“Generally refers to young people in
their 20s and 30s who are employed in
a profession or white-collar occupation.
The meaning may be ambiguous and
has evolved from its original narrow
meaning of a young person in a
professional field.”
– Wikipedia
“This group is specifically designed for
beginning right of way professionals
who want to become more actively
involved into the Association while
enhancing their skills….Creating a
body of individuals who are close in
the likeness of skill level, education,
professional & life experiences
establishes a trusting atmosphere
to allow free flowing questions and
professional bonds to form. The
IRWA Young Professionals Group
is recommended for participants of
the age of 35 and under but is not
required”
–IRWA Young Professional Webpage
“The Texas Young Professionals
Network is for young REALTORS®
getting started, experienced
REALTORS® looking to stay current on
industry trends, and new REALTORS®
switching to real estate as a second
career.”
– Texas Association of Realtors
So why is it important to understand
the term? Within the general business
world and within our own right of
way industry, we see an influx of
the younger generation in humble
beginnings attempting to move up
the career ladder, but we often forget
that the younger generation doesn’t
automatically refer to people starting
at the bottom or in a new career.
What about those in Generation X
(1965-1979) that have retired from
their first career and are just starting
in our world of right of way? Are they
too old to be a Young Professional?
What really is too old?
Gathering Opinions
As someone who grew up in a
lower-middle class family, the term
“Young Professional” was never really
something that I personally recognized
until graduate school at Texas A&M,
where being a professional was taught
to be of utmost importance in the
business world. It wasn’t until I got
further into my career as a commercial
real estate appraiser specializing in right
of way that I really understood that
being a YP was a real thing. However,
I still found myself wondering what
a Young Professional actually was.
Initially, my perception was that I was
a stereotypical Young Professional
because I was under 30 and working
in a professional setting across various
states. However, as my time in the
industry ticks a little closer to 10 years
rather than 5, and at the ripe ole' age of
31, my opinion has changed. As a result,
I wanted to know where others stood
on this. In order to solicit opinions
from those outside of my every day,
I created an online survey with three
simple questions:
1. What is a Young Professional?
a. A person under the age of 35
b. A person under the age of 40
c. A person with less than 5 years
of experience within a specific
industry (age is not a factor)
d. A person with less than 10 years
of experience within a specific
industry (age is not a factor)
e. Other (please specify)
2. What makes someone a
Professional?
a. A college degree specific to one
field and/or industry
b. Work experience, no college
degree, specific to one field and/or
industry
c. Work experience in combination
with a college degree, specific to
one field and/or industry
d. Other (please specific)
3. Please give your feedback about
YOUR opinion on what a Young
Professional is in your industry?
The Results
For the first question, 51.95 percent
of responses said that a Young
Professional is someone under the age
of 30, while 25.97 percent of responses
believed YP referred to a person under
the age of 40. What this leads me to
believe is that a majority of those who
took the survey focused primarily on
age versus experience.
For the second question, 46.75 percent
of responses said that work experience
in combination with a college degree
specific to one field and/or industry
is what made someone a professional,
while 36. 36 percent said that work
experience (with no college degree)
specific to one field and/or industry
is what makes a professional. As
someone from a working-class family
and transitioning into a white-collar
world, I personally appreciate the
relatively close percentages in these
majority answers. Professionalism
shouldn’t be synonymous with a blue
or white-collar job, but merely based
upon hard work, determination, grit
and merit. Naturally, professionalism
can and should include starched jeans
in one realm and a suit in another.
As for the third question, there were
a number of varying opinions with
some responders focused on age while
others were focused on experience.
For instance, one responder stated that
in order to be a Young Professional,
the individual would need to be
under 35 and have either a degree
in a related field or at least five years
of work experience in a related field.
As you can see, this person had very
particular specifications in mind.
Other focused solely on age. As one
responder argued, “Older professionals
who have changed careers don't often
relate well to someone in their 20s,
nor do they need the same networking
support because that skill should
already be established. Nevertheless,
