Comments on: Graduating In May? Seven Money Things To Do During Your Last Semester

By: Lisa

Lisa — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 12:00:59 +0000

My advice BEFORE leaving college would be to make sure you have taken advantage of the latest free or greatly reduced software offered through your school’s licensing with Microsoft, Adobe, etc. Granted, it needs to be something you really need, but most recent grads will consider a computer and software pretty darn important.

By: Kristi

Kristi — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 18:21:34 +0000

How difficult is it to withdraw money from an online account? Does it take a couple of days?

By: Angela

Angela — Wed, 02 May 2007 03:37:29 +0000

If you don’t have a job lined up after graduation, make full use of your health insurance. Most students are insured under their school or parents’ plans, so start getting your vaccinations and checkups and prescriptions up to date and save hundreds, if not thousands, on doctors and prescription fees.

By: Brian

Brian — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 06:57:29 +0000

One other thing to keep in mind: I was fortunate enough to have my college education (and other things during this period of my life) paid for by my family. Upcoming/recent grads that are in a similar situation that I was should generate a plan for paying for things like housing (if you wish to or geographically have to move out,) car payments (and the associated costs like insurance and maintenance,) medical/dental benefits (even with a great benefits package, these things still will take some money out of your pocket,) and other miscellaneous “life” expenses. It wasn’t until I was on my own financially that I realized how coddled I was for the first 22 years of my life.

By: Martin Lindsey

Martin Lindsey — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 03:19:23 +0000

You’re right on the money with the banking tips. I wrote about the same sequence of events plus a few more in a series I did last week. Feel free to refer to them in your posts.

Checking account, savings account and automatic debit and deposit from one to the other is the only smart way to start.

By: NewGirl

NewGirl — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 19:48:55 +0000

As a relatively recent college grad, I can also say that another big addition to this list is:

If you don’t have a credit card, get one now.

Having a credit card, even if you didn’t need one in college, is a really useful thing when you’re out of school, and is an easy way to build your credit score if used appropriately.

Unfortunately, having no credit history when I graduated made it very difficult to get a credit card (5 tries, and that was with no credit history and a paying grad student gig where I made a reasonable salary and could also claim to be a full time student.) Oh how I wished that I had taken one of the offers that were routinely sent to me while I was in college.

By: 3bean

3bean — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:53:14 +0000

Why should you have to suck it up just because it’s your first job?

Before I get lambasted, I realize that in some sectors, the gopher job is just a rite of passage because you don’t have the right skills immediately after college. Ok- then suck it up if that’s the norm in your field.

Also, many undergrads slack off and leave college without a lot of meaningful skills. OK- maybe they need to suck it up and just feel lucky to have a job.

However, if you have unique or desirable skills, you should be compensated fairly for the service you provide. One of the things I LOVED about my first job was that I was judged (and rewarded) by the quality of my work, not by my age. Had I not decided to pursue a PhD, I would have happily continued to work there.

By: Kimberly

Kimberly — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 17:01:18 +0000

Per the resume building job…

My two cents is to just go out and get that first post-grad job out of the way; suck it up and deal with being a gopher for 12-18 months and the rest of your career will be that much easier.

By: Bill

Bill — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 14:27:00 +0000

Also if that first job has a company matching 401k, contribute up to the amount that will be matched. If they don’t match, I’d still try to put in 5% if you can make it work.

By: 3bean

3bean — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 13:21:11 +0000

In regards to the salary issue, I’d recommend reading a book on salary negotiation and talking with others in the field to obtain a good understanding of what an entry level salary should be. I agree with Jake that can’t be picky, but your starting salary can have significant impact on your future. If you love your job but start off too low and only get COL raises, you’ll end up resentful and possibly leaving a job you otherwise like. I’ve seen too many new grads (even grads with advanced degrees who but who have gone straight through school) accept offers that are way too low because compared to their current salary ($0 – peanuts) anything looks good.

By: jake

jake — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 07:09:39 +0000

tmac

I think trent meant that you should not be picky about salary. I had a room mate that when he graduated saw friends around him get salaries of about $50K+ and he refuse to accept anything less. He had turned down offers of $40-$45K just because he thought he was worth more.

After 4 months of not being able to find a job that would pay 50K+ he decided that he just wanted a job. The thing was those 40k-45K offers were long gone, he suddenly couldnt get offers of 35K+

Guess how much he makes now? $28K a year.

If you talk to new graduates that complain about how they cant find a job and you ask them about the jobs they apply for. You’ll learn that most of the time they are turning down good salaries because they want so much to make the big salaries and believe they are worth more than they are.

By: Mary

Mary — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 03:59:14 +0000

Advice for new grads: Don’t be like me.

I was offered a job fresh out of college in San Diego in a highly competitive industry. An awesome opportunity, yes?

The mistake that I made was not fighting harder to become a full-time employee. As an “independent contractor,” I was responsible for both ends of Social Security, as well as all the other taxes that employers automatically take care of for you.

Two years later, I’m back in (graduate) school, have no income, and owe $5K in taxes for last year.

Don’t be like me.

By: Anne

Anne — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 01:59:15 +0000

Another great online that pays you interest (and with a 6% introductory rate right now), has no fees for regular use, and WILL give you printed checks is EverBank. They will even reimburse you for ATM charges for withdrawing cash, and send postage-paid envelopes for doing so, and for depositing money. I have my checking account with them and am very pleased so far.

By: TMac

TMac — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:27:12 +0000

Don’t worry about pay? I don’t think I agree with this. Yes you should get a job and it should be doing something that you like or at least can mentally tolerate for a couple years, but that first salary number will be the basis of all future salary raises and bonuses. Also if you go to get another job, that will be the starting point for salary negotiations. Starting salary is more important than you might think.

By: Nishant

Nishant — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 22:07:07 +0000

From personal experience: Realize that the salary number in your head is the gross amount. Your actual paycheck will be a lot smaller. Don’t overspend your check before you get it.