How Did I Pick My First Job After Graduation?

Although I received multiple job offers before graduation, they were not all at the same time. This meant I had to give up certain opportunities while not knowing what else may be in stock for me around the corner. There were some factors which were non-negotiable which helped eliminate some of the opportunities. These factors only became apparent after going through the interview process. Here I'll reflect on what those non-negotiable factors were and what ultimately proved to be the determining factor in me accepting my first job after graduation.

The first job offer I received was local in Colorado which I liked since it meant I would have my family nearby. However, there were two main issues with that opportunity as follows: (1) The starting salary was on the lower-end of what I would consider comparable in the market at the time; and, (2) the employer was not well established in industry and I did not get a sense of any significant accomplishments or milestones achieved by the company. Although this opportunity offered me the challenge of technical hands-on work, I saw a lack of mentorship and inspiration to work on the company's projects.

Another offer I received would have required me to relocate to Texas where I didn't have any family. Although this was not a deal-breaker, but the job responsibilities turned out to be more along the lines of technical customer service support where I would answer questions for customers regarding issues with existing company products rather than actual hands-on engineering. This was a deal-breaker for me and I discovered one of my non-negotiable factors to be a job opportunity where I would gain hands-on technical experience working on cool projects that would be out of this world!

I declined a couple more offers for similar reasons where I was not fully inspired to put in 100% of my efforts. I had faith that with the on-going interview process, something better suited was around the corner for me. Finally, it came down to two offers which were both very good. They both offered me the opportunity to gain technical hands-on work while providing an environment where I can learn from my peers. However, there were a few factors that put one above the other and helped me in making the decision:

• The first job offer required me to relocate to Sonoma county, California which was a beautiful place, but I had no family there and would have been a bit isolated from my community members.
• The second job offer required me to relocate to Los Angeles county, California which also has a lot to offer in-terms of scenic beauty and things to do in near-by spots. Also, my sister at the time happened to be working at the same place as well which meant I would have some family around. Also, it was relatively easy to connect with other community members in the Los Angeles area.
• The first job offer was from a well known and established large company known for building measurement instruments used globally in various laboratory settings. I would have the opportunity to work on embedded software for the company's various products.
• The second job offer was from a world leading organization known to build robots and spacecraft that explore our solar system. I would have the opportunity to work on embedded flight software for spacecraft.

Ultimately, it was the work performed by the organization to build one of a kind spacecraft that helped me make my decision. I chose the second job offer as I was fascinated by the projects and knowing my efforts will help further humanity's understanding of space was something out of this world. Also, I would have the company of world-class engineers and scientists as my peers to learn from.

After having spent over a decade contributing to the success of various different spacecraft, I can look back and say I could not have asked for a better work experience in the first decade of my professional career. I'm thankful for having followed my curiosity by asking myself questions about what inspires me, moves me, scares me and makes me feel accomplished. Also, I'm thankful for having the courage to let go of things which didn't seem well-suited and for having the faith that something better suited was around the corner. I find that the quality of my experience is directly related to the quality of my decisions driven by faith and courage with the foundation of hard-work and dedication.