Fancy-name degree/institution going to "low-level" job

If a hypothetical person currently living in (and citizen of) the United States, who is twenty-something years old, holds a master's degree from a big-name university (and a bachelor's degree from another big-name university), but is currently unemployed, having graduated several months ago (at the end of the summer), how awkward should this hypothetical person feel about applying to an entry-level sales position at a local cell phone store?

And if said person should want this job, what suggestions would you give this person? And would it be worth mentioning that this person was involved in organizing student groups and worked (albeit as a volunteer) for a political campaign?

edited 2nd Dec '10 10:05:59 PM by GlennMagusHarvey

Paying jobs are paying jobs. Entry-level, career-path jobs are never thick on the ground, and when the economy is slow like it is now, they get even rarer.

One might have sympathy for this person, because they best strategy for getting a job might not include mentioning their education. Some employers refuse to hire over-educated candidates because they feel that such individuals would have an easier time getting a job elsewhere, and if all that is needed for the job at hand is a warm body and the ability to follow simple instructions, well then it's their duty to help he who needs it most.

Compassion's a bitch, eh?

Is that 'person' you, OP?

EDIT:

>>One might have sympathy for this person, because they best strategy for getting a job might not include mentioning their education. Some employers refuse to hire over-educated candidates because they feel that such individuals would have an easier time getting a job elsewhere, and if all that is needed for the job at hand is a warm body and the ability to follow simple instructions, well then it's their duty to help he who needs it most.

I could imagine some sort of snobbery, or a situation where the manager ( a college graduate in accounting or something who ended up the same way) would prefer hiring another college graduate before hiring someone who didnt have college, for that social familiarity feeling.

edited 3rd Dec '10 12:09:18 AM by BalloonFleet

In general try to get some other skills first. Do this by volunteering and THEN looking for low level employment.

It's a paying job. Your degree only opens up other jobs, it doesn't prevent you from getting a low level job.

But if you list it on your resumé, then the employer might say "well there's no way in hell he's staying here for much more than a year, tops."

And that's a problem for most low level jobs?

^^

Then they can leave it off the Resume and just be a regular applicant.

I find this sort of thing hilarious, some of these people never work a damn day in their life until they graduate from school, and then they get to see the disappointment.

This is mostly because of my friends from High School who told me the military was a bad idea and that I should stay in school. BUT HAHA BITCH! YOU'RE UNEMPLOYED, I'M NOT, AND I GOT MY DEGREE WITHOUT ANY LOANS!

edited 3rd Dec '10 3:47:18 AM by Barkey

That was my suggestion. Still, it's a bit of an odd idea to get used to, spending all that time and money on something in order to get a good job, and then having to pretend it didn't happen in order to get a job at all.

Oh I say! You can't just not include a degree or educational history on your application! Thats grounds for an instant dismissal if ever I heard one.

I don't suppose there's some sort of trope for academics are useless?

I think we do, I just don't remember where.

What about this trope?

I don't have a degree

Oh, OP...

I'm in the same situation.

I gradutated from college with a double major in music business and biblical semantics and a minor in literature... I bounced from job to job after I graduated, basically getting shafted every time I landed a decent job — never in my field, though. I did freelance photography by night and sold some pics to help with bills.

I lost jobs working with a DVD shipping warehouse, a healthcare records/billing company and I finally quit my job at a jewelry store and decided to get married. I moved back to the campus that I graduated from and kinda cooled my heels up here. I got a job waiting tables, which, for the area, is great money. I could turn about 120-150 bucks on a busy night night. Bear in mind this is Eastern Kentucky we're talking about.

I finally met a person that I was waiting on who was the vice-president at a local bank, who offered me a position on the teller line. I got that job in April of 2010. I'm still working there, but I got promoted upstairs to the trust department, where I'm an operations clerk.

I say all this to bring up that I actually took a cut in pay going to work for this bank. I worked for minimum wage on the teller line for 6 months and only got a minor pay raise coming up to the trust dept, but I'm gettting my annual raise in a few weeks.

The job isn't glamourous, or even in what I love to do. But, I get to work with my band by night, write, paint and spend time with my daughter.

