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Career Options?
Nostregar
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
You guys generally seem to know what's what in the world, so I come to you looking for help.
I am currently a senior in college (in the US). I attend a pretty good school, have a 3.5GPA, and am majoring in East Asian Studies (focus on Japan).
Up until now I've been thinking I would like to get my advanced degrees and teach at a college. However, I'm really just starting to feel burnt out on education. I've been here for 4 years and I've learned a lot and gotten a lot out of it, but I just can't imagine doing this for another 7 years. I would love teaching EAS at a college, but I'm just not sure I want to deal with that much more school.
I've been trying to think of what I can do for careers right out of college instead of doing my advanced degrees. Obviously an EAS degree isn't terribly useful for most jobs, but I did have some thoughts and ideas from looking around online. I gather some businesses have foreign language/culture consultants, some companies have people on staff for dealing with foreign customers, etc. One job that really appealed to me was the CIA Open Media Analyst position.
The problem is, my Japanese isn't that strong. My classes have focused very heavily on grammar rather than vocabulary, so while I understand grammar very well it's difficult for me to carry on a conversation simply for lack of vocab. All of the jobs that hire EAS majors focus on language skills, so I feel like I'm fucked since there will be plenty of other people applying who are extremely good and/or lived in Japan for a time and gained proficiency.
Because of that, I've been trying to think of a job which doesn't particularly require a specific degree. I love D&D so I looked at jobs at WOTC, but they require all sorts of crazy pre-reqs that I don't meet. I enjoy comic books, but the only thing I'd be able to do is translate, which runs into the same problem as before. I like doing things with my hands, but I can't see myself being happy as a construction worker or anything.
So basically my problem is, what can I do with my life? My Japanese is mediocre and I'm going to continue working on improving it, but other than that I'm at a loss. Are there any companies that will train you in language on the job? Like, I'd heard that the CIA will teach you a language if you agree to work for them, but I couldn't find anything else on that so I don't know if it's true or not. I know they really want Korean translators and I would LOVE to learn Korean, I just don't have anywhere to do so - if they'll teach me, they can have me.
The question basically comes down to, are there companies that would improve my language ability in return for X years of employment? Also, are there any jobs people can think of that don't require a degree in a specific field? I've been working on this and it's looking more and more like my only option is graduate school - certainly not a bad option, but I want to make sure there isn't something I'd rather do.
I am currently a senior in college (in the US). I attend a pretty good school, have a 3.5GPA, and am majoring in East Asian Studies (focus on Japan).
Up until now I've been thinking I would like to get my advanced degrees and teach at a college. However, I'm really just starting to feel burnt out on education. I've been here for 4 years and I've learned a lot and gotten a lot out of it, but I just can't imagine doing this for another 7 years. I would love teaching EAS at a college, but I'm just not sure I want to deal with that much more school.
I've been trying to think of what I can do for careers right out of college instead of doing my advanced degrees. Obviously an EAS degree isn't terribly useful for most jobs, but I did have some thoughts and ideas from looking around online. I gather some businesses have foreign language/culture consultants, some companies have people on staff for dealing with foreign customers, etc. One job that really appealed to me was the CIA Open Media Analyst position.
The problem is, my Japanese isn't that strong. My classes have focused very heavily on grammar rather than vocabulary, so while I understand grammar very well it's difficult for me to carry on a conversation simply for lack of vocab. All of the jobs that hire EAS majors focus on language skills, so I feel like I'm fucked since there will be plenty of other people applying who are extremely good and/or lived in Japan for a time and gained proficiency.
Because of that, I've been trying to think of a job which doesn't particularly require a specific degree. I love D&D so I looked at jobs at WOTC, but they require all sorts of crazy pre-reqs that I don't meet. I enjoy comic books, but the only thing I'd be able to do is translate, which runs into the same problem as before. I like doing things with my hands, but I can't see myself being happy as a construction worker or anything.
So basically my problem is, what can I do with my life? My Japanese is mediocre and I'm going to continue working on improving it, but other than that I'm at a loss. Are there any companies that will train you in language on the job? Like, I'd heard that the CIA will teach you a language if you agree to work for them, but I couldn't find anything else on that so I don't know if it's true or not. I know they really want Korean translators and I would LOVE to learn Korean, I just don't have anywhere to do so - if they'll teach me, they can have me.
