- Characterizations of a bad job
- Understanding Job/Work/Career
“If your mood change [when you get to work.] If you see your coworkers outside of work, and you act like you don’t see them.”
Participant:
- Chicago, IL
- Black
- male
- 15-22
- lower income
Youth Quote Search
Welcome to the Striving to Thriving Youth Quote Library. Here you’ll find a curated collection of more than 5,700 quotes from young people ages 15-22 living in communities across the United States. In the library you can see how young people describe their multifaceted identities, how they understand and apply meaning to language around job, work and career, how they think about and assign value to relationships, networking and connections, and their future goals and the education and career choices they believe will lead them there. You can also view additional notes on curation, categories and filters.
- Education
- Perceptions of college and postsecondary
“So once I get that degree and graduate from Southern Miss, because they have a graduate program for social work, and it’s like highly recommended in Mississippi, I’m going to pass the licensure exam the first time. And then I’m going to work in my desired area. Like with social work, you can be a social worker in the hospital, in a school, in a nursing home; like you can be a social worker anywhere. So I’m not sure what I want to do yet, but, yeah.”
Participant:
- Greenville, MS
- Black
- female
- 15-22
- lower income
- Pathways
- Steps and stages
“The most important things impacted on my journey is believing myself that what is now will be change… and work hard to achieve my goal that even though there’s barrier[s] along the way, have faith in God and think what [is] the future ahead of me and for my family.”
Participant:
- Online
- white
- female
- 15-22
- lower income
- Reflections on Focus Group Experience
- Takeaways
“I just feel like, you know, it’s like I have to address a lot of the gaps in my story in order to get to where I need to go and have a visual, like picture, of where I want to be. It kind of just puts a fire under my ass like you guys.”
Participant:
- Chicago, IL
- Black
- female
- 26-29
- higher income
- Pathways
- Steps and stages
“My journey started when I was 17 with bodybuilding, and there hasn’t been too many people that actually stick around, especially with a career like that…You have to be pretty good at what you do to actually make money, so there’s not too many people that stick by your side with a career path like that.”
Participant:
- Yakima, WA
- white
- male
- 15-22
- lower income
- Reflections on Focus Group Experience
- Takeaways
“As we come to the end, I am thinking about my college experience and if I’m happy at college right now.”
Participant:
- Online
- Hispanic
- female
- 15-22
- lower income
- Impact of education
- Pathways
“I do think I need a school type of training hands on and text book just to be on the safe side of knowing all information I must know to be the best at my job. I also think I would get a certificate for recognition at the end of my training classes.”
Participant:
- Online
- Hispanic
- female
- 26-29
- mixed income
- Attributes and characteristics
- Describing Identity
“Fun, nice, smart, 17, Elliot, New Orleans.”
Participant:
- New Orleans, LA
- white
- male
- 15-22
- lower income
- Perceptions of the term 'career'
- Understanding Job/Work/Career
“Because pretty much it’s like work is like almost like a halfway point to your career. So what you’re wanting to do in life, and once you get your career, it’s like that’s what you want to do.”
Participant:
- Yakima, WA
- Hispanic
- male
- 15-22
- lower income
- Characterizations of a good job
- Understanding Job/Work/Career
“[A good job is one] where you can take care of yourself, and you don’t need no help, and you can live comfortably.”
Participant:
- Chicago, IL
- Black
- female
- 15-22
- lower income