New graduates face the tough reality of today’s job market

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EL PASO — Crystal Ortiz walked tall into a new life after she was handed a bachelor’s diploma in education at The University of Texas at El Paso last December, but frustration set in when she began to search for a job. “Finding a job in the field of education is a challenging task,” says Ortiz. “I am planning on going to graduate school this coming fall semester in order to increase my chances of being hired.”

For the past few years, she studied in classrooms, sitting among other students at aged desks, tapping at laptop keys as professors delivered lectures. But now, that chapter of her life has closed as she begins a new more difficult journey. Right now she hunts for a job that can provide a stable income while she waits to begin the career to which she devoted four and a half years of preparation.

Calm career uncertainties by taking that intern leap

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EL PASO, Texas — This past summer, I forced myself to be more involved with extracurricular activities that would build my resume. Naturally, the best and most productive thing I could do during the summer, aside from working, was to get an internship. Personally, the hardest part about finding an internship was finding out who I was. I didn’t want to commit myself wholeheartedly to an organization if my interests changed in my habitually fickle manner – from general communication studies, to creative writing, to digital media production, to multimedia journalism, to wanting to write for a music magazine. It’s hard to be motivated to do something if you’re not even sure if that is what you love most.