Any parents out there who paid $200K+ for college, kid did great, and now can't find job?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh. No. We paid $55k (total, not per year) for my daughter's degree and she's had no issue finding well paying, full time employment. But we also thought about job prospects and that kind of thing BEFORE, y'know, signing the check and her picking a major. People who don't do the tiniest bit of legwork upfront on majors, job outlook, etc. and then act all "surprised Pikachu" face when they find out that, surprise surprise, their/their kid's expensive English degree doesn't just automatically result in offers for $70k jobs get no sympathy from me.

OP here. So grateful for all of the helpful suggestions and wisdom offered in this thread. In response to the poster I'm quoting here...There is another wrinkle to my kid's story. The kid is TUTORING online & in-person and making $60/$70 per hour and $70-$80K/year as a "temporary" gig. Kid is highly rated and really good at it. So this English major earns the money without having a boss and a commute...BUT...

TUTORING isn't a "real" job/career asset in the traditional sense that will be an investment for the long term, is it? That's the problem. It's not like building a career as a professor or an employee working for an institution. The kid makes as much or more than some full-time teachers or professors, reporters, CBS production assistants, etc! It's unexpected and a bit confusing. But kid gets tired of the prospecting/rainmaking of tutoring, sees it as temporary, and is having a challenging time getting a regular job with an institution for half the pay. Doesn't make sense does it?! It's a stumper. But isn't getting a real job best for the long term? What am I missing here? Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

So she is already making $80,000 per year tutoring? It is unrealistic that she will pickup a job paying more than that starting out. She is already earning more than most Americans. I worked 45 years and never made more than $57.000 per year.
My niece, the English major from NYU got $60,000 for her first job out of NYU.

Most likely any first job she gets with benefits, 401k, health insurance, vacation etc will pay less than $80,000 even if she is in some place like NYC. She needs to accept a job path that she thinks that she will like.

I'd encourage her to accept a job and keep doing the tutoring as side work. If she gets a job paying $50,000 and keeps doing
the tutoring as side work then she is looking at bringing in $130,000 which is not bad for someone right out of college.

I am impressed with your daughter's hustle. Understand that side gig hourly pay is generally significantly more pay than a person's regular job and your daughter's situation is not that unusual.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - major was English -- a beautiful major. The world needs more English majors.... especially from schools well known for their English & humanities departments. That should translate into many jobs in media, publishing, etc. And yes, with what we paid, no guarantees, but I would expect better assistance from the career center. The kid has worked so hard looking for a job and is not willing to be underemployed.

I appreciate the tecchies, but not everyone is made to do that work. The world needs some fuzzies, too. More than ever actually.

BTW - middle class burb family that has worked hard for it.

He could become a HS teacher (English).

[Anonymous]

btw.. also consider jobs in tech - eg writing user manuals or drafting proposals ( eg Deloittle might want a person who can draft proposal for the Federal Govt)

[Anonymous]

Question for the pp who recommended attending lots of tech conferences as a path to finding a job. What does that mean exactly? Attend and cold-introduce yourself as a student interested in the field and looking for an entry level job? Or is it something else, or a more specific plan of approach?

[Anonymous]

There is a big demand in tech for those who can write.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Question for the pp who recommended attending lots of tech conferences as a path to finding a job. What does that mean exactly? Attend and cold-introduce yourself as a student interested in the field and looking for an entry level job? Or is it something else, or a more specific plan of approach?

Yes, introduce yourself to people who attend the conference, strike up a conversation and just listen, especially during lunch and happy hour. A lot of these people love to talk about what they do so just be a good listener. Also let them know that you're interested in finding a job. It comes down to the number of conferences you attend, the more you attend, the higher probability that you will get a job, regardless of your major.

I will say this, tech conferences are dominated by male nerds and if you happen to be a young good looking woman, they will trip over to find you a job in the tech world. To those techies, being with a good looking woman is like a godsend to many of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife graduated in 2010 with a degree in English from University of Virginia with ZERO experience and never had a job in her life. She took off one semester in her senior year and attended as many technology conferences as she could even though she knew nothing about technologies other than powering on/off her Apple macbook. Many of the conferences let her in free of charge, I guess because of her good look, and she made her "networking" there. At one of those conferences, she met my mother, who was an SES in the federal government at the time, over lunch and they quickly became friends. My now wife told my mother that she was looking for a job so my mother picked up the phone and called one of the government contractors that reported to her and asked them if they were willing to hire someone with an English major for technical writing documentation. They of course said yes and paid her a salary of 80K per year. When my mother left the government for the private sector, she took my now wife with her and promoted her to Technical Project Manager (TPM) and her salary went from 90K to 150K. I met my wife at my mother's Christmas party and the rest is history. My wife is now a SVP at a F500 company through one of my mother's friends. It is about connections. YMMV.

