How to Decide Between Multiple Job Offers (for College Graduates)

By Julia Dunn on May 23, 2017

If grad school isn’t quite your thing (right now or at all) and you’re soon to graduate, you’re probably starting to think about post-college job opportunities. Many students start applying months in advance just to be safe, and they often apply to many different positions to increase their chances of becoming employed at the right time.

But if you receive several job offers, how do you choose the best one for you? What factors should you consider before hitting “reply” on that congratulatory email?

Here are some points to remember as you decide between more than one job offer.

Logistically, which job can sustain my lifestyle?

Unfortunately, although people should be able to choose their jobs based on which one excites you more/aligns with your passion, money is a primary factor in choosing job offers.

Which position pays enough to allow you to cover rent, utilities and other bills, food, and other expenses without completely draining your bank account by the end of the month? Which job might allow you to live comfortably without worrying about food insecurity or being unable to pay your phone bill?

This is one crucial element to note when comparing job offers, as you’ll have to consider the number of hours you must work per week to sustain yourself given the pay rates of the job. Calculate what your projected income would be (and remember that your actual paychecks will amount to a slightly lower number because of taxes).

Which job will get me the connections I need for a career in my field?

It isn’t always the case that new graduates immediately get a job in their specific field, but when considering job offers, you should ask yourself which position might lead you to the path you want to take. For instance, if you want a job in advertising later in your life and you must choose between a communications/public relations/social media position or a teaching position, you would likely choose the first position due to the fields being more intimately related.

That is not to say that you won’t build extremely valuable connections through teaching, of course, but you’d want to choose a job that “makes sense” with your ultimate career path.

Image via Pixabay.com

Can I get to the job location easily?

This is a fairly straightforward point, but you need to ensure that transporting yourself to and from work won’t cost you a fortune (both in money and time spent traveling).

If you don’t have a car and would need to ride buses for 1.5 hours a day each way, is it worth it? Use online maps and applications to try out different transportation routes if you need guidance!

Which job will I really enjoy (even slightly)?

Even if it’s the highest paying job of the ones you were offered, it’s not worth committing to it if you won’t enjoy the work in the slightest. Your morale and productivity are directly impacted by your interest in what you’re doing, so you should select a job that involves tasks and projects that you find worthwhile and engaging at least half the time.

If you’re tied between two equally solid job offers (A and B), perform the following test:

Pretend you’ve committed to job A, and notice your immediate emotional reaction; are you excited, or do you feel a tinge of disappointment that you didn’t commit to job B? This can give you intuitive information about what you unconsciously want to choose.

This can also be achieved by flipping a coin, where heads represents job A and tails represents job B, and you would pay extra attention to your initial reaction to the results. While this isn’t necessarily the only way to determine which job offer to accept (and it shouldn’t be your sole determinant), it helps you understand what your body wants you to do. Do not ignore your body when making a large decision!

Does the job fulfill my needs?

In other words, is the job type conducive to what you were looking for? Perhaps you wanted a temporary or year-long position before starting a more permanent job later, or maybe you want just a full-time summer job before pursuing graduate studies. When weighing potential offers, consider whether the job’s structure will allow you to proceed with other life plans you may have set up.

Which job will allow me to grow the most?

While it’s helpful to feel confident in the workplace and understand how to perform most of your job responsibilities early on, you may want a job that requires you to perform many new tasks you have not tackled before. It’s comfortable to choose positions that involve projects similar to ones you’ve done before, but since you’re branching out from college, you’ll want to learn as much as you can in your new position.

When considering job offers, challenge yourself to move a bit outside of your comfort zone; you will adapt over time and be able to market yourself with even more work skills you can transfer to other roles.

Congratulations to the college graduates of 2017!

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