I would totally do the gap year and apply to a program that sends you abroad if you have the $. If not, go on coolworks.com, which is a job board for workcations, and look for cool jobs that won't have insane hours (will probably need to get to interview stage to get a sense of this). I took both a gap year and did coolworks jobs and had amazing experiences and it really helped me when it was time to head to college. also you sound like a good mom and she like a smart kid

A

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trade associations is a great tip I overlooked that, will def research. Don’t know if the admin job is really in my field of interest

Yeah, well, you have to start somewhere.

OP you need to be open minded. The first job is the hardest to get bc they will care the most about grades. In a few yrs no one will ask. But you need to get your foot in the door and it will be into a less desirable role, unfortunately, unless you have connections.

Admin, sales etc - you don't have to do it forever. It's a first job.

Sales, especially technology or software, are the most lucrative jobs there is. Those guy s make a lot of money. I work as a system engineer to support the software sale team and those sale guys are bringing in around 1.2K/year in salary, more than five times my salary. It is probably one of the hardest jobs out there.

You're right, I do need to be open minded. I have some very smart family friends in tech sales, I'll definitely reach out to them about their careers.

Anonymous wrote:Are you good looking?

Are you male or female?

Are you a smooth talker?

I only say this as I graduated with a 2.7 GPA and with a good suit, nice watch, crisp white shirt and tie all I needed was the introduction.

If a man HR is full of young women. Not really hard to get in. If a women all the “bros” in start ups dying for a young women.

And bars by where you want to work are your friend. Just meet someone and get a referral. Even works virtual on linked in.

Being old, fat and bald with glasses it’s hard. Young good looking and from a good school easy.

I was on Hill on Thursday it was loaded with good looking women and men in nice suits looking the part.

Also you represent your boss. I say hit the gym, dress nice, hit the bars!!

OP here, thanks for making me feel a bit better. I'm a guy - I mean I'm no Sean Connery, but yes I am good looking, a decent talker, and I pay close attention to my fitness and how I dress. Good info to know I need to keep working on these soft skills and qualities.

Anonymous wrote:

raptorsxyz wrote:I graduated with a pretty low GPA, under 3.0, from a highly ranked school this year with a polisci degree. Any tips post-graduation to eventually head toward a high-earning career? Everyone is telling me law school and grad school is out of the question. I haven't had much internships, but I have had a lot of substantive summer jobs that show I have some work ethic. I'm also a really good communicator and I think a person that people enjoy being around. I have been networking etc, just looking for further advice. I also really want to move to NYC.

P.S. - PM me if anyone would like to talk about any more specific directions, but can't doxx yourself on an online forum

Plenty of law schools will accept you, such as Southwestern Texas School of Law, Regent University Law, etc. A degree from such an institution will open the opportunity to serve as deli assistant manager with a 50 cent raise after 6 months and a week’s vacation after a year.

Campaigning honestly might be where I end up.

Thanks for the advice so far! I have been advised to go into sales, but honestly, I really don't want to spend my life selling things, it seems kind of soulless (no offense to salesmen, and I'm sure there are companies with a really great product where it seems worthwhile).

I'm interested in Journalism, International Development, and Politics. I've also looked into consulting, it seems really cool to be a professional problem-solver, although right now it seems my GPA precludes me from most opportunities in that sector.

I graduated with a pretty low GPA, under 3.0, from a highly ranked school this year with a polisci degree. Any tips post-graduation to eventually head toward a high-earning career? Everyone is telling me law school and grad school is out of the question. I haven't had much internships, but I have had a lot of substantive summer jobs that show I have some work ethic. I'm also a really good communicator and I think a person that people enjoy being around. I have been networking etc, just looking for further advice. I also really want to move to NYC.

P.S. - PM me if anyone would like to talk about any more specific directions, but can't doxx yourself on an online forum

Congratulations to him not buying into the rat race and enjoying life! A kid as smart as that will surely have a great career, especially after taking some time to find himself after graduation. Remember guys, you only life once, and you can't take money to the grave.

dropping LSD and reading communist poetry dosent sound too bad to me

Thank you so much to the people who posted in this thread. I feel a lot better and I think working for a smaller organization to start out with, and get really good recs at, is a great plan.

So, I'm about to graduate as a liberal arts major. My school is prestigious but I have a below 3 GPA due to some immaturity and partying issues that have thankfully been resolved. However, literally every other liberal arts senior I know is going on to grad school, law school, or consulting, all of which you need a high GPA to get into. My parents still think I should continue in my field but I'm worried that I'm being to naive - with poor grades, and not much shot at ever getting into a highly ranked graduate school or law school in the future, how will I ever transition into a better paying field? Should I just try to get into tech or something?

I'm sorry if this is not a lot of info, I don't want to doxx myself. All else I can say is that I'm a normal person and know how to talk to people, and don't have a bunch of crazy loans. I am also really passionate about what I'm studying. The only thing really holding me back is that awful GPA which is basically too late to change now. Money isn't that important to me but I do want to have the option of starting a family in 6-8 years. Any advice at all is much appreciated!

Anonymous wrote:I've known plenty of great people that worked for State and never get it, so I wouldn't exactly count on it.

Well, getting a career with the State department wouldn't exactly be a bad fallback!!

Anonymous wrote:About 25 years ago I passed the exam and sat on the roster then timed out. Then a few years later, I passed the exam again and sat on the roster for 18 months and was finally offered a spot but declined because I was in a better job. Haven’t regretted that choice for a minute.

My impression from that experience and spending a lot of time on the old Yahoo Group back then are that unless you are Ivy grad with a prestigious fellowship, you really need a master’s degree first.

The political cone is the hardest to get into and consular is the easiest.

Last, if you are already an FSO and State allows you leave to study for a masters it would absolutely give you a leg up in admissions. The whole point of those programs like “the school of foreign service” are to place graduates in that job so they would considered having a current FSO in the program as an asset.

OP - with all due respect, my research has shown your info is outdated, or at least I'm really hoping it is. I've heard a lot less people apply these days, and they've had to lower the admissions standards. For example, you don't pass or fail the test straight out anymore, you just get a score.

W&M is one of the few colleges left that actively does track admissions interest. If you can't make an in-person tour, here are some ideas.

- Attend a virtual information session and ask questions
- Email/call your regional admissions officer
- Request a senior interview via email - if you specifically ask for it and have good grades, they will probably give you one!

The W&M admissions office are really friendly and will definitely take notice if you reach out.