Entry-Level Positions for Aspiring Human Resources Professionals
Erin, a County of Ventura HR Business Partner, suggests that undergraduates seeking entry-level HR positions should prioritize finding "a support role, maybe as an administrative assistant," within their desired organization. This approach allows aspiring HR professionals to "get their feet wet" and learn organizational functions before tackling complex HR tasks, building valuable foundational skills and relationships "from the ground up."
Entry-Level Positions, Administrative Support, Office Skills, Career Development, Organizational Support
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Erin Niemi
HR Business Partner
County of Ventura
Cal Lutheran University
Cal Lutheran University - Master's of Public Policy and Administration
Communications
Government & Public Sector
Human Resources (HR)
Video Highlights
1. Consider entry-level support roles like administrative or office assistant positions to gain foundational skills and experience within a specific organization.
2. Focus on finding a support role within an office or department that aligns with your career interests to gain valuable exposure and build relationships.
3. Start with less complex roles to build core professional skills and understand organizational processes before taking on more advanced responsibilities within HR.
Transcript
What entry-level positions are there in this field that an undergraduate college student might consider?
I love this question. Human resources is such a dynamic field, and we can pull from a wide applicant pool.
If you have professional experience in any capacity, you could likely learn the skills of human resources and apply them. But if I could give undergraduates one piece of advice, it's to find the office you want to work in and try to take a support role.
Maybe work as an administrative assistant or an office assistant. This way, you can get your feet wet in the position and learn more about the organization as a whole or your job as a whole before you start analyzing and taking on more complex projects.
Even though we can pull from people with different professional backgrounds, finding a job where you can support the office you're most interested in directly will take you very far. You'll get to work with the people you would be working with in a more complex role while still building core professional skills.
Things like booking meetings or knowing how to use Zoom are very important. If you work in an administrative capacity, you learn how to best support your branch, which will equip you for success in more complicated roles because you'll have worked from the ground up.
So that's the one piece of advice I could give an undergraduate: find the office you want and see what support capacity they need. You'll be exposed to so many different concepts by doing it that way, instead of just trying to find the most complicated role right away.