Job searching...

jellyroll

themeinside said:

Thanks all- just had yet another rejection and was rather deflated earlier. I've graduated recently, and have been applying to lots of things in my degree field (history), but I've been casting the net wider and wider for months. Still nothing.

As someone who recruits from time to time, my thoughts:

A history degree gives you 2 things -  a great selling point and a basis for interview conversation....my perspective would be that studying history can  help develop insight into human behavior, giving you some insight into how to work with others. Sell these insights into human behaviour! Also, history teaches one about seeing the" big picture" and gives us a sense of how we got to where we are . You're interested in the actions people take, why they take them and the consequences of those actions! Now, sell yourself as a "people person"!

Good luck!

Troy

Good luck, I've been there before and its not a good place to be. One thing I learnt was to keep contacting agency's so that your name pops into their head when a new opening becomes available. My current role the agency contacted myself direct even though I wasn't actively looking for a job, so it does work :-)

Chalky

CV has to be a copy of the job advert with just enough difference to not look like a straight copy. Whatever they've asked for, make your CV show you've done it.  The interview is more important than the facts!

NPP

jellyroll said:

themeinside said:

Thanks all- just had yet another rejection and was rather deflated earlier. I've graduated recently, and have been applying to lots of things in my degree field (history), but I've been casting the net wider and wider for months. Still nothing.

As someone who recruits from time to time, my thoughts:

A history degree gives you 2 things -  a great selling point and a basis for interview conversation....my perspective would be that studying history can  help develop insight into human behavior, giving you some insight into how to work with others. Sell these insights into human behaviour! Also, history teaches one about seeing the" big picture" and gives us a sense of how we got to where we are . You're interested in the actions people take, why they take them and the consequences of those actions! Now, sell yourself as a "people person"!

Good luck!

this is good advice for a history graduate who wants to move into a more generalist job - provided this person is indeed a 'people person', as many historians are anything but. 

Looking for generalist roles is probably your best bet with a BA. Anything in the academic world requires the slog through MA and PhD before you can even begin to apply for jobs you won't get. To pull this off you not only have to be very good and very committed, you also have to want it enough to put up with the obvious drawbacks. Archives and museums are not exactly flush with money these days and there'll always be 10 people with MAs and PhDs ahead of you unless you have specific skills or experience.

So maybe look at a way to acquire such skills and experience while being paid, in events management, fundraising, marketing?