need urgent advice!!
hello everyone. i have a situation i would love additional advice on. i (22f) just graduated from a top university and have been applying to jobs all summer. we all know how tough the current job market is. however, i applied for a position at a very big company with a lot of clout in the healthcare industry, and after interviewing with them, i wasn’t offered the position i applied for but a lower position at the company. this position does not require a bachelors degree, pays $2 above minimum wage, and is pretty demanding time and workload wise. parking in the company parking lot for the day costs as much as they’d be paying me per hour. i’ll also be moving to the city for this position and my rent will be $1000/month, which i’ll be paying myself along with all other expenses.
this position is a great opportunity for me. i will be doing research at a major healthcare/research company and i feel like it will open up doors for me moving forward. i also am potentially thinking of going to grad school after working and saving up for a few years, and i can’t stress how great it would be to have this position on my application. it’s also right in the field i’m interested in. however, i have a B.S in a STEM field from a top university, have so much research experience under my belt, and just feel like this position is criminally underpaying me. the salary posted on the website had said ($18-$27) so i’m not sure why i was only approved for the lower end.
anyways, they also surprised me by telling me i have 48 hours to take a drug test, with this being the last 24 hours. i do smoke weed, but have a med card. it is legal in my state as well. however, i know this company is extremely strict regarding marijuana use. it’s been a decent amount of time since i have smoked however. so my options are:
1) take the drug test and if i do pass/there’s no problem, work there for a few months while applying to other jobs and leave once another one is secured. basically leaving it to the universe on whether or not i pass to decide my fate.
2) don’t take the drug test, reach out to the company and let them know i won’t be able to work there because of the extremely low salary, but miss out on such a great opportunity career wise.
3) i take the drug test and fail and have my offer rescinded (which wouldn’t be the end of the world because i’d take it as a sign that the universe wanted better for me)
can anyone provide any insight or guidance i am so scared and just don’t want to mess up so early in my career. i am first gen, the first one in my family with a degree and neither of my parents can really provide meaningful advice right now. thank you for reading 🙂