Breaktime Blog

The opportunity to take a legitimate “lunch break” seemed like only wishful thinking to me at the time I posted my last blog. The swiftness with which I was hired by The Pima Prevention Partnership (PPP) was almost unbelievable. Struggling to cram in the extra research during their highly abbreviated interview process paid off almost immediately; and on a related note, I am currently feeling much less cynical about my education.

Part of what was so amazing about completing my master’s degree at BU was that – just as much as skills and knowledge – my program was designed to instill confidence. My professors used multiple and purposeful strategies to do just that, and they were very effective. Undoubtedly, confidence is an invaluable dimension of any individual’s professional character, but especially when that person is working within an industry where revenue is generated not from the users of the products and services that he provides, but instead, where it is generated by an outside donor or grant maker. Confidence is key when one must convince those who hold the power and resources that he – and he alone – is the best investment of their time and money, and furthermore, when in most cases there is no expected monetary return on that investment. I had been made to believe wholeheartedly that my personal abilities were more than sufficient to enter into this field, so when my job hunt extended well beyond the six-month mark, I began to wonder whether my high sense of self-esteem had simply been inflated artificially.

If I had remained confident about anything, I at least knew that I had built an extensive skillset during my two years at BU, but on the other hand, I began to seriously doubt its marketability. As a result, I started to apply for jobs in public education (which I would have no doubt loved), but as far as the classroom goes, what had I gained during graduate school was only icing on the cake. In all reality, I could have been applying for jobs as a high school math teacher directly out of undergrad… four years ago.

That situation did not get me down in-and-of-itself because I do love the classroom environment, but I was beginning to wonder how, if ever, my four years of intense experience since graduating from undergrad were going to be utilized in an optimal and meaningful way for me.

As it turns out, my skillset has turned out to be marketable in the field of program analysis and evaluation. However, because of the route I have taken to get me to this point, my technical expertise within this industry is sub-par for mid-level professionals. And consequently, PPP has brought me on knowing that I am an investment. They are working to build my field-specific skills and embracing the general problem-solving strategies that I have learned over the years. It is a great fit, and I am looking forward to the coming months of being in their employ. But, with the amount I have to learn, unfortunately, most upcoming lunch breaks will likely be pretty short!