Category Archives: Tips, advice, and hacks

5 Things to Do Before Making Your First Student Loan Payment

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Yes, it’s hard to believe. But, for most of you with student loans, your first payment is probably due this month.

How do I know?  I was in your exact shoes two years ago. 

I was on an 8-hour drive for my job (not fun) and in the middle of the 5th radio appearance of Pharrell William’s “Happy”  I realized my first loan payment was due that day. I pulled out my crappy, quasi-smart phone and tried to make my payment on the side of the road.

After navigating the worst website in history, I managed to click the payment button before my browser crashed — did I make my payment? Only the internet gods knew for sure.

When I finally got home and logged on from my laptop, it hit me. I had already signed up for automatic loan payments and my side-of-the-road payment also went through.

I made a double payment — not because of my financial acumen — but because of my disorganization. 

I ate lots of Ramen that month. This is definitely not an experience to emulate and I’m going to try and make up for it by giving you really solid advice.

Here are 5 essential things you should do before making your first payment:

  1. Read this article from the New York Times. It walks you through a lot of scenarios and links to other great resources.
  2. Get Organized. Figure out if you have federal loans or private loans (or both) and how many. It’s probably easiest to ask your parents, look at old mail, or check your email — you loan provider has almost certainly tried to contact you by now.
  3. Pick a repayment plan. There are several types and many loans have an option for income-based repayment.  Also, if you are in grad school, make sure to defer your loans.
  4. Don’t make your payment late. They are already going to get enough of your money. Don’t give them any extra.
  5. Get your free UVM Alumni Association Bottle Opener. This is our way of easing the pain of that first payment. Open your favorite Vermont beverage with it, sink into your couch, and start a Netflix binge. You earned it.

2015 bottle openers

Advice from 200 UVM Alumni – Just For You

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When we talked to many of you at the happy hour a few weeks ago and asked how the first year was going, we got the feeling that it’s been a tough one.

oh-get-a-job-charlie-day

You’re looking for jobs, working jobs you don’t love, trying to pay bills, moving to new places (or back with your parents) and generally adjusting to life after UVM.

So in our quest to continually support you, we asked other recently graduated UVM alumni to tell us about their first year out. We had the Chatty Cat student callers give them a ring and ask a few questions on your behalf.

We spoke to more than 200 alumni and we hope you find their advice and reflections helpful. They’ve been in your shoes and gone through the same struggles, and nearly all of them have landed on their feet. Here’s what they said.

Question #1: Looking back, what advice would you give yourself?
Quote - everything figured out
As you can imagine, there were a lot of different answers to this question, but here are some quotes that exemplify some major themes:

Question #2: What do you remember most about your first year out?
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Nearly everyone said this first year out is a time of a lot of transitions. And, transitions are hard and full of contradictions. Here’s what everyone remembered about their first year:

The good news is that the year goes by quickly, and you’re left with exciting new jobs, apartments, cities, and friends.

Question #3: What strategy has helped you most in your job search? Quote - network
Two words came up frequently in the answers to this question: persistence and networking. And most of the answers were variations of the same few ideas:

Finding a job, starting a grad program, or moving to a new place all require time and hard work. We hope this post shows you that you’re not alone in what you’re going through.

There’s a whole community of Catamounts out there that have done it and are willing to help you do it too.

Actually Useful Career Tips (i.e. Not From Your Uncle Fred)

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During our course giveaway, we asked how your job search was going.

Results were really interesting.  More than 50% of those who responded have a job and about 40% are still looking or exploring options.

Hows your job search going summaryWe thought some straight-forward, practical career advice might be a useful follow-up.

So we reached out to our friend, Lisa Torchiano, at the UVM Career Center, and here’s her advice. Of course, you can connect with the Career Center directly for support – stop by drop-in hours (for those in BTV area) or make an appointment with a career counselor (in person, phone or Skype.).

If I don’t have a job yet, what should I be doing aside from applying for jobs? 

