Path from Humanities Degree to Career?

Parents Forum
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<p>Reading the other very interesting threads about what can you do with a liberal arts degree, led me to think about how the element of chance affects our "choice" of career. It seems from reading a lot of accounts of posters here and thinking about colleagues whom I've worked with that people who major in non-professional fields (like English, Philosophy, Botany) often tumble into unexpected and unplanned careers. I thought some personal "twist of fate" success stories would help all those liberal arts majors out there -- and their parents -- who are getting concerned that they will never be able to be gainfully employed.</p>

<p>I'll start:</p>

<p>My majors were English and Art History. I don't know if UMich had a career counseling department back then, but it was beyond my capabilities at the time to take advantage of it. I vaguely intended to get involved in museum work, or maybe a gallery, or advertising. . . I didn't have a clue. I was truly lost at sea like The Graduate. I moved to San Francisco because it was the place to be and started looking for a job, any job. I answered an ad for a position as administrative assistant to a large benefactor of a San Francisco museum. We had a wonderful interview, but I didn't get the job. She was kind enough to call me and tell me that although she had hired someone else she would like to introduce me to someone at her "husband's company." Well, her husband owned Levi's and that's how I got started in the apparel business. 35 years and intensive OJT later, I've held positions in a variety of areas, but have always found the work stimulating and financially lucrative. I can't say that I've ever directly used the Art History knowledge -- although design is certainly related and art is a wonderful stress diversion -- but English communication skills I use every second.</p>

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<p>Momrath; I always enjoy your posts. </p>

<p>I received a BA. and was a co op student in the American Studies department. Had been a transfer student from an art college with many fine art and humanities credits so this was the logical degree to seek.The benefits to the co- op program was the exposure I received to many local cultural institutions. I worked at the Phila. Museum of Art and Valley Forge State Park under the co op- program and also got paid to go on archaelogical excavations in N.Y.. There are many jobs where having the BA degree is a step in the door and/or pay increases. The fed and city government is one. I had just what was necessary for the Nat. Park Service and some aspects of the city courts. I went for the parks and worked there but was laid off 3 times. Secure employment in the Nat. Parks at this time depended upon the adminsitration.</p>

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<p>My husband majored in biology. Couldn't find a job after graduation, so he joined the Navy. After he left the Navy 12 years later, he went to work as a computer systems scientist for the Naval Research Lab. He's been there ever since and is now a management executive. He's never done anything remotely related to biology but has said that the research and data analysis skills he learned in school have helped him greatly in his current career. He could never have predicted back in college that he would be doing what he is doing today.</p>

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<p>my career path was pretty straighforward, but I have a friend who's story illustrates the random nature of the process. He was working at a large drugstore chain while in college and got an offer from them to be an assistant store manager when he finished college. From there he applied internally for a position as an assistant buyer at the chain headquarters and was there a few years. The company purchased marketing information from a well-known company and he worked with reps of that firm. They eventually offered him a job and a raise so he took it. While there he worked with clients of the survey company, and one of them hired him away as a manager of a food group division, which is what he does now. So a completely random path based on people he met and hard work.</p>

<p>Another guy got started in politics because he was failing poli-sci in HS and needed extra-credit to pass; the teacher offered some points to anyone working as a volunteer in a campaign, so he took it. He enjoyed the job and started volunteering in a district office after the campaign was over (this was for a state assemblyman). This turned into a part-time job in college, and then a full-time job after college. The world of politics and lobbying is a revolving door, and over the years he has worked in the office of various politicians (they know one another, and if one loses an election or retires they second you to a friend) in tasks including managing the office. He has also worked at time for lobbying firms (where the personal relationships with the politicians are valuable), and for public-relation firms. So a bad grade led to a career!</p>

<p>One tip I would take from these 2 stories is that outside activities in college can often be the springboard into the working world, one of the many reasons internships are so valuable.</p>

