Jobs for those with Masters

[orangeMan]

Hi,

So I have got a masters degree and just started looking for a job. My undergrad and grad qualifications are from elitist universities. For some reason, employers - even MNEs - seem to think that I should go into research, i.e., a research post in a public company. I often get "yes, your CV is impressive, but you are really not what we are looking for." MNEs do not really want over-qualified and opinionated masters graduates like me for their graduate schemes. SMEs are scared of hiring someone so overqualified and inexperienced (real life work experience). What are my options? Anyone going through similar experience?

[orangeMan]

I studied social sciences, e.g., Economics, Business, Finance, etc.

[surefire]

When I started job hunting (with a social science MA) I was mostly after Program Administrator-type positions (government and non-profit sector, my preference over private). It took a while to get called back for anything. The catlyst was a 4 month non-profit internship that I secured... I was a researcher. I then went on to snag a researcher gig with an international non-profit on a 3 month contract. Towards the end of that, I turned over an epic report that the supervisors enjoyed, so they invited me back for a new contract. I'm now doing policy development with the occasional research assignment.

It was actually a kind of "AH-HA!" moment for me when I realized that the research capacity was a good angle. It was like, "oh yeah, I just finished an MA, of COURSE I'm well-suited to research!" After some work and opportunities to show my worth, I was able to segue over/stretch out to other realm.

Don't shy away from research opportunities, it's a good "in"! As well, it's worth pursuing places that recognize the skills that you were able to build during an MA and appreciate that they are transferable to a world outside of academia. These opportunities are worth chasing and are comforting in the face of other places that harp on the "you're over educated and under experienced" line.

This stuff is tricky. If you can, I'd recommend touching base with your school's career centre. Mine offerred a litany of support systems and seminars for students, with special workshops for those who had recently convocated. I was hesitant at first to go (I didn't want to sit in on a class to learn how to shake hands), but I found the resources to be quite useful (and it's always good for the ego to know that you're not the only one having a hard time negotiating the terrain)!

Good luck!