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Old 09-15-2014, 05:45 PM
 
1 posts, read 1,134 times
Reputation: 10

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I wanted to get some guidance from the people on here as I enjoy many of the posts. I finished in the Fall of 2012 with my Bachelors in History. I entered college at 21, because I had to support family members and help out around the house. I finally went to college at 21, I choose history because in my mind I wanted to get my BA, then my MA, then a Phd. I wanted to be a Professor, publish work and lecture. Many people say why would you choose history? Since I was five my mother would always take me to read and it sparked my interest as a kid and teenager I purchased books was in many historical societies and received straight A's in History. I'm not just trying to boast, but currently I between 400 and 500 books on various types of History, Political Science, and Philosophy that I've been collecting since I was 16 I am now 27. I don't own a television and outside of work I'm constantly doing research, trying to prepare a book, and start my own study group. I mentioned all of that to show that I didn't pick History because I thought it was an easy major, but I literally have an extreme love for the subject. In in the midst of this I overlooked the career outlook for people with an MA in History and how scarce the job market is in academia. Leaving me to just look for anyway to sell my labor for a check.

My life right now I work at a state agency doing a monotonous job I hate with a passion. I feel stagnated though I still travel alot. Also, I have this debt i'm at 19,600 dollars in student loans for this degree. I've found that this History isn't too marketable in many respects. I want to get out of this agency and find another career that is more lucrative atleast 45k a year.

*-----Currently
I've been studying for the praxis I & II as many of my friends recommend I should try and teach High School, I would love to, but I dont know how well kids would listen to me...I'm 27 but look 18

*------Entreprenuership
I've been researching alot about owning a business and two of my friends own a business so I'm getting their advice and from research trying to set a foundation,

*------Looking at Grad School, but even on that I'm still rocking because I would either go for a Masters in Teaching or an MPA, (from researching both disciplines and looking at my own interests)

^^^^Those are the three things I've been working on or considering to help my situation, before anyone posts I would like to thank you for reading and if you are inclined to do so respond to my post
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Old 09-15-2014, 06:26 PM
 
2,563 posts, read 3,670,691 times
Reputation: 3572
So have you given up on teaching? Maybe you should continue through to a PhD? Otherwise, you have to face reality at some point and go get a real job.
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Old 09-15-2014, 07:01 PM
 
Location: Des Moines Metro
5,103 posts, read 8,577,534 times
Reputation: 9795
Quote:
My life right now I work at a state agency doing a monotonous job I hate with a passion.
I'm sorry that you hate it, but there are people who would literally kill you for that job!

Let's get real for a moment. Whether you realize it or not, you are extremely lucky to have that job. A better thing to do is network and transfer, either into another division or another office where you can start to advance. You are in one of the few areas where a degree in history won't matter, just the fact you have a degree.

Do not spend more money on tests or classes. Pay off that debt! Get a weekend job at the library if you must, but make double/triple payments and make it go away. And then use your "insidership" to get a better job, one you like better. In the meantime, you can continue to network and get into politics if you are that bored.

Do not go into teaching at this point. It is extremely hard to get history jobs, plus the kids will eat you alive.

I know your life stinks and you think you owe yourself trips and such, but the truth is that the sooner you pay off that debt, the sooner you will get a "raise." That alone will give you a huge lift. Make it your focus for now.

At the very least, keep your job until 2016. When WWIII starts (probably Oct. of 2015), you will likely be very thankful for that job, as others will be disappearing practically overnight.
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Old 09-15-2014, 07:45 PM
 
12,076 posts, read 23,189,033 times
Reputation: 27203
I love history too and I have over 1,100 books, so I understand your passion, but this is my advice to you:

Secondary and HS history teachers are a dime a dozen, as are History PhDs; chances of finding a full time job with benefits are slim. For now, forget about more college education.

I know your job sucks, but you are lucky to have a full time state job with benefits. Entry level history related jobs don't pay anything. Find out what type of graduate degree would help you move up within your organization or help you transfer to another state agency. Find out if your employer will pick up any of the tuition.

Assuming you have a day shift M-F job, you can pick up some BS part time job on evenings and/or weekends and put all of that money towards your student loan.

How much do you spend annually on traveling?

