An article a friend of mine wrote...

[Tawmis]

... and worth reading.

Imagine, all your life you're told go to College, do good, keep your nose in the books, you go to a college, go into Law, and bust your arse off to no end... and when it's all said and done... because of the real world that's out there - you find yourself doing retail store?

Take a look at the Biting The Hand That Fails To Feed You.

[Collector]

One thing that I noticed right at the beginning of her article was her observation about others in her situation.

Angry at the government for not making more progress on job creation

I find this odd as many of the same people have been saying this at the same time that they scream that the government needs to quit spending money or rant about "big gov'ment". It is like the signs at the Tea Party rallies proudly displaying "Keep your government socialist hands off my Medicare." Often these signs are written in "Teabonics".

[DeadPoolX]

... and worth reading.

Imagine, all your life you're told go to College, do good, keep your nose in the books, you go to a college, go into Law, and bust your arse off to no end... and when it's all said and done... because of the real world that's out there - you find yourself doing retail store?

Take a look at the Biting The Hand That Fails To Feed You.

Been there, done that.

Here's a post I made a while back describing similar frustrations.

For your friend, here's a website he/she might like. As for the rest of us, I think this website might be full of some good information.

[Rath Darkblade]

Been there, done that.

Or, for those of us working in a coffee shop... "Bean there, done that"?

Seriously, it really sucks to go through uni and still be unemployed. I did 4 years of uni and 2 years of a diploma (while working contracts here and there in between), and I had to work-or-study for 10 years before finally, finally landing a permanent (albeit part-time) job. It's not exactly what I studied for - I studied business and engineering, and I'm working in accounts receivable - but it's still a good job, and I do it well. I'm aware that not everyone has been as lucky as I, of course.

Tawmis, speaking of helpful websites, this one - while not helpful at all in finding work - will at least help your friend feel that, even when she's dealing with a psychotic or moronic customer, at least she's not alone.

Hope you all find work soon. *sends out hugs and positive vibes to Tawm and Mary and everyone without work*

[BBP]

Thanks Rath!
It becomes very hard to find a job as a woman around here after you've turned 25. Employers, particularly male ones, tend to think women are about to desert them in a year to have babies and then return for a part-time job. And that's frustrating, particularly when you're without boyfriend and absolutely not planning to have wee ones.
So yes, I see a lot of ladies with great qualifications who have a hard time getting a job. Not very uplifting.

[Tawmis]

Thank ye all for the comments and links, I will pass them her way.

[Maiandra]

Honestly, I'm surprised that a retail outlet was willing to hire someone with that much education.

After I finished my MSc, what I encountered the most, when applying for jobs not in my field (since the ones in my field are few and far between), was "why aren't you working in your field?" or the general implication that I was "overqualified" and therefore not suitable for the job. What complete BS.

After growing sick of that attitude, I ended up just taking temporary contracts until I found a permanent job. Alas, still not directly in my field, but at least it lets me use some of the skills I had acquired in school and is for a very flexible employer.

Good luck to your friend, Tawm. It can be very hard to keep a good attitude when being unemployed or underemployed. It sounds like she's trying her best not to fall into the trap of depression that situation can lead to. The article is a good one for that angle and just for the fact that it lets people in the same situation know they're not alone.

[Tawmis]

Honestly, I'm surprised that a retail outlet was willing to hire someone with that much education.

The article is a good one for that angle and just for the fact that it lets people in the same situation know they're not alone.

Well when she applied for the job, it was for seasonal (and then she was brought on). And for the second part, exactly why when we had lunch together, I encouraged her to keep it at that angle.

[QuestCollector]

Sheesh... Reading through this post wasn't very encouraging knowing that I'm very close to getting my degree. It seems like luck plays a major part in finding employment after you graduate.

[DeadPoolX]

Sheesh... Reading through this post wasn't very encouraging knowing that I'm very close to getting my degree. It seems like luck plays a major part in finding employment after you graduate.

Unfortunately, luck does a play a part. That doesn't mean you sit at home rubbing a magic rabbit's foot to get a job, but being at the right place at the right time can have a huge effect.

This is actually discussed on #6 of this Cracked article. The rest of the article is really good as well. I wish I'd had a course like that in school.

[Maiandra]

Sheesh... Reading through this post wasn't very encouraging knowing that I'm very close to getting my degree. It seems like luck plays a major part in finding employment after you graduate.

Luck to some extent, since it depends on the job market for your chosen field. Although careful planning can help to some degree.

Not sure what field you're in, but if you can find out from people actually working in that field now what is the best way to go about getting work, instead of taking your school's word for it, that may help. There may be additional activities you can get involved in that would make you look better to a potential employer.

[DeadPoolX]

Never trust any university program. That sounds paranoid, but they'll lie or at least mislead students in order to get the money they want. Education is a business and like a lot of businesses today, they follow the "quantity over quality" theme.

[Rath Darkblade]

After I finished my MSc, what I encountered the most, when applying for jobs not in my field (since the ones in my field are few and far between), was "why aren't you working in your field?" or the general implication that I was "overqualified" and therefore not suitable for the job. What complete BS.

Sigh. The period before I found permanent employment was between January 1998 (when I got my bachelor's degree) and December 2008 (when I FINALLY got a permanent position), and in that time I spent 5 years doing contracts (on-and-off), doing a diploma for 2 years, and then another 5 years doing more contracts (on-and-off). I can't remember how many times I was told that I was "overqualified". What a bullshit excuse! I was trained as a tech support engineer and I went for positions in helpdesk, tech support, etc. only to be told that I knew too much. What they mean is that they don't know enough. HA!

[QuestCollector]

Computer Technology w/ emphasis in programming is my major. I know at least locally jobs are going to be difficult to find. We have an IBM building, but to tell you the truth I'm not sure what exactly they do there.

The school "guaranteed" a job after graduate but didn't explain if it was permanent or not. My guess would be some short term contract work. The most probable computer job I can probably find around here would be a database job (SQL or Oracle)

Just as long as I'm not stuck doing woodworking/cabinet work forever I'll be happy.

[DeadPoolX]

The school "guaranteed" a job after graduate but didn't explain if it was permanent or not.

The real question is: is that a job in your field or simply doing the same work high schoolers do during summer vacation.