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...and I picked the worst year to graduate from college. It's already 4 months and my 2 bachelor degrees from an accredited university does nothing for me?
It's even scarier how you have to tailor the resume and applications accordance to employers. I get more interviews in retail jobs if I DON'T mention a degree. Yet, being just recently graduated, a lot of \"entry\" level jobs just seems to require 5 years of experience minimum?!?!
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@Eric Le Yu: I have three degrees (one's an MA) and I still compete with dudes twice my age for jobs. Employers are taking experience over education.
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@Eric Le Yu: NETWORK! Use your contacts, if your friends got jobs, have them refer you. Use your parents' contacts as well.
66% of my jobs I've gotten from referrals.
you can get jobs in this economy...just this year, by wife and I have doubled our income by changing jobs.
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This economy shows how important the correct choice in degrees are. My company is looking for engineers (mechanical, aerospace, electrical, that kind of thing) and they are kind of hard to find. I always fear when I hear of a friend or family member looking to get a liberal arts degree or one that doesn't have good job prospects. You have to follow your dreams, but you also have to be able to pay the bills.
@shepd: @pecan 3.14159265: He got that right. Management and International Business. Maybe I'm just living in the wrong state, because I could speak Vietnamnese, Japanese, and English at full fluency, but a lot of jobs (even customer service and retail) want Spanish speakers as well ^_^;;;
@shepd: While your advice sounds good, it's something I have been doing already. 3.55 GPA, two strong thesis, striving to take most difficult (yet worthwhile) of classes. I'm kinda regret doing the later only because I know I could bump it up to 3.8GPA, but the classes are worth the extra effort.
I'm still going both high and low in terms of job types, but this situation is really perplexing at the moment.
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@Eric Le Yu: i graduated in 2001. the headline of the sunday paper the day after i graduated was \"1,000,000 laid off so far this year\". let me tell you - it was not easy finding a job. i finally got some work thru a temp agency - it sucks, but it pays the bills.
with your degree, have you considered gov't work? or, perhaps peace corps/americorp? their loan forgiveness programs are certainly a bonus & depending on what you want to do in the future, the connections you forge could help. speaking of connections, have you tapped the school's resources & tried your alumni network? that's often very helpful.
if all else fails, perhaps continuing your education is a possibility. i wish i had done that - another 6 mos./1 year at school & i could've supplemented my degree with a B.A. in business & walked into a pretty decent job market.
@Eric Le Yu:
Your GPA is the last thing you should be concerned about... it will get you one job (maybe) after graduation, while better experience, more interesting hobbies, extra learning and increased skillsets... will get you a much more rewarding (and flexible to changes in your field) career.
Get involved in clubs, buy extra textbooks you aren't required to (and read them), and do hobby projects that you can talk about in an interview.
Do everything extra that interests you... whether it hurts your GPA or not. If it improves your capabilities and has any application to your future career it is much more valuable than your grades.
Anyone who picked up a bachelor's degree (or two) and figured they would stop learning and go to work for a lifetime is going to be in for a real shock. The high tech industries are leaning very heavily to Master's degree and higher educations, constant learning and self-improvement classes, and a real big priority on workers with outside interests and hobbies. You better plan on selling yourself every day, week, month of your career and being prepared to make career changes when necessary.
@Andrew Farris: I agree with the GPA comment.
I graduated with a 2.6 Overall GPA, but my Major GPA was 3.5 in Accounting. Low considering other people's grades, but I guess I stood out since I did non-paying internships for several companies. In addition I joined clubs and took leadership positions.
I did get several offers (private and govt(state&fed)), but I took the lowest one @ the federal government for job security--started out as 40k; I'm in my 3rd year and got my promotion as a GS-12..around 80k. Still employed, and some of my friends who laughed at me taking a \"crappy\" job are unemployed...har har. Of course I don't laugh in their face.
If you're having trouble finding a job in the private sector, try the feds. They're still hiring, but you'll probably need to relocate or something. Hell, our agency still needs people, very badly(qualified). Several agencies in the feds are look for people with fluent language skills..so I'm sure you can find something that can fit your bill. Try www.usajobs.gov
@Eric Le Yu: 2 bachelors degrees? What a waste - thats probably why they don't want to hire you. Not a good sign of decision making capacity.
@Enkael: its not that dumb necessarily because sometimes you can get a double major in similar fields without taking a lot of extra classes. My roommate in college was a biopsych major and ended up with a biology degree too because he only had to take a couple extra credits.
man i am so happy i graduated 2 years ago. it took me a couple months to find a job (and i needed the summer off) but now i have a pretty steady job and get paid decently. its not 100% related to my major but its close enough. With the way student loans are drying up i think i would have had to drop out i couldn't have gone without finaid.
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@Enkael: Actually, if you double major in college, that technically is two bachelors. And it's not a waste because once you get one bachelors, some schools may let you receive another without taking the full range of general education classes like English 101.
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@Eric Le Yu: I orginally graduated in 2001 with an associates degree in Computer Animation (motion graphics mostly some 3D), I found a job at BJ's warehouse unloading 50 footers.
I had a few other jobs then went back to school, I'm still there......and still at this hellish job...
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@Eric Le Yu: Also, I know a lot of people recommend looking for something \"below\" entry level, but I'd actually recommend the opposite. At least in addition to applying for those lower-skilled jobs.
Every now and then you'll find a hiring manager who is actually looking for someone with less experience, as they want someone who will have some learning curves, remain engaged, and not spend all their time bored/looking for something else. And, they can pay you less.
So, if you find something that interests you, go for it. Make your case. You never know!
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@Eric Le Yu: Im in the same spot you are. All I can really say is \"sucks, dont it?\"
Our generation came too late to the party and now we're stuck cleaning up vomit-soaked carpet. The only consolation is that we're not at retirement age wondering where our money is and if we'll be able to find someone who'll hire a 60-plus year old retiree.
@Eric Le Yu: Think of it this way, at least this isn't your year to retire.
In reality, you need to suck it up and just work. Anywhere. I actually just wrote a piece about recent college grads and job hunting. Yes, you DO have to tailor your resume for each type of job, and yes, you will have better luck getting a retail job without mentioning your degree. It's just the reality.
About the entry level piece....they don't all require that, they're just trying to weed out potential employees. Never let what's listed on a job description deter you from applying.
If all else fails, try to find temp work. It's soul-crushingly boring, but you'll be able to beef up your resume. I worked for 9 months out of college (while waitressing) as a receptionist/admin. While there I talked them into letting me take classes in Excel and Access (why is that so few college grads know Windows? It's amazing....). I rarely used/use those programs, but at least I can say I can. Everything you learn counts for something.
Good luck.
If you find a company that wants people who can get good grades when doing tests, can write a good thesis, and attend lectures well--your bachelor degree will be in high demand.
Otherwise, all it really proves is that you have the above skills, along with a (possibly--for some fields, cheating is rampant, I'm thinking CS here) foundation of knowledge for the subject. Some companies may also believe it proves you enjoy learning, although, from my personal experience, a degree doesn't prove that at all.
When companies are interested in a strong work ethic, you're going to need to work on the experience quotient. Which is tough if entry level jobs are expecting experience. But perhaps you aren't going low enough or trying hard enough? I started my programming career by opening a store on a shoestring budget and later working as a lackey in a computer lab and in call centres. Not to mention pulling cables and being an electrician's assistant as well.
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@shepd: Did you not read what he said? \" the longest I was employed after graduating was delivering pizzas\" Sounds like he is applying for about as low as you can go.
@mcjake:
Yes, I read what he said. He said he's applying for \"entry level\" jobs that require 5 years experience. Those aren't entry level. Those are probably jobs within the field he's looking at, but entry level for such a field. For example, in computers, that can be tech support (but not usually call centre, that's lower on the totem pole).
Even during the WORST economic crisis, a gas station or local fast food joint doesn't really care about experience if you have a winning attitude. If you can find me a pump jockey job that requires 5 years experience, well, I'll eat my post. :)
Get and/or prove the work ethic, and then you'll find that the \"5 years\" requirement in the other \"entry level\" jobs will start to be less of an issue. It can be 5 years (or less) of serious \"I like working\" attitude at *any* job for a lot of those sorts of positions, as long as you have the education to back it up.
@orlo:
It proves you have the skill to (assuming your reference doesn't suck):
- Do what you're told without complaining, even when every single day your job sucks
- Be abused without complaining enough to get fired (when I worked at a gas station, they expected us to come in early to count the inventory, unpaid)
- Keep coming to work, day after day, even if you aren't totally satisfied with your job
- Not show dissatisfaction with the job to customers (even internal jobs have \"customers\", eg: An industrial electrician's customers are the managers in the other departments that come up with things for him to do).
- Punctuality
- Safety (assuming your dream job requires this)
There's more, but you probably get the picture. Think \"soft skills\". If you're going into a job where they will teach you what to do, the above covers *all* the bases.
Of course, the above becomes less important if you're applying to be, say, senior manager. But that's not an entry level position.
@Eric Le Yu: Yeah, 2 years here since I graduated with a BS and BA from Colorado State, and the longest I was employed after graduating was delivering pizzas. I have been told repeatedly to leave my degrees off of my apps so that I don't appear overqualified. SO much for playing the game, right?
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nice.