BA in Sociology... help meeee!!

[MikeCamp]

Ok, so this is my first post, I also did not think it would be about careers lol. Anyway, I just graduated college with my BA in Sociology, and I am having trouble finding a job. I am enrolled in my MA for sociology as well, but it is part time, so i have plenty of time for a full time job. I have plenty of volunteer experience and also work experience. I worked for a valet company for almost 5 years (all through college) and now i am the operations manager. I live about 10 minutes from NYC so i know the opportunity is there i just need to be pointed in the right direction. Anyone in this field and can offer some sound advice ?? thanks a lot and i appreciate it.

 

[Antonio Centeno]

Learn to sell - it's a skill that's always in demand and can be applied to anything.

 

[Blackhood]

Sociology isn't a field. What career path are you trying to take?

 

[Connemara]

Hope you like beans and rice.

 

[kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by Connemara

Hope you like beans and rice.

Spoke from experience.

 

[Connemara]

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

Spoke from experience.
I just ate a pork chop and scallion potatoes. I look down on the unwashed masses.

 

[Neo_Version 7]

I have a BA in Soci and I eat Delissios. There is hope, my friend.

 

[Matt]

*sigh*

OK the OP is new, so he will be spared my wrath on the topic, and it's nice to see that Conne may have eventually listened to the voices of the employers and the employed among us, but we semi-regularly see people like this around here in their early college years saying they are going to major in [insert liberal arts/social sciences/humanities discipline here] because "it really interests me" and At Careers Night The Nice Man In The Brown Jacket With The Patches Told Us That Employers Want People Who Can Think Critically And I'm Good At That Cos I Wrote A Book Review On King Lear And Know That Pride Was His Fatal Flaw.

Then we go through the cycles of 'I know a guy with a degree in theology and now he's the hottest lawyer in the world' and of course we never go through the forty five of his classmates now wondering what to do with their lives, or else pondering grad school to hide out from the real world for a few more years.

Then we go through the cycles of "your degree and education should be more than just job training" and so on. Which is nice and all, but probably less useful to the OP at this point than if he had treated it as job training and gone and read some sociology stuff a few years on from the comfort of the apartment that he would then be able to afford.

Anyhow, no real advice for the OP, sorry to hear you are finding the job market harder than you anticipated when you declared your major (presumably because "it's interesting" - which it is), but ya, maybe grad school in something very very practical (as opposed to a masters in something that is already proving itself useless) is your best bet.

 

[caxt]

From your short situation description here are some things I noticed (may or may not be right.)

1-You want a higher paying job then your current employment. (duh.)
2-You would like to use your college degree to leverage this.
3-You could care less whether this career jump involves the practice of sociology. (A guess.)

4-I really hope you have some great job prospects when you get the graduate degree in a jobless undergrad field.

Assuming the above are somewhat accurate; you may want to consider a change in approach.

Consider changing your outlook which probably looked something like this previously

Undergrad  Grad School  Super Fun Job $$$$$

You have completed step one. Moving onward in the original plan seems illogical in the current economy. To succeed you need to act innovatively in products or methods, AND/OR make yourself more marketable (which grad school in theory does, but in actuality probably will not.)

Some examples of product/method innovation options:
What have successful sociologists done in the past which you can modify/adapt/improve upon? Self help books, motivational tapes, foreign correspondent, or forming a political action committee - your wealth of options is an advantage, not a limiting factor to your future wealth.

Marketable skills:
Languages, Writing, Communication, Human Resources, write a book explaining your sociological theories.

Try to think outside the box in your approaches:
Does the oil industry need an expert sociologist? How about to manage population growth effects and reactions to petroleum drilling by native populations? Perhaps in Africa or other 3rd world/ unstable areas - Create your own professional position, and market it to businesses showing them why they need you.

(This **** was really hard to think of because sociology is about as useless as underwater basket weaving.) -But basically fake it till you make it.

Another Viewpoint: You have your whole life to **** up and still pick up the pieces -the valet job will be there as a fall back if you need it.

Exceptions so you should completely ignore this:
1. Great job prospects/connections
2. Rich Parents
3. Knowing you have a love of the field of Academic Sociology


If all else fails take the LSAT and pray.

 

[level32]

Figure out what real marketable skills are.

If you have none, get some. Do some self study or get some certificates.

Try to find an internship if you're desperate to get your foot in the door.

 

[L.R.]

I have a BA in Soc. Very solid grades, and ran my own tutoring service while in University, having 3 employees and earning enough to keep my student loans super low. Excellent references, skill in organizing and administration (ran a sports team, and part of a league.... never do that again...) Still can't find a decent job......

 

[IUtoSLU]

lol. Seriously. lol. Did you ever have a plan, or did you just assume there was a huge market for sociology majors fresh out of college? Why are 18-22 year-olds so dumb?

 

[L.R.]

I personally had a plan, and it's still on going. The economy was good going into university, I'd assumed it'd still be decent by the time I left. Obviously I was mistaken, and the jobs just aren't there. It has added an extra year or so to my pursuit for an MBA.

 

[Dashaansafin]

^I mean what jobs are you seriously looking for graduating with a sociology degree? Even if the job market was good it still would be a problem.

I can understand going to Harvard or any other top ivy with a soft major and killing it; top employers still look for people who werent econ/finance. But if you went to state you better pray you took a harder major.

 

[imschatz]

I always love the sociologists .. they can have some brilliant idea's, but no practical understanding of how to implement them besides "print money".