Unemployment and low salaries are every college graduate’s nightmare, but a new online tool can help students avoid a career crisis.
BeyondEducation.org offers an online database that can guide students to make important career decisions after graduation.
The website contains information about employment and salaries earned by graduates with various degrees from public institutions in the state of Florida.
Its information is based on data from October to December 2011.
The information, provided by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, is required by law to be accessible by the public, namely, students and their parents, according to BeyondEducation’s website.
For some UF students, such as 22-year-old family youth and community science senior Alec Spaulding, salary is not a factor in choosing a career.
“As long as I have a roof over my head I’m happy,” Spaulding said.
Other UF students, such as 19-year-old psychology sophomore Franklin Reuter, said it couldn’t hurt to browse for employment information.
“I’m pretty certain about what I want to do, but you have to think about whether you’ll even get a job,” Reuter said. “If the site said that barely anyone in my degree got employed after graduating, then I might look into something else.”
As a recent alumna, Kaydrianne Young, 23, said the website would have “somewhat of an influence” on her career choices.
“I always thought about making enough to be comfortable,” she said.
Heather White, the director at UF’s Career Resource Center, said she stresses to students that a degree or major does not equal a career.
Employers look for skills sets and experience, White said.
Even though the site’s information could be beneficial to students, White said, there are other resources that could broaden career possibilities for students.
The CRC hosts employer relations seminars, workshops and presentations to help students, she said.
“We provide all imaginable resources that assist students into getting into the workforce after graduating,” White said.
[A version of this story ran on page 9 on 2/5/2014 under the headline "New website helps guide students toward post-grad career choices"]
