I'm not going to spend a lot of time dissecting the e-mail regarding the value of investing in a college degree. I'll tell you why at the end. But here goes and I will try and keep it quick.
I graduated with a general social science degree, with which I intended to go to law school. I was five credits short of a geography degree and had sufficient credits for the soc sci degree, and took it because I didn't see any particular advantage in a geography degree and wanted to get on with my life. My coursework included a lot of computer mapping and a minor in comp sci. I earned 90% of my college expenses and graduated with a debt load which would have been easily manageable on a normal income. Also, since the cost of law school was soaring at the time, and since I was watching others go to law school and not be able to make a living as a lawyer, in a fit of risk aversion I decided not to go to law school.
Ok, so you got a degree. You are now ahead of about 60% (my number--challenge if you want but accurate plus or minus 10%) of the people who do not have a degree which means that a lot of people are out there making a 'normal' wage with fewer credentials. Smart move about law school though if you really wanted to be a lawyer you could and you could have been successful. I 'toyed' with going to law school but I didn't have the real need or desire. My sister did and she is super successful. But the reader looked at a few that didn't make it and decided not to do it. Readers-don't let people failing around you stop you from doing something. Failure is always out there along with success.
My college placement office wouldn't let me interview for IT jobs because it considered my comp sci coursework insufficient to meet employer requirements; I did get one on-campus IT interview: I was beat out for that job by another graduating student who had had related Work-Study employment, i.e. that person had experience I lacked.
Hey, this was over 30 years ago. Let it go. Readers--a sure fire way to bump into a wall is to look back all the time. Most major religions--I am not going goofy here, bear with me--have the concept of forgiveness. Not for me, for years. Somebody did me wrong, I remembered. And steamed using a lot of energy that could have been used elsewhere. Then somebody pointed out that forgiveness was not condoning what somebody had done. It was basically saying ok, that is over and now I have to go on to other things because if I don't I will become like the person that wronged me. So forget the college office and the guy that got the job that you didn't. Rejection is rejection and happens every day to every college grad looking for a job.
I graduated in the middle of a recession, in a local economy that was even more depressed. Two-thirds of our graduating students were leaving the state for employment elsewhere. I took a data entry job with a startup I knew personally, working with poorly handwritten records.
I graduated in that same recession and got a job. I interviewed with anyone that would talk to me and I kept going. Depressed? You bet. I was miserable. A friend of mine wallpapered his room with rejection letters. We both got jobs.
Two-thirds of our graduating students were leaving the state for employment elsewhere.
So why didn't you? Economics is based on migration. Look at people coming here illegally. I'm not saying that is right but people are risking life and limb to get in here and get a job. Our grandparents did the same thing.
Everything I learned in college about computers was done on mainframes, and my IT skills quickly became obsolete.
Then get current.
Several years ago I had an extended illness during which I was in hospital for two months and semi-ambulatoey (required a walker) and unable to work for about a year after that. As I had no income during this time, I had to move to a different part of the country to live with relatives until I could get back to work and earn an income.
I am very sorry to hear about the illness and glad it appears to be over. On the bright side it is an event that can explain and plug a few time lapses on a resume.
So now I am working in a convenience store earning the Oregon minimum wage of $7.50 per hour. The only internal advancement path here is to manager, and no openings are expected for a decade or so.
A decade? I'm not so sure. I don't know about Oregon but I passed a convenience store here that had a big banner in front saying Hiring Staff and Managers. Can't believe that Oregon has an overabundance of convenience store managers. If so, consider moving.
Since my credit went in the tank when I was unable to work, it is unlikely I could make a lateral move to an employer with advancement opportunities, and on my income I can't get my credit out of the tank.
Not exactly sure what the credit rating has to do with a job but there seems to be a real or imagined Catch 22 here. I can't really say.
I have a little less than $8,000 in remaining student loan debt, on which I am currently paying $100 per month - about 12 years until payoff at 7%. I also have several thousand dollars of credit card debt which was charged off when I had no income. (Call me stupid; I was taking cash advances to make student loan payments. I knew what I was doing and thought I was buying time - all I needed was more income, then I'd be able to pay off everything. Other than that, I don't think I made more than $100 in frivolous charges on my cards. I have very simple tastes and there is nothing I would run out and buy if I had the money.) Note that my student loans are in default and that I am making payments on them toward eventual payoff.
Given my age and lack of both skills and career-related employment, I don't think there is a good job out there for me. I see others far more qualified stuggling and I don't think I have a chance.
Everybody has a chance and everybody struggles. But if we strip all the stuff away we have a 50ish, relatively healthy individual with a college degree that I believe should be able to find a job. Like to help and I will but tomorrow I will tell why I don't think this is going anyplace.
Sounds like this guy has a lot of excuses... or maybe he's just given up. Probably both. Failure at least means you're trying. A buddy of mine moved out west, started a company (did well for a while, but was a sole proprietor working himself to death), ultimately he "failed" when his wife left him (she didn't like the hours he worked). He moved back east, and used the experience to net a Director-level position in a large company. Doing well now (and has a new wife). My point? Doing something and failing is better than doing nothing and making excuses.
Posted by: Alex | October 17, 2006 at 01:15 PM