higher education and such

Jiro said:
yep! Public Administration = a very employable field but hard (still better than polysci major). Together with PolySci... it'll make your background stands out from "typical background". Most important is to rack up internship experience and part-time job experience relating to this.

Most end up in government sector but most requires Master's and license (such as Professional Engineer). Public Administration - Master Degree program at my work (a small private university) is one of the most popular majors in here. Majority of these students are in government jobs - mostly for NYC and Homeland Security.
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So if I was to do a double major degree program in Public Administration and Political Science, then it would look pretty good? I would probably want to go out and work for a while and if I didn't like where I was, I would consider law school.

Another question... are Public Administration and Public Affairs and Policy Management pretty much the same thing? The reason I am asking is because I notice that the university I want to go to doesn't offer Public Administration, but Public Affairs and Policy Management. The other university in the area offers Public Administration and Political Science but I'm not sure if I want to go there because it is required that you do some courses in French.
 
Jiro, funny that you mention it as my last long-term job was writing product descriptions and uploading photos for an online shop!

I'm the only one here who doesn't subscribe to 'major in something employable'- (except sallylou who said follow your heart- I agree!) I went to uni because I loved my subjects- if I wanted a job when I was 18 I would have got one. But I'm not under the illusion (anymore!) that my degree automatically entitles me to well-paying jobs- I think experience is more important, at least in the area where I live it seems to be.

I also noticed that everyone is discussing subjects to study at uni and the job prospects thereof- my opinion/advice to the OP is that it's your humongous loan, so you really should study what you enjoy. Don't expect it to equal a job, though: for me, job experience or hands-on volunteering etc equals a job.

My first impression of the OP's post it's not really about what jobs he can get with a Masters in Maths, or a BSc in Maths, but about what to do now the expensive degree has not got you the sort of job you want. I apologise if I'm misinterpreting, and I don't mean to sound harsh in any way. I just feel a concern that getting another loan and degree because you haven't found the sort of job you want is rather extreme, but again I don't know if the OP has always wanted another degree, I'm just speculating.

Incidentally- I'm the only English poster so far- perhaps my opinion is reflective of differences in society between the US and UK- or maybe I'm just bitter because I never had a graduate job and I'm poor ;-)
 
Loghead said:
So if I was to do a double major degree program in Public Administration and Political Science, then it would look pretty good? I would probably want to go out and work for a while and if I didn't like where I was, I would consider law school.
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I would like to say yes but I cannot answer that for you. I can simply tell you to look for employable field.. like Public Administration. Will you get a job after you graduate? I surely hope so! If you are pretty good in this Public Administration major along with work experience, I believe you will do pretty good in life.

Mind you - political science is a hard major. It requires tons of readings and writing. So does Public Administration. If you're up to that task, go for it!

because I'm almost 28 years old and in that age - you see a lot of thing, hear a lot of thing, know a lot of thing... a life experience. This is, of course, subjective. It is up to you to take it with a grain of salt or not. :)

Loghead said:
Another question... are Public Administration and Public Affairs and Policy Management pretty much the same thing? The reason I am asking is because I notice that the university I want to go to doesn't offer Public Administration, but Public Affairs and Policy Management. The other university in the area offers Public Administration and Political Science but I'm not sure if I want to go there because it is required that you do some courses in French.
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You'll have to ask your academic adviser about it. I'm not sure but I think public administration at state university (usually big and reputable one) is actually better. :dunno:
 
melissa said:
Jiro, funny that you mention it as my last long-term job was writing product descriptions and uploading photos for an online shop!

I'm the only one here who doesn't subscribe to 'major in something employable'- (except sallylou who said follow your heart- I agree!) I went to uni because I loved my subjects- if I wanted a job when I was 18 I would have got one. But I'm not under the illusion (anymore!) that my degree automatically entitles me to well-paying jobs- I think experience is more important, at least in the area where I live it seems to be.

I also noticed that everyone is discussing subjects to study at uni and the job prospects thereof- my opinion/advice to the OP is that it's your humongous loan, so you really should study what you enjoy. Don't expect it to equal a job, though: for me, job experience or hands-on volunteering etc equals a job.

My first impression of the OP's post it's not really about what jobs he can get with a Masters in Maths, or a BSc in Maths, but about what to do now the expensive degree has not got you the sort of job you want. I apologise if I'm misinterpreting, and I don't mean to sound harsh in any way. I just feel a concern that getting another loan and degree because you haven't found the sort of job you want is rather extreme, but again I don't know if the OP has always wanted another degree, I'm just speculating.

Incidentally- I'm the only English poster so far- perhaps my opinion is reflective of differences in society between the US and UK- or maybe I'm just bitter because I never had a graduate job and I'm poor ;-)
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:)

yep - it's pretty much YMMV.
 
Melissa, attitudes in the U.S. are changing because of the economy. It used to be that everyone wanted to major in business and expected to get a job making lots of money straight out of college. People are now questioning the wisdom of that. More people are starting out in community college if they don't know what they want to do. Everyone has to take the same basic classes and living with parents longer while commuting to these classes makes sense.

I don't think that it's ever a good idea to choose a major based on a particular job. That job may not even exist later. When I was in college, the hot major was computer science and now most of those jobs have been off shored or filled with visa workers. There are very talented people who have been out of work for a long time.

