<p>Hi everyone I'm new to this site and have plenty of questions and figured that this messageboard could help out. Let me give some background here first. When I started college I was orginally studying to be a teacher on the High School level to teach both History and Art since those are two things I have a passion for. However I found out that the job market for education has gone to hell and after doing research and speaking to enough people I made the choice to change majors to Accounting and Finance because there is work for it in this economic depression we are in ( also yes this is a depression NOT a recession and I will argue that it is .</p>
<p>Now I don't like this stuff AT ALL and I have been told by many people that I shouldn' be studying this stuff because it is not for me at all and that my grades aren't even that good in it ( In my accounting classes I am an average C student sometimes a C+ once in a while a B ). Now despite all that because of the HORRIBLE job market out there I am not leaving at all and should be graduating next spring with my undergrad degree in Accounting and Finance and plan to take the CPA exam along with one or two other certificate exams as well.</p>
<p>Ok now here is what I was wondering what I should do for graduate school because at my school people have said to myself that once you get your undergrad degree in one thing that it is a waste of time getting it on the graduate level because it is the same stuff. So now I'm getting my undergrad degree in Accounting and Finance which knocks out those two for graduate level and leaves me with really nothing else for graduate business school. Now I say that because all the other ones to myself at least look useless. I mean what are you going to do with a graduate degree in international business, sports marketing, information technology, economics etc etc. I really don't think that there is alot you can do with those and others in business school on the grad level.</p>
<p>So the real question is just what should I go to graduate school for? I've been thinking maybe I should look for something else to go for. I understand that if I go for another field that I will probably have to do some pre req classes which I'm fine with. </p>
<p>Basically I'm just looking for some advice here and would appreciate all the honest advice that could be given to myself. Thanks</p>
<p>Honestly I’m not trying to be rude but you’re the type of student who causes other people to mock us business majors. You asked for HONEST advice.</p>
<p>From what I read, you have absolutely zero interest in the field, you’re barely scraping through with a C average, yet you’re already casually throwing around lofty detailed plans about what your MBA specialization should be after you breeze through the CPA. Then apparently people will mail you boxes of money.</p>
<p>I mean really? Between barely passing your accounting classes and hating the subject, focus on even being able to survive an entry-level audit position. There’s a good chance you won’t. There also a good chance you would have had better career prospects as a top-notch teaching major than a half-assed accounting major who treats it like an afterthought.</p>
<p>With a low GPA, it is an uphill climb to get into a good MBA school. And from what other MBA candidates have told me, getting an MBA is not worth it unless it’s from a top school, OR your employer pays for it.</p>
<p>
Have you taken any economics classes? Are you aware that there is an actual economic, textbook definition for a recession? And under that definition we are no longer in a recession?</p>
<p>@ discoinferno No you would be dead wrong because education is very difficult to get a job in these days. I don’t know where you heard otherwise but your wrong. I never said I will breeze through the CPA exam at all because I know its very hard and will most likely have to take it more than once. Sorry for trying to get a useful degree to use in this bad economy and I was just asking this question just to ask around. Believe it or not I rarely think about this and have alot of other things on my mind to get done and concerned about.</p>
<p>@ terenc yes I know my grades would be a problem and yes I and others don’t agree with that at all. If you ( and I don’t mean you literally ) count all the people who have dropped off the radar that aren’t counted its not because they can or have found work but many of them just aren’t counted anymore once their public assistant has run out. Also not enough jobs are being created each month to order to sustain our population being able to have an optimal level of employment.</p>
<p>Don’t want to actually get into an argument over here, but everything discoinferno said is pretty much my sentiments. Just because you’re getting a degree in Finance and Accounting doesn’t mean you’ll automatically have a job after graduation, especially with a C average. And if you really don’t like the material, then I’m wondering if you’ll even like the job you get placed in to…</p>
<p>First off, what exactly do you want to do as a career? From what I can infer from what you’ve posted, you need to put a lot more thought and planning into what you want to do. You don’t need a MBA but to sit for the CPA exam you probably are going to need a masters course to sit for the CPA exam (150 hour rule). You need to get a masters in accounting, idk what this international business and sports management stuff is but just get a masters degree in accounting (not a MBA). Try to get it from a top school if your current school doesn’t prepare you well for it.</p>
<p>If you don’t mind me asking what university did you attend? They should have prepared you a lot more for this and helped you plan a lot more. Getting a job in accounting certainly isn’t easy especially without a high GPA so I’d really suggest you do some research and figure out everything you want to do and need to do.</p>
<p>Also recession isn’t defined by unemployment it’s GDP which hasn’t been in decline for quite a while now. We’re not in a recession.</p>
<p>Yeah. You should tell your interviewer that we’re still in a recession, and you should watch their eyebrows reach for the stars.</p>
<p>Determination of a recession is actually determined by several factors, including GDP and unemployment:
From Wikipedia: (Yes, I’m lazy, since this is only a forum)
<p>It doesn’t sound like this is the right spot for you. I don’t have much, if any, experience, but it seems as if you’ll waste away a few years of your life simply trying to get a job that you actually like and will stick with. After that, you’ll realize that you shouldn’t be attempting to make a career out of something you do not want to do.</p>
<p>It may be late now, but I’m sure you could look for other jobs that you would actually like instead of those that correspond to your degree. Maybe go back to school in the future?</p>
<p>An MBA is definitely not for you. Obviously having a job is important, and I regret sounding idealistic, but you should change your career path if you can.</p>
<p>Seeing you are very interested in history, I would hope you know what the country went through during the Great Depression, and realize that what we have gone through since '07 is nothing in comparison.</p>
<p>Whoever counseled you doing your college years must have been the most skeptical and cynical person of all time. The teaching profession, as a whole, is not as impossible to get into as you make it out to be. Occupational growth is on par with the aggregate growth of all professions. Demand for quality teachers, especially in inter-city districts, is extremely high. Look at Teach for America as an example. I get the feeling that based on where you’re actually looking for teaching jobs, the number of opportunities are tight. But, if you’re open minded about working where demand exists, you will be hard pressed not to find a job as an inspired, motivated, and intelligent individual.</p>
<p>You have made it clear that words like “inspired, motivated, and intelligent” do not remotely describe your experience with your business studies. You might have a job at a low tier accounting firm with those grades. But, the likeliness of you dreading the work you do after a few years is beyond probable. Additionally, what will you say in an interview to even get one of these jobs. As an accounting major, the question I get most often in interviews are: why did you choose accounting? Recruiters are interested in your response to this question as it is largely a mystery to many people as to why accountants like being accountants. In this case, you will either have to make up a great lie or expose every recruiters nightmare, a candidate who walks through the door seeking a job that he or she has no motivation to do other than the good pay and good job prospects. </p>
<p>Your exhibiting a severe case of short-term mindedness. Study and do what you enjoy, because a couple years down the road you know you’re gonna regret it. Don’t take the easy way out.</p>
<p>To the OP: before you consider getting ANY JOB in ANY FIELD, please consider improving your writing. I couldn’t even read the entire first post without having to stop and re-read several sentences in order to understand your meaning. Also, please go look up the definition of “depression” and stop listening to Sarah Palin. Thank you</p>
<p>Who really cares if we are or are not in the textbook definition of a “recession” or a “depression.” The bottom line is, the state of the economy has massive unemployment, and not massive unemployment due to an oversupply of unqualified individuals, but rather an undersupply of jobs. As a result, the competition for jobs is fierce for everyone around the world except top executives. It is non sense to say a job “definitely” would have been waiting for the OP, regardless of his major, GPA, or other qualifications.</p>
<p>Obviously, it was not a good idea for the OP to major in something he hated (Accounting / Finance) and in which he could not succeed academically. At the same time, it was a good idea in concept to base his choice of major on employment prospects as well and not purely interest and aptitude. Unfortunately, it appears it was based entirely on employment prospects with complete disregard of the others, instead of balancing the factors.</p>
<p>And yes, it is true that all of the other business degrees are useless, except maybe Supply Chain Management (and I can’t guarantee that either - I can just guarantee the others are useless). But even that will be useless to you individually if you have no interest or aptitude with it.</p>