First REAL job..salary expectations? Help, Suggestions?

[Starry436]

I'm graduating from college in May with a Bachelors in Business/Accounting, and I've started applying for some potential positions. I am not sure what salary would be low balling myself, or what to really expect. I know this differs depending on the area you live in but I'd be interested in seeing what you first accepted or considered reasonable for starting out. I'm not completely blind to the accounting field, I have just over 4 years experience in public accounting so I feel that should help me a little in regards to pay.

The reason I ask is, I applied for a job over the weekend and got an interview scheduled already, she informed me that it was more of a finance position vs. accounting and gave me an essential estimate of pay of about $5.00 higher than I'm making now (there were not many details posted about the position at all), but it's also a 30 minute commute vs. my 10 min commute now. I'm trying to decide if this is reasonable or not and if offered the job if I should take it seeing that the other jobs I have applied for have not started interviewing yet.

[bjl584]

$5 an hour higher? So, an extra $200 a week for 40 minutes extra in the car per day? I don't know. I'd be tempted though.

[edg126]

I took the first job offer i could get when I graduated in 2004 with a degree in computer science. They found me through a headhunter and I told her I had no idea what to ask for, so she said, "we'll ask for 40,000". That was within the range of some of my other friends that had accepted jobs.

10 years later though? Most of my friends are in the same industry, and our salary gaps have widened. Some make 60K that were in non-profits, others that went into consulting make 100K+. I'm about 95K, and saw my salary double from 40K to 80K within 4 years, mostly due to there being advancement opportunities, and I was good at my job, and enjoyed doing what I did.

So to me, my guide would be
1) is it in an industry I'll like?
2) is there room for advancement?
3) if i don't know any better, does one field seem more profitable than the other (i'd assume someone with 10 years finance experience would make more money than an accountant)

That will save you from some effort of having to job hop to get your salary up. Salary questions are also in my experience a thing you only have to worry about for a few years. After that you know how much you are worth and would only take jobs that have that salary range.

[ua_guy]

I'm graduating from college in May with a Bachelors in Business/Accounting, and I've started applying for some potential positions. I am not sure what salary would be low balling myself, or what to really expect. I know this differs depending on the area you live in but I'd be interested in seeing what you first accepted or considered reasonable for starting out. I'm not completely blind to the accounting field, I have just over 4 years experience in public accounting so I feel that should help me a little in regards to pay.

The reason I ask is, I applied for a job over the weekend and got an interview scheduled already, she informed me that it was more of a finance position vs. accounting and gave me an essential estimate of pay of about $5.00 higher than I'm making now (there were not many details posted about the position at all), but it's also a 30 minute commute vs. my 10 min commute now. I'm trying to decide if this is reasonable or not and if offered the job if I should take it seeing that the other jobs I have applied for have not started interviewing yet.

I think you've answered your own question. At this stage, employers are telling you what they'll pay you in the form of "this is what the job pays." Depending on how desperate you are, you'll take it. That's pretty typical in the immediate post-undergrad world. If they ask you what you'd like to make, or what are you making now, turn the question around and ask them what the posted salary range for the job is. Have a specific number in mind--one that's on the high side so that if they're interested, it will tip off negotiations in your favor. If they give you the range, shoot high as well. People generally under-sell themselves when asked about salary. A lot of times that's the least important number to an employer as long as it fits in their range. As you gain work history and experience, salary becomes much more of a negotiation.

For reference, I also graduated with BA in Business, in 2005. The job market was beginning to cool. My first job offer was $28,000/year without trying very hard. Another offer came in at $35k, and I took that. Not bad for a non-specific degree.

I also have a friend in his mid-20's that just finished his CPA at the end of last year. He is currently consulting and making about 64,000/year gross, but that's with about 3 years of solid financial experience consulting for Microsoft and some other big names.

[Starry436]

Well, I'm only a little hesistant because it is an extra 30 minute commute one way and I'm not familiar with the area it's in...a $5.00 raise would be awesome for now if it were still within my town. But I'm also not chomping at the bit for a job right out of college. I'd be content staying where I am now until something better came along, but I also didn't think this place would call me before the day after I applied and before the other jobs I've applied for have even started interviewing.

I just don't want to be stupid if I am offered the job and shoot myself in the foot by not waiting until I've had other interviews or the opportunity to apply for other positions, but at the same time do these places know that because you're a recent graduate they can have you settle for less pay? They also said they wanted me to be ok with starting out part-time until I can be trained into being there full-time...that sounded a little funny as well?