The question basically comes down to, are there companies that would improve my language ability in return for X years of employment? Also, are there any jobs people can think of that don't require a degree in a specific field? I've been working on this and it's looking more and more like my only option is graduate school - certainly not a bad option, but I want to make sure there isn't something I'd rather do.
Nostregar on
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If you look at the CIA's recruiting page, they seem to be mostly interested in people who speak the languages of our enemies, not our friends.
we also talk about other random shit and clown upon each other
I don't know what your field options are for Japanese language ability without the requisite language ability though. Other than the military, I don't know of many employers that will hire you for your skills and then pay to develop the skills that they wanted to hire you for. You may need to develop those skills on your own. Rosetta Stone is pretty bad ass.
@Badger: I had considered it and actually wanted to do it, but the problem is that my girlfriend is completely opposed to moving to Japan and I don't want to be away from her for a year. It has definitely come up, but I don't feel like it's terribly workable at the moment.
Edit:@Deebaser: That's kind of what I thought. Oh well. I am trying to improve my language ability, as evidenced by the fact that, well, I'm still taking Japanese and I'm also doing an independent study in Japanese translation. It's not really that I'm incompetent, I'm actually pretty good at Japanese, it's just that I don't feel I can really compete with somebody who is fluent.
I'm not too concerned about money, provided I make enough to get by. Can you give some examples of the kind of jobs you're talking about?
Surely you would end up moving around quite a lot anyway if you join up with the CIA. If you want a career in languages, you are going to need to live in the country where that language is spoken for a while, otherwise you will never gain true proficiency. A year away is not so bad, if your relationship is strong.
Re:moving around a lot - That's actually why the Open Media Analyst position at the CIA is perfect for me. You're basically reading the openly available sources online and on TV from that country, so you don't have to travel (except rarely). I agree that I should absolutely live in the country of the language for a while but, well, I don't see it happening. We had enough trouble being apart when she went to China for a few weeks for an internship, so I don't think we could do a year.
I'm really kind of resigned to not being able to do much with language unless I can get my shit together and improve my vocabulary quite a bit.
Edit: I'm not trying to be contrary or turn down advice, just trying to clarify the situation and what I think is viable. Trying to get to Japan for a year is definitely being reconsidered right now in this light.
You've got it. If you decide to go corporate, language skills can be a major plus.
I'd really like to learn Korean and get that Open Source Analyst position at the CIA, but I would need to continue school even if just to learn that.
Does anybody know anything about the tabletop RPG industry? How do you get into that area?
point by point:
1.) I'm actually extremely realistic about my prospects and agree with your assessment. That's why I'm trying to find something I am qualified to do.
2.) I don't have any student loans.
3.) I talked to the career placement office here. They had no ideas for me.
4.) Couldn't find any internships, either.
5.) I can at the very least get into graduate school. I don't need to find a retail job.
I was looking for things I could do besides graduate school. If there aren't any, I'll go the grad school route.
Business likes people with language skills. Maybe you could try getting into some management track or other. If not, study business in graduate school.
JET is the best program from the "going abroad" person. Though the guy seems pretty dead set on not leaving the country for a year due to girlfriend issues.
Badger: Thanks for that. I don't really know much about the business side of the industry, so that's what I was looking for.
Crowing One: Yeah, JET has been discussed but rejected. Didn't know the stuff Mosiac said, either, so it seems even less likely.
Deebaser: I don't really have any set area I want to live
Mosiac: I didn't know that about the contractors, that's really good to know. And yeah, going abroad for a significant period of time is not viable at the moment.
Kaliyama: I'll take a look at the other agencies. Are there any that are known for giving this kind of training in languages?
Graduate school is looking more and more likely from what everyone is saying, if only to improve my Japanese and get a start on Korean (and, of course, to learn some more EAS stuff that I'm interested in). I have a hunch that advanced degrees look good for applications to translator positions, just as a fact of life. Is that likely to be the case?
I also haven't given up on teaching college. That's likely how it's going to work out if I don't get any of the government agency jobs down the line.
I don't, either, but I do know about video games, and I suspect that tabletop games are like that only more so, given that they are a much smaller market.
This is important because the CIA loves to hire ex-military officers.
