Received 2 job offers at the same time...

[Starry436]

I've had a rough time since graduating college on finding a good job in the small area I live in. I had one right out of college that didn't work out so I've been on the hunt ever since. Just recently I received 2 offers. One is just a part time, temporary position but it's with a company that's very hard to get hired into and once you're in then it's a lot easier to get into other positions there. The other is a full time position but it's a very basic position for my business field and I almost feel that I'm over qualified for it and the pay is lower but it offers benefits and is a stable company and position.

I am not sure which to choose..I want to work full time for the sake of being out of college now looking to make a comfortable living but at the same time this position isn't really providing any new growth as in I definitely didn't need college for it. The part time pays a little more and would provide new learning experiences and could possibly get me on the inside of the company for the future. I'm excited for both opportunities but each has an equal pro and con. I was only given 2 days to make a decision from one offer. Any advice?

[cypher1]

Parttime option sounds more enticing from the way you describe the position, to the potential doors it could open within the company. Plus you'd have more free time to continue job searching while gaining valuable work skills and experience.

[Starry436]

Also the part times environment is more of a quiet, blank corporate professional environment and the full time has more of a family, casual environment if that makes any sense. I don't want to make a mistake in the option I choose that won't reflect well on my resume for future positions. I've never been very good at decisions...

[creditcardfree]

Based on what you describe, I'd also lean towards the part time position if it will still pay your bills, or allow you time to look elsewhere, or work another part time job. Good luck deciding!

[bjl584]

Which job offers better benefits? Which job has better hours? Which one is closer to home? Which has more opportunity?

There is much more to consider than just pay.

[jIM_Ohio]

Take the temp job with good company, knowing you are taking a chance. Keep your options open, and don't rush to leave if things go wrong either. You need to stay at one job for 3 years before exploring options.

Keeping options open means going to some networking events to meet more professionals, make a contact now, use it in 3 years for example.

Keeping options open means focus on what grows your career (certifications, advanced degrees, increased responsibility)

[snafu]

I wondered if company offering temp job prefers to fill openings from within their organization. Are part time employees encouraged to apply for other full time jobs? If a good position were available in another community, city or state, would you be willing to re-locate?

[Starry436]

It's temporary as in it's a grant funded position so once the grant runs out in less than a year the job is over and you're not moved to another position, they send you off with the experience and if you happen to land a full time there then you're lucky because they have a crazy hiring process. Both the part time and full time are the same distance from home. The part time offers no benefits and the full time has pretty decent benefits.

Both are good opporunities since I don't have a job but I'm not looking to relocate so jobs are slim pickings in my small area.

[ua_guy]

I'd take the fulltime position.

Being a recent college grad is tough, but finding other jobs becomes a LOT easier once you have some fulltime work experience under your belt and you start coming up with real work experience to put on a resume. If you don't have a job, there really isn't any kind of work that isn't worth doing for pay.

The part time job might pay more, but the full time job is automatically giving you twice the amount of hours plus benefits. When you start to figure that health insurance and dental insurance can run you several hundred dollars per month in the private market, and if the temp job doesn't offer a retirement account or matching funds....I know what my choice would be.

Once you get some time in and can show other companies that you're a dedicated worker, finding a new gig that's more inline with your interests should be a snap.

[Starry436]

^ Good points. It's so hard taking an hourly pay that's lower than I feel I could get elsewhere with my business degree. The full time pays about $2.35 less than the part time and it pays over $4 less than the first position I had right out of college that didn't work out (no I wasn't fired). I think I'll choose the full time just because of the benefits it offers in case something happens with my husbands insurance.

I've gotten really discouraged seeing my friends getting rather nice positions because they've relocated a little from home and I can't get these same opportunities because we're not looking to move. The full time definitely doesn't require a degree, it's very basic office work, and hence doesn't offer the pay for having one either but it is better than being jobless. I'm hoping it won't hurt my resume because its basically like the part time job I held while in college. I'm thankful to be offered a job but I do wonder how long it will take me to climb the ladder.

