Pay or Mentorship? New graduates shouldn't have to choose

New grads should not have to choose between good mentorship or good pay. One of the most frustrating things for me as a new grad on the job hunt was trying to find a job that offered me the mentorship I wanted AND the pay I needed. In almost all of the positions I looked into, I had to sacrifice one or the other. This is not okay. New graduates should not have to choose between having good mentorship OR having a decent paying first position. We need both.

I think we all understand the importance of mentorship in a first position - but what happens when those student loan payments hit? Or the bills pile up? Sure, you may have good mentorship but you may also have worry, anxiety, and stress that build up and happen when you don’t have financial security ➡️ and when that happens, there’s the risk of not being able to show up the way our clients and patients need us to.

Yes, we have limited experience. But less experience doesn’t mean less living expenses. I’m not saying give us the same salary as someone with 10+ years of experience, but enough to cover our living expenses, pay our loan payments (and also invest!!) would be nice 🌚

To the new graduates on the job hunt now: you may find yourself in this situation. I know it’s hard and incredibly frustrating. Remember that mentorship these days comes in many forms, and you have this amazing community of OTs right here with you, okay? Keep in mind that you know more than you think you know, you do have some experience (hello fieldwork!), and it’s okay to learn as you go ❤️

When it comes to a first job as a new graduate, mentorship and pay are both important. (In my opinion - equally important) so I don’t know exactly what needs to happen…but I know it’s time we stop having to choose. We’ve worked entirely too hard not to have earned both. End rant. 🤷🏽‍♀️ *drops mic* 🎤✌🏾

𝑫𝒊𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒐𝒓 𝒑𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍?