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if you don't mind me asking, what did you major in? I just don't like it when people are like, why did you major in that? and you should have done more research via the internet! Well statistics like we have now weren't available on the internet back then and my college doesn't really keep track of graduates so I was screwed.
If you went to college a while ago it was not very hard them to get a job if you didn't have a related major.
Iv'e been a teacher for almost 10 years now. No counselor, in any of the schools I have worked in, have ever told kids that the degree alone is going to get you a job, do what you love, blah blah blah. Both of the ones at my current school make sure kids have realistic expectations on their proposed major vs job market. Additionally, they push them towards the best programs not necessarily their favorite school (too many college visits going on IMO, but that is another matter).
Hell, I would say 25% of my current students do college level summer internships before they even go to college.
If you didn't do some of your own research into your proposed field, at 18, 19, 20 years old before you graduated with said degree, that is ultimately YOUR fault.
Here I have to disagree, I grew up in a very poor house and we had no computers or electronics except for a tv. When I did look up stuff on the internet, I was told not to trust everything you read, after all we don't believe everything we see on tv right? (except those 3 mil people that believe mermaids exist) Not everyone has access to these statistics or records that you mention. I was also told the same thing, which is do what you want, someone will hire you, blah blah blah. At the time, I was majoring in Spanish and businesses can always use a good translator right? Well the economy was good and businesses were hire people for jobs that were unrelated to their major AT THAT TIME, but then the economy went down the toilet in 2008 and I graduated in 2007. So yes, sometimes people do have a legitimate complaint.
if you don't mind me asking, what did you major in? I just don't like it when people are like, why did you major in that? and you should have done more research via the internet! Well statistics like we have now weren't available on the internet back then and my college doesn't really keep track of graduates so I was screwed.
My major was English. My intention was to work in publishing. Whether Id be the guy desiging the covers, looking through the slush pile, contacting the authors, editing etc.. something- I wanted to be the guy working at scholastic, Norton, Penguin etc... I wanted to be one of the guys that your book goes through before it is published.
In spite of popular belief, my plan was never to teach (shocker I know), nor to write the next "great American novel" and become wealthy off that.
Failing the publishing route that I thought I would be able to land some sort of entry level customer service, data entry, telemarketer, IT office position.
As I said I made some dumb mistakes back then. I applied for the big well known publishers, the norton, the Random house, but I did not hit up the independent houses. True the independent houses are all unpaid but perhaps the unpaid could have lead to something. If i took the unpaid internships, maybe the publishing goal would have came true. Another instance is I was offered an interview with an IT company because my cousin worked there (inside connection best "in" in the world") and I turned it down because my mind was "BLARGH I MAJORED IN ENGLISH I WILL ONLY WORK IN ENGLISH"- again stupid I know. Now bear in mind that interview was not guarnteed job, but I am sure if i took the interview i would have a pretty good shot. The company was young, I had an inside connection etc... but again, I was dumb.
Looking back, if I could go back I would have majored in Accounting and minored in English. And yes i know there are unemployed accounting grads as well, but id rather graduate with the accounting degree than the english degree. Looking back, if for some odd, insane reason I decided to stick with English, then I would have defintley done the unpaid indedpendent publishing house internships.
At University now, the hottest major is the general business major, followed by the accounting, finance etc... I know that is not by chance. You cant tell me 35% of entering freshmen just decided randomly to be business and supply chain management majors.
Oddly enough before when people knew I was an English major they would ask, "Oh are you going to teach?, What grade are you going to teach? "- Why do people ask this, why do you assume I want to be a teacher? Breaking news! Not everyone English major wants to be a teacher. I have a lot of respect for teachers but the profession was not even in the farthest possiblity of "this is what I want to do".
If you went to college a while ago it was not very hard them to get a job if you didn't have a related major.
I would say through 2006/7 you had a good chance. The issue is education hasn't been as fast to accept not every student should go onto college, some are better off going into trade programs.
I would say through 2006/7 you had a good chance. The issue is education hasn't been as fast to accept not every student should go onto college, some are better off going into trade programs.
A recession will do that. For-profits and lower privates have seen enrollment numbers plummet. If that continues and the economy picks up in a couple years that could return to some degree.
Here I have to disagree, I grew up in a very poor house and we had no computers or electronics except for a tv. When I did look up stuff on the internet, I was told not to trust everything you read, after all we don't believe everything we see on tv right? (except those 3 mil people that believe mermaids exist) Not everyone has access to these statistics or records that you mention. I was also told the same thing, which is do what you want, someone will hire you, blah blah blah. At the time, I was majoring in Spanish and businesses can always use a good translator right? Well the economy was good and businesses were hire people for jobs that were unrelated to their major AT THAT TIME, but then the economy went down the toilet in 2008 and I graduated in 2007. So yes, sometimes people do have a legitimate complaint.
you went to college for four years and got no information about the marketability of the degree you chose? Even in small towns libraries have computers available for public use. If you wanted to know the information it was there and certainly when attending a four year degree college. That excuse does not pass as anything other than ;didn't bother.
you went to college for four years and got no information about the marketability of the degree you chose? Even in small towns libraries have computers available for public use. If you wanted to know the information it was there and certainly when attending a four year degree college. That excuse does not pass as anything other than ;didn't bother.
You're missing a huge part of the concept.
Say for instance, when your parents told you something was bad when you were a child, did you go to the library and take out books on psychology, human rights and look up statistics about the claim on the computer? No. You listened because you were raised to believe that your parents were a credible source for teaching you right from wrong.
It's not about the ability to research it on your own. It's about being constantly reassured by authority figures in your life that it's not a bad choice and trusting those people causing you to have zero cause and motivation to research it on your own until you realize the information was not true to the extent you were told.
We wanted to know the information, so rather rely on "the lying internet" (because many of my mentors have said information on the internet cannot be trusted over books and teachers) we asked an adviser or mentor, and took it as fact because it was common believe they always spoke the truth.
you went to college for four years and got no information about the marketability of the degree you chose? Even in small towns libraries have computers available for public use. If you wanted to know the information it was there and certainly when attending a four year degree college. That excuse does not pass as anything other than ;didn't bother.
You had better go back and read what I put. That is not what I said at all.
Say for instance, when your parents told you something was bad when you were a child, did you go to the library and take out books on psychology, human rights and look up statistics about the claim on the computer? No. You listened because you were raised to believe that your parents were a credible source for teaching you right from wrong.
It's not about the ability to research it on your own. It's about being constantly reassured by authority figures in your life that it's not a bad choice and trusting those people causing you to have zero cause and motivation to research it on your own until you realize the information was not true to the extent you were told.
We wanted to know the information, so rather rely on "the lying internet" (because many of my mentors have said information on the internet cannot be trusted over books and teachers) we asked an adviser or mentor, and took it as fact because it was common believe they always spoke the truth.
Thank you, that was exactly my point, you just described my childhood
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