Job Hunt 102: Why Your Degree Won’t Get You Hired
It’s been our understanding these days, that in order to
get a good job and be successful in life we need to go to college. So we go to
college, study (and party) for four (or five) years, and finally, after
countless sleepless nights of cramming, a handful of BS’d essays and, ungodly
stress levels we graduate. We then wait with baited breath to receive the most
expensive piece of paper we will ever own; and that piece of paper tells us
that we know enough to secure a future doing whatever it was we studied.
Or so we think.
Three months later, you still have not secured a career
type job, though you’ve applied for more than you’d care to admit. You’ve maybe
had a handful of interviews, but the rejection emails have become commonplace.
You almost expect them at this point, and if you’re anything like me you’ve
even got the rejection template memorized.
“Thank you for your
interest in employment with (insert company here). At this time we have decided
to move forward with a candidate whose experience best fits our needs at this
time. We will keep your resume on file…blah blah blah…”
At this juncture you are feeling nothing but frustration,
disappointment and most of all, confusion.
“I thought this fancy
piece of paper meant I was going to get a job.”
Well friends, I’m here to tell you, we’ve been duped.
Make no mistake, I am not here to detract from getting an education. College
provides us with invaluable life lessons and boundless opportunity, but don’t
be fooled into thinking your degree is going to secure your future. Education
without experience is virtually useless in today’s job market.
Think
about it just for a second. We are trying to get jobs in the worst economy this
country has seen since the Great Depression. While unemployment rates are looking better than they have the past few
years, everyone and their mom is applying for the same job you are, and guess
what else? Everyone and their mom also has a college degree. Back when our
parents were looking for jobs in the 70’s-80’s one fifth of young adults ages
25-29 had attainted a bachelor’s degree. As of 2012 ONE THIRD of young adults has
achieved that feat. At one point in time a having a degree set you apart from
the crowd. Now, it makes you look like everyone else. The people getting the
jobs are people with relevant work experience, whether they’ve got a degree or
not.
Doesn’t
seem to make sense right? Well let me paint a little picture for you. Your car
breaks down. You’ve got a friend who just graduated with a degree in mechanical
engineering that offers to fix your car. He can tell you everything about how
that car works, but he’s never worked on a car before. Or you can take your car
down to Joe’s Auto Repair. Joe barely graduated high school, but he’s been
working on cars for so long he’s basically got permanent motor oil stains on
his hands. I don’t know about you but I’m taking my car to Joe. Now, apply that
same scenario to the hiring managers at whatever job you’re applying for. Your
knowledge is useless to them unless you can prove that you’ve used it in a
real-life setting.
I can already hear the
complaints.
“But how do I get
experience if no one will hire me. Why did I even go to school then?”
Yah it’s definitely a catch 22, and no, it’s not really
fair; but it’s the world we live in god help us all, and if you are anything
like me post-grad you need all the help you can get. Here’s a few things to
keep in mind and/or do if you find yourself at this juncture.
Now
that you know your degree doesn’t make you special, it’s time to change your
mindset, and there’s one point I really want to drive home here. NOTHING
(almost) IS BELOW YOU (at this point). Cut yourself a large piece of humble pie
and savor the shit out of it, because you’ll be dining on it for a while. If
you need experience then you need to take whatever you can get. If that means
taking an unpaid internship as a college grad, do it. If that means working as
a secretary, do it. If that means working two jobs for a bit to supplement your
income, do it. It may also behoove you to try to use the network you have
available to you. You know the old adage “it’s not what you know, it’s who you
know” well, it’s cliché but it’s damn true. Talk to your parents friends, your
old teachers, old bosses, friends’ friends, whoever you can. More often than
not they’d be willing to give you some sort of opportunity.
Now,
are any of these tips glamorous? Hell to the no. Are some of them sort of
embarrassing? Hell, yes. Should most of this stuff have been done while you
were in college? Absolutely. But the fact of the matter is you didn’t, so
you’re a little behind, but you’re not hopeless. So, take that internship and
bust your ass at it. Be the best secretary the company has ever seen! No it’s
not your dream job, and yes it might suck, but it’s getting your foot in the
door and building your resume. And guess what happens when you put your foot in
the door? It won’t slam in your face.