No job is a great job if you don't like it no matter how much it pays. It also depends on your goals and values. Do you want to work on weekends every weekend? Some jobs require this. Some jobs require extensive travel. If you want family life, these jobs are a bad fit. I have kids, so I don't want these kind of jobs. Maybe I'm not successful in monetary terms but my primary goal is to rear my kids. I define success on my own terms. If you want to work in nonprofits, you'll get paid less but you may be happier doing what you consider fulfilling and worthwhile.

Finally, consider being entrepreneurial. My dog sitter used to have a corporate job and now she has her own pet sitting business. She takes her dog around to her clients' homes and walks dogs. She loves her job. It takes a while to build up enough clients to make a living, but it gives the business owner a lot of freedom.

Take career advice with a grain of salt. No one knows what will happen in the future. I believe in following your heart and being happy at the end of the day because you did.
 
sallylou said:
Melissa, attitudes in the U.S. are changing because of the economy. It used to be that everyone wanted to major in business and expected to get a job making lots of money straight out of college. People are now questioning the wisdom of that. More people are starting out in community college if they don't know what they want to do. Everyone has to take the same basic classes and living with parents longer while commuting to these classes makes sense.

I don't think that it's ever a good idea to choose a major based on a particular job. That job may not even exist later. When I was in college, the hot major was computer science and now most of those jobs have been off shored or filled with visa workers. There are very talented people who have been out of work for a long time.

No job is a great job if you don't like it no matter how much it pays. It also depends on your goals and values. Do you want to work on weekends every weekend? Some jobs require this. Some jobs require extensive travel. If you want family life, these jobs are a bad fit. I have kids, so I don't want these kind of jobs. Maybe I'm not successful in monetary terms but my primary goal is to rear my kids. I define success on my own terms. If you want to work in nonprofits, you'll get paid less but you may be happier doing what you consider fulfilling and worthwhile.

Finally, consider being entrepreneurial. My dog sitter used to have a corporate job and now she has her own pet sitting business. She takes her dog around to her clients' homes and walks dogs. She loves her job. It takes a while to build up enough clients to make a living, but it gives the business owner a lot of freedom.

Take career advice with a grain of salt. No one knows what will happen in the future. I believe in following your heart and being happy at the end of the day because you did.
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yep. your career advice and my career advice are opposite of each other. It is up to one to decide on it but it largely depends on one's ability and diligence to pursue one's interest.

You can pick the major based on job trend but most importantly - make yourself more distinctive than others! Don't position yourself to a "robotic" work lifestyle where there is no chance of promotion or career growth.
 
It is very hard these days. It used to be back in the old days that getting a college degree would almost guarantee anyone a job but now, it seems like a BA or even a MA isnt enough.
 
Well, I don't have Master's or PhD but I can say, took me long time to figure out what to major in in college and it actually was a matter to me of, what could I succeed in, as a major? And what was I interested in at time? What job afterward was a part of it, but not the only part, maybe not even THE part. Looking back on it, maybe some career counseling would have helped me.....I had social service jobs the first couple of years out of college but moved away from that. One thing to consider is to meet with people who have same degree and see what they're doing.... is there some kind of recent post-college mentoring program where maybe people who have graduated in the last couple of years in your field come back and have discussion w/seniors or new graduates? I think advice may also depend on individual geographical location and industries in the area, as well as degree of flexibility to re-locate. And I do agree that in this day, thinking "outside the box" may be very significant too, because things change so rapidly and even if one gets a job, one does not know what will happen to that job.
 
Loghead said:
PolySci is one of those majors that you have to go to law school/teacher's college for if you want a chance of getting a job, right?
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I earned my BS degree in political science (I even won that year's "Political Science Major Award"). I never worked a day in that field. My minor was religion. I took a couple of semesters in a second major for computer science (BASIC, COBOL, FORTRAN, and network development). Then I went for an associate degree in interpreting. That turned out to be the field that I now love and work in. :)
 
Jiro said:
...Mind you - political science is a hard major. It requires tons of readings and writing....
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That's a fact. We never had multiple choice or true/false tests. Everything was essay tests. No open books. Lots of research papers (pre-internet days), field work, and interviewing. When you gave an answer in class, you better have a citation to back up your answer. :lol:
 
Reba said:
I earned my BS degree in political science (I even won that year's "Political Science Major Award"). I never worked a day in that field. My minor was religion. I took a couple of semesters in a second major for computer science (BASIC, COBOL, FORTRAN, and network development). Then I went for an associate degree in interpreting. That turned out to be the field that I now love and work in. :)
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see bold above - what was the reason for that?
 
Jiro said:
see bold above - what was the reason for that?
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I never found a job that required that major. I worked but not in a political science related job.

At the time, I had intended to continue on to law school. But there were no colleges in my area that offered law degrees, and I didn't want to leave behind my daughter and my husband (that's why I had transferred from active duty Navy to Naval Reserve in the first place).
 
Reba, I don't blame you for not leaving your family. I was still single. It would have been too hard with a family.

A job is a job. Family is everything.
 
Reba said:
I never found a job that required that major. I worked but not in a political science related job.

At the time, I had intended to continue on to law school. But there were no colleges in my area that offered law degrees, and I didn't want to leave behind my daughter and my husband (that's why I had transferred from active duty Navy to Naval Reserve in the first place).
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ah-ha. :ty:

despite of that, at least you ended up in job that you love and enjoy very much :ily:
 
sallylou said:
Reba, I don't blame you for not leaving your family. I was still single. It would have been too hard with a family.

A job is a job. Family is everything.
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Right you are. :P
 
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