So.... I got let go from my job today

[Neo Alec]

A lot of us have been there. It really sucks. It sounds lik you have options. I finally decided to leave the country to avoid the job market. Good luck man.

 

[GregN]

I don't want to be a drain on the system and collect unemployment if I don't have to. As my Dad calls it, "It's like an insurance policy."

 

[OrochiEddie]

Shitty man.

I will warn you that my g/f has a Master's in Psychology and finding work in the field is pretty much impossible. Lots of people have that degree, the private demand for it is full and States are cutting out social services for mental health left and right. Seemed to be the first on the cutting block in many States when it came time to cut spending.

For now, I'd take whatever comes along first while working on a plan. If you enjoy helping people, become a teacher. Good demand, solid pay and good teachers are something we need.

Its really based on location. Certain areas don't have the funds or the need. Others will never have enough.

I'm about 6 months out from my M.S. in Counseling Psychology....honestly its something you can't just go "fuck it I'll get this" you gotta be really passionate about it and it's not just "helping people". There is a lot to it, research what it entails before getting involved.

 

[Segata_Sanshiro]

Sorry to hear that man. I'd go with the tech job - it will be difficult in the Psych field unless you have a PhD, I'm told.

Regarding Abs' suggestion, teaching jobs are easy to come by if you're doing math, science, or special ed. Anything else and there's a lot of competition.

 

[Cylotron]

i'm not sure about the master's in psychology. i know a couple of people who've done just that and are still having a hard time in the job world. perhaps it's location or lack of jobs, i don't know. possibly a different field of study? regardless though, you may as well go back to school anyway considering the unemployment plus you may possibly quality for student aid(grants, etc)

 

[HeartlessNinny]

Teachers, like all gov't workers, are in danger of budget cuts these days.

Unless you mean professors, with their tenure system that prevents them from being fired unless the whole college goes out of business.

Everybody thinks being a professor is easy, easy to get, and comes with a high salary. None of that is true.

One of my best friends is a burgeoning prof, and I can tell you it's a horrible profession. There's zero demand, so getting a job is very, very hard. On top of that, the salary is terrible and the workload is insane. You'll probably have to move to some podunk college town that's pretty boring and dreary.

If, and only if, you manage to work in the same department, for, say, a couple decades — only then do you get tenure. They don't hand that shit out to just anyone, especially these days. In a lot of ways, it's almost easier to go to LA to try and make it big in Hollywood.

 

[Maury V.]

Teachers, like all gov't workers, are in danger of budget cuts these days.

Unless you mean professors, with their tenure system that prevents them from being fired unless the whole college goes out of business.

Fucking this. The real educators that actually work with the kids have weak job security.

 

[GregN]

Now I'm not so sure about a masters in psych. YOu need a PhD, from what you guys say, it's tough to get jobs, it costs money to get it. No, I'm not doing that. You'd get stuck with bitch work if you get a Masters, right? No, I'm definitely not doing that.

*Yawn* I just woke up. Man, am I bummed out.

 

[SNKorSWM]

Everybody thinks being a professor is easy, easy to get, and comes with a high salary. None of that is true.

One of my best friends is a burgeoning prof, and I can tell you it's a horrible profession. There's zero demand, so getting a job is very, very hard. On top of that, the salary is terrible and the workload is insane. You'll probably have to move to some podunk college town that's pretty boring and dreary.

If, and only if, you manage to work in the same department, for, say, a couple decades — only then do you get tenure. They don't hand that shit out to just anyone, especially these days. In a lot of ways, it's almost easier to go to LA to try and make it big in Hollywood.

From what I heard, a tenure position is typically ONLY GIVEN when someone else already tenured dies or retires.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

Now I'm not so sure about a masters in psych. YOu need a PhD, from what you guys say, it's tough to get jobs, it costs money to get it. No, I'm not doing that. You'd get stuck with bitch work if you get a Masters, right? No, I'm definitely not doing that.

*Yawn* I just woke up. Man, am I bummed out.

Don't forget that doing a Masters is in itself bitch work. Grad students are basically slaves to their professor's whims, and the workload can be pretty nuts. I don't advise it unless you really, really love the subject, and you're willing to suffer to study it. Anything less is tourism.

From what I heard, a tenure position is typically ONLY GIVEN when someone else already tenured dies or retires (i.e. emiritus.)

Yeah, I should have said that. I guess it might be possible to get tenure in other circumstances, but it'd be about as likely as winning the lottery. I think of it like being a AAA movie star: great work, if you can get it.

 

[Neo Alec]

Psychology is one of the most useless degrees you can get these days. The best thing about majoring in psychology is just getting the 4-year college degree in your hand. I strongly considered psychology as my major because it's my father's profession but came to realize the field is way too saturated. Now, if you get a medical PhD and become a psychiatrist that's a different story, but a psychology degree by itself doesn't mean much. Just my opinion as someone who has known a lot of pscyh majors and grad students and who considered pursuing the field myself.

 

[roker]

I worked at a place for a year that went bankrupt. Yeah it sucks, but I'm better off financially now than I was back then. It did me some good to revaluate my goals in life. It also gave me time to pursue my more passionate endeavors. I wouldn't look at as a big setback if you can still claim unemployment.

 

[Dolphin]

The only degrees worth pursuing these days are ones that focus on hard quantitative skills or that grant you entrance into an under-served field with rigid licensure requirements. Everything else is highly oversaturated.

 

[GregN]

I want to write short stories, but haven't been inspired. I've written a few for the contest at NeoGAF, but I've got more improvements to make as a writer. I've had plenty of practice posting here, but I should take writing courses to hone the craft. It also takes lots more life experience to be a good writer. So I might spend my free time writing if I can't find a job. I've written blogs off and on for 10+ years, and have written in journals by hand my whole life, since I could pick up a pen/pencil.

My friend who's a writer knows a guy who publishes romance novels set in a zombie apocalypse on kindle. He charges $1 for each novel, and made $400 in one month. He used to write 10 pages a day, but that was too stressful for him, so he writes 3-5 pages a day now and that's just right.

I'd like to write cyberpunk fiction and a story on zombies that got zombified with cybernetic implants. That might play out interestingly.

 

[HeartlessNinny]

That can be fulfilling, but I wouldn't expect to make much money for it. Good luck though.

If nothing else, remember this: the more you write, the more you'll typically get better. So keep at it.

 

[skateonwalls]

It sucks being fired,a lot of ppl are fired then scrambling for any type of job. Man take the factory job and you also get free schooling,it's some type of income. It can develop in to a solid job,once you put some time in. It's gonna make finding a different job easier if your employed.

 

[OrochiEddie]

Now I'm not so sure about a masters in psych. YOu need a PhD, from what you guys say, it's tough to get jobs, it costs money to get it. No, I'm not doing that. You'd get stuck with bitch work if you get a Masters, right? No, I'm definitely not doing that.

*Yawn* I just woke up. Man, am I bummed out.

no not at all. Only if you want to do assessments do you really need a PhD. You can do most of what a PhD holder can as someone with a masters.

But if you are just doing it a on a whim I would advice against it. The pay isn't fantastic for the effort given. It's really something you have to hold a passion for.

 

[Rade K]

Greg, learn a worthwhile trade. Not even kidding.


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