So a serious question...

I'm not sure of the age of most of you here on the forums, some older some younger...

But of those of you who have gone to college or who will go to college what do you think about people who have gone to college and now that they are out they can't get jobs? We live in an economy where most companies want education (a college degree) and experience (3 to 5 years of experience from what I keep seeing) but the question is how do you get experience if everyone wants experience?

Anyway was just curious of what people thought. I know there are people who are in high school who are on the forums and maybe there thinking of going to college? Would you still go to college if when you got out of college there was a chance of not being able to find a job?

*curious* http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...5roy1DHwN3OMhJ

its the same thing in England with people getting university degrees. hard to find work.

but in my opinion most of the people these days go to college or university to have an extra few years on easy street, parties, missing lectures because "it bores them" (did you not pick your subject?) spend 3-4 years at university generally having a good time getting drunk all the while and then expect to get a good job right away when they leave.

all this while the person that decided against going to university has now been working for some years, maybe put himself though a few courses that help his carrier or even started his own business and is earning 50-100k a year while the person with the useless piece of paper to show for the last four years is earning nothing. yes people go on from university to do great things, but its the average person struggles.

a solution to your problem would be after you get your degree, go to work in another country to get your experience for a few years, then you can go back home and hopefully get a job in your field of choice.

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Originally Posted by Gamble

its the same thing in England with people getting university degrees. hard to find work.

but in my opinion most of the people these days go to college or university to have an extra few years on easy street, parties, missing lectures because "it bores them" (did you not pick your subject?) spend 3-4 years at university generally having a good time getting drunk all the while and then expect to get a good job right away when they leave.

all this while the person that decided against going to university has now been working for some years, maybe put himself though a few courses that help his carrier or even started his own business and is earning 50-100k a year while the person with the useless piece of paper to show for the last four years is earning nothing. yes people go on from university to do great things, but its the average person struggles.

a solution to your problem would be after you get your degree, go to work in another country to get your experience for a few years, then you can go back home and hopefully get a job in your field of choice.

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Okay granted maybe some people are like that. But I graduated in 3 years instead of four with a bachelors degree and I got an associates degree with it as well in the same time period. For the first two of those years I was also working 38 hours a week (not in the field of my choice but still working in order to make money) and it was only the last year that scheduling conflicts and difficulty in a few classes forced me to quit said job. I was in the honor society, had gone to two national conferences with said honor society and graduated with a fairly good gpa, however it was not 4.0.

For the record I don't drink at all because family history and issues within said family have shown me that drinking alcohol is not all it's cracked up to be when people get addicted and mean because of it.

Never really partied much either. I admit to being a bit too serious and that's probably one of my down falls in social situations but job wise it should be a major advantage... Yet here I am working for 8.75 when i would much rather be working at something in my field and getting experience. Granted a jobs a job and in this economy I am grateful for having one, but high school shouldn't shove down your throat how important college is if after you get out of college you can't get a job within your field of choice... Just my honest opinion...

i agree with you, its very hard for people like you to get what you want these days. i personally dont think university/college is as important as most people make out.

just out of curiosity.....what kind of work are you looking for?

I went to school for Criminal Justice with a dual concentration of Forensic Investigation and Human Services.

I also got an associates in Business.

I wouldn't have as much trouble finding a job as I'm having if I were able to move but at the moment funds make that impossible. I wouldn't mind looking throughout the US for a job in my field, right now though I'm stuck in Sioux Falls, SD... which has like 2 murders a year... So once I have the funds to move a bigger city it shouldn't be an issue to find something I like. Getting the funds to move is the problem though, such is life.

For the record I am working 40 hours a week now, so I am trying to get those funds, it just doesn't come easily as most people probably know. :)

Your question is quite specific to the field and university that you attended. Though before attending college, you may not know what type of career path you'd like to pursue, By about the junior year in a 4-year program, you may want to re-evaluate the school that you're attending. A degree simply isn't enough in these times for most fields. Instead, it is important to shop around for the school that is able to provide the networking necessary to carry you to meet your professional goals.

I guess my point here is that attending college can be a great professional choice, but it is most advantageous when used for more than walking away with a slip of paper and an additional line on your resume.

Now that you're out of school, though, it is your prerogative to make that networking happen for yourself. A suggestion that I like to offer students that need guidance in their education choices is to get in contact with the hiring supervisors of the positions that you'd like to have. You can let them know right off the bat that you may not be looking for an immediate position, but would like to get an idea of what type of experience they're looking for. From this exercise, it is common to even be offered internships or other positions leading up to where you'd like to be.

In any case, experience and getting yourself published or at least adding some relevant lines to the resume is one of the most valuable things you can do... ..And yes, the generic message of "Go to college!" from some high schools isn't the healthiest message, but it's up to the student to research and figure out what's best for them anyway..

i have a money tree :p

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Originally Posted by Voulkos

Your question is quite specific to the field and university that you attended. Though before attending college, you may not know what type of career path you'd like to pursue, By about the junior year in a 4-year program, you may want to re-evaluate the school that you're attending. A degree simply isn't enough in these times for most fields. Instead, it is important to shop around for the school that is able to provide the networking necessary to carry you to meet your professional goals.

I guess my point here is that attending college can be a great professional choice, but it is most advantageous when used for more than walking away with a slip of paper and an additional line on your resume.

