When we were young, a question we loved to answer that felt so distant in the future was “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

As we’ve grown older, that question has become more specific, more mature, and more complex. It’s turned into “what do you want to do after college?” and “what do you think you will do for your career?”

Pursuing opportunities in public service after college may encourage students to be civically engaged citizens after graduation.

However, public service is a field that many have thrown to the side for too. When people think of public service, they might think of a military officer in a distant country or a government bureaucrat who sits at a desk all day. But public school teachers, public defenders and nonprofit staffers are usually overlooked forms of public service.

Whether it is for two years, 10 years or an entire career, working in public service can be an enriching act that is beneficial to society. One could get involved in the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, Teach for America, Habitat for Humanity, Doctors without Borders, or other organizations, all of which are forms of public service.

“Peace Corps service is the opportunity of a lifetime and a chance to do the unexpected,” said John Holmes, the Peace Corps recruiter for central New York. “I would encourage those interested in serving to check out our website for high-need/scarce-skill positions, because they represent a wide array of ways to make meaningful, impactful change in communities around the world.”

If you’re considering going into public service, think about what your motives are. Today, there are too many people who do it because it is what is “expected” or because it “looks good on a resume.” But anyone who is truly committed to public service would tell you that public service is about a lot more than a line on a resume. It is a commitment to make a community better.

Public service is an idea, it’s a mission, it’s a passion, and people should not jump into it for self-interest. The point of public service is for the betterment of something greater than oneself, not the glorification of oneself.

For us at Syracuse, we should all advocate for more people to dedicate time to public service. Despite the personal sacrifices, public servants are the ones who seek to create a better society than was transmitted to us.

David Bruen is a freshman Political Science and Policy Studies major. His column appears bi-weekly. He can be reached at drbruen@syr.edu. He can be followed on Twitter @David__Bruen.

Published on December 4, 2019 at 10:27 pm