Job

Why is it so hard to find a job straight out of college? I'm smart, I know what I'm talking about, and I can damn well manage anything you give me. I just need more career-related experience for payed jobs, which I can't get because I have a freaking BA in development studies. Ugh.

11 Comments

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Spoiler

Feb 4, 2013 at 2:41pm

You've already identified why: you have a BA.

Next topic.

employer

Feb 4, 2013 at 4:23pm

With a BA you should be able to spell "paid"! Don't do that on a resume or a cover letter. And be careful with the cocky stuff - projecting quiet confidence is good, projecting arrogance is not and the difference is a fine line. Good luck.

John White

Feb 4, 2013 at 6:24pm

Degree inflation is a factor. Today's bachelor's degree is the 20th century's high school diploma. Too many degrees chasing too few jobs.

Jeff R

Feb 4, 2013 at 6:29pm

Many people are not willing to move for work, even short term. It has been detrimental to several of my peers' careers.

A

Feb 4, 2013 at 6:30pm

Be willing to take something in entry level - you may have the degree but you have to put your time in - pay your dues as it were - first
and yes - check your spelling - nothing worse than a spelling mistake on a resume

Pender Guy

Feb 4, 2013 at 8:30pm

Pick a profession that not a million other people are chasing.. the more strange, boring, normal etc the industry is the more chances you will find something.. stay away from teh sexy jobs if you wanna gain skill quickly... its tough because you might not "see" yourself in doing it for the rest of your life, but before you know it you have 3-5 years under your belt and you can start calling shots..

Alumnus

Feb 4, 2013 at 8:48pm

A non-profit organization called Vancouver Community Network gave me my first job out of school. They place students and recent graduates at other non-profits around the Lower Mainland in positions where they can do career-related work. I'm working on their online magazine now (http://internships.vcn.bc.ca/). You should check them out!

Binder Dundat

Feb 5, 2013 at 10:10am

I remember when I graduated with my B.A. (in Economics, mind you, so much harder than the rest of the sloughs who took Philosophy). I was being interviewed by the V.P. of Human Resources - we happened to both be wearing the same expensive tie - that was a good thing.

He looked at my impressive resume with my glowing degree on it and says, "so, you have a B.A. from UBC. Great. So, tell me about yourself".

I thought - really? 4 years of hard work and it all boiled down to one word, "Great". The point is, the B.A. was just an exercise in discipline that might get you through an initial door. Once you walk in, it is all about you and what you can do for the company in question. Read books on how to interview well. Practice interviewing with your peers or friend's parents who are senior executives. Leverage relationships of elders who are willing to coach you. Through these types of things, opportunities will appear.

If you haven't read it, try reading, How to Win Friends and Influence People. I read this book right before that interview and it definitely got my brain into the right place for interviewing. the book transcends time.

Good luck

Work experience

Feb 5, 2013 at 5:03pm

I don't have a BA or even a degree but I have a lot of work experience. I am in my early 30s with a job that I've been at for 5 years therefore I'm loyal, reliable and know what it means to work 40hrs a week. You have to start at the beginning in the working world to go up and to prove yourself.

I also have a small business on the side and I won't hire certain people who are in their early 30s with 3 degrees because they have only a few small jobs on their resume. They don't know how to sell or work in the real world. It doesn't matter how many A's you got on your school project.

You'll get there, our parents got there. It's a part of life, you have to start at the bottom of the ladder - and seriously, you end up learning so much more about life AND yourself by having to put the work in.

RUK

Feb 6, 2013 at 3:12pm

This feedback was great. The GS has good readers, eh.

I've done ok with a BA. But there was quite a bit on my resume aside from the BA. I had gotten some freelance work published, volunteered at some interesting places, reached out to relatives to see if I could get summer jobs, and whatnot.

In other words, it would not hurt create some of your own employment out of freelancing and connections.

It's a process, and it sucks, but it is what it is, so good luck.

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