What would YOU do with a BA in History and a BA in

[Deleted]

Isn't law school a poor choice considering the job market for lawyers?

[Doc_Lobster]

Jan 1, 2013 21:43:12 GMT -5 -Moe- said:

I will mention that many of my most interesting friends have had the most unorthodox academic careers, and this was unarguably what aided in their success. Keep at it.

I'm going to go ahead and assume that I am included in this group.

My answer:
1) teach some kind of fitness classes, maybe spin
2) I assume with a sociology degree you have some kind of decent stats background (although I could be wrong), so I would try to find something doing data analysis.

[thedutchgirl]

If some of the government jobs for which you are applying are federal, do you have a properly set up federal résumé? It is a different animal than a regular non-fed résumé.

[moreace01]

FWIW - I have a BA in Art History and a BA in Sociology. I got hired out of school as a Business Analyst with an IT company - basically a liaison between business stakeholders and Developers (they work to define and implement changes). Can also sometimes be called Product Manager. Anyway - its a way for liberal arts majors to get into the IT field without being a Developer. Pay is good and there are usually a lot of jobs out there. I no longer work as a Business Analyst - I'm a User Experience Architect now - but have had steady work for many years. It probably took me 4-5 months to find a job right out of school - and that was in a good market. It will come. It just takes awhile sometimes.

[DaisyCakes]

I'm going to agree with LHC here. I got a BA in music. I worked retail until something better came along...it eventually did.
I now actually have a job I love in my field, but before I got here I did a stint in retail and even worked in corporate HR for a Fortune 500 company.
My dad always told me that having a 4 year degree told a potential employer that you are able to learn new things and apply them, which is the most valuable part of the degree. You ultimately have a degree in how to learn things...go out and soak something new up!
Good luck.

[montereybride]

Jan 1, 2013 21:08:31 GMT -5 smock said:

Jan 1, 2013 21:05:52 GMT -5 @drrn04 said:

Teach at a community college? But that might need a master's degree, I don't know.

Yeah, no. You can't do that with a B.A.

You can with an emergency equivalency. At least at California community colleges.

[smock]

Jan 2, 2013 1:35:38 GMT -5 montereybride said:

Jan 1, 2013 21:08:31 GMT -5 smock said:

Yeah, no. You can't do that with a B.A.

You can with an emergency equivalency. At least at California community colleges.

With the academic job market like it is, people with M.A.s in history are struggling to get cc jobs. It is not a viable career path for someone with a B.A. and average/poor grades.

[luckyval]

Museum seems logical. Or maybe try your state's department of historical records/cultural resources - that's become one of my new dream jobs

[Deleted]

I majored in history. I worked in HR, then went to law school and came back to recruiting.

You can do almost anything with a history degree (except accounting)... heck if you know how to code you can work in IT.

[Jalapeñomel]

Jan 2, 2013 1:35:38 GMT -5 montereybride said:

Jan 1, 2013 21:08:31 GMT -5 smock said:

Yeah, no. You can't do that with a B.A.

You can with an emergency equivalency. At least at California community colleges.

A friend of mine with a Ph.D landed a community college job in California where there were over 150 applicants, almost all with Ph.Ds. There is no way she is qualified to teach in a cc in this job market.

[Deleted]

Well, you got two degrees in two fields that are traditionally academic.

Back to grad school you go!

[Deleted]

Museum jobs are INSANELY competitive, and unless you're working in a gift shop you need an advanced degree, probably a PhD.

Signed, the person with a Masters in Paleontology that has no chance at scoring a job with a natural history museum.

[flamingeaux]

become a cake decorator. That's what I use my associate of arts and bachelor of liberal studies, in theater, for.

[iheartvino]

There are plenty of things that you can do. I don't know where you live in S Texas, but my bff lives down there. She has worked 5 years as a social worker, and is just now getting her masters. She works with youth who have been trafficked into the country, so it is very difficult work, but she loves it. You just can't be on your own without your masters/license and some jobs won't hire you without one, but there are plenty that will.

With a sociology degree, you can work in HR. Just format your resume to show that you know and understand human interaction.

