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How to Change Career Paths
October 18, 2005 by Steven RothbergQuestion from Candidate:
I have been working in restaurants for a while as a general manager. At the same time I was enrolled in an MBA/Accounting program. I graduated a few months ago but have been unable to find an accounting job. No one is willing to take a chance on my education. How do I get a job in accounting? -
Are Minors Helpful?
September 27, 2005 by Steven RothbergQuestion from Candidate:
I am very lost. How exactly do minors work? I know they are an opportunity for you to learn more about something different than a major, but do you get a degree in your minor also? Does your minor show up anywhere like on your degree or would your official title be John Doe degree in Business and minor in Art? How do employers look at minors?
I’m thinking about getting a major in sociology and a minor in music. How does that sound? Is it useless to have your major and minor in two separate topics? I mean what does your minor really do? -
Candidate Scares Recruiters
September 20, 2005 by Steven RothbergQuestion from Candidate:
I have recently graduated and moved to the UK from the Netherlands. I’m actively looking for a job. I have no trouble getting invited for interviews, and I am often invited for second interviews as well. Not so long ago I have been rejected for one of the jobs I applied for on the account of that the interviewers found me “to confident of herself”. This is a reoccurring thing. My confidence and assertivity overwhelms people. I’ve heard this since nursery school. It’s not that I talk very loudly, or throw demands in people faces, I don’t jumps queues, I do not look down on people or offend people in any other way. I am just reasonably aware of things I can handle, things I need to learn, how long it will take me to learn them, what needs to be done when people start panicking etc. This means I’m mostly fairly at ease in every situation.
After hearing this from the recruitment agent that introduced me to the company I decided to tone down a bit for my next interview with a different company. I brought up my dominant personality as one of my weak points and explained that I’m aware of it and try to manage it. I thought the interview went really well, and upon leaving the HR manager confirmed this and let me know they wanted to invite me back for the second interview. After this I got a phone call from the recruitment agent, who had some feedback on the interview. She told me the HR manager, in the beginning of the interview, was actually scared of me…
I was kind of in shock to hear this. I deliberately wore a pastel cardigan, spoke in a soft voice, said thank you and please a lot, etc. I asked questions in an interested manner and tried to not sound bragging when my skills and expertise came up, but gave examples. Apparently after 15 minutes she warmed to me, and wants to see me back for second interview.
I am Dutch and therefore naturally taller then most English women and a bit heavyset as well, which will naturally contribute to me being scary. However, it apparently is mostly my personality and my way of speaking that is most frightening, as I have heard this from Dutch people as well. I hope you can give me some advice on how to overcome this problem. It didn’t bother me much during university, but now it is costing me my career. -
Choosing a Major
September 14, 2005 by Steven RothbergQuestion from Candidate:
I have an Associates degree in Health Information Management. I want to pursue my Bachelor’s degree. I am undecided on my major. I still want to maybe work in the health care field. Do you think I should major in Finance or Health Care Administration? What kind of healthcare jobs are available if I was to major in Finance? -
Finding Employment in U.S.
by Steven RothbergQuestion from Candidate:
I have a question. I am a PhD in Indo-English Poetryfrom an internationally reputed Indian university. I have also got aPost Graduate Diploma in English Language Teaching with 2.9 GPA on afive point scale. I have published 15 post-doctorate research papers onAmericakn literature of Asian Diaspora in the USA. Before legallyemigrating from India to the USA, I taught English as distinguishedCollege Lecturer in University Professor\’s Grade for more than 35years. But I have not been able to find any teaching job in the USA eventhough I can teach English language and literature from School touniversity level. I can teach all other subjects at the initial level. Ican do meaningful research work in comparative literature and culturefields.Having been the Chief Editor of my college magazine for twentyyears, I happen to have both the verstle ability and experience of writing English precisely and prolifically. But I had to run abroad toteach English in China just because there was no break for me in theUSA. What should I do to find employment in the USA? I am already 62 andunemployed in the USA for the last two years. -
Can An Entry Level Job Be Too Entry Level?
by Steven RothbergQuestion from Candidate:
I have just completed a master’s degree in anthropology (from a top tier school), and until recently I had planned to continue for my PhD. After more careful thought, I have decided not to continue in academia and I would rather move into a more marketable field, eventually moving into business analysis and consulting. I have liberal arts degrees so far in my career and a year of full-time work experience in cultural resource management.
My question is, when switching into a degree that I do not appear to be qualified for on paper, how far down the ladder should I target? A friend told me to start out as a bank teller or customer service rep, but I’m worried if I start in these jobs with no related degree, I’ll be pushing paper with little opportunity for advancement or learning new skills. Will this job downshift translate into enough experience to go back for an MBA in 2-4 years? Do I need to go back and take undergraduate finance classes to get the first job? Any advice would be appreciated.
