If these are entry level positions, then presumably other candidates with US degrees also have little or no work experience. It’s one thing to eliminate a candidate because their qualifications for the job could not be ascertained or validated; but refusing to even interview such candidates to make that determination is a direct violation of EEOC laws.
Anyway, I think we’ve made our counterpoints, so I’m moving on.
Not getting slammed. Looking for clarification, that’s all.
Ha! I graduated in 1988 and things were tight. My first job was as a temp at the Bank of Boston (dating myself here) where I processed a lot of paper. I eventually got an entry level job at a financial services company which launched my real career - like many in those days I just worked my way up (even though I didn’t know anything about investments at the time - I taught myself using my strong analytical skills). By all accounts I had a really successful career (and now own my own business) despite being a history/French major.
Ahh- the temping jobs.
Among my friends, the most available (yet least desirable) of the post-college temp jobs was their local Blue Cross/Blue Shield. There were tons of jobs no matter where your parents lived- coding, sorting, filing, compiling, making tables and charts (pre-Excel), etc. So anyone who could read and do 9th grade math could get a temp job. But as I recall, they limited overtime… so anyone hoping to log 50-55 hours a week (which was often possible at the credit card companies, the banks, etc.) was SOL.
I remember with some horror the day my supervisor at my first temp job told me what they were paying the agency I had registered with (almost triple what I was earning). But fortunately that Bachelor’s degree had included Econ… so I was able to recognize the transaction for what it was…
Bank of Boston- such memories! My grad school loans were with Chemical and Manufacturers Hanover…
My B-school loan in '89 was with Bay Bank which later merged with Bank of Boston. DH consulted to Manny Hanny. Yes, we’re old.
I graduated with an English degree in '80 into what I later learned was a soft market, but I was hired into a well-paying tech writing job with the software development arm of ADP by a manager who said, “I can teach you the tech, I can’t teach you to write.” Later, as a hiring manager myself, those words and my experience informed how I looked at applicants with soft(er) skills. But I agree that, in those early days, we were not competing against the number of today’s degreed job seekers. I can’t like @blossom’s comments enough though that “underemployment” is not stigmatizing when an applicant clearly shows how the “detour” enriches the original skillset. Almost any type of job that provides “additive” skills is a plus as long as the applicant can convey the benefit.
Which merged, then took over Chase Manhattan, or something like that (and a merger or few later is now JP Morgan Chase).
Much of engineering education involves higher level mathematics (calculus etc), with much of the rote arithmetic handled by calculators or computer programs. But most engineers I know are good at both. In my case, math team was my high school “sport”… and I’m pretty good at doing calculations in my head. Alas, that’s the only part of sewing I’d do well. My grandmother was a superb seamstress - I admire those talents. And I still have some clothing she lovingly crafted for me (and my Barbie dolls). Ha, that’s a topic for the declutter thread.
My sister’s major was French (and German). She was hired as a receptionist for a French company because she was able to answer the phone ‘Hello, Company Name’ and if there was a long pause, she could do the same thing in French (it was usually a spouse who spoke no English). Then she picked up the oil and gas basics, became a landman for another company that paid for her law degree and off she went into environmental law.
My nephew’s mother, also a French major, did basically the same thing but with telecom. First job doing something in French but picked up basic business, next company sent her for an MBA and that was a career.
I remember graduating in the late '70’s - my class had engineering majors, nursing majors and un or underemployed.
I sure don’t remember being able to buy a house in our 20’s on one income a generation ago. It took both of us working full time (and a very tight budget). It was one of the reasons we married at age 23 and waited 10 years to have kids. It wasn’t until we were in our early 40’s that we could live on one income (and it was still a tight budget).
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