# Career switch without obtaining a new degree



## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

I have a BA (Hons) in Business, which basically is worthless as it couldn't find me a decent job. I ended up landing in a minimum wage job at F&B, but I am encountering way too much trouble and politics than it's worth for getting such a low salary. I don't think that a mere job change to another company is going to work for me, so I need a quick and dirty way to switch to another career as quickly as possible without having to pay for a new degree.
What do you recommend?


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## William I am (May 20, 2011)

What's Hons?

What specifically is your degree? I'd recommend applying to work at schools and libraries if you think you have no other opportunities. A lot of city and county government jobs don't care what degree you have as long as you have a bachelor's in anything. 

The way I leapfrogged up the payscale was switching from company to company using contacts from each previous company. I did some of the IT work for this old-folks home, and I chatted up the outsourced technicians who ran higher-level stuff and wound up getting a job out of it. Turned out I hated the company, but it was during the housing crash (before everyone knew it was happening) and I couldn't find a comparable job for 10 months.


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## bluekitdon (Dec 19, 2012)

Need to figure out a few more details - what do you enjoy doing and what are you good at? Figure out where those things meet & people will pay for & you'll be on your way to finding something more rewarding. Once you figure out a career path then you can look at the job opportunities in that field and start working through the minimum requirements. A business degree will open a lot of doors after you have a little experience, most places just say degree required but don't specify what degree in my experience.


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## Zombie Devil Duckie (Apr 11, 2012)

If money wasn't necessary or if it wasn't a consideration, what would you like to do ?


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## PowerShell (Feb 3, 2013)

A business degree if pretty broad but it does open a wide variety of doors. I'd say take @*William I am* advice and find a place where literally they require a bachelor's degree but it can be any degree. Find something you enjoy and find that sort of employer. Get your feet wet and get some experience. As you build experience in a given industry, you degree means a lot less compared to your experience.


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## Uralian Hamster (May 13, 2011)

William I am said:


> A lot of city and county government jobs don't care what degree you have as long as you have a bachelor's in anything.


This is a great way to get an entry level job that actually pays a decent salary. Government jobs have pretty sweet benefits. 
(hons = honors degree)


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## Blazy (Oct 30, 2010)

Hons = honors I'm assuming?

I'd spend the next month or two studying the CPA and get a job as an accountant, who makes at least three times as much as you currently do, so it'll be worth a shot.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

William I am said:


> What's Hons?
> 
> What specifically is your degree? I'd recommend applying to work at schools and libraries if you think you have no other opportunities. A lot of city and county government jobs don't care what degree you have as long as you have a bachelor's in anything.
> 
> The way I leapfrogged up the payscale was switching from company to company using contacts from each previous company. I did some of the IT work for this old-folks home, and I chatted up the outsourced technicians who ran higher-level stuff and wound up getting a job out of it. Turned out I hated the company, but it was during the housing crash (before everyone knew it was happening) and I couldn't find a comparable job for 10 months.


Honours' degree.

Business management and strategy. I've been looking for work for the 6 months previously before I landed this job. I'll look into applying at schools and libraries. I heard that the latter required a degree in librarian science these days, though.

Well, that seems feasible when switching companies within the same field, so that might be a good strategy for my future salary increment plan.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

bluekitdon said:


> Need to figure out a few more details - what do you enjoy doing and what are you good at? Figure out where those things meet & people will pay for & you'll be on your way to finding something more rewarding. Once you figure out a career path then you can look at the job opportunities in that field and start working through the minimum requirements. A business degree will open a lot of doors after you have a little experience, most places just say degree required but don't specify what degree in my experience.
> 
> View attachment 87723


Here's my list

What I enjoy: Interior designing, philosophy, psychology, critique and politics.
What I'm good at: Theories, deep thinking, critical thinking, understanding how people and things work and why, and building systems.

There seems to be no meeting point here, though. Maybe I'm wrong. I'll have to do more research.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

Zombie Devil Duckie said:


> If money wasn't necessary or if it wasn't a consideration, what would you like to do ?


I've narrowed down to 3 possibilities:
1. Interior designer
2. Politician
3. Psychology researcher (or any kind of researcher not involved with biology).


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

PowerShell said:


> A business degree if pretty broad but it does open a wide variety of doors. I'd say take @*William I am* advice and find a place where literally they require a bachelor's degree but it can be any degree. Find something you enjoy and find that sort of employer. Get your feet wet and get some experience. As you build experience in a given industry, you degree means a lot less compared to your experience.