Now that you're out of school, though, it is your prerogative to make that networking happen for yourself. A suggestion that I like to offer students that need guidance in their education choices is to get in contact with the hiring supervisors of the positions that you'd like to have. You can let them know right off the bat that you may not be looking for an immediate position, but would like to get an idea of what type of experience they're looking for. From this exercise, it is common to even be offered internships or other positions leading up to where you'd like to be.

In any case, experience and getting yourself published or at least adding some relevant lines to the resume is one of the most valuable things you can do... ..And yes, the generic message of "Go to college!" from some high schools isn't the healthiest message, but it's up to the student to research and figure out what's best for them anyway..

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The original post was not just about me or specific to me. I made the additional posts on my experiences but there are students all across the country graduating from college and not able to find work, and trust me when I say I did look into the school that I went to... it wasn't lacking trust me :)

I'm sure it is much harder for women to find jobs rather than men. Especially where I live where the majority of the work is hard labor. Out here though there is always work if your willing to sweat a bit. It may not be the most glorious or best paying job but its a job nonetheless. Course one of the best jobs around here is the oilfield. Big bucks but on the other hand you will have no life other than the oilfield lol I most likely won't need a college degree but I'm going ahead and getting at least an associates degree. Better to be safe than sorry :/

I'm still in college because I don't want to leave and go find a job in this market.

Server139, you picked a good career path and chose a good major. Even before the economy started crapping out, tons of college grads were having trouble finding jobs. I think it's because too many kids are going to college. There are too many colleges offering too many crap degrees. Our upper middle class Northern Hemisphere society tells their children to go college to get ahead in life, so they all do and 90% go to universities that have popped up like weeds in the past 10-15 years that are not respected and do not provide good educations.

The market is flooded with 23 year old college grads with no actual skills. A friend of mine got her B.A. in anthropology and now works as a telemarketer selling credit cards. My sister got her B.A. in General Studies because she couldn't pass the Praxis to become a teacher and had to change her major and now works as a glorified baby sitter at day home for mentally challenged people. Another friend of mine has 2 masters in English related poetry stuff and can't find a job anywhere. All these kids went to 4 year college that have been around for years and years, none of them got specialized degrees like you did, Server 139.

Two of my most successful cousins did not get their bachelors degrees. I have a 25 year old cousin who is an anesthesiologist, she went to a 3 year tech school and almost makes six figures working at a state prison. My 28 year old cousin makes over six figures working at a nuclear power plant, he went to a 3 year tech school as well. 2 years in the classroom, 1 year on the job site. A 4 year degree is not necessary to find good employment, and a majority of bachelor degrees are a complete waste of time and money.

Going to college doesn't have anything to do with helping you find a job once your out, it's what you choose to study while you are there that will find you employment. I'm one semester away from a B.S. in Geographic Information Systems and have absolutely no worries about finding a decent-paying, full-benefit providing 60-70 hour a week job when I decide I'm ready to rejoin the work force. I started college as an English major and then woke up one day and realized, "Holy crap. Degrees in English are fudging stupid. English majors don't have anywhere to work." and picked a better one.

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Originally Posted by Server139Player

I went to school for Criminal Justice with a dual concentration of Forensic Investigation and Human Services.

I also got an associates in Business.

I wouldn't have as much trouble finding a job as I'm having if I were able to move but at the moment funds make that impossible. I wouldn't mind looking throughout the US for a job in my field, right now though I'm stuck in Sioux Falls, SD... which has like 2 murders a year... So once I have the funds to move a bigger city it shouldn't be an issue to find something I like. Getting the funds to move is the problem though, such is life.

For the record I am working 40 hours a week now, so I am trying to get those funds, it just doesn't come easily as most people probably know. :)

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With your education you should be able to find work almost anywhere as long as you can clear the criminal records and moral checks (I'm sure you can). To answer your question though think about this.

A 9th grade high school drop out gets a GED, starts a career as a Correctional Officer and slowly works his way to the rank of Captain where he has the responsibilty of supervising a staff of 80+ Officers and 1600 inmates during the assigned shift. Add the fact that as the Captian he is the highest authority on duty and effectivly running a $20,000,000 business and he got there strictly on experience not a college degree.

Most small company's or in your case agencies are going to want experience becuase they don't have the manpower or time to train and handle any possible mistakes. Larger agencies are more willing to bring you in with no expierence and go through the growing pains. Here in Florida you would have a huge base to look through fr employment in Law Enforcement and Forensics. Living in S.D. may be wonderful but you more than likely wont get what you are looking for there.

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Originally Posted by Server139Player

I'm not sure of the age of most of you here on the forums, some older some younger...

But of those of you who have gone to college or who will go to college what do you think about people who have gone to college and now that they are out they can't get jobs? We live in an economy where most companies want education (a college degree) and experience (3 to 5 years of experience from what I keep seeing) but the question is how do you get experience if everyone wants experience?

Anyway was just curious of what people thought. I know there are people who are in high school who are on the forums and maybe there thinking of going to college? Would you still go to college if when you got out of college there was a chance of not being able to find a job?

*curious* http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:A...5roy1DHwN3OMhJ

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Thinking about it now, that does give me second thoughts. But if I can't get a job with a degree, what chance do I have without one? And with some jobs, atleast in New Zealand where I live, some jobs pay for the degree if you work for a certain amount of time there.

Employment options would differ between countries, so I guess alot of it depends on where you live.