Don't despair. Take a job that looks stable, do what you love on the side and don't give up your passions. A job isn't going to define who you are.

To quote Jude from "Across the Universe" — "Surely, it's not what you do, but how you do it."

It'll get better, I promise. Even if it never does.

: Your post was helpful and informative. Except:

It'll get better, I promise. Even if it never does.

DOES NOT COMPUTE

Balloon Fleet: Is that 'person' you, OP?

In the wise words of Lt. Eika Ichijo,...

Master Sergeant Sakurano Otoha: Do you have a boyfriend?
Lieutenant Ichijo Eika: Yes.
MSgt Sakurano: What's he like?
Lt. Ichijo: No comment.

Barkey: This is mostly because of my friends from High School who told me the military was a bad idea and that I should stay in school. BUT HAHA BITCH! YOU'RE UNEMPLOYED, I'M NOT, AND I GOT MY DEGREE WITHOUT ANY LOANS!

Do they pay for masters and phd degrees?

edited 3rd Dec '10 1:56:58 PM by GlennMagusHarvey

Yup. Dad's Air Force and finishing a masters at Harvard off his GI Bill right now.

@Eth Zee

It's just something that my old lit. prof used to say. I think he basically meant, you'll feel better about it eventually, even if nothing ever changes.

Do they pay for masters and phd degrees?

Lots of that depends on where you go to school and what you have done for the military. I have a bachelors now and I could probably go to school on my post 9/11 GI bill to get my masters.

Just remember that there is a downside to every degree program and every profession. Barkey may not have to pay for student loans, but remember that he and other service members sign a little piece of paper that basically says they're government property for a number of years. They don't give you that GI bill for looking pretty in a uniform. You serve your time and do your part, and that time away from home affects both you and your entire family. It's not "free money".

I have friends with only high school diplomas who like to remind me that they're making more money than me. But again, there's a catch. HS diploma recipients tend to be more experienced in their field, but their lesser formal education and training means they'll often have a lower cap-off point for their pay grade.

College graduates, on the other hand, must bear the brunt of reduced pay or no pay due to the time they spend in school. A college student - especially an undergraduate - is less valuable during their academic career because their enrollment status is an indication to an employer that they will be of limited availability. The plus side to having a college degree is that you'll statistically make more money over the course of your career than someone without said degree.

Look for paying internships at the state and federal level, particularly in finance or education departments. Those internships will do wonders for both your resume and your overall attitude as a professional. I'm technically unemployed because employers tend to frown upon the fact that I'm a full-time graduate student. I consistently notice that my internship in the Arkansas Department of Education is the one bullet point that raises their eyebrows. It sounds fancy and important. I also have experience as a security/self-defense professional, I've organized literary conferences for my school and I speak three languages, but that tends to not get any attention. Go figure.

The movie "Office Space" comes to mind...

By the way, sometimes just saying you have a degree can be better than stating the degree program itself. As one human resource manager put it, having a degree shows your prospective employer that you had the audacity to spend 4-6 years getting a shiny piece of paper that shows how smart you are, and the fact that many people will not attempt to go to college out of fear or apathy (or making excuses) is a fairly strong sign that you have decent work ethic and discipline.

Don't knock on college education. Looking for a job sucks right now, but remember how hard you worked for that degree of yours. Don't let anyone belittle you for taking the time to get it.

Edit: One other little fact: current statistics show that only 17% of all millionaires in the United States have anything above or equivalent to a Master's Degree. Additional data shows that over 39% (and this is a conservative estimate) of employed middle-management personal in service-based industries are returning to college to get Master's Degrees, often upon the request of their supervisor or due to competition from entry-level graduates with fresh marketing and planning skills. Think about that for a bit.

edited 3rd Dec '10 9:42:58 PM by Aprilla

It's free money if you love the job.

But yeah, I get what you mean. Not everybody feels it's worth it to take all of the commitments involved.

Because the U.S. is fucked up and we let employers do pretty much whatever they want for hiring people including bullshit pseudo science personality survey's and lithography.

Pretty much, yeah.

Or this stupid idea that experience directly indicates skill. Results tend to be a much better thing to do it with.