Want Fries With That Degree?

[GoFride]

Employers are requiring college degrees more and more, for jobs that have never needed a college education. Many companies these days won't consider hiring applicants without that degree. It doesn't seem to matter to employers what the degree is for, because that expensive education may not even be needed. It's simply being used as a screening tool. So now we've got receptionists, store clerks, office support, day care workers, you name it - thousands of dollars in debt for a college education so they could get a job somewhere, doing something. And the longer they're away from their specialized field of study, the more likely they'll be left behind and will never work in that field. Got a degree in architecture? You might wind up working as a waitress at Red Lobster, to try to pay those bills. After a year or two goes by, what are the odds that some architecture firm will hire you? It gets less likely with every passing month. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 317,000 waiters and waitresses have college degrees (over 8,000 of them have doctoral or professional degrees), along with over 80,000 bartenders, and over 18,000 parking lot attendants. All told, some 17,000,000 Americans with college degrees are doing jobs that the BLS says require less than the skill levels associated with a bachelor’s degree. There is a growing disconnect between labor market realities and the propaganda of higher education. We keep raising the educational bar (and the resulting debt) higher and higher. I just don't understand the logic of it.

[CatandDiallo]

It's the same in Canada.

It's really, really horrible. Back in the day, you graduated highschool or got a bachelor's and you were set with a career? These days? Nah.

I have a feeling I'll be stuck in retail for a long time.

[aldebono]

Yep. Now to get a career, you have to have a BS and 2 years experience in that field.

In my department, we had people with Masters applying for an OPS position (no benefits) and about $10 an hour.

[TheSnakeGuy]

It's a shame that such high requirements are necessary for such rudimentary positions. Working at PetSmart for the last year and a half brought me to the conclusion that I want to work with animals permanently. This year I will be attending The Vet Tech Institute of Houston, and I'm very excited to do so. This is a great time for such schooling since the Vet Tech field is growing very close to having a National certification be the standard requirement for employment. And for the rest of my life if I stay in the same field the school will do my job searching and wage negotiating for me.

[Raven01]

That is a lose-lose situation.
Over-qualified people tend to be unhappy with their jobs and it can show. It is unfulfilling for the employee and, the employer won't get that persons A-Game for very long.

There really does need to be more reliable labour market analysis available for kids just starting college or university. Atleast give them good data to make choices based on. Flooding a market with people qualified for something that offers little to no employment prospects helps no one at all.

[Artemille]

More and more do I count myself lucky that my husband and I are doing alright for two 24-year olds with only some college and no degrees. My job doesn't really seem to use it as a filter. They hire anyone but have a quick turnaround for people that don't cut it. It doesn't pay much more than most retail places, but it's good enough for now.

For my husband, it seems that the world of computer science government contracting doesn't really care about degrees. Displaying practical knowledge of programming languages is good enough, and a lot of the degree-holders actually know the least and don't fare well. He's been jumping from contract to contract since high school, and they're now paying for part time college that will eventually get him a big raise for doing the exact same job. Once that happens, then I'm going back for biology; or staying home and making babies if finances agree...

[sorraia]

My husband is experiencing the opposite effect right now. He's been looking for a job for the last 4 months. He has a degree, 4 years as an Army officer and is a veteran (tax break for companies that hire him!). He's continually being denied because he's "over qualified".

[AngelOtter]

I'm really worried about getting a job, I'll have a bachelor of science with a double major in Marine Biology and Captive wildlife by the end of this year, but the field is so competitive I almost have to go to graduate school to get anything above being a lower zoo employee. Who knew it took so much schooling to be qualified to pick up poop!
Seriously though, $40,000 in debt and who knows how long it will take me to get a good job in my field. My boyfriend is a bartender who took a 6 week coarse and now makes more money an hour then I will at an entry level job.

[satomi325]

He's continually being denied because he's "over qualified".

That's been happening to me and I hate it.
The 'higher' stuff won't hire me because I don't have the right qualifications, yet the 'lower' stuff won't hire me because I'm over qualified.

[sorraia]

That's been happening to me and I hate it.
The 'higher' stuff won't hire me because I don't have the right qualifications, yet the 'lower' stuff won't hire me because I'm over qualified.

Isn't it awful?! The latest was an entry-level type position as gate guard. He's "over qualified", but they'll have openings for other jobs he'll be better suited at "soon"! However, instead of hiring him for the gate guard position (he needs a job NOW), and then moving him up later, they are waiting for one of those other positions.... He needs a job NOW. He's going to keep looking, if they wanted him that bad they would have hired him already.