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Political campaigns are NEVER over for the thousands of professional political operatives in the USA. Do you know when they get busy after the last election? About five minutes after they either win or lose.
That's right! The DNC and RNC work all year long, non-stop on a variety of issues. I can't speak for the other parties, but these two don't let up EVER.
This seems much less menial and certainly more stimulating than a customer service environment, what exactly is usaid and how can one transition into a think tank?
College grads with non-specialized degrees are capable of working in a variety of fields. I was a paralegal for a very good law firm after undergrad, and all of my co-workers were college grads (plus the lawyers). There were definitely menial tasks. But there was also some interesting work and the pay was solid.
Your job, which you describe as menial and dead-end, is not going to just get better. There are better ways to explore opportunities than posting on this forum. You might start with LinkedIn, friends you graduated with, contacts, etc.
As TheCityTheBridge states above, non-specialized degrees are stepping stones to a variety of fields. Pretty much, the world is your oyster right now because you have the potential to get into so many different fields.
I didn't read the whole thread, so you may already have discussed some of the suggestions/points I am going to put forth.
First, you must decide what areas you are interested in working in. Then, network like crazy, and tell everyone you know that you'd like help finding a job in those areas, or related ones. Contact old classmates and professors. Speak to friends and colleagues of your parents, to your relatives, and to good acquaintances. Look on your school's career resources website.
Political science teaches in-depth analysis and critical thinking. So with a degree in it, you should be able to get an entry-level analyst job in a variety of fields, i.e., consulting, banking, paralegal, market research, government, non-profits, etc.
Second, did you do any internships while you were in college? If you did, and performed well, contact them and see if they have openings.
Third, if you live somewhere with few good jobs, you may want to consider looking for work in big cities that have tons of jobs like NYC, DC, Boston, Chicago, etc., where you will have lots of opportunities in a wide variety of industries. With non-specialized degrees, at first you often have to take whatever you can find that pays decently and seems like it offers the potential for growth. The point is to get some experience under your belt, and then use that to move on to something you are more interested in.
Fourth, if you want to focus on something specific right away, you will shorten your trajectory by getting a graduate degree in it, for example, international affairs, government, strategic planning, public administration, city planning, law, marketing, organizational management (MBA), etc. I realize that a lot of people are opposed to the idea of getting more student loan debt. But the reality is that if you are unable to find a job that can turn into a career (that you like), the easiest way to open the doors of opportunity is by going to grad school and then getting recruited by a solid organization.
Think about what you did relative to the organization. "Helping" isn't descriptive. Think of numbers and regulations. Regulations are the language of government. Why? Because compliance isn't always that easy.
Consider this. There's the job and then there's the bureacracy. If you ran a music store and needed someone to sell guitars would you hire someone that knows guitars and train them to be a salesman or find a salesman and train them about guitars? That's the argument that ALL organizations have to deal with every day.
No one really does one job. They do a job for a given department and the actions within that department can transfer to another. Break this down the basics.
Finance/accounting - ever group needs this. Why go into finance with the degree? Because anyone with finance would make more in the private sector and local governments know this
HR - HR in government is pretty much needed thanks to the 30% unionization rate. Know what the Hatch Act is?
Procurement - You can't just buy something for the most part. States have their own rules and so does the feds. DoD is spinning over Trump right now
Planning - you need some planners to guide where development goes.
DPW - Roads need work and water.
You can learn things along the way. Let's say you get a job at a DPW department for finance. Do you know the commodity costs of liquid asphalt? Probably not but that job you most likely will pick it up.
I'd also add that there's other organization called quasi that get less applicants. Transit authorities, port authorities, housing authorities, municipal electric organizations, water utilities etc.
certifications and licenses can make up for a difference. It might sound weird to say it but sometimes taking these somewhat cheap and hidden classes.
The thing with Paralegal, consulting, banking, those all require their respective degrees: Paralegal certificate, Accounting/MBA (along with consulting). Had I known that Poli Sci at the time was merely a "stepping stone" to a grad program or law school I wouldn't have done it. Yes the introspection and critical thinking I got from my major, and writing essays, but that doesnt translate to anything in the market. The other guy earlier said a degree doesn't "offer" you anything, (MLS), and that's largely untrue: engineering, science majors have a very high chance of an "offer" upon graduation. Engineering/stem fields are not stepping stones; they are solid offers in the market. Liberal arts and even biology offer nothing market wise and if so, it is few and far between
What specific titles/roles (not just industry) can you get with a BA in Poli sci?
College grads with non-specialized degrees are capable of working in a variety of fields. I was a paralegal for a very good law firm after undergrad, and all of my co-workers were college grads (plus the lawyers). There were definitely menial tasks. But there was also some interesting work and the pay was solid.
Your job, which you describe as menial and dead-end, is not going to just get better. There are better ways to explore opportunities than posting on this forum. You might start with LinkedIn, friends you graduated with, contacts, etc.
Did you get a Paralegal certificate? All firms here only want certification for that kind of work, instead of a "bachelors in poli sci" because as you accurately said it's non-specialized.
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sportfan1
The thing with Paralegal, consulting, banking, those all require their respective degrees: Paralegal certificate, Accounting/MBA (along with consulting). Had I known that Poli Sci at the time was merely a "stepping stone" to a grad program or law school I wouldn't have done it. Yes the introspection and critical thinking I got from my major, and writing essays, but that doesnt translate to anything in the market. The other guy earlier said a degree doesn't "offer" you anything, (MLS), and that's largely untrue: engineering, science majors have a very high chance of an "offer" upon graduation. Engineering/stem fields are not stepping stones; they are solid offers in the market. Liberal arts and even biology offer nothing market wise and if so, it is few and far between
What specific titles/roles (not just industry) can you get with a BA in Poli sci?
This is not true. I know consultants with many many different types of degrees, including poli sci. Same with programming, organizational development, finance, etc etc. People from a wide variety of degrees work and thrive in those fields. One of the more successful VC guys I met while doing fundraising was a history of science major, I didn't even know that was an undergrad major.
For poli sci majors? I know/known:
Research Associates
Consultants
Project Developer
Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist
Campaign Manager
And I'm sure if I wanted to give it some thought, I'm sure I could come up with more.
And critical thinking and good writing are grade A prime skills sets. Easily transferable into development and marketing.
Oh, and I was a biology undergrad and found a job as well. I started as a mapping specialist.
^For sure, good points and I applied to Research Associate roles but they always hired those with more experience. Consultants, project developer, monitoring specialist and campaign manager what companies offer these or would you know? Industries? I can go on Indeed.com and type in those titles. Any other insight?
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