I don't think you are in trouble with your history degree; it probably helped you get the job you have. A significant number of people work in jobs that don't have anything to do with their major, but they have their jobs because of their college degree.

I'll leave you with this; I am part of a loose association of friends who are all passionate about history and we have varying degrees of college education, but the one thing we all have in common is that none of us work in a "history" job. I know a guy who just published his first history book (I believe he is in his late 50s) and is working on his second one; he pays his bills working in a factory.
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Old 09-15-2014, 08:40 PM
 
7,005 posts, read 12,447,644 times
Reputation: 5478
Even though there is not a lot of general demand for history teachers, you might find demand in rural and inner-city schools. Alternative teacher certification programs that aren't run by colleges tend to be flexible and cheap. Depending on your state's requirements for alternative certification programs, you won't have to complete an unpaid internship for a semester. You teach on a temporary license for a year as a fully-paid teacher. Then, there is Teach for America. It's very competitive, but it doesn't hurt to apply.

You can go straight from a bachelor's to a PhD program. The key is to get accepted to one that offers a full tuition waiver and a stipend. The stipend won't be large, so you'll be living barely above poverty until you finish.
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Old 09-15-2014, 09:00 PM
 
4,178 posts, read 4,423,085 times
Reputation: 10103
How are you with more quantitative skills associated with history such as economics? A few targeted classes such as economics / public finance / public administration may help you coupled with extensive networking within whatever agency or other agencies may be hiring. Those kind of environments usually give more credence to those already employed there. Many agencies do not get top tier personnel and someone with history degree generally means you can do thorough research. Couple this with a few targeted classes (if that is up your alley) in public finance / economics / budgeting, may prove helpful within your current employment situation.

Otherwise, as few others mentioned, be thankful you have a job and look for potential side jobs you can pick up to pay down your student debt. This is time (youth) to burn the work candle at both ends - you don't want to be doing so in later years. So my advice would be if you have no strong desire to be at that agency. Pay down your debt and give yourself more flexibility of choices later.
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Old 09-16-2014, 07:33 AM
 
2,210 posts, read 3,483,430 times
Reputation: 2240
I'm also in the History undergrad club and worked some pretty terrible low-paying administrative jobs my first 5 years out of college. Sorry, but when you're starting out, them's the breaks for us liberal arts majors. The big money entry level jobs go to the engineering and finance majors.

Continuing to work and build experience is a much better bet than going back for more education and piling on more debt. I recommend you start bringing a different outlook to your job. What skills are you learning? What opportunity for advancement is there? What skills or experience do you need to build in order to advance? Employers value experience much more than education, so even if you're bent on switching careers, I would recommend figuring out how you can leverage the experience you're building now into a different career. I think the best advice for now is to put your head down and put your full effort into your current job.

That's not to say there's no hope. I transitioned into a career in marketing and am making a nice salary now. However, it took me 9 years to get there. There's no easy outs.
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Old 09-16-2014, 08:01 AM
 
1,761 posts, read 2,600,751 times
Reputation: 1568
Quote:
Originally Posted by Arthur Digby Sellers View Post
I'm also in the History undergrad club and worked some pretty terrible low-paying administrative jobs my first 5 years out of college. Sorry, but when you're starting out, them's the breaks for us liberal arts majors. The big money entry level jobs go to the engineering and finance majors.

Continuing to work and build experience is a much better bet than going back for more education and piling on more debt. I recommend you start bringing a different outlook to your job. What skills are you learning? What opportunity for advancement is there? What skills or experience do you need to build in order to advance? Employers value experience much more than education, so even if you're bent on switching careers, I would recommend figuring out how you can leverage the experience you're building now into a different career. I think the best advice for now is to put your head down and put your full effort into your current job.

That's not to say there's no hope. I transitioned into a career in marketing and am making a nice salary now. However, it took me 9 years to get there. There's no easy outs.
Agreed, history like many of the liberal Arts will generally have to start out at doing the low paying admin stuff, build up your skills there, get references on the resume and eventually start moving up the ladder. The chances of landing that 50-60k a year job with just a History degree I believe is nigh impossible, yes other majors can do it, but probably not history.

As for the teaching, Don't go into teaching unless you really want to be a teacher. Do not do teaching because "well I could not find anything else". Start substituting now and see if teaching is something you really want to do.
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