Your job?

[Guffers]

Re: Your job?

I have a classical guitar degree and spend my time teaching kids at 3 different high schools as well as privately. I would love to perform and record full time but I need to pay the bills, so teaching it is.

The pay is quite good but its sessional work so I don't get paid on holidays or off days. I'm currently trying to find more work at different schools and am running into issues with schools wanting to employ me but they already have a full staff. One guy told me that I was far more qualified than any teacher at his school but he couldn't fit me in. I guess I have to wait for somebody to retire.

I wouldn't worry too much if you have no idea what you want to do. I did 3 semesters of an arts degree before dropping out and pursuing music seriously. Even now I'm not totally sure that I want to do this for the rest of my life.

[phillyfan23]

Re: Your job?

to the OP:

don't sweat it too much. I understand your concern and I was once there but probably in an even harder spot.

I graduated with my Industrial Engineering degree....sounds good right? Well I hated the material, I slacked off, I learned very little. Had no Idea what I was going to do. Worked in shipping company for a year and it paid mehh and I hated the job. I had no idea what I wanted to do even having a degree considered sellable. To be honest, I applied maybe 3-5 percent of the little knowledge I gained from my engineering studies. The rest I used training on the job and common sense. But that wsan't enough. I felt like I was just doing a job and not fulfilling a career. I just knew I will never apply the core things that I tried to study in university. It was pretty scary, because technical knowledgewise, I was basically a highschool student with 3 months internship. NO JOKE...The degree got me interviews basically. I was pretty lost and I said screw this, I hated school, but let's try to fight it. I scored well in my GREs, and went back to school, a place that I LOATHE.

So I went back to school got my masters petroleum engineering degree.....much more interesting subject for me personally and I kind of applied myself. But even after landing a job in the energy field that I liked....my career took another sidetrack to becoming an energy broker. VERY VERY exciting and adrenaline inducing, and one nice signed deal can mean one year's salary. I still work and enjoy being a petroleum engineer, but I enjoy the business side of it quite a bit more. You get to talk to some important top dogs and politicians sometimes. NEVER thought I'd be doing this kind of work......

Don't sweat it man....you are still young and you are confused because you don't really know what is out there and what kind of things you are capable of doing. I'm pretty good as an engineer, but my true skill is straight up talking to people and persuasion.I never learned that in college textbooks, but relationships in college did teach me how to convey my ideas/concepts/visions to reach a target.

Just work hard, don't despair and open all kinds of doors. you WILL find your calling because I believe each person has at least that one true skill that can carry them. It's just up to each one to discover that.

[bgeno]

Re: Your job?

Ah, the joys of a Liberal Arts degree!

Don't worry, I have had one for almost a year (I got my B.A. in Journalism from Penn State last May), and I'm working at a convenience store making slightly above minimum wage.

It seems like the market is over-saturated with Liberal Arts degrees. The jobs are hard to come by and the pay typically isn't great either. It kind of makes me wonder why I went for one instead of getting a more useful (but more boring) business degree or pushing through something in health (even though I'm terrible at science-related subjects).

In the end, though, it's what I wanted to do. I had a blast in college and had a few sweet (unpaid) internships along the way that I never would have gotten the chance to do otherwise.

It is frustrating now though--almost a year since my diploma was handed to me--that I haven't been able to make a career of it. The only jobs that seem to be available in TV or Radio are sales positions, and I'm really not interested in that.

Instead, I'm thinking of latching on with the company I work for now. It's a growing company that I truly believe in, and I feel like I can start a career in management. They pay well. I can promote to assistant manager and make as much (if not more) than I'd make in an entry-level position in broadcasting.



What I'm trying to say is that you shouldn't feel bad about not knowing what you want to do or not being able to find a job with your L.A. degree. It's a tough world for us out there. People in computers and science and engineering and such were essentially trained for positions that exist and are readily available. We don't necessarily have that luxury. It takes a tremendous opportunity and a lot of preparation to start a career with the exact Liberal Arts degree that you have. Sometimes you just have to find a way to live and be happy, it seems. I'm not saying it can't happen. I'm just saying that you should be open to other opportunities and trying anything that comes along.


BEST OF LUCK!

[slickdtc]

Re: Your job?

Seems to me that it's all about the people you know. Heck, I'm just in the market trying to find a part-time job while I go through school (and I don't even know what I want to study, either) and in this economy, you've got to know someone to get a job it seems. I've had 4 jobs in the past 4 years and 3 of them were because I had an in through someone I knew.

Gotta jump on the opportunities. Good luck to you, my friend.