I'm graduating next summer with my BS in Health Service Administration. Due to lack of experience, which I'm still trying to obtain through volunteering and internships (and hopefully I can find a relevant job soon), I feel like graduate school would be best for me. The problem is, I feel BURNT out. I haven't had a summer off since summer of 2009 in high school as I've been taking classes every semester in college due to not knowing what I wanted to do for sure, and so I wanted to explore every field possible by taking random courses. I'm 20, but I guess I just feel like there's so many responsibilities that comes along with being an adult and I feel kinda afraid of NOT being in school and having to go out into the 'real' world and look for a real job. I told my parents about wanting to take a semester off before I start the graduate program (I can either start fall term or spring term) but they are fervently against the idea. Of course I still have quite a while to consider things, but I have to apply to graduate school in a few months and I like to plan ahead of time. This is all based on the assumption that I even get accepted, although I'm pretty confident about it.

BTW, how in the heck do college grads find jobs these days without any practical experience? I feel like finding a job in my career (healthcare) is like finding a needle in a hay sack. And they say you can always find a job in the healthcare field! Is it because it's not the clinical side of the field that's making it so hard for me to find a job? I must be looking at the wrong places or not looking hard enough...


Any suggestions/advice would greatly be appreciated! I just feel so confused and scared about the future.

I think taking a break, especially since you are still very young, is smart. To compare, I have a friend who took about 4 years off between grad school and law school. She just passed the bar this past December at 30. She's now a lawyer with 4 years of being a paralegal under her belt. Best of both worlds if you ask me.

That said, If I were in your shoes and I knew I wouldn't lose my motivation to go back, I would definitely take a break. If you think you'll get lazyand start rationalizing not going back, then push through and finish.

First off, Congratulations!

Now, I know exactly what you're going through. If you're burnt out now, you're not gonna make it through grad school. I've had friends that went on to grad schools (not me) and they never finished. They were just burnt out and needed to do something else for a change. They've also never gone back to date.

I'm not big on the internships per se because if you're not taking one that will hopefully lead you straight into a job with that company, then you're just wasting your time. Too many folks will take any internship out there and then once it's done, try to figure out what to do next.

I fully recommend that you put those graduate plans on hold and see what other options you can do for a while so that you can just "chill". You could sign up for the Peace Corps and get some experience that way, you could do the AmeriCorps, you could travel the world in a backpack style, you could get a job on a cruise ship so you can see the world, you could apply for jobs overseas, etc...

There are many options out there besides the traditional 9 to 5 job. And yeah, it's not gonna be easy when your family wants something entirely different for you. But you are an adult, so only you know how you feel and what you'll be happy with. Good Luck!

If need a break, take a break but definitely find some sort of paid internship in your field and just do it part time.

I think it depends on the degree, but are BS graduates in your field considered employable? Have you talked to a career counselor at your school? I know in some areas they require a MS/MA/Ph.D. before being considered employable and in other areas, a higher level degree will actually make you unemployable without experience.

I would defer grad school if I were you. I think it looks better on a resume to get your feet wet in something and then go to grad school. Also, you don't get so far in debt.

But I found a good 20 years ago when I graduated in college that it was impossible to get a job so imho this isn't new. I worked in accounting which is supposed to be amazing for jobs anytime.. Here is a suggestion to get your foot in the door that worked for a friend of mine. Find a position that you like / or that might go for this (say a small doctor's office) and suggest to work for free for like 6 weeks. After 6 weeks say the employer can either (1) decline to hire you and provide you with a good reference or (2) hire you.

My friend did this and counted on the fact that after you are there 6 weeks they just won't want to not hire you. They hired her. But you do have to be careful who you pitch this too. Most large organizations won't do it because legally you can later sue them for pay. FMLA.

Since you're so young and you can take a single semester off, I would definitely take a break. My husband will be graduating next summer as well and he's going directly into graduate school (he'll be 31 when he gets his bachelor's degree) and we're already beyond exhausted between full time school and full time work!

I've spent 3 years in the working world before heading back to grad school this coming fall, at a school that's way better than where I would've landed coming straight out of undergrad. I'd advocate for taking a break. It'll help you confirm that the education you want is really the education you need to get where you want to go-- in a time where school is absurdly expensive, it's worth taking the extra time to make sure. (this is an argument your parents might appreciate...)

