The Liberal Arts Degree
Whether it’s music, fashion, film or any of the other humanities, you might be thinking to yourself, “What the heck can I do with a Fashion Degree in the middle of nowhere?” Well, since most of the arts and humanities deal with the creative side of our world, then maybe you need to use it and get creative with it! Liberal arts are versatile but you may need to pick up a technical skill to help solidify your resume.
Take a marketing class or a course that can teach you the basics of coding and you could nail a job as a graphic designer or work for an advertising agency. Hit up a nonprofit and see if they would let you volunteer your new skills to help beef up that experience and you could really have something to tide you over until you begin your film career as the next James Cameron.
There are so many ways you can use your degree if you just think outside of that box. If you truly want to use that amazing degree you worked so hard for, you may not always be doing what you initially set out to do. But that doesn’t mean you won’t be successful! The path to success looks different for everyone, but here are a few more tips to make sure your big, beautiful brain gets its due:
- Know what you DON’T want to do. If you have a degree in in the social sciences but can’t stand the thought of data entry or probability and statistics (yuck!), make sure that your job search doesn’t include those tasks.
- Concentrate on the “roles and responsibilities” section of the position description instead of the “required qualifications.” If your education gives you the skills to perform the required tasks, then be creative in your cover letter by leveraging those transferrable skills.
- Ask to shadow someone who is doing a job you might be interested in. There’s a lot to be said about a potential hire who wants to get a feel for a certain position. On one hand, you’ll be able to see if the position is something you could be successful at. On the other hand, it shows great initiative on your part for the hiring manager. At the very least you’ll be able to network with others in the area and in that line of work.
