CHALLENGER, GRAY & CHRISTMAS, INC



The Job Hunt

What To Do With Your Liberal Art Degree

By James E. Challenger, President

Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

The job market is expected to be better for this year’s graduates with degrees in business, engineering and computer science rather than in the liberal arts. However, what if you are among the roughly 54,000 graduates with a degree in English, the 44,000 who have liberal arts degree or the more than 150,000 who studied social sciences and history?

Workplace authorities and hiring managers around the country realize that ample job opportunities exist for non-business, non-technical degree holders.

Helping to increase the number of opportunities for these graduates is a growing number of companies that are placing a higher priority on soft skills, demonstrated by the ability to communicate ideas, think critically and respond positively to feedback.

Reflecting the shift toward a more global and diverse business environment, soft skills are becoming even more critical for succeeding in complex environments where managers must evaluate and organize information, identify risks and gaps, and effectively direct their diverse staffs.

Employers know that if they find a worker with a solid foundation of soft skills, he or she can be taught the more technical aspects of the job. Soft skills, on the other hand, are much more difficult to teach.

As new graduates enter the job market, many will be unprepared for the new demands of employers. Despite increased hiring needs, a recent study from the Association of Graduate Recruiters found that more than four out of ten employers will struggle to fill graduate vacancies this year because many university graduates lack the right “soft skills” for the job.

A recent study of Fortune 500 oil companies and retail associations found that the “must haves” for recruiters are such softer skills as enthusiasm, drive, creativity, critical thinking, initiative, and oral communication.

Recruiters are looking for how well you will be able to establish a rapport with coworkers, and they are looking for confident, assertive, and concise speakers. Demonstrating leadership skills and the ability to construct dynamic teams are more important now then ever to proving your long-term value.

The biggest challenge for those graduating with concentrations in liberal arts, history, English or social sciences is overcoming their own misperceptions and underestimates about the value of their degrees and the demand for their talents.

These graduates may, in fact, be better positioned for job search success because they can cast a much wider net in this job market. English majors, for example, may have entered the degree program to become teachers or writers, but other career paths include journalism, publishing and technical writing.

Additionally, their ability to write, analyze material, communicate effectively, and solve problems makes them well suited for careers in program management, marketing, public relations, social work, government work, non-profit organizations, and financial services.

History majors also have a wide variety of opportunities beyond what some might consider the traditional career path of teaching or working in a museum. Many history majors go on to careers as researchers, emphasizing their skills in evaluating and analyzing documentary evidence. These skills are also relevant to policy advisors and policy analysts.

Because history majors must learn to deal with documents, many enter careers as information managers. In the business world, their skills can be applied in banking, insurance, and stock analysis. Historians also learn how to write persuasively, giving them an edge in advertising, communications media, and marketing.

The more technical and specialized your degree is, the narrower your field of opportunities. This is fine when the job market for these areas is strong, but when it is not, these individuals can have a very difficult time. Those with degrees in liberal arts, history, English, etc., may be better able to move and adapt as conditions change.

The following is a list of job ideas for non-specified degree holders:

NON-BUSINESS, NON-TECHNICAL DEGREE HOLDERS

HAVE MANY OPTIONS

Following are various academic degrees accompanied by just some of the alternative career paths one might pursue:

English

Technical Writing

Publishing

Marketing

Public Relations

Journalism

Non-Profit Administration

Advertising

History

Researcher

Information Analysis

Journalism

Information Management

Marketing

Insurance

Liberal Arts

Sales

Marketing

Consulting

Human Resources

Political Science

Public Relations

Marketing

Information Analysis

Consulting

Sociology

Non-Profit Administration

Insurance

Public Relations

Advertising

Marketing

Banking

Sales

Human Resources

Source: Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

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James E. Challenger, president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., is in his fourth decade of job search counseling after pioneering outplacement as an employer-paid benefit. He has authored three books, including Secrets of the Job Hunt and his most recent Job-Hunting Success for Mid-Career Professionals.

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