My two cents on jobs --I'd highly recommend trying to find a job or internship in something related to the field you think you're interested in, but don't narrow your sights too much when you're applying for things. Consider applying for positions you think you are underqualified for, or overqualified for, or are in a slightly different field-- just make sure to knock the cover letter out of the park. Internships (paid or unpaid) are sadly becoming yet another necessary step to finding gainful employment (this may be more true in some states/careers than others). If you do go that route, make sure you're making connections both within the organization/company and outside of it. As much as "networking" can sometimes feel really slimy, it really is what gets you jobs.

Also, does your college/university/program have a career center? they're an amazing resource you should definitely check out if you haven't already. How about professors?

How about working abroad in the health field? There may be programs in Asia or Africa to volunteer and you could make it count as work experience and then combine it with some traveling.

I graduated with my undergrad in Social Work in December of 2011, and I'm looking to start grad school with my advance standing in May 2014, for a 10 month program in advanced standing. I took a break in between...I wasn't going to even go for my masters but there was NOTHING out there unless I wanted to work in child welfare in a really rough city, and I just don't think i'm ready for that. I finally got a job as a nanny because I just couldn't get a job without experience. Looking back, I do wish I had gone right on to grad school. As burnt out as I was, I'd be done with it already and have a real job if I had gone on. I'm looking at graduating with my Masters by the time I'm 26, which is FINE by me...but I could have been done. I just think it would be hard to go to grad school while raising a family, so I don't want to wait any longer then I am (ALL the power to those who do...but I have a feeling if I got married and pregnant before I go back, I won't end up going back). On the other hand, I've had time now to be sure of what I want my masters in. The longer you wait, the harder it is to go back. I'm dreading grad school, because I'm just so over the whole school thing. But I have to go if I want to work in my field.

I'm being really whiny about it, but I am 98% sure I'll power on through at least a masters. I'm 33 and still have a year of undergrad left though, so that makes a difference. I am taking this summer pretty easy, just a single 3 credit class, and it only meets twice a week for 4 weeks. I've been pushing so hard for several years now, and my anxiety level is absurd.

Thank you for your advice everyone! It seems like the general suggestion is to take some time off and get some experience first. The thing is, I've been applying to several places, but without experience, NOBODY wants me!! I'm trying to get a full time job in the healthcare field somewhere so I can work and go to school full time for my last year, but I'm struggling to find a job, so my only options are volunteering and interning now. And when I say somewhere in the healthcare field, I literally mean -anywhere- just to get my foot in the door. While that plan isn't working out, I'll be working for free. I'm just scared of graduating next summer without a job so I'm stressing so much over this right now. My parents have assured me many times that they're more than happy to pay for my education and living expenses, but I don't know, it just feels 'better' to have a job to support myself. While I want a job, I don't want just ANY job. I worked at Disney for some fun a while back and had a blast, but those days are over as I need experience in healthcare.

Honestly, I'm most likely going to try and push through to finish that Masters, but what worries me the most right now is just getting a job. My parents don't want me working but I'm not a kid anymore and should pick up on some of the responsibilities (money-wise). They bought me a car (a nice 2013 Honda), paid for my apartment and living expenses, insurance, phone, everything and it's really starting to bite at me. Not because my parents aren't well-off, they make pretty decent money, but I just feel the need to pick up on some of the responsibility. When I worked at Disney, it paid pretty much min. wage and while I wasn't able to pay for my apartment, I still had enough for gas and living expenses. My financial aid comes back about $1000 every semester after tuition is paid for so I use that money to pay for 2 month's worth of rent every semester and the remaining months, my parents pay for them.

I set up an appointment to go talk to my career counselor on Friday and to talk to my mentor right after that so hopefully something will come out of it! I'm trying to get a job that I can actually list on my resume and have that experience be beneficial towards any future jobs. I don't want to be a cashier or clean tables or work at a nail salon anymore - I'm just over those days.

Thanks again for the advice everyone, I will definitely work hard on getting experience now and talk to my parents some more to see if I can at least take a semester off.

