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The purpose of this study was to develop a deeper understanding of how new student affairs professionals experience the process by which they enter their first position out of graduate school, also referred to as anticipatory socialization. In this constructivist grounded theory study, data were collected from participants who experienced and managed aspects of their anticipatory socialization. The results provide insight on hiring practices, strategies for preparing students for the job market, and provides understanding for new professionals transitioning to professional roles.
Transitioning into a new organization can be both exhilarating and stressful. This is particularly true of new professionals who are full of hope, yet have less life and work experience to draw from than their more experienced colleagues (Miller & Jablin, 1991). While considerable research has focused on the preparation of professionals in graduate programs (Mather, Smith, & Skipper, 2010; Renn & Jessup-Anger, 2008), and the retention of student affairs professionals once they are in place (Mather, Bryan, & Faulkner, 2009; Renn & Hodges, 2007; Winston & Creamer, 1997), little attention has been given to the transition from student to new professional (Tull, Hirt, & Saunders, 2009).
Organizational socialization is defined as "the process by which an individual acquires the social knowledge and skills necessary to assume an organizational role" (Van Maanen & Schein, 1979, p. 211). Jablin (2001) breaks socialization into four stages: anticipatory, encounter, metamorphosis, and exit. Anticipatory socialization is broken down even further into vocational and organizational anticipatory socialization. Vocational anticipatory socialization includes the activities one experiences through life that shape their understanding of careers or vocations, such as vicarious learning through family members or exposure through television and other media. Organizational anticipatory socialization is the socialization that occurs once an individual has identified a potential employer and begins to learn about the organization through passive means such as reading their website, and through active exchanges such as interactions with current members through networking or interviewing.
Across job sectors, the socialization process is especially important in increasing newcomers' job satisfaction and organizational commitment (Klein, Fan, & Preacher, 2006). Furthermore, socialization is important because a successful adjustment to new roles results in reduced uncertainty, which decreases turnover (Allen, 2006). Successful socialization may also result in greater identification with the organization...