I don't think you can compare engineers to business majors. I agree it's tough, but the qualifications and rigors seem like apples and oranges.

 

those are wise words.

 

true. but i was a business major ( ) and still had the leverage to negotiate for a favorable salary.

the MB signing bonus was indeed for engineers.

 

Like you said it's more or less for status quo. And don't get me wrong it does feel good to say I have a degree (not to mention the fun I had along the way) but when I talk to other people (whom are my friends) that don't have a degree I feel like we're on two seperate sides of the fence. They're obviously happy they didn't go to school because they're making money now but they seem to resent people with degrees at the same time.

 

What skillset could college grads have if they have been stuck in school and haven't had a chance to develop any besides working at Best Buy or waiting tables? I agree that it must be who you know and it's a matter of them either hiring you or vouching for you with the degree as leverage.

 

I almost forgot about my internship......that may have helped if they had actual paying positions avalale an weren't downsizing at the time.

 

The first two years after graduating is always the toughest. I'm about to graduate this summer (if I don't find a way to f#$k up) and I interviewed w/ a recruiter from Edward Jones (financial planning firm). This is what I have to look forward to if I take this position:

-First 2 months: $1600 a month while preparing for series 7 and 63 exams. I CANNOT have another job and have to devote all my time studying for the exams according to the recruiter.

-After I pass the exams, I get bumped up to $2000 a month for 3 month as I go through training under a mentor in the firm (I'm basically his office b%$ch).

-After 5 months of all this "training", I am then given a quota to meet in clients sales. In the end, the average pay will be around $35-40K for the year.

Still, I figure sacrifice now and just work hard to build up my income. I pursued my degree because GENERALLY speaking, it is easier to find work w/ a degree under your belt than w/o. Just my $0.2.

-Soren

 

Sounds like the place I intrviewed for immediately after graduation (can't think of the name) but they wanted me to pay like $800 for licensing fees upfront. Most of the people there were in their twenties and it seemed like a cool environment. They made the job sound really exciting and the speaker who was like twenty-five kept saying how he never imagined he'd make that much $ in such little time. Also talked about company trips being a blast and everything. One thing I remembered though was their suits....they were all talkin abouthow much $ they made but were all wearing cheap suits. What does that tell you? The only person dressed decently was the head guy in charge of the branch. To me it seemed like one big pyramid scheme, bosses making $ on recruiters and recruiters making $ on new recruits and new recruits makin $ on peoples investments. I'm not saying your company is like this but really just think things through before you put in that type of dedication.

 

The skill set depends on your major. I'm an engineer, with a masters in my field, so I'm unique. I believe internships and grades gets your butt thru the door when it comes to entry level positions. A reference from a respected professor goes a long way as well. You need to dazzle 'em at all levels.

BestBuy puts money in your pocket, but think about working gratis for the summer, or take less pay for a better job. You like finance? Ask a CPA to intern over tax season, for free! His eyes will bug out and he'll choke on his tongue. Four months of work, a lifetime of experience. It's very easy to offer your services for free, even if you are unqualified. There are enough people that will intern/hire a less competent person because they can save on payroll. In turn, you are learning job skills that become invaluable...especially to other employers. You can also turn your everyday skills into marketable skills. Good at wrenching on the car, let them know you are good at complicated, tedious work. They now know you are not afraid to get your hands dirty to get a job done.

For things that college does..engineers come up with a 'senior' project that shows there level of commitment to engineering. I was able to wow enough people with my bachelors presentation that I received job offers. But you know what I did? I took a stipend (very little money) at a major research facility here in the south bay, and parlayed that into good job.

A business major can write a proposal, get involved with an entrepanuer...basically work your butt off for no immediate gain. But I'm telling you it pays off in the long run. It's not always about your salary ya' know? It may not put new rims on the rex, but it may make you that much more valuable to you next employer.

 

BOILER ROOM

 

I thought the exact same thing!

 

I wish...I wanna have a Ferrari too

Actually, Edward Jones was ranked in the top 3 "Best Place to Work" in their last survey. But, just like "Boiler Room", the whole point of the job is to acquire as many accounts possible, that means SELLING investments. It's pretty competitve but it pays well if you're good at it. I'm thinking if I want this job or stay w/ the company I work at now.

-Soren

 

i love the tech industry... 23 w/ no degree, no certs, and i'm getting about $25/hour. i still hope to go back and get some sort of degree, though and definately some certs. yay for dot coms that havent died!:banana: :banana: :banana:

 

Not to rain on your parade, but I'm 22 in the same position and am getting laid off 3/31/04. THANK GOD this position opened up here because even with 5 years experience in IT I'm having a really hard time finding other positions due to my lack of degree

 

tech industry is an interesting beast. Its a combo of who you know, and what you can do. Look at me 23 no degree, one cert (CISSP w00 w00) and about 7 years exp in telecom, security, app dev, networking, and being an ******* manager. What does that get me? NOT MUCH AT ALL

So now i need to head back to school to ****** up my degree so that i can have one up on everyone (exp first, degree second). I have gotten about as far as i can go with no degree, now i need one to get to the next level. So a degree is needed even in tech, dont get me wrong you can get lucky in any industry but even in INFOSEC (my sole focus) degrees are becoming nesc (and were talking masters now not BS).

SO back to school i go.(in a few months)