Nicole Simmons sits inside her cubicle at Honeywell Aerospace, surrounded by mounds of paperwork and aircraft parts. She looks at her watch. It reads 6:30 p.m. She's been at work for more than 10 hours and will probably continue her work at home.
Simmons graduated from ASU in May 2005 with a degree in biomedical engineering and joined Honeywell less than two months ago. As a corporate newcomer, she is one of many college graduates experiencing the difficult transition from college to the corporate world.
"As a new employee, I sometimes get stuck with filling out bland organizational charts on my computer," Simmons says. "It's not the most glamorous part of my job, but I like to think that things will only get more interesting."
As a student, Simmons only had to worry about her performance. But now that she's part of the corporate workforce, she's more accountable for her actions.
"In school, if I got a bad grade, it would be my problem," she says, "but if I mess up an chart or my other work, everyone in my group suffers."
Simmons adds that the punishment in the corporate world also puts more pressure for her to perform well.
"It's scary to think that if you aren't doing a good enough job, you can find yourself cleaning out your desk," Simmons says. "A job inside a corporation can be very stressful."
Although the transition from college life to corporate life may be scary, ASU Career Services adviser Linda Nassen offers some advice.
"Many students graduate and think they will automatically be placed in the bigger jobs," Nassen says. "New employees will be doing the less glamorous part of their jobs for a while."
Nassen says that new employees shouldn't get frustrated because better jobs will come once they earn respect from their bosses. She adds dressing professionally is important for getting promotions.
"Don't dress for the job you have," says Nassen. "Dress for the job you want."
To help their new employees, Honeywell schedules social events to develop contacts and friendships within the organization and encourages them to have long-service employees as mentors.
While meeting other recent college graduates at work helps ease the transition to the corporate lifestyle, Simmons says it is a moot point if you spend all your time at the office.
"I spend at least 60 hours a week at work," Simmons says. "And if I can't get it [work] done in the office, I end up taking it home and working on it in front of the TV."
Normally, Simmons wakes up at 5:30 a.m. and sometimes doesn't leave the office until 7 p.m. Simmons says that ofth she doesn't have the energy for a social life.
"I see my parents come home from work and fall asleep before the prime-time shows even start," she says. "I never understood how someone could be that tired until I came home one day and was in bed and asleep at 8 p.m."
Aircraft parts and file folders surround Simmons, but there is still a glimpse of her college mentality. She is an avid fan of country music, so her co-workers created a collage of country singers and posted it in her cubicle.
"In college, I had posters all over my walls," Simmons says. "So it is cool to know that you can still have a little fun at work."
Reach the reporter at gabriel.trujillo@asu.edu.
