Breaking In as a Temp

In talking to graduate students about their nonacademic career options, I have often advocated the wisdom of starting at the bottom. For Ph.D.'s who are looking to change careers, starting in an entry-level position is often a blessing in disguise. Sure it can be humbling, but since graduate school teaches academics to learn new information quickly, an M.A. or a Ph.D. usually moves up the career ladder speedily.

Still, in a slow economy like this one, it can be difficult to land even an entry-level job. To those who feel stymied in their job searches or frustrated by the lack of openings, I recommend temporary office work as a strategy for breaking into a new field. Many graduate students are familiar with temping as a way to earn quick money during university vacations, but temping can also be a way to audition for a full-time job at the company of your choice. In fact, while some employers might resist hiring a seemingly overqualified Ph.D. for a full-time, entry-level position, they have no such qualms about hiring a Ph.D. in a temporary position.

As someone who landed two key jobs through temping, I speak from experience. The day after I defended my dissertation, I called the temp agency I had worked for throughout graduate school and asked them to put me somewhere likely to hire me full time. The agency placed me at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; a few months later, the foundation hired me as a full-time research assistant.

Just this year, after being laid off from my dot-com and facing a tight market for Web jobs, I accepted a contract position (a full-time, one-year position with no benefits) at America Online. Technically, I was temping again, although the pay was equivalent to an assistant professor’s salary. Within six months, I was offered a permanent position (which was never advertised publicly) and I gladly accepted.

I had always thought that I was alone in my “conscious temping” approach, but at a recent conference at the University of Colorado, I attended a session where three of the seven speakers credited temp jobs for launching their careers outside academe.

Allison Aldridge-Saur’s story was similar to those told by the other alumni that day. After finishing her M.A. in German language and literature at Colorado in 1999, she decided to stay in Boulder and pursue a nonacademic career. She wanted to work for Sun Microsystems, a large technology company with a reputation for treating its employees well. After applying for full-time jobs at Sun with no success, she heard that the best way to break into the company was through temping. Allison signed up with Manpower, a temp agency, and told the agency that her goal was a full-time job with Sun. (Temp agencies get a bonus when a temp is hired as a permanent employee, so they have a stake in your success.)

After temping at other companies for about three months, Allison was finally assigned to Sun. Her job was answering customer calls to a toll-free sales number. Intimidated at first by the high-tech environment, Allison concentrated on learning the company’s vocabulary and culture. By talking to customers every day, she began to learn the business from the ground up, she says. Allison also made the most of her temp experience by volunteering to work on a project in another department: “It was just research and writing -- simple enough to me -- but others saw it as mindboggling.” After five months, she was offered two different full-time positions at Sun and has now been with the company for three years, receiving promotions almost annually.

Her story is a great example of why temping works for M.A.'s and Ph.D.'s -- in most cases, all we need is a foot in the door. Once we’re in the workplace, others realize that we learn quickly, have strong analytical skills, and are often excellent writers and teachers. We also have an unusually strong work ethic, although we tend to take it for granted. As Allison says: “I didn’t realize it at the time, but going through my master’s program and delivering my thesis on time was valuable training. In the business world, if you deliver what’s expected and it’s even vaguely on time and near budget, everyone notices.”

Whether you’re trying to break into a particular field or just looking to earn some cash during the summer, temping can be a powerful job-hunting strategy. Here are a few pointers on using the system to your advantage:

• My unscientific method for choosing a temp agency is to pick the one with the largest, most upscale-looking ad in the yellow pages. However, you may have to apply at two or three places before finding one that is a good match for you. (Yes, the agency will give you ridiculous alphabetizing tests. See the humor in it.) Ask where they usually place people and whether they’re interested in seeing people hired permanently.

• Temp agencies can be valuable allies. Let them know that your goal is to be hired full-time at a particular company or kind of company. In return, be patient and take other temp assignments until one becomes available at your target company.

• Wherever you temp, take your job seriously. Do more than is required of you, and offer to take on extra work. If your strength is writing, volunteer to write the department’s training manual, for example. Acting like a permanent employee is the best way to become one.

One caveat: the high-tech industry is particularly known for hiring its temps as permanent employees. Other kinds of companies also hire temps, but the practice is not as deeply entrenched in other industries. However, if you’re having trouble getting started in a new field, temping can still be an excellent way to get the experience you need.

If no one will hire you full-time as a financial analyst or grantwriter, it makes sense to take a temp job that will put you in the office of an investment bank or a nonprofit foundation, no matter what tasks you’re assigned. You can learn the lingo, make some connections, and if there’s an appropriate job open, you’ll be first in line for an interview.