Job Search 2015

By Alyssa Siegel

As the years passed, we found that it became very challenging to keep Artisan going: the cost required to implement and support Clarity surpassed what we could reasonably charge for the product. As such, our business transitioned. We stopped pursuing new sales and attending trade shows, and instead focused on supporting our already loyal customer base, who were paying an annual support fee. We downsized, giving up our office in New Brunswick and scaling back to just the two of us working out of our home office. 

After a few years, I felt a growing sense of urgency that I needed to do something else. Since we were not actively selling Clarity at this point, losing a client meant we would have no way to easily replace that income. We had been paying our own health insurance, and costs were skyrocketing. Additionally, we had three sons approaching college age and knew of the tuition costs in our near future.  While we worried about Jon's ability to keep Artisan Computer going without my help, we agreed that it was time to make this move.


In 2015, with Daniel already in his sophomore year at Rutgers University, I decided it was time to put myself out there and search for job openings. Being employed by Rutgers would have two major benefits: great state health insurance, and tuition remission for any children attending the university. 
 
Naturally, I thought my experience aligned with technical (now called "IT”) positions. However, when browsing job descriptions, I realized I was a square peg in a round hole. Job descriptions looked for things like “5 years JavaScript experience” or “Full Stack Web Developer”. What was not in any job descriptions was anything that looked like my experience: running a small software business for 20 years and doing everything: sales, running helpdesk, developing software in MS Access, testing, bookkeeping, etc. I sent in applications for several IT jobs, explaining in my cover letter how unique my experience was, and how I could learn whatever was needed very quickly. Still, I did not hear back from anyone. 


Deciding to widen my net, I applied for a position as a Senior Administrative Assistant in the Mathematics Department. I was offered this job and accepted this position. 


Please read the next chapter of my blog: Rutgers University Math Department 2015-2019



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