Young Alumni Start Careers with Apprenticeships

Justin Farmer '04 created an apprenticeship just for Reed alumni at his inn in the Catskills.

Breaking into a new industry can be difficult for recent graduates, especially if they don't have connections.

To remedy that problem, Justin Farmer '04, a Reed College alumnus, established a culinary apprenticeship program for fellow Reed alumni.

Justin uses Switchboard to find his Reedie apprentices and help them get started in the restaurant business. Justin has taken on three apprentices since he made his first offer on Reed Switchboard last year, and he's committed to hiring more alumni in years to come.

Why did you start using Switchboard?

I think I started using Switchboard maybe two years ago. I have always helped fellow Reedies make connections if I can, and Switchboard makes that easier to do.

You started a culinary apprenticeship program specifically for Reedies. Could you share your story?

I have so far taken on three Reedies via Switchboard. One still works at my bar, Hill & Dale, in the the city. One is in China right now I believe, and she may come work for me when she gets back. The third is starting here at the Deer Mountain Inn next Wednesday.

Beyond that, I have actually brought many Reedies into the restaurant biz over the years, and many of them are still in it and doing great.

I started taking on Reedies for two reasons.

1. The talent pool of cooks is very thin right now, and it is hard to find good employees with intelligence and a good work ethic, two very important qualities for a cook. Tapping into the Reed talent pool seems natural since intelligence and a good work ethic are very much something you can expect from all Reed graduates and even most Reed dropouts, like myself.
2. Reedies are at a disadvantage starting in the food biz after graduation, and I know there are many interested in it so it makes sense to provide a bit of a boot camp that helps teach them the ropes.

I know that, upon graduation, many Reedies don't really know what to do next, especially if they decided not go to grad school or if grad school didn't work out for them. Of the type of Reedie that doesn't end up in grad school, I have noticed they tend to go towards a more entrepreneurial route with a decided bent towards the food and beverage industry and tech/software stuff.

While I am sure the transition into the tech world is a bit smoother for most Reedies, jumping into the food world is a bit more of a drastic change from the academic atmosphere of Reed.

Although their intelligence and hard work will eventually see them to the top, they are starting with the heavy disadvantage of joining a career path that many start in their teens who have already developed highly specialized skills and knowledge that the late comer Reedies simply do not have. So they have a huge experience gap to overcome.

Along with that is a culture that exists within the food and beverage industry, and especially in the restaurant industry, that can be difficult for many Reedies to accept and become a part of. You have to have "thick skin," as they say, to be successful in this industry.

This program provides an environment where I can integrate Reedies into the food business in a way that is a lot less shocking than simply taking a prep-cook or waiter job in the city.

Would you recommend Switchboard to other Reedies?

I would and have recommended Switchboard to my friends, two of whom have been actively hiring entry level people within the architecture world via Switchboard for the last year now.

Alumni Connect as Lifelong Learners on Switchboard

Every college hopes to instill its students with a sense of curiosity that endures beyond the classroom.

Ida '14 found their passion in linguistics at Oberlin. When they were sad to leave Oberlin after graduation, they turned to Switchboard to share that passion and reconnect with the Oberlin community at the same time.

Ida has connected with many students and alumni to discuss linguistics since they posted their offer last year. Their story is a tribute to the spirit of inquiry that shines throughout the Oberlin community, and to lifelong learners everywhere.

Why did you start using the Oberlin Switchboard?

Ma'ayan [the stupendous Oberlin Switchboard operator] told me to check it out right around when I was graduating last year. I trust Ma'ayan's recommendations to be excellent, and I was really sad about leaving Oberlin and was curious about other ways of community-building, so I wrote my first post last June!

You offered to talk to Obies about linguistics. How did that go?

It's been a delight to get to share my linguistics love!

I had a friend ask through Switchboard just for kicks; I've had strangers come with random little curiosities; I had a student ask about building an Individual Major in ling at Oberlin (which I did, and have a lot to say about); I even had a '67 grad come for advice about the implications of a PNW farmworker's association using written Mixtec—a language indigenous to Mexico—on a banner, which kind of stumped me, I have to say.