Exactly. The best job that I can get is a minimum wage job at the moment, despite the degree. Experience is definitely needed, except the experience I've gained so far isn't doing any good to my CV due to records of underemployment.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

bollocks said:


> This is a great way to get an entry level job that actually pays a decent salary. Government jobs have pretty sweet benefits.
> (hons = honors degree)


I've considered this option before. The chances of landing a government job is very unlikely due to a lot of graduates yearly vying for the limited amount of public-sector jobs available.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

Wh1zkey said:


> Hons = honors I'm assuming?
> 
> I'd spend the next month or two studying the CPA and get a job as an accountant, who makes at least three times as much as you currently do, so it'll be worth a shot.


That's right.

I'll consider about that. Might mean that I've to save up an amount of money first if I were to go down this route.


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## Uralian Hamster (May 13, 2011)

Powerhouse said:


> I've considered this option before. The chances of landing a government job is very unlikely due to a lot of graduates yearly vying for the limited amount of public-sector jobs available.


With gov't jobs, federal to municipal, it's more about getting your foot in the door. Where I live, data entry clerks start at ~40k per year. The job may be a dead end for people who only have a high school education, but those with degrees have almost unlimited number of options to branch out and move on to more professional type positions that relate to their degree. The biggest factor is having access to internal postings, if you're qualified you won't have to compete with the public.


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## William I am (May 20, 2011)

Powerhouse said:


> Here's my list
> 
> What I enjoy: Interior designing, philosophy, psychology, critique and politics.
> What I'm good at: Theories, deep thinking, critical thinking, understanding how people and things work and why, and building systems.
> ...


Interior design seems to me to include all of those:
You need a theory of the overall design of a space to design it and ensure consistency from one item to the next.
Deep thinking about the significance of what you're putting into someone's space (k, this is pretty optional).
Critical thinking in figuring out what will work for a client and then finding a way to implement it.
Understanding how and why someone works will help you do better design for them.
When you're making a design, you're designing a system of decoration and function.

And yes, becoming a research/reference/official librarian usually requires a masters in library science. But there are many other jobs at libraries that don't require it.


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## Vic (Dec 4, 2010)

'Quick and dirty' and 'career' don't fit.

You can make some quick and dirty money.

You can invest some time learning and putting that knowledge into practice in whatever field you prefer while you keep a steady paycheck.


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## bluekitdon (Dec 19, 2012)

Powerhouse said:


> I've narrowed down to 3 possibilities:
> 1. Interior designer
> 2. Politician
> 3. Psychology researcher (or any kind of researcher not involved with biology).


I think this is a good list. I would look at your local paper or Find Jobs. Build a Better Career. Find Your Calling. | Monster.com to see what people are asking for as far as requirements for these types of jobs. Might try to apply for some as well, many places provide training as part of the benefits package but you'll usually need to get in on the ground floor no matter where you start. Your business degree should be looked on favorably as many hiring decisions are made based on not what your current state is, but what your potential is likely to be...you may be looked upon as someone that could eventually become a leader in the organization. If you can't get anywhere by just applying you may need to settle for working in your minimum wage job while you build credentials that people are looking for, or try for an internship where you can get a little experience.

Here's a good site for further evaluating the potential upside on salaries and career opportunities.
Home : Occupational Outlook Handbook : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

bollocks said:


> With gov't jobs, federal to municipal, it's more about getting your foot in the door. Where I live, data entry clerks start at ~40k per year. The job may be a dead end for people who only have a high school education, but those with degrees have almost unlimited number of options to branch out and move on to more professional type positions that relate to their degree. The biggest factor is having access to internal postings, if you're qualified you won't have to compete with the public.


I'll take a look at the opportunities from the government jobs. By the way, which country are you referring to? The situation may vary from each country.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

William I am said:


> Interior design seems to me to include all of those:
> You need a theory of the overall design of a space to design it and ensure consistency from one item to the next.
> Deep thinking about the significance of what you're putting into someone's space (k, this is pretty optional).
> Critical thinking in figuring out what will work for a client and then finding a way to implement it.
> ...


I guess I can work at a different level in an interior designing firm, then save up money to study a diploma in interior designing before I can be hired as one.

I've looked at the job postings from the national library board in my place, and the requirements sure are stringent! 3-5 years relevant experience, and a diploma in library science is the minimum expected. No wonder those job postings have been there for the last year or so.


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## Aquamarine (Jul 24, 2011)

Vic said:


> 'Quick and dirty' and 'career' don't fit.
> 
> You can make some quick and dirty money.
> 
> You can invest some time learning and putting that knowledge into practice in whatever field you prefer while you keep a steady paycheck.


Well, as per your suggestion, I can make quick and dirty money while preparing myself for a career switch. It can be a stepping stone, at least.


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