Whether a senior has a job lined up or is lucky enough to have a trust fund, entering the "real world" can be a frightening time. In an effort to reassure the wary students that it has and can be done successfully, a Pepperdine alumna and a Pepperdine graduate student teamed up to write a book on how to enter and survive the working world.
Authors Monique Reidy and Bridget Graham wrote the book entitled, "Working World 101: the New Grad's Guide to Getting a Job." The book will be on sale in bookstores across the United States on Saturday, April 18. Graham has her B.A. and is currently pursuing a M.A. from the Communication Division of Pepperdine, and Reidy graduated with a masters in communication from Pepperdine.
"I have about 15 years of experience as a human resources manager," Graham said. "I decided I wanted write a book and give inside secrets. I thought it would be a good bridge between the working world and just getting out of school since I've been in both of those situations."
Fortunately, because of her experience in business and communication Reidy was on the same page as Graham, pun intended, and they decided to write the book together. They wrote it, got an agent and sent it of to an enthusiastic publisher.
"We started [writing] book in 2007," Graham said. "It took us about a year and a half. It's available for pre-order and it's paperback so the list price is $13.95."
Although not the first career oriented self-help book ever written, the authors are confident that this book will be a unique read.
"We wrote it in language that was professional but real," Graham said. "It is a guide or handbook of sorts. It isn't a preachy book but it really just combines our work experience to knowing what it's like sitting in a classroom with students and how to bridge the two worlds."
Upon reading the book a reader can learn how to write a resume, basic interview questions, what questions to ask the recruiter during the interview and how to dress. As well, due to their communication background, they also included tips on how to be articulate. They explain how to communicate within the workplace and how it differs from classroom interactions, which some graduating seniors, such as Alex Skinner, see as a bonus.
"I think that it's a great idea for anyone who has recently graduated and found success to share what they did with current students," Skinner said. "It's tough for a lot of students who are lookÂing for jobs right now. I would definitely be interested in learning more about it."
The chance to help students in the impending working world is exactly what Graham said their goal was from the beginning.
"It gives insight into company culture and really being successful," Graham said. "We're really excited that this is an opportunity that we're able to do. Being graduate students in a classroom, we felt a passion for making this transition and making an easy guide for it. It was a labor of love."
In addition to this book, Reidy and Graham also have a Web site that they created together in Nov. 2006, TheSavvyGal.com. The Web site came out of Reidy and Graham's thesis. They researched magazines and saw how information was communicated to women.
"[The Web site] covers a huge range of topics," Graham said. "It's funny because we have a lot of male readers, too. We have stuff from tying a tie to travel, career and money articles." The Web site also has an employed psychologist, Dr. Venus Nicolino, who answers relationship questions.
"We profile people who've made a difference in society," Graham added. "It encompasses an entire range of things and is full of great articles. We do our best to have information our readers want to read."
To get more information or pre-order the book visit www.amazon.com and to view Reidy and Graham's Web site visit www.TheSavvyGal.com.
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