Straight out of college? Here’s how to turn your degree into a job

There you are, the day of your graduation ceremony, celebrating as though tomorrow isn’t the first day of unemployment. And, before you know it, you’re out of college, wide-eyed, shaking and cradling your degree like it’s the child you never wanted.

But leaving those vast halls of learning needn’t be like a scene from Apocalypse Now. Instead of falling into an unemployed rut, have a look at your degree and consider its practical applications to really make the most of it.

Here are a few of the more popular degree qualification areas and what you can do with them.

Finance

A degree in finance might seem like it has a fairly obvious through-route, but not everyone knows the numerous career strands that finance opens up for you.

With just a quick hunt through websites offering tax jobs, for instance, you could find an entirely new avenue to head down that isn’t associated with those infamous wolves of Wall Street. Besides tax jobs, a degree in finance opens up careers in brokering, banking, accounts, financial analysis and many more.

To really make the most of a qualification in finance, join it with a business degree. That way, you’ll be able to convince smaller companies that you aren’t just a number-cruncher – you also understand the concerns of their company.

Humanities

Humanities is an umbrella term comprising fields such as English, Film Studies, History, Politics, Philosophy and many more. While it’s not as direct a route into employment as, say, finance, it does offer a number of transferable skills to those willing to mould them.

With humanities, you’re looking at the world from an almost endless number of perspectives, improving your analytical and communication skills, as well as paving the way for more abstract strains of thought.

This sets you apart from those with a more technical vocation and can lead you into more creative industries like media, journalism, museum curation and any post requiring you to think outside the box on a regular basis.

Sciences

A science degree takes a long time to gain any money from. With studying taking up a large amount of your earlier years, you won’t realistically earn much from the fruits of your labour until your mid-thirties.

Despite this, science is one of the more worthy jobs on offer.

On top of rigorous research to set keen minds on edge, you could potentially uncover something earth-shattering in your experiments. From Higgs Bosons to theories of time, science has contributed more to thought in the past few centuries than any other form of culture.

Art

An art degree is a difficult one – similar to the humanities, it’s unlikely to reap an occupation directly related to your degree. Unless you’re a prolific artist whose works are selling like hotcakes, you’ll need a stable job that can sustain you. Gallery or museum curation, human resources or pretty much any job can fit well into this mould.

Provided you can balance your creative and personal life, you’ll find recruitment after college needn’t be a struggle.