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From university to work…
by Srinivas Madipalli
This is another one of those periods which was a real challenge. At some time during my second year of uni, I felt a sense of dread that in the not too distant future I would be leaving the somewhat comfortable environment of uni and would need to enter the real world of work. To compound this fear of the unknown, I did not have a clue what I wanted to do with myself. Even though I really enjoyed what I learnt as part of my genetics degree program, I knew very early on that a career in scientific research was just not for me.
I knew that I wanted to do something that could keep my mind occupied and give my easily bored mind, enough to do. Many careers are completely impractical to a person with my disability to pursue, and careers where only a functioning mind and an ability to communicate are required, are few and far between. After much time being spent in careers offices, recruitments fairs, and talking to people from various professions, I ended up setting my sights on a legal career in the City.
Unlike going to school or uni, there isn’t really a well worn path for a disabled person to follow, when it comes to entering the work place. The high unemployment rate for those with disabilities is an unfortunate testament to that. Also, it quickly dawns upon you early on (whether rightly or wrongly so) that convincing an employer to employ you over fellow able bodied candidate is not going to be an easy.
Working through this and my experiences of successfully obtaining a job as a trainee lawyer is long story, that would be probably be best covered in another article in the future. But suffice to say, it required much hard work, perseverance through setbacks and plenty of bloody mindedness!
The next big challenge is getting the help you needed sorted out. Luckily, my firm have always been supportive and understanding with whatever assistance I need, whether that be allowing my support worker on site, or ensuring that one of many secretaries in my office is assigned to give me a hand with things such as getting folders of shelves etc. For those reading this, if such help is not sufficient, I am aware that Access to Work can provide funding for a whole host of things that are needed to help you in the workplace. In my case, Access to Work helped fund the installation of automatic doors in the workplace, and made a grant towards purchasing a new wheelchair. Irrespective of funding issues for whatever assistance that may be needed, the only other important thing I can think of from personal experience, is to ensure that you as open and honest with your employer about the help you need as early as possible. It is much easier to get this help in place at the beginning of your job rather than in the middle of trying to complete a task, where you may be kicking yourself that you did not ask for the assistance you needed earlier.
Like with going from school to uni, making the next transition to work brings up a whole new host of difficulties that are unique to each individual and their particular disability. To avoid this blog entry being turned into the length of a book, I have only talked one type of issue that arises, i.e. assistance at work. But for some who read this, it is likely that assistance at work is just one of many other problems such as finding accommodation, transport, organising support workers etc. Therefore, drop me a message if you would like more information on how I dealt with some of these other issues.
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Srin, you make some valid comments here, particularly about the obstacles faced by disabled people in securing a job. This can only have been made more tricky by the current economic situation. I’d love to hear some of the excuses given about why employers wouldn’t take you on and how you dealt with that. I’m sure your experience would be re-assuring and inspiring for others trying to fond their way ahead.
Comment by Mark Borland, July 16, 2009