LA graduates search for local jobs

Leah Casselman '14 plans to stay in the Los Angeles area after completing her studies at Emerson Los Angeles this month. (Photo by Daryl Paranada)

Transitioning from college to the working world isn’t always easy, but it helps when you’ve got friends.

Like many recent Emerson College Los Angeles graduates, Leah Casselman ’14 and Brad Cryan ’14 are staying in southern California after they complete their studies this month, joining the 4,000 other alumni who have settled in the region.

“It’s a big transition going from being a college student to working a job and having to pay for things,” said Casselman, who majored in Marketing Communication. “It helps when you have a group of friends going through the same thing together.”

In November, Casselman, Cryan, and three other recent graduates put down a deposit on a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in Burbank. The group decided to live together because they had similar budgets and shared common goals.

“It just made a lot of sense for us,” said Cryan, who graduated with a degree in Writing for Film and Television. “We’re all trying to break into the industry and want to support ourselves on as little rent as possible.”

Though Casselman and Cryan met their freshmen year living in the Little Building on Emerson’s Boston campus, they didn’t become close until going through the ELA program. Every Sunday, they would play poker together, a tradition they hope to continue while living in Burbank.

Though not everyone in the group plans to pursue a career in writing, Cryan says they each understand it and want to help each another pursue their goals.

“We have a lot of creative work we’re interested in doing, so we’ll definitely be bouncing ideas off each other,” said Cryan, who plans to stay in LA during the holidays to find a retail job.

Cryan says he wants to work in retail for six months while he focuses on his writing and building a solid body of work. Casselman hopes to find a job in in marketing by February.

“It’s both terrifying and wonderful knowing that I could really work in LA and do something I am interested in,” said Casselman. “I know I can get a job with the networking I’ve done and the internship experiences I’ve had.”

It’s getting the right job that worries her, though Casselman knows it might just take time. With an apartment secured, friends to lean on for support, and a job (hopefully) on the way, Casselman and Cryan are excited about the future. The only thing that’s left: furniture.  

“I’ll be making an Ikea trip later,” said Cryan.