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$15/hr. makes sense. To really start making some money, he would either get some additional certifications or pursue a Masters degree to increase a salary without many years of experience.
My brother is faced with a dilemma. He is getting a social sciences degree but is a very bright kid. He doesn't want to be a teacher and there are no desirable teaching positions for high school sociology teachers anyway.
What are some jobs the average B.A. or B.S. holder can apply for that are not specialized, but pay well and can be found in many places? (He wants to live in a specific area)
Lib Arts majors often times get a bad rap, and sometimes one that is well deserved. I think a lot of people on these boards assume that these types of people are technologically inept, and in some cases, they are. Tell him not to fall into this stereotype. He should obtain a few technical certs in whichever field he ultimately lands in. He should also make sure he knows how to navigate a computer and the Internet fairly well. Can he use a database and a spreadsheet? That may also be important to broaden his job prospects.
A lot of people don't realize that people who are drawn to the Lib Arts field are typically very intellectually astute. They are keen observers, analytical and can usually learn new things fairly quickly. Just tell him to learn some tech skills in whatever spare time he has available. That way, when he gets out of school, he'll have an easier time dealing with these ignoramuses who'll inevitably tell him that his education is worthless.
As far as fields to look into, there are plenty. Believe it or not, there are a lot of in-between fields that are not your more obvious accounting, law, engineering, nursing, and doctor career fields. I, for one, managed to land a job in supply chain management. A lot of people I work with worked their way up from the warehouse to the procurement side of operations. Several of the older gens never went to college originally, but may have gone back later for certifications, training, etc. Tell him to look into logistics and/or supply chain management. How are you going to offshore domestic delivery/storage services? I still haven't come up with an answer to that, so I'm feeling fairly secure in this field.
Anyways, that's all I have for now. If I think of anything else, I'll post it later.
I would start encouraging him to expand his horizons as far as places to live- small city/rural environments are not going to have many social work related positions available. Larger metropolitan areas, on the other hand, can be great place for someone that's studied social sciences. I did see one job about 18 miles away from Huntington that he looks qualified for: Find Jobs - Contract -Health Care Representative/Patient Advocate Jobs in Ashland, Kentucky - Chamberlin Edmonds.
The important thing for him will be to keep his options open, and know that he's going to have to start somewhere and work his way up most likely. This might mean taking a job that pays a lot less and putting his student loans into deferment for a year or two while he works a very entry level position and/or performs a volunteer internship for a while.
I myself studied Sociology- after college I had several jobs not related at all, and then landed in a direct care position with youth/adults with disabilities in a job that paid around $8.00/hour (it was a rural area). While working in this job, I simultaneously worked in a professional internship with a local nonprofit in the closest metropolitan area, which led me into my current career (employment services/job training). I got my first FT (paid) professional position (job counselor) almost 1 1/2 years after graduating starting at $29K. However, since starting this position I've had a series of promotions and am now working in a senior leadership role so my income has rapidly increased over a relatively short period of time. On the plus side for your brother if he's going into nonprofit/govt/social services- if you're smart and ambitious, nonprofit organizations like to promote from within (or at least hire management personnel that have direct experience working in the field), and the nonprofit sector is projected to have very high turnover at all levels due to baby boomer retirement over the next 10 years or so. So, there are opportunities for advancement out there. Tell him to go to indeed.com and under "what" type in "soc*", "direct", "group", "youth", "human", "case", etc. to find related job openings. If there are no job openings, tell him to study up on all of the local nonprofit and govt orgs with the potential for position openings in his area and volunteer there (not volunteer like handing out food for a soup kitchen, it should be a real office or direct service position in which he would work a certain amt of horus each week), or look into local AmeriCorps programs (www.americorps.gov). Also let him know that if he's going to be really picky about living in semi-rural areas, then he should plan to really keep his job prospects open and/or go back to school for nursing.
Last edited by Camden Northsider; 06-01-2010 at 08:09 PM..
My brother is faced with a dilemma. He is getting a social sciences degree but is a very bright kid. He doesn't want to be a teacher and there are no desirable teaching positions for high school sociology teachers anyway.
What are some jobs the average B.A. or B.S. holder can apply for that are not specialized, but pay well and can be found in many places? (He wants to live in a specific area)
I hope he's not seriously in debt for his degree.
College is great - but you really have to accept that college has become a glorified trade school and that's all -- unless you're independently wealthy and can sit around for years getting smart.
It's better to have an idea of the job you want before you sign up for college - or have a pretty good general idea. Then you choose the degree plan and classes from there. Having a degree --- when that's what so many people have doesn't help too much.
I'm not a fan of those who bash college degrees. They generally take a very static view. Yes, there are many people who graduated college making $15/hr, but they move up quickly or go into other fields and eventually find their niche. In twenty years, the one with the college degree tends to have the last laugh.
College degree remains the only gateway to professional paths like medicine and law. No college degree? Forget about being a surgeon, even if you have the aptitude.
When you are only 18, why would you want to close so many doors by not going to college?
College is great - but you really have to accept that college has become a glorified trade school and that's all -- unless you're independently wealthy and can sit around for years getting smart.
It's better to have an idea of the job you want before you sign up for college - or have a pretty good general idea. Then you choose the degree plan and classes from there. Having a degree --- when that's what so many people have doesn't help too much.
I'm not a fan of those who bash college degrees. They generally take a very static view. Yes, there are many people who graduated college making $15/hr, but they move up quickly or go into other fields and eventually find their niche. In twenty years, the one with the college degree tends to have the last laugh.
College degree remains the only gateway to professional paths like medicine and law. No college degree? Forget about being a surgeon, even if you have the aptitude.
When you are only 18, why would you want to close so many doors by not going to college?
lolz bcuz u kan break ur bakk insted uv ur bank wurkin in a fakturry an den u kanz go to be manujurr lolzorz don u no kolij kidz r dum harhar
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