The point here is that technology companies need English majors too, not just Engineering and CS. OP's kid needs to go to technology conferences and meet people and it will definitely help. He/she only needs one person to say yes and go from there. Most of the time, it is the English major people that do well in technology companies. Someone needs to manage those tech people.

Not really kosher for a Fed to pressure a contractor to hire someone.

Are you new here? It happens everyday between Fed and contractors. It is called the revolving door.

[Anonymous]

I didn’t read all the replies, but if she wants to go into media or publishing, she’d be competing with people who have advanced degrees. She should go to grad school or try to get a job teaching if that’s possible without a master’s degree where you live. She can teach and tutor on the side.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh. No. We paid $55k (total, not per year) for my daughter's degree and she's had no issue finding well paying, full time employment. But we also thought about job prospects and that kind of thing BEFORE, y'know, signing the check and her picking a major. People who don't do the tiniest bit of legwork upfront on majors, job outlook, etc. and then act all "surprised Pikachu" face when they find out that, surprise surprise, their/their kid's expensive English degree doesn't just automatically result in offers for $70k jobs get no sympathy from me.

OP here. So grateful for all of the helpful suggestions and wisdom offered in this thread. In response to the poster I'm quoting here...There is another wrinkle to my kid's story. The kid is TUTORING online & in-person and making $60/$70 per hour and $70-$80K/year as a "temporary" gig. Kid is highly rated and really good at it. So this English major earns the money without having a boss and a commute...BUT...

TUTORING isn't a "real" job/career asset in the traditional sense that will be an investment for the long term, is it? That's the problem. It's not like building a career as a professor or an employee working for an institution. The kid makes as much or more than some full-time teachers or professors, reporters, CBS production assistants, etc! It's unexpected and a bit confusing. But kid gets tired of the prospecting/rainmaking of tutoring, sees it as temporary, and is having a challenging time getting a regular job with an institution for half the pay. Doesn't make sense does it?! It's a stumper. But isn't getting a real job best for the long term? What am I missing here? Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

You really buried the lede here. Your Subject says "can't find a job" -- which is not relevant to people who earn $80k/year.

[Anonymous]

Vandy, now manager at a gas station. At least he has a job however.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - major was English -- a beautiful major. The world needs more English majors.... especially from schools well known for their English & humanities departments. That should translate into many jobs in media, publishing, etc. And yes, with what we paid, no guarantees, but I would expect better assistance from the career center. The kid has worked so hard looking for a job and is not willing to be underemployed.

I appreciate the tecchies, but not everyone is made to do that work. The world needs some fuzzies, too. More than ever actually.

BTW - middle class burb family that has worked hard for it.

He could become a HS teacher (English).

$200k for a college diploma to become the type of government employee who whines the most about being underpaid, lmao.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Bottom line: social skills is what gets you jobs.

social skills alone doesn't get you the interview, though.

I guess you did not play Lacrosse at UNC, UVA or Duke so you know nothing. Those guys get high paying jobs because they have good social skills plus good connections.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why would you spend $250k for an English major if your kid isn’t planning on going to law school? Such a waste of money.

No need to spend 250 for undergrad if you plan to go to law school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wife graduated in 2010 with a degree in English from University of Virginia with ZERO experience and never had a job in her life. She took off one semester in her senior year and attended as many technology conferences as she could even though she knew nothing about technologies other than powering on/off her Apple macbook. Many of the conferences let her in free of charge, I guess because of her good look, and she made her "networking" there. At one of those conferences, she met my mother, who was an SES in the federal government at the time, over lunch and they quickly became friends. My now wife told my mother that she was looking for a job so my mother picked up the phone and called one of the government contractors that reported to her and asked them if they were willing to hire someone with an English major for technical writing documentation. They of course said yes and paid her a salary of 80K per year. When my mother left the government for the private sector, she took my now wife with her and promoted her to Technical Project Manager (TPM) and her salary went from 90K to 150K. I met my wife at my mother's Christmas party and the rest is history. My wife is now a SVP at a F500 company through one of my mother's friends. It is about connections. YMMV.

The point here is that technology companies need English majors too, not just Engineering and CS. OP's kid needs to go to technology conferences and meet people and it will definitely help. He/she only needs one person to say yes and go from there. Most of the time, it is the English major people that do well in technology companies. Someone needs to manage those tech people.

OP—

This is the post you should share with your child.

—DP

You mean to tell her that she can get a job through nepotism? What if nepotism does not work out?

The post was not about nepotism but NETWORKING.

In another word, getting lucky.
So for English majors, you need heck of much more radom 'networking ' and luck.
Good luck

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Bottom line: social skills is what gets you jobs.

social skills alone doesn't get you the interview, though.

+1
Social skill is an important part.
However it's a part.
Major matters much more for the first job.