Applying for your first job can be an exciting and nerve-wracking experience! You may be a teenager looking for a summer job or a recent graduate ready to enter the workforce. But if you have not had a job before, where should you apply?
There are, thankfully, there are many entry-level opportunities out there for first-time workers. Once you have filled out a resume with lists of your skills, education and volunteer experience, you are ready to get looking. Not sure where to start? Try searching for openings in these five industries.
Pet and Animal Services
If you love animals, you should look for first-time job opportunities at dog daycares, veterinary offices, and animal shelters. Passionate about being active? A job as a dog-walker is a great way to get exercise in on the job. Love spending time with animals?
Working as a daycare attendant or dog shelter assistant may be a great fit for you. Often, these entry-level positions include a mix of manual labor and cleaning skills.
Alongside those skills, providing proper physical and mental exercise for different kinds of animals. They can teach responsibility and empathy while offering a very rewarding experience for those who are doing the work.
The Food Industry
It almost goes without saying that the food industry is a very strong option for first-time employees. Whether you work as a host, waitress, cook, or dishwasher, working in the food industry can teach you valuable lessons in communication and professionalism.
Before you apply to your favorite chain or bistro, make sure to check the requirements. For example, googling something like ‘required age to work at chick fil a’ may be useful if you are still in high school. Checking employment age restrictions in your state or region may also help you determine whether you are eligible to start working.
Babysitting
If you enjoy caring for others or are too young to apply for a formal position, babysitting is an excellent way to get work experience. Whether you put up posters at your local library or daycare or offer your services to family, friends, or neighbors, you can earn a little money on the side while learning important lessons in responsibility.
By taking care of someone else’s child, you will also have to learn how to communicate well, how to care for others, and how to manage your time. It can be helpful to have certifications in CPR and basic First Aid when applying to be someone’s babysitter.
Experience interacting with young children is also a plus, though many people (especially those that already know you) may not consider that a requirement.
On-Campus Customer Service
If you are a student at a college (or even if you are in high school), there may be opportunities to work on your campus. Often, positions as office administrators do not require extensive work experience. Those kinds of positions can help you learn organizational and teamwork skills as well as skills in task management.
Working as an assistant in your school library is another great option, especially if you are a book-lover. And of course, entry-level positions are often available in university bookstores, cafes, and restaurants, all of which can help you gain experience in customer service and help you get better at managing your time.
Life-guarding
Being a lifeguard is a great first job option, especially for high-schoolers looking for summer jobs or college students looking for something part-time. Becoming a lifeguard does require you to take and pass a series of training courses that earn you various certificates in lifesaving, CPR, and First Aid.
However, those certifications can lead to a job that pays a little bit better than minimum wage. A job as a lifeguard can teach you big lessons in responsibility, care for others, and how to enforce rules. Depending on where you work, you may also have the chance to help kids learn how to swim.
Applying for your first job should not be overwhelming.
Check out your local listings for openings in these five areas, and you may be surprised by what you find!
Identity Magazine is all about guiding women to discover their powers of Self-Acceptance, Appreciation, and Personal Achievement.
We ask that every contributor and expert answer the Identity questions in keeping with our theme. Their answers can be random and in the moment or they can be aligned with the current article they have written. In that way, and as a team, we hope to encourage and motivate each other, thus inspiring you to Get All A’s.
1. What have you accepted within your life, physically and/or mentally? Additionally, what are you still working on accepting? Now, we’re not talking about resignation, rather stepping into, embraced, and owned.
I have accepted that I will never find the perfect balance at as a mom, and no matter how others perceive me as a working mom, both being a mom and a professional help me to progress as a woman.
2. Appreciation is everything. What have you learned to appreciate about yourself and/or within your life, physically and mentally? On the other hand OR in contrast, are there elements of who you are that you’re still working on appreciating?
I’m grateful for the resilience that my trials have instilled in me. As hard as my trials have been they have helped me empathize with others more and to become a better person.
3. Share with us one of your most rewarding achievements in life? Tell us not only what makes YOU most proud but also share the goals and dreams that you still have.
Becoming a mother and feeling the love of my children has been the most rewarding experience of my life. That love coupled with a desire to maintain their love and respect is one of my biggest motivators in life.
Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash