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<p>Caroyn wrote: "He could never have predicted back in college that he would be doing what he is doing today"</p>

<p>I am always amazed at the randomness of so many career paths. The zig and zag, they rise and fall. I've had half a dozen jobs in my adult life and the although Ilearned or gained something critical from each one what that something was wasn't apparent except in retrospect. A collolary question would be how many people have been fired (or down-sized) from a job and ended up in a better situation?</p>

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<p>Maybe you have seen many folks who have come out ahead after being laid off. I have not. I know one person who filed an age discrimination suit after being let go in their 50's from a large food corperation. He won, received a settlement but the amount gained was not much when you figure in all the attorney fees, lost time, etc. In comparison, he would have preferred to stay where he was the 10-15 yrs until retirement and would have done better financially by staying there.
The state of manufacturing in the U.S. is horrendous. Engineers bouncing around from company to company the senario always the same, company bought out, downsized, then closed. Oftentimes there is work but the profit margin is just not great enough to meet the salaries. And then it makes me sick to see the corporate greed, the people at the top taking all the profits. I really don't know what is going to happen.So many seniors not able to retire and businesses just don't want them except for low paying jobs.Too sad to see a senior engineer hustling in a paint store in his late 60's. That guy should be retired, or at least have his feet up on a desk somewhere.</p>

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<p>In our area engineers are required to train people who then will take their jobs in other countries. Tough call, if you don't train them you are fired, but you know that your division will be sent to India.
Lots of companies closing &/or merging, either way people are laid off and similar jobs impossible to find.
A humanities degree very well may be flexible enough to completely change careers, but look at the age of people stocking shelves in the grocery store or clerking at Home depot just at the time when they have kids college tuitions to pay!</p>

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<p>Okay, this is a pretty random path. </p>

<p>I majored in English Literature. First, not knowing what to "do" with my life, I fled to France to work and learn french. That was a blast and it killed almost two years till my working papers ran out. </p>

<p>Then beginning about age 23 I lived in NYC. I was freelancing in a bunch of crummy jobs in commercial production & trying to get into the film production field (one crummy freelance boss did introduce me to several lifelong friends). I tutored a kid in french, in exchange for cheap rent in her family's apt. And I had quite a bit of free time. </p>

<p>One thing that really depressed me was the number of homeless people on the streets of NYC ( early 1980's). I would usually be in tears as I walked home from the subway in the snow passing all the "regulars" muttering to themselves. </p>

<p>So I decided to pull together a benefit concert & art show (with many of my liberal arts & artist pals) to raise money to assist homeless people. The event was held at a well known nightclub in NYC (that actually then hired me as part of their management team for a few months, after this event, to replace someone on leave.)</p>

<p>Researching organizations that could be the beneficiaries of the event, I met a wonderful woman who was a lead volunteer at a Homelessness advocacy group. We became friends.</p>

<p>Her husband was a very prominent NYC filmmaker and when his assistant quit several months later, she got me the job. Though basically secretarial, it was a dream entry level job meeting the film & theatre community in NYC and getting invited to all the fun stuff. (He liked me because the goal of my job was to handle everything I could possibly handle without bothering him at all, and I loved this autonomy!) </p>

<p>That job was "prestige" and led to a job in LA, in development, where I read screenplays; most of which were crap. So I wrote a screenplay that I sold. I then worked as a screenwriter for a decade until having babies.</p>

<p>English was a great preparation for communicating, analyzing, and understanding people... Because it was a topic I loved, I became used to doing something fulfilling, interesting, and fun-- and I always pushed myself to find these sorts of jobs, too. From my non-core curriculum, I had a good sense of creating interesting things to do, keeping my eyes open to good opportunities, and being able to re-group. For a self-starter & motivated person, lack of an A-B-C path is not that big a deal.</p>

<p>I think a good (and very freewheeling) Liberal Arts education definitely helped me, and going to a "name" institution opened many doors. People just assume you can do the job when your alma mater is a known place.</p>