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In the eight months since I graduated with a bachelor's degree in electronic media and film I have only been employed three of those months and with two different jobs. One job was not in the field, the other was. I've had several other interviews too. Luckily I don't have a ton in the way of unpaid student loans but they're there. I have all the skills to be a studio rat production assistant at a TV station or any other entry-level position for that matter. I was super bummed I didn't get a job at the big dog station in town after a dynamite interview, and with how slow hiring and job postings are over the holidays I've felt I've hit a wall.
I'm seriously considering attending a local broadcasting school. I'm lead to believe they're well respected in the field and they claim a placement rate of over 70% (I don't remember the exact figure but it was over 70). Thing is, I don't really have the funds to pay for more school and I don't really look forward to the daily grind of classes. It's more of a technical school so it might be a little easier in that regard. I would prefer work than more school though, but if a certification from there puts me in a better place to get a job then I'm willing to do it. Their program is only three quarters.
Don't do it. I know, we have all been made to believe that education is the way to go, but it isn't like that anymore. I say this because my husband just received his Master's in November (software/computer/mgmt), and can't find a thing- people want five to 10 years experience for the most mundane, entry-level positions. And yet, we have horrifically huge student loans hanging over our heads, and we fell for the "get a degree, get a better job" trap. All you will be doing, is racking up more student loans that will eventually have to be paid, with no guarantee that you will be able to land a better job than you are able to with the degree you already have.
If I were you, I would keep trying to find a job in your field....and if you can finally land one, you may be able to learn through experience what you would be going back to school for - minus the massive student loans you would be accruing if you went back to school.
Don't go back to school. Look for work at TV stations across the country. Cable, network, and public TV. Take any work you can get at the station. Production Assistant, Web Content manager, etc. The trick is to get in the door and network within to get to the position you want. For example: About ~ Introduction | WNET or http://www.wgbh.org/about/employmentopportunities.cfm
Again, look nationwide. Ask your out of town family and friends if you can stay with them while you transition to the new area.
The trick is to get in the door and network within to get to the position you want.
And this is the trick I have yet to master.
Of the jobs I interviewed for, the ones at TV stations were weekend newsroom editor and production assistant. I got called in for an interview for the editor one by mistake. The operations manager thought I was somebody else and really wanted someone with previous newsroom experience, which obviously I had none.
The one I was bummed that I didn't get was for a production assistant, mainly operating the studio cameras during newscasts. I think they were going to hire me. They did the background check, called my references, the whole nine yards, making me sweat it out for three weeks when they said it would be a week to ten days, eventually passing on me for somebody else (they interviewed three candidates for two openings).
My two main concerns are my resume falling out of relevancy, since I really haven't had any industry experience in six months, and still being in the same position when new graduates start job searching in the spring.
And @ mostie, tuition for this school is ~$15,000. To me, not huge. Obviously that doesn't take in to account supplies and gas to commute back and forth. I couldn't drop it all in one lump sum, but I can manage it. My outstanding student loans are under $9000 and I'm on a monthly payment plan to work to pay them off.
"More school" is never the answer these days. Why? Because that's what everyone is doing. We have severe education inflation. The undergrad degree is new high school degree. The Masters degree is quickly becoming the new undergrad degree. Soon enough, the Ph.D. will be the new Masters. Educational credentials are inflating at a faster rate than people are able to chase them.
This system is benefiting employers greatly. They're not the ones who are paying for your education, i.e. glorified vocational training. And they have an additional way of filtering out applicants: keep raising the educational requirements.
"More school" is never the answer these days. Why? Because that's what everyone is doing. We have severe education inflation. The undergrad degree is new high school degree. The Masters degree is quickly becoming the new undergrad degree. Soon enough, the Ph.D. will be the new Masters. Educational credentials are inflating at a faster rate than people are able to chase them.
This system is benefiting employers greatly. They're not the ones who are paying for your education, i.e. glorified vocational training. And they have an additional way of filtering out applicants: keep raising the educational requirements.
