Dear Newly Recent College Graduate,
You're probably here on this site right now looking to see if EF should be your first job out of college. The cool looking building, great location, bar in the lobby, and a few travel opportunities probably sound pretty cool to you too, right? If you think all these things you're not alone. But before taking this next step (and only paying attention to the positive reviews vs. the negative ones like I did) you have a few things to consider before making your final decision.
1. Do you want to begin an actual career? If the answer is yes, then EF is not the place for you. The corporate ladder is nonexistent. EF is bottle-necked, meaning there are a large amount of young millennials working entry level jobs and very few promotional opportunities. At my time at the company I saw many people take similar lateral positions, some with a minimal pay raise and some even with a pay reduction. The mantra they tell you is to try out various divisions within the company, "If you don't like sales that's fine, maybe you could move to HR and we'll help you get there." This. Is. Not. True. In order to completely move to a new product you need to be in your first role for a minimum of two years and be excellent at it. This makes sense of course but the other thing you'll need is manager approval. Which leads me into my next topic you need to consider...
2. What do you want in a manager? Let me begin by saying there are some great managers at EF, but there are also many that aren't so great. This certainly isn't EF specific either since any company out there will have poor management. However, what I didn't realize in the business world is that there are two types of people--managers and specializers. There are many managers at EF that just simply don't know how to manage or are new to the role and have minimal experience in the field--many times they'll ask you how to do things vs. the other way around. These types of managers need to become specializers in a certain industry topic/product where they can excel. When hiring someone that will manage--they NEED to have experience and MUST be able to work well in a team environment. Two qualities that EF simply overlooks too often when hiring.
3. Do you like personal space? This might not sound like a big deal to some, but for many it could be a deal breaker. Simply ask yourself, "Can I work in an environment where I share a desk with multiple other people?" Sometimes even sharing a desk with your own boss. Or do you need a cubicle/personal office with a quieter environment? If the latter, EF is 100% not the place for you.
4. Lastly, does money matter? Of course it's important to find what you love to do regardless of the paycheck, but at the end of the day you need to be able to afford the city you're living/working in. If you plan on working in the Cambridge office and living in Boston, it will be difficult to survive solely on the entry level salary they give you. Some employees at EF have weekend jobs to earn some extra cash so they can afford groceries and other necessities. Maybe you have student loans? Car payments? A pricey rent? All of these things add up fast and leave little leftover cash.
After looking over these variables maybe you're thinking some of them don't matter to you, and in that case then EF might be the perfect first job. But personally I wish I would have seen a review like this one at the start to either prepare me, or help me in making another career decision.
