“What are your plans after graduation?”
COVID-19 Cheated the Class of 2022 of the USC Experience
Tyler Lozano, USC baseball player, sat at home during the culmination of his sophomore year, with his goals of being drafted cut in half. Now in his spring of senior year his plans for what comes after graduation are drastically changing.
“Since I was a young kid, I always dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player, USC gave me the opportunity to play at the division 1 level and get looked at by professional teams.”
Tyler Lozano
Lozano’s goal after graduation is to enter the 2022 MLB draft. Halfway through his senior year as the starting catcher, he has 10 home runs and 27 RBIs. Following the best season of his life his chances are substantially less now than prior to COVID alterations on the drafting process.
Lozano said the pandemic was extremely difficult for many athletes including himself. His sophomore season, an essential year for baseball players, was cut short due to the pandemic.
To make matters worse, the MLB draft has greatly reduced its draft numbers. In 2020, MLB went from 40 rounds to only five rounds. In 2021, the rounds moved up to 20 rounds which allowed for 612 baseball players to be drafted. The year 2022 is expected to stay at 20 rounds, which is extremely disheartening for athletes looking to pursue a career in their sport.
With a limited number of college athletes getting drafted, many athletes’ childhood dreams of playing in the big leagues are greatly reduced. Many college athletes at USC want to pursue their dreams of making it to the professional or semi-pro level after graduating. However for several other athletes, it will be the last time they touch the field or court. Athletes at the Division 1 level, sports is all they have known their entire lives. Student athletes put in countless hours to play the game they love while attending school. So having to hang up their jerseys and decide what to do next can be extremely stressful.
As a senior at the University of Southern California, you have probably been asked the pressing question of what your plans are after graduation, at least one hundred times in your final semester of college. The class of 2022 graduates spent a majority of their college experience through a computer screen.
For some students this may be an easy answer, while others might still be trying to figure that out for themselves. Some students already have a job lined up, others are furthering their education, there’s a couple with plans to travel the world and some may not have a single clue what their next step is for life. There is no right answer to this question, as each student must do what they feel is best for themselves.
Taking on the title, USC Graduate, has a lot of implications and expectations from an outsider’s perspective. The University of Southern California is a leading private university located in the heart of Los Angeles, California. On May 13th, 2022, USC will be hosting their 139th commencement ceremony. The first traditional graduation ceremony since 2020.
Entering Corporate Life
For athletes and the entire class of 2022, fantasy is starkly different from reality. The Class of 2022: Halfway through their sophomore year they were sent home and all of junior year at zoom school, now in less than a month these students will be graduating and deciding their next step in life. With the lack of in the classroom lessons and college experience these students are thrown out into the real world.
There are many different pathways college graduates can take as they enter into the “real world.” At USC, there will be many students entering the workforce straight out of college. Students may have received job offers from their previous internships or been applying to numerous jobs during their final semester.
For Siena Secrist, her plan post graduation is to move to Chicago where she will be working for P10 Holdings. P10 is a private market investment firm. Secrist interned for the P10 Holdings office in Chicago in the summer of 2021 and is excited to be returning for a full time position post graduation.
The month after graduation she said she has plans to travel to Greece, to experience some of the world before beginning her career. Since she couldn’t study abroad due to the pandemic restrictions her junior year, she knew she wanted to take some time to travel. She will be spending a couple of weeks in Greece before starting her job.
Bisola Ojeniyi studied business administration and will be working at EY-Parthenon as a consultant. She said the pandemic affected her recruiting process as there was a lack of opportunities of in person recruiting events and interviews. Ojeniyi said she couldn’t express her personality and passion for the business she was applying to on zoom. Although she thought this may have affected her recruiting process while looking for a job, she ultimately found the right fit at her EY-Parthenon.
“Finding a job during the pandemic was just a little bit stressful because there weren’t a lot of the on campus recruiting opportunities.”
Bisola Ojeniyi
“There is some pressure to find a job that does have that name to it. But that pressure is definitely put on by yourself and family members. I felt supported by my friends and school to pursue other opportunities.”
Bisola Ojeniyi
As May 13th approaches Annalysa Cowie is rigorously searching for a job post graduation. She hopes to pursue a career in public relations. She said the pressure is rising as she takes on the title USC grad; her family expects her to get this highly reputable job right out of college.
“I find it a lot harder to find jobs because with you need to have a lot more experience. Going into my junior year was when I was supposed to have an internship, but with COVID it made it so much harder to find them.”
Annalysa Cowie
For other students, like Derek Jones, the pandemic had no infringement on their job search. Jones has a very diverse educational background. He believes this made the job search much easier for him compared to some of his peers. He is graduating with an industrial and systems engineering degree with an emphasis in information systems and doing the progressive degree program for my masters in operations research engineering. After graduation he has a job lined up working for Apple in Sunnyvale working wi.