  • Don’t shy away from internships. They are great ways to build industry specific experience and do it during a specific timeline.
  • Volunteer your time. Nonprofit organizations can benefit and you can grow your skills while supporting a cause you care about.
  • Create a LinkedIn profile and use it for research and outreach.
  • Craft your elevator pitch, your explanation of what you are looking for, and share that with friends, family, professors, and former colleagues.
  • Network! Arrange informational interviews in which you can learn about industries and career paths. Alumni can be great resources for this; use LinkedIn to connect.
  • Develop a skill set that is connected with your desired next steps. Take a class, watch online videos or do research.

What are some popular online job search resources?

  • Before I even mention other online resources, I want to make sure readers know that one of the best features of Catamount Job Link is the employer contact information. This is often the hardest information to come by in a job search. This is worth a great deal both for positions you are applying for and proactive employer outreach.
  • The Research Career Fields page on the Career Center website is a goldmine of industry specific job search engines and professional information.
  • Indeed.com should also be in your toolkit. It’s a powerful search engine; strong search words are key especially in large cities. And, you can have search results sent to you every week or so.

If I want to go to grad school next year, what should I be doing now to prepare?

  • Start researching the programs you are interested in and note their deadlines. These dates creep up quickly and some may be as soon as November and December of this year for fall admittance.
  • Study for and take any required entrance exams (GRE, LSAT, MCAT, etc.).
  • Start writing your statement of purpose. Depending on how many schools are you applying to, you may be writing numerous different statements. It’s never too early to start.
  • Connect with professors. You will need anywhere from 1-3 letters of recommendation and often a number of those are required to be from faculty members.
  • Check out the Career Center’s Graduate School page for information on the entire application process.

Meet Matt Mues ’08 of the Boston Regional Board

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I travel often for my job with the Alumni Association and I meet lots of UVM people. Matt Mues ’08 and I met this last June at a young alumni social in Boston — something he has been helping to organize since he graduated.

Matt is a passionate UVM volunteer with a cheerful persona and a knack for connecting with people. Here he is with Allison Gray ’08 and Gabrielle Duchette ’08.

Screen Shot 2015-09-02 at 11.11.41 AM

Ryan and I asked him a few questions for all of you because success after school doesn’t always come easy.

Ryan and Derrick: What was your first year like out of school?

Matt Mues: First year out of school was interesting, I moved in with my grandparents and continued caddying at a golf course to make some cash while I interviewed for jobs. I didn’t rush the process but waiting till October actually paid off since companies may have turn over or budget opening when their fiscal years turn over.

200R & D: How did you get involved with the Boston Alumni Regional Chapter?

Matt: I got involved in the Boston Regional Chapter by aiding in young alumni socials and then working with admissions on the welcoming new admitted students. I found that to be very rewarding and to pay back the school for to opportunities they had given me.

200 (1)R & D: What is your favorite thing to do in Boston?

Matt: My favorite thing in Boston is all of the entertainment and social events the city has to offer. From Bruins games to museums to the charity events allow me to stay active socially all while being centrally located to public transportation and even using the bike share program is a great perk.

downloadR & D: What’s your best advice for the Class of 2015?

Matt: My best advice for the class of 2015 is to find a path in life that has the growth opportunity. Don’t put the growth responsibility on the job but rather keep your ears open to the ground and find ways to make yourself smarter and more efficient all while learning how managers think and then how directors and vice presidents interpret.

Win a Free Course

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September 4 Update: Congrats to Vanessia Lam, who won the free course giveaway!  We’ll check in with her in October and post her thoughts on Afterword.

2015-08-17 14_07_42-Project Management Basics - Univ. of VermontAfterword has partnered with our friends at UVM Continuing Education to offer one lucky Class of 2015 alum the opportunity to do some learning for free.

It’s a 4 week certificate course on project management that will give you real-world skills you can use in your job right away (or you can use to help you get a job). It’s normally an $849 course.

Enter your name here for a chance to win.
price-is-right-million-winner-o

OK, it’s not a million bucks (and we won’t shower you with confetti), but a free course is useful.

It will walk you through the key steps for managing a successful project, from initiating, planning, executing, and closing projects–big or small. You’ll learn various project-management strategies from a range of examples used in everyday workplace situations. If you want more details, you can read about the course here.

Put your name in the hat to win by going here.

(And, don’t worry, there are no strings attached to entering your name or to winning–this is actually just a simple giveaway)

We’ll announce the lucky person on Friday, September 4th and the course starts on September 16th.