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| The world is my oyster... wait do I like oysters? |
Maybe for some you that is completely true. You went out, got that degree and now you are living the good life. But for most of you I would imagine things didn't exactly work out as you were told they would. Instead you found yourself in world full of college debt, bad jobs, rent and the realities of being a adult.
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| yay paperwork |
This smack to the face with the real world can leave you pondering all sorts of questions about whether it was worth getting that degree and getting in debt. The average student debt in 2012 was around 29,000 dollars which was a 25% increase from the year before.
The average unemployment rate for people fresh out of of college ages 20-29 is around 9% when the average rate for the country is now down to about 6.7%. So basically if you look at it this way the unemployment rate of the 20-30 demographic is still as high as it was during the depths of the recession. I would also place money that if you surveyed the 20-30 somethings and asked them if they are working in the field that went to school for a lot of them would probably say no. They took whatever work they could to pay their bills and now they are trapped in what I like to call the,
EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE PARADOX
If you are not painfully familiar with what this is already I will explain how I understand it. Taking my life as a example,
- I have a Bachelors degree in Natural Resources Management
- I also have many years seasonal and full time experience in my field.
But despite my credentials I can't seem to land any full time position in my field that does not start as a internship/training program.
Why is that?
I have come up with a theory that is as follows, despite that fact that everyone in my life has told me that a education is the key to success. My first hand experience with that does not pan that out. You have to have a mythical combination I call EDUCERIENCE, which is both education and experience mashed up into one. If you want a full time job in your field you better have been either volunteering or seasonally working in your field while you were in college in order to have a chance at landing a full time job.
But wait that's not all what if I told you that a Bachelor's degree is now worth about as much a high school diploma. Now don't misunderstand my meaning in that you will make more money with a bachelors degree most of the time. What I mean by it being worth as much as a diploma is that a lot of people have them or are getting them as time goes by. It is no longer the sign of higher achievement or ambition it is simply the next step in your mandatory education. This perception that a bachelors degree doesn't have meaning is hurtful to new grads with limited job experience. I have seen this perception hurt my chances and those of people around me time and time again.
So how does this EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE PARADOX work?
It works like this,
Its vicious cycle that is all to easy to be trapped by if you are not careful and whether or not to go back for more education is a tricky proposition no matter how you look at it. More education can help you stand out from the pack but you have to weigh it against the time that could be spent getting experience or paying off your existing debts.
I personally advocate the experience track unless you truly have the desire to obtain a Masters or PHD in your field. If you want to do it have at it, but if you are the least bit ambivalent then perhaps you should just focus on experience in the real world.
Good Luck on the Job Hunt
Working for the Earth
Sources:
http://projectonstudentdebt.org/files/pub//Debt_Facts_and_Sources.pdf
http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat03.htm