Life after Harvard can be trying.

But for some alums, leaving the alma mater never has been tried. For a number of recent and not-so-recent alums, the University provides postgraduate employment for short- or long-term careers.

Since he graduated last June, David C. Grimm '85 has been working in the Admissions Office that brought him here almost a half-decade ago.

"It wasn't something I initially pursued," Grimm now says. "I saw an announcement in the [Office of Career Services] newsletter and decided I wanted to take at least a year off before going to med school."

Grimm, who is one of three recent grads working as an admissions office intern for a two-year stint, says he frequently falls back on his experience as a undergrad when presenting the school to prospective candidates all over the country.

"It's very easy for me to give a 45-minute presentation on Harvard," he says. "Usually they go a lot longer."

Although many interns use the position as an interim period between graduation and grad school, Grimm says, "If you're doing a good job they may ask you to stay on, which they have done in the past."

"We're very anecdotal, especially the recent grads," he says. "I love to tell stories about my roommates."

"I think its a great innovation," Grimm says of the position, which was started seven years ago by then-Dean of Admissions L. Fred Jewett '57, the College's current dean.

How did Grimm land the job? "It was a fairly rigorous interviewing process because they really want to see what you're like," he says. "I was a Psychology major and I did a lot of work with children throughout my four years."

"Not only are you staying associated with the University and seeing it from a different perspective," says Grimm, "but you're also giving back to it."

Another recent grad who snapped up an administrative post was Lisa Chertkov '85, a patient advocate at University Health Services. As a doctor-patient liason, she serves on several committees and also handles complaints, comments and suggestions from users of the health services.

"I'm interested in health care and I wanted to work in a health care setting before I made any pre-med decisions," Chertkov says.

Chertkov says that although she lacked specific patient advocacy experience, her Harvard background has filled in the gaps.

"I think having gone here did help because of the sort of position this is," she says. "That familiarity with how Harvard works makes a big difference."