<p>(OK, first, why does this board keep kicking me off and losing my posts?)</p>
<p>I got a “useless” degree–English with a focus in Applied English Linguistics. And I’m working as a scientific editor, so I’m using that.</p>
<p>I have a hard time imagining I was the only person in my graduating class who found work (related or otherwise). Or that all those other millions of people who’ve gotten liberal arts degrees over the decades are living on the streets right now.</p>
<p>Even in a tough economy, people need to fill positions that aren’t in medicine and business. In my own department, we have a hard time finding qualified applicants. It takes us months. Yes, while everyone complains that there are no jobs, I and others in my department are doing the work of two or three people to cover for our unfilled positions. Now, my job isn’t even remotely for everyone, but it’s still annoying when people suggest that the only way to get a job is to be an accountant while we’re sitting here with empty offices. There are <em>lots</em> of different kinds of jobs out there.</p>
<p>My suspicion is that most people who graduate with liberal arts degrees and “can’t find work” (under a normal economy) don’t know what career they even want. That may be why they chose a “soft” degree in the first place. You know, an attitude of, “I’ll get a degree in something interesting and easy and then just do ‘some job’ when I get out.” In my opinion, if you do what you like, do well at it, and know what you want to do when you leave school, you’ll be fine (a poor economy notwithstanding). (It should also be noted that bad economies don’t last forever.)</p>