent the past few months hunting for jobs. Some have been lucky and were able to find positions right after graduation. Others are finding a tough time in the job market.

Nick Novello, a 22-year-old graduate of Ohio Sate University, found a job fairly quickly out of school with LiRo, a construction management company in Syosset. As an electrical engineering major, he said he was fortunate to find a job in his field of study.

Novello said he began applying for jobs at the beginning of his senior year of college, and received a job offer in May. “It was the first offer I received and I took it,” he said, adding that he expected to have employment lined up sooner. “Many of the people that I knew at school were getting jobs earlier so I thought I would have as easy of a time.”

Job responsibilities for the 2008 Valley Stream South High grad include drafting and designing electrical systems, primarily for health care facilities. He said his job search was difficult and time consuming, and he spent a lot of time researching positions online. “Searching on job websites looking for the right position in the right location took a lot of effort,” he said.

The job search has been less than friendly for Michelle Gil, who graduated from SUNY Purchase with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She has been interning with Long Island Wins, an online publication devoted to immigration issues.

Gil said she has great interest in reporting on immigration issues, but there are few niche publications out there, so it limits the job possibilities. “I don’t know where to start for an entry level job,” she said. “I know it’s really difficult in our days to get an entry level job. I’m just hoping for the best.”

She said she can continue her internship as long as she wants, which does give her the opportunity to build up her writing portfolio. But eventually she wants a paying job.

Gil said she would be willing to relocate for the right position, and said Washington, D.C. or California would be possible areas. She said right now she is limiting her job search to New York, but that will change if no doors open for her locally.

Thomas Bertha, a 2006 Central High School graduate, recently finished up a six-year pharmaceutical studies program at the University of Rhode Island. He was able to secure a job with CVS, where he was a student pharmacist while in college — in East Greenwich, R.I. during the academic year, and in Rockville Centre during school breaks.

Bertha chose to stay in Rhode Island instead of returning home to Valley Stream because he was able to secure a job at a staff pharmacist at a CVS store. In his job, he verifies and dispenses prescription medication, provides consultations and gives immunizations.

He said he applied for the job during his fifth year of school, and was offered the position during his final year of college. He said internship programs in the pharmacy field, like the one he participated in for five years, generally lead to jobs after graduation. Because of that, he did not interview with any other possible employers.

In addition to his student placement, Bertha was a member of student pharmacy organizations at his college, including the American Pharmacists Association, American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists and Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity. “My commitment to my internship with CVS as well as extracurricular involvement in my field of practice has come to fruition with my current job,” he said.

Katherine McGeary, 21, a recent SUNY Delhi graduate with a degree in culinary arts management, said her job search started by looking for a summer job. She got a position as a cook at the MaliBlue Oyster Bay in Lido. Once the season ends, she will work at other places under the same ownership, such as the Sands at Lido Beach and the Coral House in Baldwin.

She said she found the job on Craiglist. “I do think I found a job fairly quickly compared to some people, and was especially lucky that I was able to start working immediately after graduation,” she said, adding that she was glad to be able to find a job in the field she studied.

The Valley Stream native and Sacred Heart Academy graduate also got a part-time job as a regional representative for Delhi. It’s a school she is proud to represent. “I believe my education gave me the biggest leg up on finding and retaining a job,” she said. “Having attended Catholic school all my life as well as being on the culinary competition team at Delhi has given me a sense of discipline and professionalism that is not all that common these days.”