Teens may find that snagging this year’s summer job is a job in and of itself. Given the bleak job market, adults with college degrees and work experience are competing for minimum wage employment that used to be fair game for high school students. The fact is teenagers are being squeezed out of the summer work force.
“It’s bleak right now,” said Russell Brunson, Nova’s youth employment program supervisor in Sunnyvale. “A lot of adults are taking survival jobs because they need to, so 14- or 15-year-olds need to be open to interning
or volunteering.”
Nova, a company that helps high school students build resumes and find jobs, provides an online job database for teens. But according to Brunson, teens shouldn’t rely on the database alone to find a job because the number of employers seeking teen employment has plummeted.
In June 2003 the total number of jobs posted on Nova’s database was 191. This year, Nova expects only 50 to 75 jobs to be posted in June, said Brunson.
“The number of employers (in the database) has dropped off especially in the last year because their hiring needs are being filled by adults,” he said.
Similarly, career counselors at local high schools say their summer job lists of potential employers aren’t that long and it’s up to teens to do much of the legwork to find a paying job. Like Brunson, they encourage teens to seek alternatives to paid work and to consider working for something other than money.
“The job market is really tight right now,” said Kristin Joseph, Los Altos High School’s college career coordinator. “Right now, we are always trying to come up with things for teens to do.”
But fewer job opportunities for teens isn’t the end of the story. There is hope, and teens do have options.
We talked with local career counselors and experts. Here’s their advice.
Get started now
“Before you can compete for a job, you have to find it,” said Laurel Brock, a career counselor at Mountain View High School.
Brock recommends that teens start looking at want ads, visit local businesses and go to job fairs. According to Brunson, state and county parks as well as theme parks like Raging Waters and Great America have already started hiring for the summer.
Career counselors suggested that teens search the Web for ideas, get their resumes ready and visit their high school’s career counseling office before it’s too late.
“Use your career centers now,” said Brunson. “Get in there now. Get connected now. Don’t wait. A lot of the opportunities are gone by June.”
Get the word out
“Teens need to extend their job search,” said Brock. “They need to get the word out among friends, family and neighbors. We can’t offer them as many leads as we would normally offer them.”
Even though adults are usually the last people teens want to talk to, asking adults for job leads is effective. The top tip from career counselors was that networking is the best way to find a paying job.
“Let people know that you are available and willing to work,” said Brunson. “But be open. Don’t necessarily expect to be paid.”
Pound the pavement
Visit potential employers and fill out applications in person, said Wendy Downing, a career counselor at Alta Vista High School. Introduce yourself to the manager. Then stop back in a few days later. If an employer can put a name with a face, he or she will be more likely to pull the application.
“Search both ends of the spectrum,” said Brunson. “Look for volunteer opportunities and employment.”
Work for free
Working for free may seem like the least lucrative option, but it may lead to something that’s equally valuable, such as discovering a passion or finding a career path. Plus, interning at a non-profit or a community service organization is a chance to do something meaningful and make a difference.
“We’re stressing to teens that they need to take internships or volunteer, so that they have something to build on,” said Brunson. “Be open to building your skills so that you’re marketable.”
Learn something new
“One of the things we encourage our students to do is take summer school classes and college courses to further their academic career,” said Downing. “That’s a No. 1 strategy for students comfortable in those environments.”
Summer classes are offered at Stanford University, Foothill College and local high schools.
Stick with it
The bottom line is teens need to be proactive about finding jobs. Career counselors said persistence pays off in the long run.
“Most of our students who have been persistent have gotten a job,” said Downing. “It’s a job to get a job. You have to prove yourself in the job search process before you get the job.”
