Why is it so hard to land a decent paying job in a state with so-called "low unemployment?" (Houston: real estate, 2013)

[dwrecker]

i have been seeing people saying consider oil and gas/medical industrial but what good is it if you have a college degree and no experience? all of the jobs i have seen online for oil and gas are engineering...exxon/mobil, conoco/phillips, valero, chevron, shell..etc
i have no engineering degree or medical degree so that is pointless....my degree is i.t.related but i cant land anything without 3-7 years of experience so im not even interested in i.t. anymore and unfortunately having to pay sallie mae. too many 20k-30k jobs i come across everyday. i have been looking into banking, finance, real estate, and fitness, but nothing worthwhile having or even getting a phone call for. i am staying away from retail. have done that in my teen years and nothing to make a good living from. my work background is customer service, sales, finance, operations, mid and senior management. i have looked into some professional executive sites for jobs and most require you pay for the service for an executive recruiter or they dont call you if you never had a 6 figure job. if anyone could help or have connections, i would appreciate it alot, thanks.

[DejaBlue]

Texas creates jobs. Yep. LOTS and LOTS of $30k and under jobs.

They make it seem like they're just giving away engineering jobs. You come in you're hired no interview necessary.

[Glossa]

That's why I worry about people reading all those misleading "Houston is the BEST place to find a job" and "Houston has dirt cheap housing" articles and flocking here. Like others have written, it's actually not that easy for most people and a lot of us have friends who are still looking for jobs.

[theSUBlime]

Hmmm..did you go to ITT Tech? There are schools that give out useless degrees without shame — knowing they have no brand/image.

Connections are also important, especially in competitive fields. If you did not join in organizations or make any friends in school, you're just as screwed as you are without a degree.

[jtothemak]

Swallow your pride and reread your post. You have a degree but not an engineering degree and no experience. So get some experience and take that 30k a year job, work hard at it and get promoted. Also keep in mind 30k here is like 50k in other more expensive cities.

Just because you have a degree does mean you are entitled to the prefect job right out of college. There are lots of other people out there that made good money and lot of experience also in the same boat as you. Welcome to reality.

[Dopo]

Politicians overhype numbers and hide other numbers to make themselves look good
(Yes, i'm talking about Rick Perry)

[MDinTelfair]

Originally Posted by DejaBlue

Texas creates jobs. Yep. LOTS and LOTS of $30k and under jobs.

They make it seem like they're just giving away engineering jobs. You come in you're hired no interview necessary.

and LOTS & LOTS of $100K+ & $150K in Houston. Not to be mean, but a fresh graduate from a Tier 1 school with decent GPA should not have any issues finding jobs in Engineering, IT, or Medical Field. Uncle Bob's College of free thinking that opened up last week....well sorry it may be a bit tougher to get your foot in the door.

take whatever you get to gain experience then move on to bigger and better.

[lipbalm]

Originally Posted by MDinTelfair

and LOTS & LOTS of $100K+ & $150K in Houston. Not to be mean, but a fresh graduate from a Tier 1 school with decent GPA should not have any issues finding jobs in Engineering, IT, or Medical Field. Uncle Bob's College of free thinking that opened up last week....well sorry it may be a bit tougher to get your foot in the door.

take whatever you get to gain experience then move on to bigger and better.

Hmmm...this says otherwise, but sorry to throw in facts and statistics into a forum discussion.


Full List of Schools - PayScale College Salary Report 2012-13

[cheryjohns]

I told my son that I was good for ONE degree. If he chose French Literature - he would have to make do and pay for a more useful degree himself, later. He chose engineering on my dime. Smart kid.

I have a friend with a daughter on her fourth go-around. He keeps coming out of retirement to pay for yet another bad choice in majors.

Nowhere in America is the land of milk and honey. The job market reflects the demand for employees that have certain skills.

[DejaBlue]

Originally Posted by MDinTelfair

and LOTS & LOTS of $100K+ & $150K in Houston. Not to be mean, but a fresh graduate from a Tier 1 school with decent GPA should not have any issues finding jobs in Engineering, IT, or Medical Field. Uncle Bob's College of free thinking that opened up last week....well sorry it may be a bit tougher to get your foot in the door.

take whatever you get to gain experience then move on to bigger and better.

Those salaries are mid career. No engineering grad is crossing the stage with a degree then signing on for $100k by September. September in 4 years maybe.

That's just not happening.

Even you had to make chump change for a good number of years until your residency was over (chump change for how much schooling and $$$,$$$ it takes to get to that MD and be on your own). Or maybe you had rich parents and had no $200k med school loans so that $35-45k during residency wasn't being annihilated by loans.