#Unemployed #CareerChange #BackToSchool
Hey everyone, I wanted to throw this out there and get some advice. 🤔
So, I’ve been unemployed for two years now and I’m feeling pretty stuck. I have a degree in Art History, but it hasn’t really opened any doors for me career-wise. I left my last job due to toxic coworkers and a bad work environment, and I’ve been struggling to find another job ever since.
I’ve been thinking about going back to school as a last resort to jumpstart my career. I’m considering studying accounting, teaching, or social work. Accounting seems like a good fit for me, but I’m worried about my math skills and age playing a factor in getting hired.
Do you think going back to school at 32 is a good idea? Would it be worth it for me to pursue a new career path?
Possible Solutions:
– Look into online courses or community college options for flexibility and affordability
– Consider networking with professionals in the fields you’re interested in for advice and guidance
What are your thoughts? Any suggestions or personal experiences to share? Let’s chat! 💬 #CareerAdvice #NewBeginnings #JobSearch
There’s a lot more going on here that’s not being said..
How are you surviving for 2 years with no job is just one of them.
Why in the world would you even entertain teaching, social work, or any “helping profession” if you hate working with the public? Don’t even bother going down that road.
Accounting definitely sounds like the best bet for you tbh. Yes, there’s some math, but most of it is arithmetic.
Based on your interests I would say work towards bookkeeping and from there build towards becoming an accountant/CPA.
I went sociology > accounting.
I spent 2 years working minimum wage jobs before switching over to accounting.
8 years after graduating with my MSA, I’m accepting a job offer to be a corporate controller of a middle market company. If I hadn’t chosen accounting, being from a poor family, I might very well have wound up homeless based on just a number of the medical and family emergencies I’ve had while working.
So, it definitely worked out for me.
As for adding and subtracting…excel does all that for you.. The value in an accountant is the formulas they can write to get excel to do math for them, and not their actual math skills.
Know your limitations. I would forget going back to college, you may not even pass the upper division courses on Accounting. Then it would be a waste of money and you’d have big student loans and no degree. But on the other hand d you already have experience in accounting. Truly assess yourself, can you handle tough accounting classes? And 4-5 years of it?
If not, how bout doing something easy that doesn’t take a lot of time to get trained in. Like hair dresser. One of the fastest growing jobs in USA.
Or truck driver? If you go long-haul then it’ll be your apartment too, saving you money.
Both jobs pay way more than Walmart will.
Get some therapy. The issue is not your education or experience, the issue is your approach to life and work.
Work as a tradesman
What did you think was going to happen when you got an art history degree? Did you research what job titles to look for and the availability of those jobs? You got a shit ass degree and didn’t do research on where that job would take you. Whatever you choose to do research before pooring a bunch of money into it.
Since you have a degree, you should look into sales jobs that require a degree, like pharmaceutical sales.
My brother in-law was in the same boat as you (around the same age as well). He sells prenatal medicine now, and makes close to 200k/yr
Good luck to you my friend
You sound incredibly entitled. Prob one reason your not getting hired. Walmart is one of the biggest employers in the US but you somehow think your above Walmart? Walmart is a great option for someone with no marketable skills like yourself especially while working at something else and not wanting a completely empty resume
Troll post! It was entertaining Op
Try your luck teaching English abroad, Taiwan for example. Degree and clean police record can get you a nice cozy job, new life and even chance to get your masters. Also the expat life it’s awesome., really friendly locals, welcoming expat groups. You can give it a try for a year. A lot of people stay longer or for good.
How do you survive?
> Unfortunately that spelled the end of my career and because I didn’t have a “good enough” reason for quitting getting another decent job has been impossible
Uh, what are you talking about? You can quit any job for any reason you want. The only thing I can think of is you getting interviews and telling them “Yeah, I quit because management and my coworkers were shitty”. Which isn’t a matter of your actual reasoning, but just how you come across. You never say something bad about previous employers during an interview, no matter how true it is, because it makes you look bad and like you’d be bad mouthing the future employer in a couple of years.
