Can An Entry Level Job Be Too Entry Level?
Question 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.
I think you need to give a lot more credit to your liberal-arts education. A liberal-arts degree is a badge of honor! Sought out by many employers, it's a highly versatile ticket to a wide range of jobs. Few jobs are outside the reach of a liberal-arts grad. It's true that I'm biased because I am a card-carrying liberal-arts grad myself. But even if you don't believe me, it's to your advantage to believe in your degree. The more you believe in the great choice of major you made, the better you will be able to market yourself to employers.
Sometimes liberal-arts majors struggle a bit more than other majors when launching their careers, but the evidence shows that they tend to advance farther and be more sought out by CEOs for high-level jobs than non-liberal-arts grads. Writer Todd Larson quotes the director of Stanford University's MBA program as saying his program doesn't prefer applicants who had business as an undergraduate major; instead, liberal-arts majors are among the program's preferred applicants.
While the specialized skills that come with other majors may seem to be an advantage, the universality of liberal-arts skills truly is your ace in the hole because you are not limited by a specialization. Employers can train new hires in specialized skills on the job. But they can't train workers to have the critical-thinking skills, problem-solving skills, and the capacity for lifelong learning that today's organizations require. Experts say that most people will change careers five to seven times in a lifetime; thus, specialized skills may be of limited value in the long run, while the depth and breadth of liberal-arts skills are limitless. "Well-rounded" is a modifier frequently applied to liberal-arts grads. Liberal-arts grads can see the "big picture."
You may want to read more in my article, Ten Ways to Market Your Liberal Arts Degree, at http://www.quintcareers.com/marketing_liberal-arts_degrees.html.
Before jumping in, I'd recommend you research the fields you are most interested in. Instead of taking a job and wondering if it will get you where you want to go, find out for sure. Use your undergraduate and graduate alumni networks to seek out contacts that currently work in consulting. Email friends and family and ask if they know anyone in those fields. Then hold several informational interviews where you ask questions of these contacts to learn about their paths to success, what they would recommend you do and what they like and don't like about their roles. Don't try to sell yourself or get a job out of these meetings, just use them to get as much information as you can to begin to make good, informed decisions. If you're unable to decide what to do next seek out the information that will help you decide!
You've done a lot of work and it sounds as though the work is meritorious. Don't short-change yourself by vying for something extraordinarily below your abilities. The more you seek out and hold onto entry-level positions that are below your abilities, the more you discount and discredit yourself to others. Your salary history will also reflect poorly on your future endeavors. A low salary now will say you are willing to take any paltry sum.
There are many open job orders and solicitations for positions within the abilities that you have trained to do. Seek out those opportunities. Make certain your resume highlights your abilities in these areas so that you're not fighting a battle to be accepted. Make certain your cover letter highlights the lateral skills that you bring to the table.
May all your Entrances be through the doors of success!
Hmm - an MA in anthro bolstered by a liberal arts degree. You know what I'm thinking may be a good place for you? Darn near anywhere...
For instance, as Marketing organizations focus more on 1-to-1 strategies, they'll need more folks like you who understand the socio-business perspective.
Finish the Ph.D. and see how fast marketing organizations/departments look for you. Tell your friend that if you shoot for the stars, you'll probably end up there; shoot for the craters and you'l probably end up there too.