The questions have varied widely in topic and depth, but it's always been fun to see if I can rise to the challenge.

It's also honestly pretty nice to get small questions from laypeople—sometimes I feel like there's so much left in linguistics for me to learn, even in my tiny corner of my tiny subfield, that I'll never achieve anything like competency and will never have anything meaningful to contribute.

But then I get an ask here and have so much to say! 

And then I remember that actually, yes, I do know things, and yes, the world would be a better place if more people understood some of the things I understand about language, so I should keep talking.

Would you recommend Switchboard to other Obies?

Heck yeah!

On the offering end, you get to do that very Oberlin thing of sharing what you love and brightening someone's day in the process; on the asking end, it's a fantastic middle ground between just hitting up your friends for help (reliable but very limited) and casting your net into the depths of the unknown internet (vastly resourceful, but yikes).

I think if more people used it regularly, it could strike a singular balance of in-group trust and widely sourced help and thereby reach holy-grail levels of utility—so yeah, I would be all for more Obies getting on board!

First-Generation Students Find a Network on Switchboard

Graduating from college into the unknown is daunting, especially if you're a first-generation student without a personal network or financial safety net.

Switchboard makes it easier for students to find their way. New graduates use Switchboard to connect with their school's alumni network and find jobs, career advice, and places to stay.

Eric '14, the first of his family to graduate college, felt overwhelmed after graduating from Reed College. He turned to Switchboard for help.

Why did you start using Switchboard?

I'm a first-generation college graduate (class of 2014) from a low-income family. I grew up in a rural area in economic decline, and beyond my high school English teacher, I had no network to speak of, knew few people who had been in any line of work in which I might be interested.

That's how it seemed for a long time, at least. Networking through Switchboard has helped me learn how to reach out to a community when I need help or guidance. I've turned to Switchboard for everything from jobs leads to advice to hosts.

I've greatly appreciated the informality of Switchboard, as well as the fact that it operates as an online community forum allowing Reedies like me to efficiently see who's out there offering help and who out there needs it. I have been touched by the kindness, generosity, and hospitality of Reedies. Those values have been integral to my success in finding and pursuing professional and personal opportunities.

You posted an ask for career advice. Could you tell your story?

I've been considering going to graduate school one day to become a therapist. I was pretty indecisive about choosing a major at Reed, and only managed to settle on one when I hit my junior year and was required to do so!

I went to Switchboard seeking advice from Reedies who had gone on to become therapists in order to get as realistic a picture as possible of the "helping" professions: working conditions, the interface between theory and practice, the merits of different degrees that lead to certification, financial considerations, and using volunteer work or entry-level jobs to build therapeutic skills and quell (or confirm) any reservations about pursuing a career in mental healthcare.

I exchanged emails and Skyped with two Reed alumnae (thanks to you both!), and will be able to make wiser, more informed decisions about my career because of the insights they shared.

Taking the initiative to talk to them left me feeling empowered in my decision to slow down, to avoid rushing to fill that hole that graduating from college can leave in one's life, and to take as much time as I want to understand the different paths I can follow towards professional security and fulfillment.

Would you recommend Switchboard to your friends?

I would recommend Switchboard to anyone who hasn't tried it. I did not apply to Reed with a career in mind, by which I mean the idea of one day leaving Reed to start a career was never part of the fantasy that drew me to the college.

It was tough when I started feeling those structural pressures to prepare for graduate school or the labor market, since I felt compelled to plan, plan, plan before I really understood what I needed and wanted from my work. And as someone who knew I wouldn't be able to turn to family for my economic security, there were moments when I felt overwhelmed, disempowered, and shut out of whatever channels people followed to find fulfillment in their careers.

A lot of that fell away as I grew and learned more about my needs and priorities. Yet along the way, Switchboard gave me the chance to step into a network of big-hearted, community-minded Reedies that was there all along.

Switchboard has not only been key to finding concrete help at times when I needed it, but also empowering and confidence-boosting, a way of taking initiative without losing sight of my ties to a community.