#DegreeDilemma #CareerChallenges #NoDegreeNoProblem
Hey everyone! Can we talk about the struggle of trying to break into a career field without a degree? 🤔 It can feel like hitting a wall when job listings say a Bachelor’s degree is preferred, but not required. Has anyone else been in this position?
I recently heard from someone who had to leave college to focus on their family business, only to find themselves lost in their career path years later when the business closed. They have extensive experience in marketing, video production, and sales, but keep getting rejected for entry-level positions without a degree.
Here are some possible solutions that might help in such situations:
– Consider getting certifications or taking online courses to strengthen your skills.
– Network with professionals in your desired field to gain insights and potentially find opportunities.
– Showcase your experience and skills through a strong portfolio or personal projects.
– Don’t give up on creating your own opportunities by starting your own business or freelance work. 🚀
Have you been through a similar challenge or have any advice to share? Let’s help each other navigate this tough situation and find our way to success! 💪 #CareerAdvice #NoDegreeNoProblem
I have a degree and am still getting rejected from jobs. Yes it helps, but unfortunately I think the job market is just tough for everyone in general. A family member of mine who doesn’t have a degree was laid off just accepted a job offer and was looking for 3 months. You’ll find something eventually!
Just put the college that you went to on your resume anyway. I dropped out of college and that’s how I got started in my career. Just don’t volunteer that you dropped out, you will almost never be asked. If you are asked to provide transcripts during a pre-hire background check then you can let HR know your situation.
After a while, it won’t matter because education requirements usually are satisfied by work history equivalent. After a few years you’ll meet the education requirements with work history and it won’t matter.
No degree, but job here
I knew I never wanted to put mysekd in fucktons of debt for something that may only land a barely entry level job anyway
As a tradesman, I don’t have these issues. I make $45/hr doing high rigging for the biggest events in the world. It’s not like I knew anyone in the industry or had any outside connections. I literally started 6 years ago pushing boxes and gear on and off trucks. As you seem to be a video tech, check out IATSE in your area, and try getting in with that. I know several guys who do the video feeds for major league teams. (Las Vegas Aces, and Vegas Golden Knights) They literally started with getting on the rolls, and got called up for shifts. There’s tons of amazing roles out there for what you posted as your skillset. Look into it.
edit: I’m currently 37, so you’re not behind or anything.
Start your own business . Go door to door to small businesses offering your marketing services .
To be fair, there are a lot of STEM majors that are having issues finding a job right now.
From an employer’s stand point, not having that degree implies that you don’t finish what you start. Who wants to hire that guy? Go finish the degree so you can complain about minimum wage jobs requiring a degree like the rest of us.
I have a degree and am still underpaid. Don’t think that having a degree automatically equates to high income.
Rn everything isn’t a standard really but when we constantly get rejected or even worse not hear anything we go hard on ourselves like oh I don’t have a degree then I’m being rejected or the I don’t have experience or the I have experience but no degree then we saw hiring managers they are like it’s your character or personality that separate you it all doesn’t make any sense cause we are not being allowed to have a chance it’s such hard times for the mental health to try to figure things out and now the final thing ppl will say to you networking lol
Sometimes folks get lucky…like myself, I’m a chemist with no chemistry degree because I learned everything I needed to know for a lab I worked at once and just managed to land a position with chemist in the job title. I’ve been in that industry now for 10 years and have never taken a single Chem class outside of high school and early college.
Like others have said in this thread, times have changed and a degree no longer guarantees a high-paying job (or even a job in general). It just shows that you have the baseline knowledge from a school that employers know they can trust, and from then on, it’s up to you to forge your path in terms of professional experience and expertise. Times are tough right now with a downturn in the job market which will hopefully recover soon, but in highly competitive fields like tech, finance, marketing, etc. there are so many qualified candidates that even the best won’t get always get interviews. You need to show employers, that although you don’t have a degree, you can still be valuable to them!
Many Employers sort candidates by degree.
