Career Advice For Your First 1-2 Years After Graduating

Written June 19 2025

Est. 5-10 minute read

  1. Prioritise your relationship with the Lord

At Christians For Impact, we believe that Kingdom impact in our careers begins with our identity in Christ. By cultivating Christ-like character and values through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we lay the foundation for meaningful impact. 

 We explore this vital connection between faith and work in more depth in our career guide here, where you’ll find practical tips for nurturing your spiritual life alongside your career ambitions.

Practical tip: Establish daily rhythms of prayer, Scripture reading, and reflection. Consider joining a discipleship group or finding a spiritual mentor to help you grow in your walk with Christ.

2. Invest in community

The Bible tells us that we shouldn’t do life alone. For instance, in 1 Thessalonians 5:11 we are reminded of the value of encouraging one another and building each other up.

Leaving behind university friends and the familiarity of a place can be a lonely time, but there is so much value to putting yourself out there! Plus, most great opportunities come through connecting with people. Find people who share your values and will challenge you to grow. They could be friends, colleagues, mentors, or church leaders.

Practical Tips: Find a local EACH community group in your town/city (one of our other Christian projects connected to the effective altruism movement). Attend a local Church. Put in the effort to attend workplace socials.

3. Live in a place with opportunity and community

Location matters. Being in cities like Washington DC, New York or London and Manchester can expose you to more jobs, mentors, causes, and networks focused on high-impact work.

For example, Washington D.C. likely contains on the order of 15–20% of the nation’s “high-impact” jobs, despite its small size, due to the outsized presence of federal policy roles and internationally-focused nonprofits.

Our founder, JD, found that after moving to Washington D.C., he was able to make friendships and networks with charity founders, senate staffers, business and church leaders within a matter of months, what would have taken years in a smaller or medium sized US city.

He found that bigger cities often have a culture of professional ambition, which can be energizing for Christians who feel called to pursue kingdom impact through their job.

Practical Tip: If possible, move to a place where both professional opportunities and Christian community are strong so that you don’t have to choose one over the other.

4. Build career capital while working

Career capital refers to the abilities and resources you accumulate—whether skills, credentials, connections, or savings—that allow you to do more with your career in the future. You can read more about that here.  

Even in a full-time role, you can build new capabilities that prepare you for the next step, both within work, and outside of work. 

Practical Tips: Learn to code, take online data analysis courses, read widely, or find a part-time qualification related to your field. Say “yes” to new opportunities at work.

5. Get Career-Ready

Being a fresh grad is notorious for little financial flexibility. Where possible, however, saving up a financial cushion will give you the freedom to take risks. For instance, switching jobs, upskilling, moving cities, or doing a low-paid internship that opens doors by helping to build your career capital.

Being intentional with your spending now, will also lay great foundations for giving considerations in future—potentially pledging 10% of your income to effective charities. In the meantime, you could consider taking Giving What We Can’s trial pledge of 1-2% of your income. 

Practical Tips: Track your spending, download apps that automate your savings, find a friend to keep you accountable, and try to establish a means to live within. Taking quizzes such as ‘How Rich Am I?’ can help you maintain some perspective, particularly if you live within the Global North. 

 6. Be flexible, not passive

As much as it’s good to be open, it’s also important to ensure that you don’t repeatedly drift. It can be helpful to set 6–12 month goals such as building a skill, exploring a field, or switching roles. As you go, it can be helpful to reflect often on what you're continually learning. Taking 1-2 hours to work through our career guide can help with this! 

Practical Tips: Apply for our 1-on-1 advising to speak to a Christian Career Expert in your field, or book monthly “career reviews” with yourself to help you stay intentional when making important decisions.

Need help discerning your career? Sign up for our free one-on-one impact mentorship here.

To read more about it click here.

Do you have any career uncertainties? Click here to read our article on three big career uncertainties you can trust God with.