So, if you really want to get into crazy spy stuff... joining the Navy might not be a terrible idea to get the ball rolling.
we also talk about other random shit and clown upon each other
I have absolutely no real idea, but my gut feeling would be that the CIA would only really consider applicants with either degrees or some serious real-world experience/knowledge behind them.
Sorry about that. It’s rare to come across someone who isn’t knee deep in college loans. If you don’t already have debt go to grad school! If you really want to get into inteligence work try contacting the CIA and FBI to find out what schools have language and linguistics programs that feed into intel jobs.
Also, as someone who seriously considered grad school in her field (chemical engineering, which, trust me, is a BITCH to go to grad school for) I talked to a lot of grad students, not just ones doing ChemE, but people in other fields as well to try to figure out what the experience would be like. (I, like you, was feeling burned out about school) Every single person I spoke with said that grad school was significantly easier and less stressful than undergrad. That's not to say it's going to be a walk in the park; but you are studying only stuff that interests you, you are generally taking fewer classes but you have better access to the professor so you gain a deeper understanding much more easily.
That's my 2 pennies about grad school; if you're still kinda "meh" may I suggest Teach For America? Not only is it a great opportunity to do something really amazing, but they have a great network with top corporations and grad schools who actively recruit TFA grads. A lot of grad school offer 2-year deferrals, so if you decide to go the grad school route, just not right now, you can get accepted to a grad school then defer to take a break and do TFA.
edit: I should mention that one of my best friends from college was a Chinese Studies major. She is currently teaching a group of Chinese nuns how to speak English and making approximately $0... but she is gaining extremely valuable speaking experience. If you're willing to work for anyone for next to nothing, it might be just what you need to gain skills that will eventually land you a very nice job.
Badger: I'm going to pretty much give up on the game/comics job search for now since the feeling I'm getting is that that's no good. Thanks for the info.
Jasconius: It's not that I'm particularly interested in being a spy or whatever. The job I found at the CIA that interested me was basically sitting in an office reading stuff online. Not overly exciting. Military might be a good last resort though.
Fallingman: I have an update that directly addresses this, so that'll be at the end.
Supabeast: Yeah, that's kind of what I was thinking of doing. Also, this'll kind of be addressed in update.
Chromdom: I'm located currently in Connecticut (US), and I don't particularly care where I live, but ideally it would be in the US. What kind of work is it that's dealing with Eastern nations? I don't have any real business experience, though I did work in IT all through highschool and the first half of college on summer breaks. I'm also concerned that my Japanese wouldn't be strong enough for something like that.
Spacemilk: Yeah, what you said about grad school is pretty much exactly what I've been feeling and hearing from other people (about the easier than undergrad thing). Teach for America has come up since my girlfriend is currently in Americorp VISTA and had looked at other volunteer programs like Teach for America before she applied. I'm not sure I would want to do the TfA, but it's an option.
So, update that I keep mentioning. I had a meeting with one of my EAS professors yesterday about graduate school and she basically said that she thinks I would be better served taking a year off to work on my language ability and then applying to grad school if I still want to. We talked about this for a while and it actually sounded pretty reasonable to me - it would open up some more doors in terms of what schools I can apply to, and generally make a stronger application.
I had considered taking a year off, but the problem is I'm not sure what I would do for money since I can't really find any decent jobs. She suggested, like some of you, that I try JET but acknowledged that it would be difficult to get into. I mentioned to her that I am planning on switching to Korean as a primary language when I get to graduate school, and she suggested that I do the Korean equivalent of JET.
Basically, I'd go teach English in South Korea for a year (or more). This sounds absolutely fantastic to me, since it would give me an opportunity to both make money for a year and get started on learning Korean. She also said that it's much easier to get the teaching in Korea position than Japan since they desperately need teachers and it hasn't been taken over by contractors; also, not as many people want to go to South Korea as Japan.
I mentioned it to my girlfriend last night and she was more willing to consider going to South Korea than she was Japan, but still skeptical.
So, I ask you H/A:
Are there any major downsides to doing this? I looked up a few of the programs that do this and they all seem pretty nice and like they would be a great experience, but I don't know a whole lot about South Korea in terms of culture, food, etc.
