GovCentral

While many people entering government or private sector work end drifting away from their college majors, it's always interesting to discuss. So what was yours? What sorts of jobs are you looking for now?

That sounds awesome jsvize01 - here is a list of federal jobs that are appropriate for criminal justice workers. To tell everyone a bit about myself, I have a B.A. in Urban Studies and Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh. I moved to DC for a couple of years after college and worked for a government consulting firm doing homeland security work. Have you ever considered a career at DHS?

Good luck joatmon, traveling would be fun, but not for me...
I have considered a career at DHS. However, I am not sure if I am qualified or what such a career would entail...care to explain a little?

I got a BS in English at the University of Buffalo. My masters is in public administration, so I work as a division manager at DHS.

Igermain,
Remember that the Gov't employees hundreds of thousands of people, and has thousands of career types. You may be suprised about the jobs that are out there within the Gov't, and you probably do qualify. Hope you find something you really like. M2C

I am a student at University of Florida. My BA will be in conversational Arabic and I plan on expanding to either Russian or Urdu. I would like to know where my options would lie with this type of education.

I have a BS and MS in Linguistics. Fluent in Spanish and know (very) little Hebrew.
Looking for a job in Law Enforcement, hopefully FBI.
No direct transfer from Linguistics to Law Enforcement. I think research, analysis and reporting skills I've developed in the process of earning the degrees will be useful. (We humanities majors have to talk this way to ourselves about the practical value of our education.)

JZuk said:

While many people entering government or private sector work end drifting away from their college majors, it's always interesting to discuss. So what was yours? What sorts of jobs are you looking for now?

Political Science - University of Buffalo

I earned my Engineering Science degree. It had a Management of Technology trac with a heavy course load in Electrical and Civil Engineering. I'd like to do project management for the EPA because I want to work to help the earth.

Hello to all,
I have a B.A Economics at Rutgers University. Minor in Computer Programming and Personal Computer specialist. Currenlty, I worked at McDonald's Corp. and I quit my job few month ago. I am seeking for a career and looking for a new chapter of my life. Reason I am here, I need a networking and to find an information. I would to challenge to next level and use my "degree" not in McDonald's Corp. It was great experience but I want to help American Government and want to help poor people and reduce poverty. I've been there before, since i am a job seeker and we need to step up and I want to part of the USA government. I have one more thing to add, is it necessary to earn master degree in Economics? or should i work for bank? I think bank is last option to me..That's not what i want. I need someone to reply back to me.
Thank you

I have a BA in East Asian Studies with a minor in Economics.  I speak Mandarin Chinese (studied for a long time here and in China).  I'm looking for a job in the government where that would be useful; I was thinking DOD or State Department.  Like drsmith I'm a humanities guy and I have to say that my research and analysis skills are good.  Had a couple of good internships but no real jobs because I graduated last week!  I'd like to get into foreign affairs at the State Department or intelligence and I'm not quite sure how to get my foot in the door (i.e. what exactly is entry level, etc.).  Is it possible to get into intelligence or foreign affairs at the entry level?

Intresting to see what we all have out there me an AA in intelligence and Operations from Cochise college transfering into Homeland Security Degree in emphisis in terrorsim analysis

I am currently an intelligence analyst in the military...the thing I can say about going the intell route it is really hard to get in the intell community with out an Intell.operations focused degree if you are coming off the civilian side, the United States Army trained me and I went through a 6 and half long month course to become qualified as intelligence, another thing is you are going to need to apply for security clearance most preferably a TOP SECRET/SCI to conduct intell work. It is not like it is not doable it is just alot harder to come off the civilian sector. If you have any other questions you can alway send them my way

You have a good head on your shoulders or ot least your perspective seems to be in good order.  I've been working for the government for a good many years.  I'm just now pursuing a B.A degree in Economics and I want to work for a bank within the government even though I don't have to work for a bank.  But here's what I know, whatever government agency you work for you will find it's not about profits or even competition.  It's more about protecting the people from fraud through investigation or research, policies and standards, and pursuing the government's interest through repetition. You well get to use your own intellectual efforts to give you the edge and  great awards. But again, government employees don't think of work as profit like a bank, rather they see it as standing for rules, laws, and regulations.   You will be helping people or the country and you will know how to do it because you have access to everything "government".  You learn the agency's jargon.  Also, there's a quite a number of government agencies, that's not a bank, that have economists,  or related positions, or people with economics degree.  I would go to USA jobs.gov and browse the job catagory "economics" or "economists" as well as the many agencies.  When you get to a job announcement you like see what the major duties are, the qualifications, and so forth just to get the feel of how government employees go about searching for jobs.  Also, a higher education is not the test that makes a good government employee or a promoted employee.  If you want to get a master degrees you will be ahead of  the game in some instances.  Let's say I have a B.A. economics degree and you have a Master in Economics.  Did you know that it may not matter because of the stipulations involved in getting a government job period?  You will get more money to start with than someone with a B.A. degree in economics, but remember it's not only the degree they look at, but your resume, knowledge, skills, and abilities, and so forth.  Someone with a B.A. in economics could just as well apply for the same job as someone with a M.A. economics.  An M.A. may get more points in the area of education, but most likely that the hiring officicial will look at every qualification on your resume, ksa, and supporting documents.  You have to check out the announcement to understand what they are looking for and then decide if you think a master's is worth getting for that particular job and agency. There are people who were hired with a B.A. economics and in a few years their salary have increase a lot(as  their grade level increased) as much as someone hired with a Master's in economics.  Once you get your foot in the government you can advance quickly. The most important thing is not the degree, but using what you've learn. Just be  economic verbally (in your speech) and look the part and you will win.  Check out whatever information you can on these websites  www.opm.gov, www.student.gov , www.usajobs.gov. 

Sandra

Government Employee

chung78 says ...

Hello to all, I have a B.A Economics at Rutgers University. Minor in Computer Programming and Personal Computer specialist. Currenlty, I worked at McDonald's Corp. and I quit my job few month ago. I am seeking for a career and looking for a new chapter of my life. Reason I am here, I need a networking and to find an information. I would to challenge to next level and use my "degree" not in McDonald's Corp. It was great experience but I want to help American Government and want to help poor people and reduce poverty. I've been there before, since i am a job seeker and we need to step up and I want to part of the USA government. I have one more thing to add, is it necessary to earn master degree in Economics? or should i work for bank? I think bank is last option to me..That's not what i want. I need someone to reply back to me. Thank you