The Endless Summer

Unemployment and Life After College


The month is May. You’ve finished finals and you’ve just spent the last week celebrating. Your family is in town and they’re cheering you on at graduation as you walk across the stage, a member of the class of 2009 and one of your university’s most recent alumni.

The month is June. You’re still reeling from the reality of graduating, despite it feeling like forever ago. You’ve spent the last few weeks traveling and detoxing from four years of papers, presentations, readings, and perhaps some partying. You’ve earned it.

The month is July. The 4th was a blast (no pun intended), but you still don’t have a job yet. You applied to some positions over the past 6 months but no call backs yet. A couple of standard, ‘thanks for applying’ emails, but not a single interview. ‘What’s the deal?’ you say to yourself. You were told since you were 5 years old that your bachelor’s degree would be your golden ticket. You figured you’d have a job upon graduation but that hasn’t seemed to happen yet. “How come I’m still jobless? Do I really deserve this? Is the economy that bad? Am I destined to flip burgers with my diploma?”

Unfortunately, this situation is all too real for a cohort of 2009 graduates whose graduation timing couldn’t have been worse. Even if you lived in a cave you’d still know about current market conditions – CNN would make sure of it. How, then, are a bunch of undergraduates supposed to get jobs when firms are laying people off to reduce overhead? More importantly, how are undergraduates supposed to get jobs that are only offered to people with a master’s degree and 5 years of experience? The answer: they aren’t. Many people saw this coming and either signed up for volunteer work, applied for Teach for America, or decided to go straight to graduate school or some other, non-occupational endeavor. But then there are the ones who didn’t; who either applied and tried to compete or simply didn’t apply at all. Some got jobs, most didn’t, and the ones who didn’t apply at least were aware of their inevitable unemployment beforehand.

In a time of economic insecurity, regime changes, and seemingly never-ending cover letter writing, my advice is this: stay persistent. As Shakespeare’s King Lear said: “Nothing will come of nothing.” The more you apply, the more chances you have at piquing someone’s interest. However, not applying, for whatever reason, is the same as not shooting during a game of basketball: you’re guaranteed to miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

So, in dealing with the whole situation, breaking down these giant challenges, that is, ‘getting a job’ and ‘what to do with my diploma,’ can make life a whole lot simpler. Set small goals. Achieve a little at a time. Because, in the end, that final result is comprised of a set of smaller, individual steps anyway, so why not aim in a general direction with a main goal in mind while plotting the smaller steps along the way as to eliminate the overwhelming feeling of bewilderment one feels when asking oneself “So what’s next?”

As always, your comments are welcome. Thank you.

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Digital Relationships

Hello and welcome to a new era in Mark Silverstein Imagines history: MSInk, our company’s blog! My name is Spencer and I am Mark’s eldest son. As a recent graduate of Columbia University, I am spending the summer with my dad, working in the office while I apply for jobs and internships. My field of study was sustainable development and I aspire to one day work toward ensuring a sustainable trajectory for our planet and its many forms of life.

In terms of working with my dad, I really enjoy it. The allure and brilliance of my dad’s (and mom’s) jewelry always captivated me as a child, and now that I’m here I am able to bring that same joy and beauty into other people’s lives.

Okay, enough about me. With the advent of Facebook, Twitter, Blogger, MySpace, YouTube, eHarmony, LinkedIn, and other online networks, the concept of social networking has become a common phrase in the language of our ‘modern,’ tech-savvy society. Such social networking sites allow a user to log onto the website, create a user profile, input any relevant information into their profile, and then connect to the network of people within the online network. According to the Digital Enterprise Research Institute, people take full advantage of social networking sites for personal and professional use, communications, new business developments and contacts, dating, and meeting offline without the ‘burden’ of 3D interpersonal communication. The salient point here is that internet-based social networks allow people to join together for a common purpose, exchange information like never before, and become more engaged and involved with one another and within the community. The web itself has opened the door for the communication revolution to enter as the ability to send and retrieve information anywhere has changed the way people work and live.

A common discourse regarding social networks centers on the topic of relationships. These online relationships can be social or professional, and sites often cater to these two types of relationships. Three major types of explicit relationships exist online: leisure/social, professional, and real-world events oriented. Moreover, a myriad of communications methods also exist, facilitating online relations even more. Yet, some key issues and concerns involve privacy, fake users, and addiction, which can be quite serious.

In closing, the question I raise is this: are social networks hindering or promoting relationships? The seemingly obvious answer would surely be that social networks work to promote relationships. However, if I can meet my future wife online, what need is there for interpersonal skills when I can type my thoughts and feelings? Will customer service be forever relegated to a voice-automated machine? Social networks, in my humble opinion, will not bring about a social Armageddon. In fact, I think it is safe to say that they allow our world to be connected and stay connected in an era of globalization, international trade, and the redefined perspective on mankind as a global community. Thus, if we keep in mind the value of our relationships, continue to develop our interpersonal skills, and constantly question the role of the online social network, then we can reconcile the disconnect between the web and reality and can maximize the benefits from employing technology to interact with one another.
Thank you.

Spencer Silverstein
Your comments are welcomed.

Launching July 1st !

That's right, check back here July 1st, 2009 for our first posting !
(though this could be considered our first posting, but it isn't since we haven't "officially" launched yet...)