I will be graduating PT school in May and would like to start a family right away. I am concerned, however, about being pregnant while also job searching. How realistic is my goal of getting a PT job after graduating while also potentially being pregnant? I know employers legally cannot discriminate based on my pregnancie status but I am still slightly concerned. Any advice would be much appreciated!
Pregnant PT
- Thread starter hope4dpt
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Also interested in hearing people's answers on this one....I have 2 kids now, but would love to have 1 more (maybe plan to get pregnant towards the end of my last year in school).
My only thought on this (having been in the job market before school) is that if you did your job search right away out of school, you have a good 4-5 months before you would really start showing. I've done a few interviews at 5 months pregnant (other fields) and you can camouflage it pretty well. Once you're in a job, you're in. In my opinion, as long as you are a good employee and feel like you will keep working with the company after maternity leave, I don't see any issue with it (i.e. taking a job and then going on maternity leave fairly soon after) moral wise....but even that's not at all legally binding.
My only thought on this (having been in the job market before school) is that if you did your job search right away out of school, you have a good 4-5 months before you would really start showing. I've done a few interviews at 5 months pregnant (other fields) and you can camouflage it pretty well. Once you're in a job, you're in. In my opinion, as long as you are a good employee and feel like you will keep working with the company after maternity leave, I don't see any issue with it (i.e. taking a job and then going on maternity leave fairly soon after) moral wise....but even that's not at all legally binding.
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I've never been pregnant but here is my 2 cents. Find a good job with great benefits first. Plan your pregnancy post full benefits package (3 to 6 months permanent). That way you can spend more time with your newborn, disability + maternity leave. The additional income will help significantly. Those student loans will come knocking and having that income stream may prevent the need for a deferment. Some have spouses with great incomes or are great with budgeting, but not everyone is so fortunate. Good luck!
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They can't discriminate while hiring, but that may not matter. As a new grad you will have experience less than or equal to anyone else applying, and less experience IS reason to not hire. You'd never know if pregnancy had anything to do with it. Hopefully not, obviously.
That said, I would consider your financial and leave plans. Depending in where you live, FMLA doesn't protect your job unless you've been working there for at least one year. If you work for a small company your job also won't be protected under FMLA. If you are planning on using STD to help cover finances on leave, you will also likely need to be working before becoming pregnant, as waiting periods are usually 10 months. Generally working a couple months, like suggested above would be "ideal" timing.
Now with that said... getting pregnant isn't as easy as deciding your ready. Don't drive yourself too crazy trying to 'schedule'.
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It worked out well for me as I was about 6 months pregnant when I graduated. That gave me time to take the board exam, have my daughter, and stay home with her for a few months before I had to start making student loan payments. I was hired by a clinic when I was still in school and I was very upfront that I was pregnant and would be taking adequate maternity leave before I started. Obviously this wasn't paid leave but I wasn't willing to wait until I had earned maternity leave to have another child. I had one already when I started and was more than ready to have another. I felt like being upfront about being pregnant was important because if the clinic wasn't family friendly, then I figured it wasn't really a place I wanted to start my career, anyway.
Like the above poster said, don't get too caught up with a "schedule." Things usually don't go perfectly as planned. With that being said, you will find a way to make it work regardless 🙂.
Like the above poster said, don't get too caught up with a "schedule." Things usually don't go perfectly as planned. With that being said, you will find a way to make it work regardless 🙂.
