Achievement Unlocked: Would You Like Fries With That?Follow

I graduated from college today. With a BA in History and Philosophy. I'm trained for nothing and have now entered a job market with four years worth of similar graduates.

More than a little bit stressed about that. At least now I get to wonder WTF I want to do with my life.

You can...

Teach History and Philosophy?

You could always get sick and die of dysentery.

Congratulations. I hope you are not saddled with debt.

Actually, from what I've read/heard, employers DO value those degrees. The problem is, our economy in the states is still pretty bad and there's lots of college grads out there with humanities degrees who are competing for entry level positions that actually require a degree. So a lot of recent college grads are stuck with minimum wage, part times jobs that don't even require a degree, because there aren't enough "good" jobs out there right now.

Grats on the degree Digg! I would suggest either joining the peace corp, or looking into teaching English abroad. There is always a demand for both of those, it's a good way to travel, plus it's a good opportunity to pay down some of that loan debt. From the research I've done, if you're interested in teaching English abroad, your best bet is to go to one of the Asian countries. They have the highest demand vs. supply, so they pay you a living wage, plus you have extra to either save or pay off bills. Supposedly in South Korea you can have anywhere from 500-1000 left over every month. If you want some info, I suggest reading this blog. This guy has been teaching English abroad for about 20 years, and I've found him to be very knowledgeable about how things work.

Grats!
Don't be so mean.

With his degree, he could probably make manager.

I figure I have three options.

Work a menial job and try to save money, at least for the next 6 months until I have to start repaying my government loans (though I have to start paying back NJ right away).
Work a menial job to pay for the costs of living and transport while working an internship.
Try and get a job in NYC and spend 4 hours a day on public transportation for $500 a month.

The BA isn't worthless, but the bigger issue is that the market is swamped with applicants. It did teach valuable skills that are practical for any industry, which is nice. I actually haven't seen that many job listings that specify degrees, unless they are looking for programmers or IT. Everything else is really interchangeable. If I can get an interview, there's a good chance I can earn the job through it. The bigger worry is that my application will be given a lower priority because of it.

The other issue is that I have no f*cking clue what I want to do with my life.

Something tells me I'd be a terrible soldier.

Yay Diglett!



You should spend a couple of years wandering the country as a hobo; then make a youtube video about it.

A long time ago when the earth was green, I left school with a BA in History. I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do, I just knew that history was my 2nd favorite subject and they didn't offer a philosophy focus on logic at my school. I had (and still have) no idea what I want to do. I always say I want to write a novel, but the type novel always changes. I've gone through crime, historical fiction, Arthurian legend, to something Jordan/Martin fantasy-esque.

In the meantime, I spent a couple years slinging cell phones. It was pretty good money and you get to meet a lot of "interesting" people. One of the first things you learn is when somebody holds their phone out to you and says it doesn't work, you ask why. If the answer is "it fell in the toilet", you probably don't want to touch it.

After that I got on as a claims adjuster for one of the big 4 auto insurance companies. This work is very interesting and there is literally never a dull day. I'm not sure what part of the country you're in, but we are expanding in a lot of places. Let me know where you are and I can see if we have any open reqs.

I was always extra leary when the customer brought it in in a plastic bag. It must have been really bad if they didn't want to touch it.

Middle of the swamp, lol. Well, Eastern edge of it--I'm on the coast, forty-five minutes north of AC.

I found a few openings for companies/charities/organizations in NYC. Jobs don't sound great, but they might have either potential to teach skills or provide connections. Figure I'll apply as soon as I have my final transcript so I can update my resume.