Depression
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You are currently reading a thread in /adv/ - Advice
You are currently reading a thread in /adv/ - Advice
I feel depressed.
I am getting my PhD from Harvard next year in History. I really worked hard to get into an ivy league school and I thought if I continued to work hard then I would one day have a decent job. I thought, Harvard is a top school, I am doing a good thing for my life.
Well - I just went to a conference and the keynote was all about how there are NO jobs anymore in history and anyone getting a PhD in it is screwed. Now, I am starting to feel like garbage about life.
Not many people in my department are getting jobs -- mostly Chinese students getting them.
I feel like a total failure and like I messed up my life. Would it be better to try to get an online degree in something practical once I graduate?
>>16947049
Everything in life is a competition, sure there might be more jobs in other fields, but it is also more competitive. There are more potential candidates to sort through, so employeers can choose to be picky and only take the best.
>>16947049
Do you have debt? If you graduate without debt you're fine.
What kind of job do you want? Plenty of opportunity in business, just maybe not degree related.
>>16947049
You should take a trip to whatever historical place you are most interested in. Also learn to write. Become a teacher maybe.
>>16947049
I assume your PhD was fully funded and you dont have debt (or maybe just leftover debt from undergrad)
I would be happy with that. a Harvard history PhD will get you something, even if it's not degree related.
>>16947049
You could always teach
You should've gone for law. Lawyers get major play and are always in demand.
Collab with me. I have over 20 ideas for historical books
There are companies, typically in Silicon Valley, who will hire anyone with a PhD. They don't care what in, they just want a PhD. Reason being, having a PhD is evidence enough that you're dedicated, smart, and willing to learn, so if you're a good fit and willing to learn some more they can teach you to do whatever it is that they do.
What did you plan on doing when you decided to major in history?
>>16947481
Lol
I do have debt from undergrad which is part of the anxiety.
Most of the kids in my class have wealthy families and zero debt and they have also been living in posh apartments. I have been living in slums getting robbed or witnessing people smoke crack and shoot dope because thats all a phd stipend alone gets you in boston/cambridge.
I have been working up to 5 extra part time jobs to keep afloat.
I thought there was going to be a payoff at the end of at least a guarantee 50 or 60K job and they are basically saying get married or be a waitress.
student loans giving me crippling anxiety
>>16947634
Becoming a professor at a state school in my home state
>>16947049
Professor writing here:
You cannot legitimately claim to be surprised. While it IS possible to use a History PhD outside the academic world (publishing, government, etc) you have known for years that you were aiming for a very small target of academic jobs. At best, there will always be more new PhDs in every field than there are plum jobs.
So you will probably have to do what generations of history and English and economics and science PhDs have done - lower your ambitions.
There is always the chance that a teaching job at an Ivy university will suddenly open up and you'll get it. But you are more likely to find a place at a good State university, or a not-so-good State university, or a community college, where you will bide your time waiting for the better job to materialize.
>>16947049
You should have got an MBA. All the investment bank CEOs got a BA in history then MBA from an ivy.
>>16947049
I don't understand how people can be smart enough to get into Harvard but not smart enough to think ahead.
>>16947049
Do an internship. I think United Nations is a good place to start, and they always have an open internship for students.
I thought people who had PhD got everything figure out or at least learn how to support themselves.
>>16948911
My thoughts exactly.
>>16947049
>mostly Chinese students getting them
er, what -- why?
>B.A. in English
>graduate into recession economy in 1978
>work low paying jobs
>dads work offers good job in the transportation industry
>{shrug) why not.jpg
>work there 27 years, like and hate it.
>retire with pension
Meh.
It's Who You Know.
Maybe.
Do you hang out in the history and humanities board? You never know where a professional contact or job offer might come from. Congrats on the PhD. btw.
>>16947049
So you worked really hard to get into Harvard. Now work really hard to get into a job you like.
Apply for loosely related positions. Apply for unrelated positions in a similar sector. Work in whatever direction you need to. Find 10 people who have the job you want and find out how they got there. Do that.
Don't waste your energy moping.