Furthering your Education
There are a number of USC graduates who are planning to head back to school to get their masters or doctorate. This is becoming a more popular decision for students because more education often results in higher wages. Higher education allows students the opportunity to stand out in such a competitive workplace market.
The former USG President and political science major at USC, Alexis Areies, says her next step is to further her education. In the meantime while living in Los Angles, she wants to work on a mayoral campaign for the upcoming election.
“I think especially after COVID you can’t always plan your life to a tea and its important to be flexible. So we will see which plan I choose to take.”
Alexis Areies
“After a rigorous application process for my graduate degree, I have finally made my decision, I am attending USC’S Marshall School of Business to get my masters in business analytics.”
Jenna Fishman
Jenna Fishman knew it was important to her to further her education. She felt gaining a graduate degree would help set her career path up to ensure success in the future. She said an undergraduate degree in business is no longer a competitive edge in the business world.
Mackenzie Biles just committed to attend Pepperdine Law School in the fall. Biles said she decided to go law school her junior year of college. It was important for her to attend law school when the classrooms opened back up.
“Such a strong network from USC and such a strong institution… that is an additional asset and resource that will help us moving forward.”
Mackenzie Biles
Olivia Rae Hernandez was accepted into the progressive degree program at USC. Where she will be getting her graduate degree in public relations. Her advisor said this will be the largest class for the progressive graduate degree in public relations. Across all majors there has been an influx of people applying to graduate programs. She said COVID really affected our graduating class a lot more than people think.
” COVID really pushed me to want to stay an extra year because I didn’t get my full time here. During COVID I realized what my path wanted to be.”
Olivia Rae Hernandez
“A lot of societal pressures to be the best 24/7.”
Olivia Rae Hernandez
It’s an honor to graduate from USC. Since the tuition at USC is one of the highest universities throughout the nation, people may expect graduates to get high paying jobs right out of college. Many people assume that since someone has graduated from USC the next step is to work for one of The Big Four or or attend a top tier medical school or get some prestigious, high salary job. However, that is not the case for all graduates, especially with the impact the global pandemic had on the class of 2022.
According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, only 50% of college graduates from the class of 2020 had full-time jobs within six months after graduation (CNBC).
For students graduating during the COVID-19 global pandemic, finding a job is a far more pressing issue with less job opportunities and high rates of unemployment. The ever changing marketplace is extremely difficult for recent college graduates to enter. Many employers have had to make cut backs to keep their business afloat. Several businesses do not have the funds to take on new workers.
USC alumni, Dr. Scott Fishman, owns Pediatric Dental Arts. Dr. Fishman did his residency at the USC pediatric dental program from 1991 to 1994. When hiring his main focus is to look for people that are passionate. His advice for the USC graduating class of 2022 is nothing is going to come to you on a silver platter, but if you work diligently and pursue your dreams, you can accomplish anything you want.
“A USC grad in Southern California carries more weight than any other school in the nation.”
Scott Fishman
Graduation can be a roller coaster of emotions from excited to nervous to sad and everything in between. As the seniors at the University of Southern California are about to partake in this new chapter of their life, it is essential each graduate chooses whatever best suits their current physical and mental needs.
According to the USC Career Center, 90% of 2020 graduates had post-graduation outcomes within six months. The USC Career Center is a free and easily accessible resource for students to use when they begin their career search. Additionally, the USC Trojan network is one of the best student and alumni connections compared to any university. USC helps set their students up for success and gives them ample career opportunities.
The pandemic really hurt many students as they were not given the same opportunities being in the classroom or having in person interactions with USC professors and alumni to make those strong connections.
“I truly feel I wouldn’t be where I am today, if it wasn’t for USC because of the guidance I had, the nurturing I had after I was done with my education from the alumni wanting to see me succeed.”
Scott Fishman
This new title, a USC graduate, means something different to each student and it’s their own story to tell. Although each member of the USC graduating class of 2022 is getting ready to embark on their next journey, they will always be a Trojan.
As for me, I knew after half of my sophomore year and all of my junior year being online, I wanted to further my education. The new progressive degree program through the USC Gould School of Law was the perfect fit for my studies. I will graduate from the masters of studies in law program in the spring of 2023. I needed an extra year in the classroom in order to decide if I want to go to law school or start my career. I definitely put the pressure on myself, but I also think my family and friends at home have certain expectations for my future career. Whenever I come home for break the hot topic at the dinner table is always about my job search and plans post graduation. I have to constantly remind myself not to let the pressure of other people’s expectations decipher what I want to do in the future.