One thing at a time. If you are burnt out now, just focus on making it though your senior year. Entertain some general ideas about what you may do next but keep your main focus on finishing out the year strong. Once you have your degree in hand, then focus on what comes next. I was in a similar situation my senior year of college. I worried about graduate school, finding a job, internships and whatever else, while nursing some hardcore burnout. I got so fried I ended up failing 3 classes. It ended up taking 2 more years to earn my degree and my GPA plummeted. I wish I had just focused on finishing and not worrying about everything that could happen later. If people ask about your post-graduation plans give a general answer and tune out the noise. Don’t worry about other people’s opinions (ie your parents). This is your life.

-Something else to consider, how much of a relaxing break are you really gonna have with so much looming career uncertainty . Even if you take a few months “off” I doubt you will be able to relax until you figure out a plan and have taken some steps in the right direction.

-I would recommend getting any job you can at a nursing home (or other facility) owned by a large healthcare corporation (ie genesis, meridian, etc). You can work part time while working on your master’s degree. It will be much easier to find a job if you are already in the corporation even in a lower capacity. Then once openings arise in more desirable positions, you’ll have a good shot at them if the administrator likes you and is willing to put in a good word. You can earn a CNA lisence in 6 weeks. I work in healthcare and I promise it would look phenominal on your resume to be able to say you worked as a CNA for a few months when applying for a frount office job. Nursing homes are always looking for CNAs and the nursing staff would respect a “higher up” or “frount office” person who has done aide work much more, down the road. If this is not for you, maybe consider working as a rec aid or in the kitchen. Just get a foot in the door. It’s probably going to be a very uphill climb to get anything in health service administration right out of college with just a BA so brace yourself for some temporary underemployment. GOOD LUCK!

Thank you! Being a CNA isn't really my thing so I'll keep on looking! I have a mentor who's an administrator for a pretty well-known nursing home facility, do you think it's rude to ask her for employment opportunities? I just don't want to push my luck - I'm lucky she even agreed to be my mentor! And that's also one of the reasons why I think I'm just gonna push for my Masters - I feel like more doors will open for me. Do you have any other advice for people with this degree? I know I have to work my way up, but I'm afraid of getting stuck in the same position. I know this may sound silly, but my goal was to find a job that would pay upper 40's-50k/year out of college with a Bachelors and hopefully make more with a Masters. Is that too unrealistic? LOL.

I work in healthcare at a nursing home with Genesis which is one of the largest healthcare organizations in the country. They own a couple hundred nursing homes in many different states. I just finished my master's degree (in a healthcare related field) and completed it while working at my current job. Anyway when your in a large organization you can apply to positions at different locations, for example our current admissions director just took the same position at a larger facility which was closer to her house. She saw the position posted and applied. There are other examples of people moving up through the organization and on to other facilities. This way if you work at another job and let it be known to the administrator what your goals are they may consider you as positions open up (if they like you). This avoids the getting stuck problem.

I would DEFINITELY ask her for employment opportunities, but do it very nicely.

IMO the master’s will be of little value to you without any sort of meaningful experience. Nobody is going to want to hire someone for a management level positon without any experience working in healthcare. There are just certain quirks to it (ie working with nurses, surving state inspections, etc) that you need to experience in order to be taken seriously. Therefore it would be best to work at least part time in healthcare in some capacity while completing the degree.

$40 – 50K is WAY WAY WAY too ambitious for a undergraduate degree with no experience. There are very few college graduates making that kind of money right out of college period, forget about in healthcare. Honestly in your situation you would be lucky to get $10 an hour with benefits. I hate to sound harsh but it is not an employees market (especially for recent grads). There was an office manager position that opened up at our facility and they got a TON of applications for it (I don’t know exactly how many). The woman who ended up with the job had a a lot of experience, she had worked for 10+ years for genesis at another facility in a similar position then stopped working for a few years to have children. I would fill out an application at every facility in driving distance from your house (preferably with a larger organization), explain that you are trying to get healthcare experience and work as a receptionist/in the kitchen/or whatever if you have to until something opens up. There are a handful of younger (ie under 30) people in front office type positions at our facility ie benefits, staffing, etc. If you were in they system and everyone liked you and something like that opened up they would probably give you the job. There is more turnover than you would think in these positions because people continually move up and move on.