So your solution is to just not go to school so you don't "give in to the system"? While I think there is some merit to the argument that simply going to school for "something" is not the remedy to finding a job in this economy, there are still certain degrees that have a very high probability of landing you a job. If you have identified the need for higher education in this job market, that seems like half the battle. If you have your bachelor's and realize that isn't going to cut it, then why not try to get your master's if it will get you the kind of work you seek. Unless you viewpoint is you won't ever get hired with or without the degree, so why bother trying?
Ultimately, I think the biggest issue with higher education in the US is that Americans by and large tend to view it as a bother, rather that the privilege that much of the rest of the world sees it as.
"More school" is never the answer these days. Why? Because that's what everyone is doing. We have severe education inflation. The undergrad degree is new high school degree. The Masters degree is quickly becoming the new undergrad degree. Soon enough, the Ph.D. will be the new Masters. Educational credentials are inflating at a faster rate than people are able to chase them.
This system is benefiting employers greatly. They're not the ones who are paying for your education, i.e. glorified vocational training. And they have an additional way of filtering out applicants: keep raising the educational requirements.
I partially agree with you Muzak. Indeed, the undergrad has become the new high school diploma in terms of popularity. It does seem like the masters degree has now become commonplace as well. I'm not sure about the PhD though; from what I've heard employers are reluctant to hire PhD candidates because of the salary expectations, but who knows.
With that being said, many jobs these days contain a checklist of minimum requirements and BS/MS degrees are one of those requirements. The larger tech employers (Cisco, EMC, NetApp, IBM) in my area can afford to hand pick the MS degree students from the university. This means that I now need a masters degree just to compete with them. I also think it is another way to "future-proof" your educational credentials, provided the degree is relevant to emerging technologies.
Interesting discussion so far. For me, I went to school with a focused degree/career goal in mind. Most (but not all) jobs in TV require a bachelor's degree in journalism or communication or something in the neighborhood. Higher up jobs in TV just require alot of experience in the industry. Depending on the station, certain production assistant and certainly master control op. positions do not require a college degree, but it's certainly preferred. The place I'm looking into is a technical school for broadcasting. I would not be getting a degree, but a certification, and, if it's a quality institution, more specified technical skills that aren't offered at a four-year college and more internship and networking opportunities.
A bit off topic: I thought in my public school education college was hammered into us way too much as the answer. They spent little time talking about technical schools and blue collar jobs, which is shame. I'm lead to believe this is a rampant problem nationwide which is why a bachelor's degree is seen as the new high school diploma and is why employers are tightening their qualifications for jobs and only picking the absolute perfect candidate. Which sucks for many of us who hold degree, are fully capable of learning jobs outside our field and ready and eager to work.
Last edited by HayesRidgeway; 01-01-2014 at 01:33 PM..
It's the BIG engineering companies that require a Master's. Most Mech Eng jobs I run into just require a BSME, sometimes they're cheap and want someone with an Associates.
Of the jobs I interviewed for, the ones at TV stations were weekend newsroom editor and production assistant. I got called in for an interview for the editor one by mistake. The operations manager thought I was somebody else and really wanted someone with previous newsroom experience, which obviously I had none.
The one I was bummed that I didn't get was for a production assistant, mainly operating the studio cameras during newscasts. I think they were going to hire me. They did the background check, called my references, the whole nine yards, making me sweat it out for three weeks when they said it would be a week to ten days, eventually passing on me for somebody else (they interviewed three candidates for two openings).
My two main concerns are my resume falling out of relevancy, since I really haven't had any industry experience in six months, and still being in the same position when new graduates start job searching in the spring.
And @ mostie, tuition for this school is ~$15,000. To me, not huge. Obviously that doesn't take in to account supplies and gas to commute back and forth. I couldn't drop it all in one lump sum, but I can manage it. My outstanding student loans are under $9000 and I'm on a monthly payment plan to work to pay them off.
Before you take out another $15k in debt, why don't you try doing 10 informational interview with alumni with the same major? Do practice interviews/resume critiques with 20 different people.
Then, you can apply for that $15k in debt. You have to do all that stuff anyway.
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