[rennigade]

^ Good points. It's so hard taking an hourly pay that's lower than I feel I could get elsewhere with my business degree. The full time pays about $2.35 less than the part time and it pays over $4 less than the first position I had right out of college that didn't work out (no I wasn't fired). I think I'll choose the full time just because of the benefits it offers in case something happens with my husbands insurance.

I've gotten really discouraged seeing my friends getting rather nice positions because they've relocated a little from home and I can't get these same opportunities because we're not looking to move. The full time definitely doesn't require a degree, it's very basic office work, and hence doesn't offer the pay for having one either but it is better than being jobless. I'm hoping it won't hurt my resume because its basically like the part time job I held while in college. I'm thankful to be offered a job but I do wonder how long it will take me to climb the ladder.

The full time is less pay because of the benefits.

As for you being discouraged about your friends relocating and finding better work. Thats just how it works. My wife and I moved to a big city when she was in grad school. I found a job right away making more money than I would have if we stayed in our hometown in a small area. After she graduated she found a great job with good pay. Fast forward 8 years later...we are now making plans to move back to the small town in 3 years. We're sick of the city, we're sick of how addicted people are to work and sacrifice so much just to make more money, and we're tired of the hustle and bustle. We want life to slow down in general, be close to our families, and we plan on having children in the near future. Our quality of life will be much better in an area where we make much less money. Granted we saved a bunch in our savings and retirement...so it will be a much easier transition to move back and make a smaller salary.

Realistically, we're going to be taking a $40k-$50k overall combined pay decrease...and we're completely fine with that.

I wouldnt get too worked up about people leaving your area for better work. Some of those people will be back a couple years from now...I can guarantee it.

Also...the easiest time to look for a job is when you have a job. You can take your time, apply if you want, and the best thing about it...theres not much pressure if you take an interview since you already have work/benefits.

[phantom]

I wouldn't worry too much about the job you chose hurting your resume. In my experience, working for a small company can provide you with lots of flexibility in what you do an lots of opportunities to shift your job responsibilities into more challenging and impressive sounding tasks. Keep an eye out for things that need done that are the sort of tasks that you'd really like to be doing. Then, volunteer to do them or at least help out with them. Once you do, you'll be able to add whatever you did to your resume. The key is to make your own room for growth.

When I graduated from college, I wanted a computer programming job. The best job I could find was more data processing than programming. It wasn't really the direction I wanted to go with my career, but I knew it was something I could stick with for a little while. The important thing is that, while I was there, I picked a scripting language I liked and started writing scripts to make my daily tasks easier and faster. Then when it came time to apply for my next job, I could easily say I had professional programming experience, and I could even brag about improving overall efficiency at my previous job.

[Starry436]

I worry about my resume because since my first post-college job didn't work out, it looks like I went from a low part-time position, to a much higher after college full-time position, back down to a low full-time position. I'm hoping this position will provide some growth but right now it seems like answering phones and filing and making runs around town.

Also, are you supposed to negotiate pay or is it seen as rude? I don't want to burn any bridges before coming in but when she told me the pay rate she asked me if that was okay, and all I said was I believe so but now I'm wondering if I should call back and attempt to negotiate? I almost was a little caught off guard because I was expecting at least $1 more but just didn't know how to ask for it.

[ua_guy]

Let that be a lesson learned--something you didn't learn as part of your business degree. Always try to negotiate your pay, and be decisive about it. Talking money isn't personal. It's a discussion.

A dollar an hour isn't going to make a huge difference. Chances are you won't stay in this job forever, so there will be plenty of opportunity to re-negotiate your pay, or increase it through changing positions, titles, responsibilities, etc.

[krantcents]

I think you answered your own question. Which one will give you the most of the skills you are looking for in a first job? Second, which one will help you the most to get you to your goals in 5 years? It appears, it is the part time job. You could set a time limit such as 6 months to see if it turns into a permanent job. At the very least, you gained real skills you can use on the next job. Good luck.