Emily Wingle graduated in 2008 from Azusa Pacific University and moved home to Bakersfield after being unable to find a job in broadcasting. She is now working part-time for the advertising firm Saba Agency. Photo by Jennifer Baldwin

Lainey Walker graduated in 2008 with a communications degree from San Diego State University, but returned to Bakersfield to save money while job searching. After she volunteered for Glenwood Gardens, the retirement community offered her a part-time position. Photo by Jennifer Baldwin

By Lisa Pinson

Emily Wingle, a 2008 broadcast journalism graduate of Azusa Pacific University, moved home three months ago after completing a broadcast internship in Memphis, followed by an outdoor educational camp. When the camp wasn’t able to financially support her position, Wingle came home hoping to gain more experience in her desired field.

Wingle is one of many potential young professionals making the trek back to Bakersfield without full-time work. A glut of college graduates from outer cities and states are now returning back home after dismal job attempts elsewhere.

I know how dismal it is out there – I’m also searching for full-time work. After I graduated from Azusa Pacific in 2008 with a degree in communications and media studies, I worked in a coffee shop while looking for fulltime work in my field, only to return home last year empty handed.

We’ve all heard of the pattern of “brain drain” from Bakersfield. This occurs when bright young students relocate to other cities for college, then remain there once they have graduated and obtained entry-level jobs. Over the past year, however, while California’s unemployment rate has climbed to 12.6 percent as of March, the homecoming trend could signify a backward brain drain with more graduates returning to Bakersfield. Unfortunately, Kern County’s jobless rate is even higher than the state, at 18.3 percent as of March.

Richard Chapman of the Kern Economic Development Corporation understands the logic behind college graduates coming home, degrees in-hand.

“We have a pretty low percentage of a population with a college degree. So if I have a college degree and I am considering staying in L.A., where everyone in my building has a degree and is looking for a job, or coming to Bakersfield where my family is still there, and they know people in the business arena, and most of the jobs that are hiring are frankly for college degree jobs, I would go to Bakersfield.”

Last month, Rep. Kevin McCarthy hosted a job fair to bring awareness of job availability around Bakersfield. “A lot of the employees here have some very good quality jobs to actually look for,” he said.

With a total of 81 employers and more 1,100 job seekers, there was a wide variety of companies recruiting potential workers. Lower wage jobs were available at Pizza Hut, Regency Lanes and Goodwill. But also higher wage opportunities were open at State Farm Insurance, Kern Medical Center, Aera Energy and KERO ABC 23, among many others. A number of temp agencies were on display such as Snelling Staffing Services and ACT-1 Personnel Services.

Job fair attendee Nick Dillenbeck graduated from The Art Institute of California in Santa Monica, majoring in animation and graphics. After college, Dillenbeck aspired to get a job in the animation field or in art design. But when he couldn’t find a job in Santa Monica, he moved back to Bakersfield to work at Best Buy. When asked whether there was a specific job he was looking for, he replied, “Not quite in my specific job area, but you never know, so I came here just to check.”

Since moving home, Wingle hasn’t entirely altered her career goals, however she realizes that earning a job within her preferable field will take more time.

“I know I need to get a job whether or not it’s in my field, but I would still really like to be working in a TV or radio station. I’m willing to work my way up, and I’m willing to work unpaid, but I would like to start somewhere.”

Not only are these graduates facing economic challenges, they are also having to adapt to both familiar and unfamiliar living circumstances.

Many returnees find that many of their childhood friends have moved on, which means they need to find to new sources for networking.

Lainey Walker, a 2008 communications graduate from San Diego State University, had worked the front desk at San Diego’s Hilton for nearly a year before she decided to quit her job due to stressful circumstances. Unfortunately, finding work in San Diego was difficult and expensive, so she moved back home with her family to develop a new career path while saving money.

“My parents are great, and I think they respect the fact that I am an adult. But it is hard. You’re used to living on your own and then you come back in your parent’s wing. You have to deal with some rules. It’s not like the high school rules where you have a curfew. You have the freedom, but they want you to keep the house clean and they tell you to make your bed everyday. It feels as if you are regressing a little bit. You feel like instead of moving forward in life and becoming more like an adult, you are becoming less of an adult.”

Chapman remains optimistic regarding what Bakersfield has to offer graduates moving home. He states that because Bakersfield has three degrees of separation, as opposed to six, networking is easier. He is also convinced Kern County will make an economic profit from the larger pool of educated potential employees.

“(Bakersfield) is in a tough position because a lot of employers won’t come here unless we have a higher and more educated workforce. Number one, we would probably get higher waged jobs here. Number two, even retail like Whole Foods or Nordstrom. Most of them look at the college-educated population within six to ten miles of the project. Even our services are being affected. So we are caught in this cycle where we can’t recruit people because we don’t have the amenities but we can’t get the amenities until we get more people here.”

So what should college graduates be doing to move forward with their careers? Melanie Butler, career services director at California State University, Bakersfield, advises potential employees to find temporary or part time work in order to gain experience. She also suggests that graduates search for paid internships so they can afford their own food and housing.

Unfortunately, paid internships are sometimes difficult for college graduates to come by. Wingle became mildly frustrated when broadcasting companies wouldn’t allow her to intern for free. She explains, “One company told me that their lawyer told them that it was illegal to not pay their interns or to not receive college credit.”

Above all, Butler motivates graduates to avoid being discouraged. “There’s always job openings even if you can’t see them. There’s always people quitting their jobs, retiring, or moving some place. So there are always jobs, but there just are not a lot of them right now. They are not carefully visible. You need to search in more creative ways.”

It could be wise for young graduates to volunteer and participate in the community in order to avoid a gap in one’s resume while job hunting. That way, they are gaining new skills and, more importantly, taking the focus off of themselves and giving unto others. This will decrease potential depression that can occur among individuals of all demographics when they are unemployed.

After working part time as a sales clerk at the boutique Lush, Wingle has now accepted a creative support position with Saba, a local advertising agency.

Lainey Walker spent one month volunteering at the senior living complex Glenwood Gardens, and now has been offered a part-time position as the assistant activities director. She is also going to be teaching night courses in English or speech at San Joaquin Valley College.

As for myself, I have been interning for the Kern County Taxpayer’s Association over the past four months. Through my internship, I have been attending board meetings throughout town and writing articles based on those assemblies. I have also been volunteering as a writer for Bakersfield Express. As a result, I now have plenty of writing samples to include in my job applications.

In the 1995 film “Kicking and Screaming,” four college graduates still dwelling in their college town four months after commencement, spend most of their time griping about their pending future. Chris Eigeman’s character Max laments, “What I used to be able to pass off as a bad summer could now potentially turn into a bad life.”

The truth is, time is valuable. A full-time job may be difficult to acquire in these sour times, but a positive attitude and openness to a path less taken may develop into a more rewarding destiny.

Editor’s note: As of May 2010, article author Lisa Pinson is now gainfully employed as a project manager with the website Catholic Online, based in Bakersfield.