AMERICA is a global giant. Whether you studied there and want to stay after graduation, or fancy trying to make a new life in America, a graduate job in the USA can be a great way of starting you career. There are many options out there for graduates of all fields, but to live the ‘American Dream’ you want to be sure you are happy in the job you chose. So which American companies are the most pleasant to work for? We take a look at some of the USA’s best companies for a work/life balance, employee benefits and graduate support.
Acuity
Founded in 1925, Acuity employs over 1000 people in the Financial and Insurance sector. It is the highest-ranked new entry on the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For list, and hired 47 new graduates last year. They have become famous for the benefits they offer, including unlimited education reimbursement, shorter workweeks, and medical plans. All employees have a say in the company’s future and their “lunch with an officer” program gives everyone a face-to-face meeting with executives. It has a very balanced hiring history of men and women (a rarity in the financial sector) with 53% of staff being female. As a bonus, by 2016 there will be a 65-foot Ferris wheel inside the headquarters! Employees are so proud of the company, they even produced this zombie-apocalypse video explaining why.
Riot Games
Another debut on the Fortune 100 Best list, Riot Games might very well have the perfect job for you – whether you like video games or not. The company has over 1050 employees (aka ‘Rioters’) in the US, and more around the world. It had a small intake of fifteen graduates in the USA last year. The videogame developer has all the regular benefits, including free basic life insurance and health insurance. It also has some more unique benefits such as the "Play Fund," where Rioters can spend up to $300 a year on other video games, and the fact the headquarters are in sunny Los Angeles. The job itself could take you around the world: in 2014 the company flew Rioters from offices around the globe to Seoul for a week of gaming activities.
Genentech
Genentech is a part-subsidised company specialising in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. It offers all the usual benefits, including fully-paid sabbaticals, flexible workweeks and college tuition reimbursement. As well as this, employees are very positive about the atmosphere of Genentech. On April Fool’s day, the company went to an amazing effort to convince its employees they were implementing goats as a landscaping device: They even posted a phony story online and bought some live goats onto the site. The company has a large workforce, with nearly 13,000 staff in the US, although last year their intake of graduates was comparatively small: only 38 newly graduated people were hired. There are few entry positions but average salaries are high (base pay $123000).
Twitter is a household name, but it only made the Fortune 100 Best list for the first time in 2015. This would suggest that employee satisfaction is increasing. There are many benefits to working for the microblogging company: the San Francisco headquarters have interesting perks such as free yoga and improvisational drama classes, all the food you can eat and a gym on-site to burn it off (which is used by company CEO Dick Costolo.) Aside from the benefits, staff are also satisfied with the management and transparency of the company. There are twice-monthly staff updates that encourage a questions from all employees. Last year, Twitter hired 155 new graduates in the USA. Unsurprisingly, competition is strong: nearly 1500 jobs were advertised, with an average of 230 applicants per position.
Baptist Health South Florida
For those with medical degrees, there are countless employment options after graduation. This not-for-profit organisation is the biggest hospital system in Miami, and is renowned for its emphasis on career development. An 'Onboarding and Employee Development' team has worked with staff to develop more than 11,000 promotions and internal transfers over the past five years. Employees give their managers high marks on everything from ethics to communication. The company can provide no-interest loans if employees need help in times of crisis, but they also offer events such as employee talent shows, diversity celebrations and departmental picnics to encourage a close-knit community. They hired 176 new graduates last year, and have a very diverse staff background.
Looking for a company in the UK? Check out The Happiest Graduate Jobs in the UK