Or work as a temp. Temp jobs usually have decent pay, and it allows you to work a variety of positions to see what you might like the most.

The notion that you have to go back to grad school is crap. You just have to get creative. And want to work. And maybe work retail until you can figure more things out. Or you may decide that you love retail. I had the opportunity to go back to grad school twice on full scholarships or a management degree. For the current job market where I live, it really didn't make sense to leave my job to go to school.

[Deleted]

Jan 1, 2013 23:01:46 GMT -5 gozf said:

Jan 1, 2013 21:48:30 GMT -5 @drrn04 said:

lol, no. I don't care what people study. Study basket weaving with a concentration in 3rd century Egyptian technique. Hell, I'm not using either one of the degrees I earned, as I'm a SAHM. But it does bother me that schools don't help students figure out what to do with their degrees. That's a lot of money to spend to not be able to immediately use what you've "purchased". My side-eye post put blame on the OP, and that was not my intent. For that I apologize. The school should offer more career planning services. Presumably, they're preparing students for a career, and they should assist them in finding that path with their studies.

Omg. It's not the college's fault either. College is not vocational school. Unless you have a degree like accounting, you're not necessarily learning a trade.

And most colleges and universities have career centers and offer services like the ones you suggest. It's up to students to actually go and utilize them.

tell me about it. my god, little did i know that your average 4 year institution was supposed to be akin to an apprenticeship at a cobbler.

[mollz007]

I forgot t mention that my dad has a BA in history. He worked in insurance for a few years before becoming a history teacher at a private school. I believe that most private schools dont require you to have a teaching license, at least his didnt and I know that most here dont. However, in MO there is a program for people that have a BA degree that just want to get licensed to teach, so he did that. That was for secondary education. Elementary is a different story.

[iheartvino]

And for the love of God, don't go back and get your teaching certificate, unless you know there are a lot of teaching positions available in your area, and it is your dream to become a teacher. There are no jobs available here, so you'd be right back in the same boat, with more money lost.

[acr]

Look into management programs at places like Target, Enterprise Rent A car, the Buckle, etc. they are heavy recruiters of recent grads and like liberal arts majors

[lilafowler]

I have a BA in History and a BA in Anthropology. I work for a financial retirement service provider. LOL.

If you want to actually do anything with history or sociology you need to get at least a Master's. My H just got his Ph.D in History and only now is he able to apply for a bunch of really good positions.

[catwithspots]

most people I know do not currently work in the field they got their undergrad degree in.

Most PhDs I know didn't get their degree in the same field as their Bachelors degree
[/quote]

LOL!!!! Said the global econ undergrad and PhD student in bilingual ed

[loveday]

I would be an admin at a university and study there for a Masters at the same time. But that is just me. I have no degrees

[catwithspots]

Look at HEB and Central Market. They have a very strong managment training program with starting salaries for managers-in-training around 45K-50K. Their GMs were 110K plus bonus. I had several co-workers leave to join Central Market when they building multiple locations around TX. FWIW, this was 8 years ago....

[Deleted]

I've been looking a lot and have had three people contact me today alone. I'm waiting for one of them to call back so we can do a phone interview.

I've worked for the DoD before, I have about 5 resumes that go for a different sector of the employment world.

I do cover letters once I see the qualifications, expectations of the job and apply my education and experience in those areas.

I've been using my college's career site for jobs. a LOT of them have "5 years+ experience" for entry level and I still apply. I just tweak my resume to meld with the requirements and show that while I may be lacking in X, I am good in A,B,C, and D, etc.

It is tough and I'm trying to keep a positive outlook on it.

LHC and other who said retail -- I have about 20 applications with various retail positions out there. A lot aren't hiring now since its no longer holiday seasons.

The job I'm waiting to hear back from would help me get my foot in. Its 35k a year, a full plate of benefits, and ability to grow. Its in the private financial sector. I worked in Foreign Finance when I worked at the local AFB so I have SOME experience in finance. And I have personal experience, etc. It would be a great job to get me started.

Thanks for letting me bitch and really helping me open my eyes and calm down about this.