According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 2.9 million students will be awarded associate’s and bachelors degree’s during the 2017-2018 school calendar year (more if you include graduate students). This is a time for celebration as these individuals have achieved a significant milestone. However, given the challenges that many people face entering a new workforce, the transition can be challenging (even for those who have significant work experience in unrelated fields). For those interested in public sector work, how can we pay it forward and help them contribute to meaningful work in this field?

Mentoring them. Take time to get to know someone new in your office, a friend’s child/sibling or your own relative. Are you asking them questions and offering advice of how to best position themselves for success? Are you providing them with useful resources where they can gather more information? How about connecting them to someone with potential job leads? This can be the beginning of a longer-term friendship/relationship.

Training them. What may appear to you as easy and rote, might be daunting and scary to someone unfamiliar with how to complete certain tasks. Perhaps using a step-by-step approach and taking time solicit feedback will pay back in spades.

Supporting them. Are you listening to their concerns? Are you trying to gain feedback to help create new efficiencies with your own work? Your support can provide the morale booster needed for them to take chances and make strides with tasks that were previously perceived as difficult.

What are you doing to help the next generation of leaders? Your skills, insights and experiences are invaluable and everyone has something to contribute. Try to extend a hand to someone – it could mean the world to someone where opportunities are less available to them.