<p>Son will grad in May in Business Economics. He is looking over the job market and has applied to an entry level position as a financial analyst in San Francisco (ad via Craigslist). Job seems to be a perfect fit for his interests and talents but it is $15 an hour. Now I am sure there will be scads of applicants, but I found the pay rate offensive and it probably does not include benefits (not sure about that). Am I off base? Ca min wage is $9/hr.</p>
<p>Opinions? </p>
<p><a href=“Entry-Level Financial Analyst Salary in 2023 | PayScale”>http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Financial_Analyst/Salary/0d871114/Entry-Level</a></p>
<p>He should go to his college recruiting office…or whatever it’s called. He should talk to someone there about getting his resume done, and where it can be sent. </p>
<p>My first job was less than that but was not in finance. I’d expect that to start higher.</p>
<p>A lot of new college grads today get a rude awakening getting a decent job at decent pay. It is a tough job market for new grads. </p>
<p>Is craigslist the only way he is looking for jobs? Is he applying to companies? Has he gotten suggestions from his college? Has he been to any job fairs at his school? </p>
<p>A couple of items which may be considered in whether or not he is offered a position advertised and how much the employer will pay:
<p>It can be difficult to earn enough to afford living in the Bay Area.</p>
<p>Two years back DS accepted a FAMP job in Los Angeles for ~$35/hr (with full benefits). It is at a large company where he did an internship between junior and senior college years. This was a set salary with a bit of a bump for living in LA, so no special favors.</p>
<p>This sounds hard to live on in that area, even with roommates. Craigslist isn’t the best source for his job hunt, low pay will be the norm.</p>
<p>Op here. Son is trying to network, has worked thru his college career center, has had a couple internships. Resume looks good etc. Craigslist won’t be his only avenue but many find jobs that way. His college is in the south and he wants to return to sf bay area where it happens to be costly. Thx for responses and suggestions… It’s just that $15/hr caught me by surprise. </p>
<p>For an annual salary comparison consider a 2000 hour year. $15/hr correlates with a $30,000 year salary. But- benefits can make a huge difference- health insurance, retirement funding, paid vacation… The link in post #1 shows this to be very low as I interpret it.</p>
<p>Reading Sunday newspaper bits over time I came across an article once that stated your future earnings are dependent on your first salary in the job. The premise being the higher you start at a given job the more you will make when negotiating salary increases. Such as starting at one level you only go higher and any percentage raises will be based on higher numbers for example. Any place recruiting you will need to do better than your present position.</p>
<p>This means the Craigslist job posting may not be his best bet. I would have him investigate the company and research salaries/wages for similar work in that area. He definitely needs to discuss things, including this job advertisement, with his college department employment office (whatever it is called). He does not need to go about his job hunt without help from his school. They know who gets jobs and at what salaries for his qualifications.</p>
<p>That seems really low considering that minimum wage in San Francisco is currently $10.74 rising to $11.05 1/1/15.
Rents in SF are also extremely high.</p>
<p>My D worked with employment agencies/recruiters to find a job when she was looking for employment in a new location. She works in the finance industry doing marketing and is making significantly more than that in Chicago. She has a bachelor’s/liberal arts degree. </p>
<p>As others have said, housing costs will be a challenge in SF. $15/hr is less than we pay our front office staff in a much less expensive part of the country. That said, if he cant find anything else, its easier to find a job when you have a job.</p>
<p>Take full advantage of college career center. If offered, do lots of mock practice job interviews at career center…face to face, phone, Skype/video conferencing. Get some business cards and develop an ‘elevator’ 30 second pitch to use with prospective employers. Polish up resume regularly and keep it updated. Set up a LinkedIn acct. Scout out job postings on Indeed, etc. Set up self with any job matching services offered at college career center. Remember your son will be competing with lots of other well qualified job applicants seeking same position as your son…many of them will be over/better qualified and more experienced than your son. Getting a job is a full-time job all in itself…be aggressive and keep at it.</p>
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<p>You say he’s “returning” to the bay area. Does that mean that you live there? And could he live with you or other family members in the area?</p>
<p>If living with family is possible, the low salary at this job might not be a dealbreaker. </p>
<p>While not necessarily glamorous, companies like Boeing, Lockheed, Northrop, GE have locations all over the US. Starting finance salaries are decent and benefits are better than most. No, it isn’t high finance, but it can be interesting, fulfilling work nonetheless.
My organization has hired off of submitted applications as well as college recruitments, so it is possible. </p>
<p>Op here.Thank you all. Son will live at home for awhile and there will be commute costs. He is set up via his college career center, even had an academic internship plus instruction in interviewing and presentation. So he’s taken full advantage there.
Liking the idea of using a placement service. Will suggest to son that he look into that. </p>
<p>And don’t forget connections that he may have from friends, church, your friends, etc. Goskid’s HS has an awesome alumni association that has helped many new grads find employment…</p>
<p><a href=“University Graduate Career Surveys - #69 by ucbalumnus - Career Opportunities & Internships - College Confidential Forums”>University Graduate Career Surveys - #69 by ucbalumnus - Career Opportunities & Internships - College Confidential Forums;
<p>Of particular note (local and regional universities):</p>
<p><a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/Econ.stm”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/Econ.stm</a>
<a href=“https://careers.calpoly.edu/search.php”>https://careers.calpoly.edu/search.php</a>
<a href=“http://www.sjsu.edu/careercenter/employers/salary-data/Salary%20Survey%202012_2013.pdf”>http://www.sjsu.edu/careercenter/employers/salary-data/Salary%20Survey%202012_2013.pdf</a>
<a href=“http://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/cdc/jobs/salary-grads”>http://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/cdc/jobs/salary-grads</a></p>
<p>Pay rate of $15 per hour seems very low, especially if it does not come with benefits.</p>