Inside Iowa State

July 22, 2005

Work ethic sets ISU grads apart

by Linda Charles

A solid work ethic sets many Iowa State students apart from their "generation of entitlement" peers, but they are not immune to unrealistically high expectations for their first jobs.

Nationally, "twenty-somethings" have been labeled the "generation of entitlement" for expecting high starting salaries and job flexibility in their first career positions.

In a recent Associated Press article, reporter Martha Irvine quotes Perkins Restaurants franchise consultant Mike Amos as saying, "It seems they ("twenty-somethings") want and expect everything that the 20- or 30-year veteran has the first week they're there."

Work/life balance

"I find I do hear more from students about benefits, about vacation," said Kathy Wieland, Business career services. "Students today want a work/life balance more than they used to."

And a couple have made the mistake of asking about vacations and other benefits during the first interview, she added.

But when they get that job, they are willing to work hard, Wieland said. "A lot of our students have a rural background. Many have already worked and they're used to working hard.

"That's one way we market our students. Our students are not spoiled."

'Respectability' factor

Mike Gaul, Ag career services, agrees that most Iowa State agriculture students "are cut from a different piece of cloth. They have a better work ethic, and their respectability factor (the way they treat others) is better."

On the other hand, "entry-level is not in their vocabulary," Gaul said. "They dislike menial work."

They also have less loyalty to companies that hire them, he said. "Students have seen what companies have done to their parents in the last five years."

Desire to help

Don Draper, Veterinary Medicine associate dean, said he's "amazed" at how few of the Veterinary Medicine students have expectations for large salaries when they graduate. Perhaps, he speculates, that is because many students enter the field with a desire to help people and animals, rather than for the financial reward.

Like the Business students, Draper said, Vet Med students expect their first job to accommodate their lifestyles, even if that means not working full time.

"They're choosing not to work the traditional work week," Draper said. "Many prefer 25- and 30-hour-weeks."

To serve their clients, Draper said new graduates may team together to cover the traditional work week. He's also seeing more regional alliances of five to 10 professionals. Alliances allow the new graduates to rotate weekend and emergency responsibilities.

Solid work ethic

All three agree that overall, Iowa State students make good employees.

"They may have a different philosophy of how they want to live their lives, but they have a solid work ethic," Gaul said.

"A lot of our students have a rural background. Many have already worked and they're used to working hard. "That's one way we market our students. Our students are not spoiled."

Kathy Wieland,
Business career services