You can get your Security Guard license and work as a Security Guard for the time being until you find something you like.
Before going into teaching, try being a substitute. Pretty much anyone with a degree can be a substitute. That way, you can gauge if teaching is for you. Teaching really takes a very special type of person nowadays.
Get hired at Amazon and use career choice.
any accounting you’d be in excel/sheets, I’m not the best at math and my job requires a decent amount – especially converting feet to inches. Was hard at first and I used a calculator for literally everything but now a year later I can do 90% of it in my head. Long story short you wouldn’t need to be good at math, but good at *USING* math – something a degree in accounting would likely give you
Really enjoyed this post. Something about the OP’s honesty that was refreshing. I don’t think this is a troll post. I think most people are like this (well, without the trust fund). I know I am. I’d hate to work at Walmart too.
OP try for a government job. Maybe study for the United States Foreign Service exam.
Look for government work. Also if you already have a degree you might not need to go back to school full time to teach, some school districts (not sure about your state obviously )let you teach while you get certificate since you already have your bachelor’s.
Look on Indeed. Search buzzwords that interest you. You’d be surprised how many jobs are out there that seem like they would require a degree but don’t.
you seem to think you are too good for retail work. maybe because you’ve been living off a trust fund? idk.
but you need to take a step back and realize that yes, no matter what career you do pick, you are in your 30s and you WILL be starting with the grunt work. if you aren’t “hungry” at all, you probably won’t amount to much no matter where you land.
im just not sure if you seem defeated or if you feel like you deserve better than the grunt work of low wage or starting positions… or both.
you can start now and still have a good career. but if you aren’t willing to put up with starting positions and some workplace politics, then you will not.
Uhh you’re applying for entry level work in your 30s because you’ve put yourself into the entry level work category in your 30s. You need to change your outlook and the way you view life. You aren’t living a life based in reality.
After reading this post and your responses I sincerely doubt anything bad you have to say about any job. This is all on you.
Military
there’s plenty of work in art history specifically as curators; you may need to move to the location for said job prospects, however.
Otherwise, as many have said, I think accounting would be a solid field to go into. No company in their right mind would entrust chatGPT to do that for them xD; at least not without a human to verify everything before it’s approved.
Honestly, it sounds tough, but going back to school could open up new doors for you. Accounting seems like a practical choice if you enjoy that kind of work. Don’t underestimate yourself—age doesn’t define your ability to learn. It’s worth exploring your options and finding something that aligns with your skills and interests.
You need to stop acting like work is beneath you.
Additional school is not going to help, unless there are specific credentials you need for a specific pursuit.
You seem to have no skill set, a shit attitude, and a history of being unreliable.
You haven’t worked in 2 years. I’m assuming your parents are funding your lifestyle.
Whoever is keeping a roof over your head and food in your belly is enabling your behavior.
You need to grow up and get ANY job. ANY. It’s probably not going to be something you love. Tough shit. You need to establish a track record of at least a half decent attitude and make a non-zero amount of money.
More college ain’t fixing the mess you’re in.
Hey don’t feel bad, I’m older than you and in the same boat. 32 is young enough to pivot, you’ve still got a lot of years til retirement.
I *think* one of the hardest parts is making the decision and sticking to it. It’s easy to stay spiraling.
Easier said than done. Wish you the best of luck.
I realized my jobs weren’t going anywhere when I was 32. While doing some soul-searching about my next path the pandemic hit, I got furloughed and that’s when I enrolled in a community college program. I never did more than 9 credits, I went to therapy and got sober through all of it.
I’m now 38, I just started working my first career job and I’m making more money than I ever had before. I’ve never compared myself to others or worried about being too old. I took advantage of all the opportunities I had to success or get help, I showed up and I worked really hard. It wasn’t a linear process — I failed a lot — but I persisted.
Follow your heart and do what’s right for you. Dont worry about anyone else! And remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint!
I’m 33 and recently got a second degree. It didn’t help. I am still unemployed