I did that. Loved it. Worked my ass off, and finished with a 4.2 GPA (98 in the Canadian university system). I did a lot of networking, built and maintained relationships with my professors, and, in short, marketed the hell out of myself, with work product to give merit to "why i'd be a great professional to add to your organization".
Practicum was a component of the program. The university had a list of sites that they've used in past, but when the initial list was published, none of those places appealed to me. Instead, I went out and started meeting with the contacts I'd made, i got active in the local professional association, and managed to get some face to face time with the chairperson of the association's board - who also happens to be the Chief Human Resource officer of the hospital near my home. This is a great organization, despite all the politics of health care (or maybe because of them, it's a great learning opportunity). They're a teaching hospital, they've authored a lot of really great HR initiatives, and this same CHRO is a pretty smart guy, who makes a great mentor.
So yeah. I got five minutes with him, at an association function, and impressed him enough that he emailed me a week later saying "if you're still interested in an internship, we'd love to have you, and have some great projects for you to work on that would really enhance your body of knowledge and experience. Let me know".
Meanwhile, my student advisor had told me about an internship opportunity with a company that had approached them. It's a small, but growing business, that's been dealing with HR issues on an ad hoc basis, and needed someone to come in and, in essence, set up an HR system for them.
It sounded fun, it sounded challenging, and it sounded like a great opportunity to really make an impact (not only to them, but on my resume). I met with the owners and the person i'd report to, and fell in love with the organization. It's a fantastic company - so i took the internship. It was a fantastic internship.
Meanwhile though, i didn't want to turn the hospital down, so i didn't. I arranged with him to let me start internship when the first one ended, and did that. The first internship didn't turn into a job, but the potential is still there, once their fiscal year ends and they can re-evaluate their budget. I keep in regular contact with them, because honestly, that's where i want to be.
But the hospital was great too. And when THAT internship ended, i was offered a contract position as a consultant, working on some more interesting projects (i've posted about them), this time with pay. Of course i accepted it, and have been loving it.
I haven't really looked for a permanent job yet, because i've been having too much fun, and have been focused on these two places. Part of me keeps hanging in, waiting on small business to come back and say "we're ready, come on board!". I'm making a living, so while it's contract, i can afford to wait a while.
But today, the hospital offered me a permanent position. It's not a great position, and it's more administrative than i'm looking for. It's also a lower salary than i'd make if i were to put myself out there in the real HR world, with my work experience (past and present) and my training, but it's enough to live on, and there are full benefits (that's a must).
It's not a great job, but it is a great opportunity, in that it looks great on my resume, i can continue my professional relationship with this CHRO who has been a great mentor, and it's across the street from home. There also may be opportunity there in the next couple years, as several of the staff in positions higher than this one are poised to retire. There are lots of plusses too. I'm just not sure which outweighs the other.
So, i'm on the fence. Do i take it? Do i not? Do i take it and look for a position more suited to me, with a higher earning potential, letting them know that i can't commit to being long-term, and will be sure to give them more than sufficient notice, should i find something else? Should i call small business and say "ok, i have a permanent job offer, time to shit or get off the pot" ?
Gah. What to do.
Either way, consider this bragging - if nothing else, i am incredibly flattered that the hospital has been so impressed by my work that they continue to find ways to keep me in the organization, and pay me to be there. I'm also flattered at how committed to my development CHRO has been, and how he continues to provide me opportunities to learn and build my skills.
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