First they process the master’s degree people.
Then bachelor’s associate and no degree.
The problem is that by the time they get to the non-degree people, they already found who they are looking for. They auto-reject everyone once they found the person they are hiring.
Just put one on there. They don’t verify this like they do with employment verification.
It’s time to go back to college and get your 4 years degree! There is no other way around this. A bachelor degree is the MINIMUM nowadays. Welcome to the 21st century.
Fortunately, you can earn your degree online at your own paste. You don’t need to be on campus everyday. You can start by earning an associate degree from a community college (cheaper) and then transfer to a university to finish your remaining 2 or 3 years to get your Bachelor! Times flies, so I am sure you can do it. Otherwise, you will indeed be left out.
Good luck.
Have you considered starting your own business with the experience you have? I believe you have enough to do it. You’ve got your own equipment. You’ve got the knowledge and experience.
No degree here either so I fully empathize. It’s a hell you don’t understand unless you’re also lacking a degree.
Over the many years you worked at you family’s business did you not develop any positive relationships with either clients or vendors? Don’t you have any friends among the people you bought supplies from or sold stuff to? Leverage those relationships.
For what it is worth, when I was younger I was turned away from applying for a position because I didn’t have a degree. After stewing about it, I called the hiring manager and explained why his company was idiotic because I would be a great fit in the organization. Subsequently, the hiring manager called corporate and I went thru the interview process – and was hired.
I don’t get it either. Sometimes a job requires one. Yet when I look at the tasks I find I have been doing them all in different places for years. In addition they often want this degree but offer shit pay.
People judged me for wanting to finish my degree… guess what, I can’t get a better job without it! Unless you have worked your way up at a company that will overlook not having a degree (which can be harder than it sounds!), a degree absolutely will help… however right now the job market is very rough.
Come to Canada, I have 3 degrees and make wayy less money then the guys who dropped out of high school at 16 to drive forklifts
Having a degree has done nothing for me (even a masters from usc) so you’re not alone
If you started but didn’t finish, you could say that the degree is still “in progress” and put it on your resume anyway.
I have one degree and about to complete my second and I feel completely hopeless myself. Additionally I have 8 years of running a small business, managing a team of 100+ contractors. I wish best of luck to you, myself, and everyone else struggling to find a career
No degree here and have been able to work in my field and have been approached by recruiters often. No gaps in employment and make 6 figures. Experience and certifications are the key. The other most important thing is networking. I can’t stress this enough. Most of my offers come through my network that I have built in some way. I’m in risk management btw.
I wouldn’t say it’s if you don’t have a degree. I have only my GED to my name and am in a decent paying position in an HR company. I am one of the only people I know in my team and in others that have no degree or additional education. One thing I do when I point that out in interviews is explain that I have built my experience outside of it and show them how I can transition or transform those skills fitting to that role. I definitely apply myself to a higher standard than others to prove that I am competent just as much as the next person. Doing that really has helped open doors and opportunities for me. So don’t let that deter you from thinking you are not capable. A lot of people are experiencing what you are experiencing with/without degree. I wish you nothing but success and new doors coming your way:)
This is a lazy mindset. I have no degree, been in technical industries for 20 years. The job market is fucked, degree or not.
I am rotting with a degree
If you have the equipment and the experience to do some thing, you should just go for it. Open up a webpage, open social media pages on every outlet and come up with a brand name, DBA name for a company. Make sure everything has the same name. Apply for an EIN under your business name from the IRS it’s free. Once you have the EIN go to the bank and open a business account. Register with your local state business website.
Go door-to-door if you have to and try to negotiate some marketing contracts with local businesses to help get you started. Maybe you do the first couple for free to get your name out there.
As long as you’re working as a sole proprietor (no other employees), you don’t even need to do most of the above and you can use your Social Security number as your business EIN and you won’t have to double pay taxes. Everything you do for the business will be a huge write off, including your vehicle mileage, home, utility bills and business supplies.