[7HlBQS8j]

the best I can hope for is an office assistant opening, which is a career dead-end.

No it isn't.

[space-on-s]

My sister works call center type jobs and makes over 30k. She doesn't have a degree.

Service workers, like waiters/etc, can make good money. Also doesn't require a degree.

Educators make some money, requires a bit of extra education. Don't make a lot of money though.

Journalists/writers/news editors/etc make a bit of money.

Career advancement is almost everywhere though, if you can move into management.

Sorry, I am not much help, I don't know much about these sort of things.

JM

[GenManagerS]

Whatever you do, work in an office environment. Take it from a humanities grad who found jobs in a tough job market: you will find a place eventually. Bugs and Snotty also seem to have experienced how this works.

[vekiuytyh]

Peggy from Mad Men

[EvaQWmrm]

History.

[jagxj12]

History.

Bachelor's degree? From where? And you work as an analyst?

[Diortarkivoff]

BA from a reputable institution. I do not work as a securities analyst.

Well you're awfully cryptic. I ask because I was a Finance major and I couldn't get my foot in the door in any financial firms.

[JonnTEN]

I'd be inclined to settle for an AA opening, honest, except I haven't heard back from a single one I applied to--aside from the blatant scam I posted here a few days back. And I think the reason I haven't is that I'm competing, not only with dozens of veteran secretaries recently laid off due to the crummy economy, but also with hordes of essentially unskilled SOBs like myself. If you look in the WaPo Sunday jobs section, you see three major categories with openings: education, health care and "tech jobs," ie computers. I'd really like to break into one of those. Education, of course, is out of the question for people with my social skills...Asher, what kind of course could I take to become at least a little competitive? I asked my dad and he said Microsoft issues database management certifications that would make me extremely competitive, but that it would take several years of work to get that. Is there a less rigorous option?

[layedgebiamma]

Well you're awfully cryptic. I ask because I was a Finance major and I couldn't get my foot in the door in any financial firms.

Given the understanding you've displayed here...

[FetMiddle]

perhaps they're just very good at screening out people like you.

Oh like in Britain:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2004/jul/12/discriminationatwork.workandcareers

Research into jobs advertised in commerce, sales, the media and leisure found that candidates with English-sounding names were nearly three times as likely to get an interview as those with names indicating that they might be Muslim. Applicants with names indicating they might be black Africans were half as likely to gain an interview as those with English names. Researchers found that the white candidates - John Andrews and Jenny Hughes - were successful in getting interviews 23% of the time while the black African applicants - Abu Olasemi and Yinka Olatunde - had a 13% success rate. For Fatima Khan and Nasser Hanif, the Muslim candidates, the success rate was just 9%.

[ligaliaCods]

Who would think someone named "Albert Speer" was Muslim?

[Obgrfbke]

If you have good editing skills, all sorts of companies need people to edit stuff - including tech companies putting together instruction manuals - that is a line of work to look into.

You could always try the teaching English overseas route, if international travel and teaching have any appeal - lots of demand there.

As for quick job skills, getting training in some common office programs can help - while Microsoft Office is pretty universal, it is incredible how little knowledge people do have of those programs, particularly Access and Excel, though I think Excel is better to know.

[Zmniubqr]

Elok is single, unemployed and crashing on people's couches in a foreign country?

[RagonaCon]

Oh look a civil servant with an arts degree is mocking another

[Hpdovoxm]

Actually. Elok. Wiglaf has a point. You could always go into politics.

[PlanTaleks]

This. Excellent advice.

I'm in the same boat as you Elok.

Wait, I thought you were capable of amassing large quantities of money with just an hour's work.

[DoctorBeny]

Wait, I thought you were capable of amassing large quantities of money with just an hour's work. And so is he. Your point?

[Pinkman]

@ OP: strong English skills + whatever analytical skills I'm assuming English majors have to flex at some point = law school being a breeze. FFS, I even knew an art history major in the top 10% of her law school class at Northwestern, and if that's not more worthless than English I don't know what is. By the time you're done in 3 years, no employer will even notice, much less care, what your bachelor's was in. **** man, you wouldn't even have to put it on your resume since a bachelor's is implied.

Edit: unless your class rank ends up blowing

[floadaVonfoli]

strong English skills + whatever analytical skills I'm assuming English majors have to flex at some point = law school being a breeze

Do that patent law stuff. You don't even need to go to school. Just take the test.

[eskimosik]

@ OP: strong English skills + whatever analytical skills I'm assuming English majors have to flex at some point = law school being a breeze. FFS, I even knew an art history major in the top 10% of her law school class at Northwestern, and if that's not more worthless than English I don't know what is. By the time you're done in 3 years, no employer will even notice, much less care, what your bachelor's was in. **** man, you wouldn't even have to put it on your resume since a bachelor's is implied.

Edit: unless your class rank ends up blowing

Wait, scratch that - I wasn't yet privy to this unfortunate news:

Law Schools Now Require Applicants To Honestly State Whether They Want To Go To Law School

September 15, 2010

NEW YORK — A growing number of law schools have begun requiring applicants to specify in writing whether they do, in fact, have some desire to attend law school, or are just using it as a predictable last resort. "We want to separate those who actually see themselves becoming attorneys from those who just want to put off joining the adult world for another three years," Fordham Law School director Bruce Green said Thursday, showing reporters an application that asks students to check boxes marked "Really?" and "Seriously? You're really that into this?" "We want prospective students to know that they will actually have to study the U.S. legal system. As in, the whole thing." Word of the new requirement has already reportedly caused a 450 percent spike nationwide in applications to graphic design schools.

Link I suppose theoretically you could lie, but when the law examiners interview your acquaintances and expose the deception and it could keep you from getting admitted to the bar. Bad idea.