I just like hearing your experiences and tips because entering the real world can be a tricky business. My husband is making what they said they pay for the position, and he doesn't even have a degree, and didn't have any experience where he was hired. So that's what makes me feel like I'm worth more than that? But then again, am I?

[snafu]

Have you joined LinkedIn or any of the popular Employment sites. Workopolis or Your Tube to explore possible sites with the information you seek.

[dczech09]

Understand the job(s) that you are applying for. Understand what the jobs involve and also do research on getraised.com, glassdoor.com, etc. You need to have an idea what that particular job pays on average in your area. Also base it on experience and education.

NEVER go into a job interview being willing accept "this is what the job pays." If you do that, you run the risk of being taken advantage of. The employer will ask what your asking salary is. They probably will not ask in the first 2 or 3 interviews, but when they get serious about offering a job, they will ask. And if you having nothing to say other than "I am open" or "I will accept whatever you pay," you will look like a fool.

Be informed and know what that type of job pays. Also know what time of workload you are looking at. For example, a $40,000 per year salary is NOT worth 80 hours of work per week!That equates to about $9.61 per hour. Which brings me to my next point- always break your pay down into terms of "per hour."

Honestly a $5 per hour raise outside of college is nothing. For example, when I was in college I was a pizza delivery guy making about $15,000 per year(that is probably a high number). My first "big boy job" paid $40,000 per year. If you based on that 40 hours per week (which obviously was not the case when I was slinging pizzas) that is a raise from $7.21 per hour to $19.23 per hour.

With a Bachelors in Business/Accounting, I think $40,000 per year should be your floor. Do not go below that as that is probably selling yourself short. You have a degree that so few people have (when you look at the population of the US or the world)! So price yourself accordingly. Yes, you do need to ask "what is XYZ Corporation willing to pay me?" But you should also ask "what is the dollar amount that I place on the value that I can provide others?"

[dczech09]

Another option is to work as a "temp" for a bit. When I graduated, I got a job through a temp agency making $13.50 per hour. I worked as a temp for about 5 months, then was I decided that I liked the job, and the company that I worked for decided that they liked me, a full-time job was on the table. That is how I landed my first major job after college.

The temp labor route is pretty nice because it allows you to tell your temp company "I do not like this assignment. Is there something else available?" Also, it allows a potential employer to get an idea of what value you can provide them before they actually decide to put down an investment on you.

Another thing is this- your first major job outside of college is CRUCIAL! The amount of money that you make on your first job can very well set the trajectory for the rest of your career. If you start out underpaid, you may end up being underpaid all through your career. The reason why is future employers will look at your previous salary and use that as a basis for determining an offer. So your first salary will likely follow you around (unless you change industries or become self-employed or something).

I hope this helps. Finding that first job outside of college is an exciting time! The amount of money that you can make is dramatically different than when you were in college!

[breathemusic]

You'll definitely get a much better idea of what sort of pay is reasonable by researching the accounting and finance jobs in your specific area vs just asking on a huge forum like this. A business/accounting major could land you in a TON of different jobs with a huge pay range. Add to the that drastic differences in cost of living from one area to another and the responses that you'll get will have a large range.

I'd find a way to network with some people who live in your area and work in those fields and try to get some information on the expected salary range that way.

And yes, it's definitely possible that a company will low ball you right out of college because of the fact that you just graduated. That's a common reason why many people only stay in their first job for a year or 2 until they start looking elsewhere to get better pay.

You can also ask in interviews what the growth potential is at the company to get an idea of whether you'll have the opporunity to get good raises in the future or if the only way to make the next step up is to move on to another company.

[Starry436]

Well I went to the interview, and when I initially walked in I thought I could see myself working there. Then after talking to a few individuals during the interview, I was getting more and more deterred. One of the persons was the manager, and he basically told me that in his department there is little room for advancement. Not only was the job not what my degree was for, but the $5 difference in pay with no advancement basically made it worthless to me.

When I applied to the job there was a very little description posted about it but it was asking for someone with my degree so I gave it a shot. But then as it turns out the actual job called for someone with a different business degree - which made no sense to me?

Anyhow, I don't feel it's the job for me. I think you're correct about not trying to low ball yourself because it sort of sets the bar for the future. They did not mention one thing about pay during the interview, the only reason I knew what I did is because I asked the lady who called me for an interview who wasn't even certain herself. I know every area is different in terms of asking salary, but I'm just generally trying to see what your first job interview offered compared to what job offer you took after having patience and trying several interviews. I can be pretty naïve at times and think I'm getting a great deal when really I'm not...so I appreciate the insight from those who have already been through the experience.

