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It is obvious that the better the school the more likely you will get a gig, especially in DC. A buddy of mine has been struggling in finding a job and he went to college and has a grad degree, both from places that are relatively unknown and unranked. Now, he has some experience in policy work etc, but not a lot, and whatever he did have was back in the midwest. I ask because everyone always says that DC is not only a place of pedigree but also a networking place. Knowing people generally leads to jobs irrespective of your resume. I have never seen that happen though.
Is that generally true. Does he need to network more, and should I be helping him meet more people?
That may be the perception, but the reality is a bit more murky.
If you say "unknown and unranked" if this means for-profit schools, he is rightfully screwed. If this means smaller non-profits and public schools which are not name brand, it can be overcome. With that being said, there is a loyalty element to DC which runs pretty deep in terms of the nonprofit and political realms. Lobbying firms this is less so though, but they do seek out the brand name schools more.
What is his specialty, this is really the key part.
My advice is for him to try to get into a campaign, it involves moving around a great deal normally, but our next door neighbors are in the midst of a high profile governors race in an otherwise competitive state. If he really wants to know people political campaigns is where people really establish connections. The bar scene is fine, but the campaigns are kind of where people earn their connections.
Also, I really hate to say this, but most people in DC from other places do not even know how to search for jobs. There is an overall lack of understanding of what they would fit in here.
The last question is probably the most important, how are his statistics skills and how good is he at R?
I think like anywhere else it helps but it is not the end all be all. It can help get your foot in the door but performance is what matters once you enter through the door. So yes, there's a lot of ivies running around DC but if you look at top people, there is a good mix of backgrounds in the policy world.
That may be the perception, but the reality is a bit more murky.
If you say "unknown and unranked" if this means for-profit schools, he is rightfully screwed. If this means smaller non-profits and public schools which are not name brand, it can be overcome. With that being said, there is a loyalty element to DC which runs pretty deep in terms of the nonprofit and political realms. Lobbying firms this is less so though, but they do seek out the brand name schools more.
What is his specialty, this is really the key part.
My advice is for him to try to get into a campaign, it involves moving around a great deal normally, but our next door neighbors are in the midst of a high profile governors race in an otherwise competitive state. If he really wants to know people political campaigns is where people really establish connections. The bar scene is fine, but the campaigns are kind of where people earn their connections.
Also, I really hate to say this, but most people in DC from other places do not even know how to search for jobs. There is an overall lack of understanding of what they would fit in here.
The last question is probably the most important, how are his statistics skills and how good is he at R?
By unknown unranked i meant just run of the mill state schools. He has a degree in public administration and an MPP. Bright guy, but just no luck on the job front. DC generally has a huge amount of lawyers, public policy professionals and IR people, so the economy surrounding that is tough.
By unknown unranked i meant just run of the mill state schools. He has a degree in public administration and an MPP. Bright guy, but just no luck on the job front. DC generally has a huge amount of lawyers, public policy professionals and IR people, so the economy surrounding that is tough.
There is also high demand, so I would not read to much into many people with law and MPP degrees. I have never found it that tough. If he is in international relations, I have stated this previously, it is very difficult to crack and not advised to even try. If it is normal run of the mill public admin and MPP it might be harder to get into, but the advice is to look towards dry positions (they turn internesting). Quantitative skills matter a great deal in those positions, and knowing how to approach them is key.
Personally, I never found an issue with getting a job in the area, it was far harder in the midwest. Specialties matter a great deal more than people think, if the specialty is international it is highly competitive, if it is some type of regulatory policy that is especially dry it is fairly easy to find a job. Quantitative and data analysts have the real edge though, I know of several people who said they wanted to do policy, but frankly did not have much in terms of this skill set. Getting into a data, quantitative, or research analyst position seems to be the best way into policy. As I stated though, party affiliation often matters, and putting time into a campaign matters for policy positions for most nonprofits. Because of the importance of strategy, there is a pretty high level of trust which needs to be there. Loyalty is earned on the campaign trail.
Fed positions are different, as getting into those is a bit of luck. I would suggest contracting positions if he wants to go that direction. Also the typical job websites, such as monster are little help out here. Indeed is a better job search tool.
Then again I changed careers to tech, the market is just better for the technologists and data folks in this area.
While there are several Ivy's around I am not, and my background was doing policy research. Who you know matters though, probably more than the school. You get to know people through campaigns.
Again...what is his specialty? It is another key question.
I don't think it matters much at all when it comes to working directly with the Federal Government and Federal contractors. It's mostly about experience. When it comes to private law and lobbying firms I'd imagine it might be more of a factor with many of them. It's a networking game.
I honestly think it has more bearing on someone's social life than their professional life sometimes. People wear college apparel in this town like folks would wear designer brands in other cities.
DC, unlike any other states in the US, they want you to come out from a first tier school. Not only they want someone smart, but they want someone who is social, and know how to carry themselves to get in to a first tier school.
Remember the DC greeting, "Hi. Where do you work at, and where did you go to school?".
DC, unlike any other states in the US, they want you to come out from a first tier school. Not only they want someone smart, but they want someone who is social, and know how to carry themselves to get in to a first tier school.
Remember the DC greeting, "Hi. Where do you work at, and where did you go to school?".
Apparently they don't want you to know how to write in English.
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