SPOKANE, Wash. —
Gonzaga University announced the Alumni Graduate Education Scholarship, a program that offers alumni a 15% tuition reduction on graduate masters and doctorate programs, excluding law or medicine. They say the program aims to help Gonzaga alumni improve their professional development and career opportunities during this difficult time.
With the highest national unemployment rate since the great depression at 14.7 percent, looking for a job as a recent college graduate hasn’t been easy.
“It’s been tough at the moment but I have sent a lot of applications. Most of them are looking for a resume, cover letter, and a Linkedin and then you hope for the best,” said Conor Collins.
Collins is a recent Gonzaga graduate with a degree in biology looking for positions in the healthcare industry in Seattle and San Francisco.
He has been using resources from the Career and Professional development office at Gonzaga University to guide his search.
“We help students understand how to be resilient and how to use that time in creative ways to network and get to know what employers are hiring. There are some jobs that are being posted right now that are remote work from home positions,” shared Ray Angle Gonzaga’s Assistant Vice President of the Career and Professional Development Center.
Gonzaga University has called every graduating student to check in on their job search process. Students tell them that employers are still honoring the offers they have made. For those who are still looking, the future is full of unknowns.
“What if I don’t have anything by a certain point? That idea is always in the back of my head. It makes me work at it more and more because a lot of stuff is out of my control,” shared Collins.
Although there might be a lower number of positions open, the Career and Professional Development Center at recommends students strengthen their network.
“One of the strengths of Gonzaga is that we have a really supportive alumni base. We did an online workshop with some of our alumni and they are committed to helping our students succeed,” said Angle.
Are you looking for a job? Check out a list of who's hiring in the Spokane area now here.
You can also find unemployment resources here.