[dawnwes]

I would agree with you. This is not the job for you.

My husband got a job right out of grad school in Accounting for about 55K in 2000. It was a higher cost of living area. He quickly moved up to double that UNTIL we moved to a lower cost of living area where the salaries were lower.

I would say 40K-50K is what you should be looking at, and anything hourly is not the job you want unless you are looking at a temp job or an internship of some sort.

However, I would strongly advise you to make an appt. with one of your professors in the field and ask him/her what you should be looking at salary wise right out of undergrad for your area.

Dawn

Well I went to the interview, and when I initially walked in I thought I could see myself working there. Then after talking to a few individuals during the interview, I was getting more and more deterred. One of the persons was the manager, and he basically told me that in his department there is little room for advancement. Not only was the job not what my degree was for, but the $5 difference in pay with no advancement basically made it worthless to me.

When I applied to the job there was a very little description posted about it but it was asking for someone with my degree so I gave it a shot. But then as it turns out the actual job called for someone with a different business degree - which made no sense to me?

Anyhow, I don't feel it's the job for me. I think you're correct about not trying to low ball yourself because it sort of sets the bar for the future. They did not mention one thing about pay during the interview, the only reason I knew what I did is because I asked the lady who called me for an interview who wasn't even certain herself. I know every area is different in terms of asking salary, but I'm just generally trying to see what your first job interview offered compared to what job offer you took after having patience and trying several interviews. I can be pretty naïve at times and think I'm getting a great deal when really I'm not...so I appreciate the insight from those who have already been through the experience.

[snafu]

Glad to see your application garnered an interview and that you've seen it in a positive light as an experience in interviewing rather than a downer and waste of time. Job search is a learning experience somewhat like Alice in Wonderland. Things are not what they seem on the surface and rules seem to be there to be bent out of shape.

Most jobs are never advertised. They are filled by referrals from people already employed there so it's important that everyone you know be informed about your job search. You can identify some places you'd like to work and visit their HR. Talk to someone about your credentials, let them know how much you'd like to work there, ask for tips and drop off a resume.

[MonkeyMama]

How does this job fit into your long-term career goals? What are your career goals? That is not clear from this post.

My experience in accounting is that experience matters far more than education. This means that if you already have 4 years experience, I would not expect a pay increase due to having a degree in hand. Except for being eligible for positions that maybe you were not eligible for, before.

IT varies way too much from region to region and based on type of job for me to offer any more useful input. A reasonable starting salary may be $40k or it may be $100k+. Taking a lower paying/part-time job could be useful from an experience standpoint, but only if the experience is useful and relevant. (Many of my college buddies took tremendous pay cuts once they graduated, to get the experience they needed. Which certainly paid off for their long-term career goals).

[Starry436]

To give you all some insight, my town is fairly small so the salaries probably would broadly range from about $40,000-65,000, can be more depending on if you did want to travel 20-40 minutes outside of my town to the nearest cities.

I am looking for a position that I can grow and advance in. The reason I'm wanting to leave my current firm now is because there is no room for advancement, the boss would like me to stay even after getting my degree but with no pay increase...maybe 25 cents if I was lucky because the firm is so small it can't be afforded. But I am very thankful to have had this job, otherwise I'd have zero experience in the field and most of the jobs I'm seeing want some type of extensive experience.

I didn't want to sound picky in today's economy about taking a job, but I also just really don't want to sell myself short either.

So when most of you graduated, did you just apply for an abundance of jobs that fit what you were looking for? About how long did it take to accept a job? Possibly stupid questions I know, but I am interested in hearing about the search to help me with mine.

[MonkeyMama]

So when most of you graduated, did you just apply for an abundance of jobs that fit what you were looking for? About how long did it take to accept a job? Possibly stupid questions I know, but I am interested in hearing about the search to help me with mine.

That's the thing about this new job - you sound kind of unclear if it will be good experience? You said it was more finance? I'd probably just stay put and await a better job offer. I am not surprised that your degree doesn't mean much to current employer (as far as a raise). I think that would be fairly expected, no matter the size of firm. (I worked for a large firm and it was the same).

I graduated in 1999 which was completely different times. & I had a very clear and specific path, so only applied for one kind of job. Had several job offers long before I ever graduated college. I'd take advantage of career center and any resources available as you finish your last few months of school. Network with classmates, etc.