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Young professional

Young person employed in a white-collar occupation

Young professional

Young person employed in a white-collar occupation

A young businesswoman giving a presentation.

The term young professional generally refers to young people between 20 and 40 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. Although derivative of the term 'yuppie', it has grown into its own set of meanings.

Traits

The term was originally, and is still used to some degree, to narrowly refer to recent graduates of professional schools serving in professional careers. The term typically refers to people between the ages of 20 and 40, but there are those who state 35 is the upper age range.

Stereotypically, they can also be viewed as having an "obsession with success" and "plagued with loneliness". Alternatively, young professionals can be seen as highly spiritual and "seeking a spiritual outlet to balance their hectic working lives".

Impact and connections with larger entities

Young professionals can provide a welcome increase in a local area's tax base and can also create a snowball effect of attracting and infusing young energy and talent into an area. Young professionals can also organize themselves and bring energy to shape communities and alter local or ethnic politics.

Young professionals are courted by larger social and occupational organizations or employers in some contexts, but not in other.

Young professionals are also heavily targeted by purveyors of career and financial advice.

In the workplace, young professionals can be viewed as talented and energetic individuals who present special management challenges or as "cannon fodder" to be cast aside once they are no longer profitable to a business.

As euphemism for "single"

Main article: singles event

The stigma that developed in the 1970s around singles functions and singles groups led some organizations to switch the name of their singles events to "young professionals events". However, other organizations specifically for young professionals insist that they are not "singles groups".

References

References

  1. "I am not sure what "young professionals" means..." [https://books.google.com/books?lr=&q=%22I+am+not+sure+what+young+professionals+means%22 ''After the storm: American society a decade after the Vietnam War : proceedings of the International Conference on "The U.S.A.: A Decade After the Vietnam War"'', 1987, p. 33]
  2. [[Arun Arora]] and Andrew Francis, [https://books.google.com/books?id=IDOQAAAAMAAJ&q=%22young+professional%22 ''The rule of lawyers'' in ''Modernising Britain'', Fabian Discussion Papers, iss. 42, 1998, p. 4]
  3. [https://books.google.com/books?id=puMCAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22young+professionals%22&pg=PA34 John Taylor, '' 'Down With M.B.A.'s' '', New York magazine, November 2, 1987, p. 36]
  4. [https://www.iaee.org/en/students/yp.aspx#:~:text=A%20young%20professional%20is%20someone,under%20the%20age%20of%2035.]
  5. [https://archive.org/details/applauseofheave000luca Max Luca. do, ''The applause of heaven'', 1996, p. 120]
  6. [https://books.google.com/books?id=k3O390SiHEUC&dq=%22young+professionals%22&pg=PA66 Engaging Generation Aleph: A Resource for Young Adults in the Synagogue, Union of American Hebrew Congregations, ed., 1997, p. 3]
  7. [https://books.google.com/books?id=tUVPAAAAMAAJ&q=%22young+professionals+means%22 ''Neighborhood organizing: nurturing strong, unified voices'', charles Stewart Mott Foundation, ed., 2007, p. 8]
  8. [https://books.google.com/books?id=_xr2kLmUI4YC&dq=%22young+professionals%22&pg=RA1-PA778 Glenn Omatsu, ''"Four Prisons" and the Movements of Liberation'', in ''Asian American studies: a reader'', Jean Yu-wen Shen Wu and Min Song, eds., 2000, p. 178]
  9. [https://books.google.com/books?id=pNtFHAjs2EcC&dq=%22young+professionals%22&pg=PA101 Aart J. M. Van De Laar, ''The World Bank and the poor'', in ''Series on the Development of Societies'', Institute of Social Studies, ed., vol. 6, p. 101]
  10. [https://books.google.com/books?id=f-aFAAAAMAAJ&q=%22young+professionals%22 Government Executive, vol. 26, 1994, pp. 16, 18]
  11. [https://books.google.com/books?id=mEmFG_Bn5qgC&q=young+professional&pg=PA57 Ryan Kohnen, ''Young Professional's Guide to Success'', 2009, pp. 1, 103]
  12. [https://books.google.com/books?id=2cwDAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22young+professionals%22&pg=PA128 Lisa C. Jones, ''Money Management for Young Professionals'', Ebony, October 1992, p. 128]
  13. [https://books.google.com/books?id=as7vEveVAjoC&q=%22young+professionals%22 Tanner Strasky, ''Find Your Inner Ugly Betty: 25 Career Lessons for Young Professionals Inspired by TV Shows'', 2008]
  14. [https://books.google.com/books?id=GI_DvXBhRVsC&dq=%22young+professionals%22&pg=PA394 Roger B. Winston, Don G. Creamer, and Theodore K. Miller, ''The professional student affairs administrator: educator, leader, and manager'', 2001, p. 394]
  15. Berk, Bernard. (1976). "Face-Saving at the Singles Dance". Social Problems.
  16. Fried, Stephen. (2002). "The new rabbi: a congregation searches for its leader". Bantam Books.
  17. (1997). "Engaging Generation Aleph: A Resource for Young Adults in the Synagogue". Union of American Hebrew Congregations.
  18. (1997). "Engaging Generation Aleph: A Resource for Young Adults in the Synagogue". Union of American Hebrew Congregations.
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