Has anybody done this? Or even been to South Korea? My professor's brother in law did this so she's getting me in touch with him, but more information is always good.
Will this, in fact, look good for job applications that deal with East Asian countries in the future, or will they not care?
I think I would really enjoy teaching English, I had just kind of given up on it since my girlfriend refused to go to Japan. Now it's suddenly an option again and I'm pretty enthusiastic about it. I'm also looking at other jobs in the US, but this is the thing I know the least about and want to learn about.
Why would your girlfriend consider S Korea but not Japan? They are a similar distance away. Maybe she has a hang-up that could be overcome by finding out her reasons and reassuring her.
Going to S. Korea puts us on equal footing and we could learn the language together and help each other with it. Basically, we'd both be learning and we'd be doing it together. Also, as far as I know S. Korea is a relatively Americanized country so it would be a little more comfortable for her culture-wise. I could be wrong on that
Cons for her are it being far away, a different culture and language, and being committed to it for a year straight away without knowing if she'll like it or not (I forgot to mention, she'd be applying to the same program - it takes couples).
If she could know that she'd be able to survive while still learning the language - that is to say, enough people speak English that she'd be able to buy food and such - she'd be happier about it. Also, we're planning on doing some research on culture and the like to find out how comfortable she is with it. This is a major reason we're getting in touch with the guy that has done it - to ask him about his experience with it.
If we talked to him and he said it was awesome, you can survive on English, etc, she'd be pretty fine with it, I think.
There are even websites that have complete translations of products that you can buy in Japan before you get comfortable with the language so you know exactly what you're getting.
If JET in any way becomes a possibility you might want to look for a site called I think I'm lost it's for hopefuls and current JET's to share info about stuff JET and non JET related
You look perfectly positioned to do this anyway, so it might be your best option given your situation.
Getting an advanced degree without student loans is a fucking amazing thing that I would nearly kill for, so you really should just take advantage of that.
Endomatic - Yeah, that's pretty much why I was looking at it in the first place. However, I feel like my professor's advice was pretty solid - take a year to improve my application so that I get into a school I like and which will be what I want so that I don't spend 7 years hating my life. I'm really worried that if I just try to jump into a school now, it won't be exactly the one I want and it'll suck for 7 years.
-Terry Pratchett
Thank you, that's exactly what I needed to know.
I can't imagine things would be much different in Korea than Japan. Part of the point of living in a foreign culture is it is not necessarily easy, and not everyone will be welcoming. It's a life experience that makes you a more rounded person, and in your case will be handy for language skills.
What agency is this?
THE agency. (CIA)
I'm not thinking it will be EASY to live in a foreign country, mind you. I do get that. Just, you know, I'd like to pick a place where we have the bast chance of doing well.
Geckahn: Yeah, that's kind of what I'm thinking. Thanks for the support
And yeah, CIA. I was specifically looking at the Open Media Analyst position.
One of my old professors (she is teaching at a different college now) actually lived in Korea for a long time and then moved to Japan for a few years before coming back to the US, so I'm going to try to get in touch with her as well as the other person I know of who did the English-teaching-in-Korea. They should be able to inform me pretty well about what to expect, I think.
While you're at it you may as well look at the NSA and DIA see if there's any positions available you'd be interested in. An if not well check the military thread the AF will send you to language training, though I'm not sure it's in Monterrey, CA like the Navy does.
-Terry Pratchett
EDIT: I forgot about your girlfriend. If you want to be together, you would "have" to get married...and she doesn't want to move to Japan (you get ZERO say in the milittary)...so maybe that's not good advice.
I'm not really interested in the military for a variety of reasons, though it has come up as an option (but definitely a last resort).
So, my girlfriend and I have been talking about this more and basically what she wants is for me to look for a job here. If I haven't found one by mid-summer after I graduate, we'll likely go to S. Korea and do this thing.
So, now I must renew my job search here. I'm not really sure what to look for, though, since I really don't have much in the way of marketable skills.
I would guess that there are some sort of services for Japanese immigrants to the US to hook them up with English teachers, apartments, jobs etc. Right? I know there are for a lot of other countries, so it stands to reason that there would be some for Japanese immigrants. Does anybody know what these services are called so I know what to look for? I've been Googling around but mostly I'm finding stuff for Americans going into Japan, not the other way around.