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I don't think many look for a communications degree in particular, but there are loads of job that like seeing a degree in any field.
Look for any management training programs or sales positions. Major companies such as Hertz, Stake and Shake, Shermin Williams, etc, have management training programs.
What does she want to do?
Improvolone on
Voice actor for hire. My time is free if your project is!
Communications is a very broad term. What exactly did she specialize in? Advertising, PR, Journalism, Radio, Cinema?
Not to be a downer, but as someone who studied communications (advertising), I can tell you that competition is very fierce. Most people who make it in the field started building up contacts while in college via clubs, internships or fellowship programs. If you GF waited untill now to start networking, she's several steps behind.
I get the impression that this is the case, because most people who network early already know what they want. This brings us to the question: What does she want?
Not much you can do with a Comm degree if you don't have a grad degree on top of it. Comm is very broad and has little practical use in most fields. The bigger problem however is that it is one of the most common degrees out there because everyone and their mother has it.
If she is interested in programming, she can start to teach herself. Depending on the language she decides to learn, it will probably take several months to learn, and a couple of years of constant use to master. The good news is that, contrary to popular belief, a computer science degree is not required in order to get into that field.
GPA doesn't matter, contacts do. I've never been asked for my grades since I graduated five years ago. What I'm always asked for is experience in X, Y, Z. Which is why networking is so important, you get to build up experience and reputation necessary for the future (its never too late to start!).
As Protein Shakes said, you can't really do much with a degree in communications. It's more like a stepping stone to something else. At home, all my older siblings and I work in the communications field. We all have a basic communications degree, but we did Master's in diferent areas.
I would really encourage her to figure out what she wants, because I know from experience the type of sacrifice that communication type jobs have. If you don't love that type of work, you'll be miserable.
Communications was the degree you were defaulted into if you didn't meet the requirements for a Journalism degree at my school. I think it's usually a pretty vague degree. She should really just pick a field she wants to work in and start working toward accomplishing that by finding internships/jobs/networking groups, etc. No one wants to hire someone who went into that field because they couldn't think of anything else to do. Everyone wants someone who can at least lie about being passionate in regards to the job they're going to do.
Don't worry, play your cards right and life will come up roses!
It's all a matter of using things in your favor. I've seen a lot of my old class mates move into fields that you can easily combine, such as graphic design, or teaching to others that I can't even begin to imagine how they'd fit together, such as politics, law or even programing. Because of its broad nature, communications can be a match to almost anything.
But things don't magicaly turn up roses, she has to find her spot, she has to identify what she wants and make it happen. If she waits on the dean's list, she's gonna see lots of oportunities pass her by.
I wish her all the luck in the world! But luck is no substitute for hard work.
Edit:
MagicToaster's Secret to Success and happyness!
Step one: Know what you want.
Step two: Work to make it happen
Communications was the degree you were defaulted into if you didn't meet the requirements for a Journalism degree at my school. I think it's usually a pretty vague degree. She should really just pick a field she wants to work in and start working toward accomplishing that by finding internships/jobs/networking groups, etc. No one wants to hire someone who went into that field because they couldn't think of anything else to do. Everyone wants someone who can at least lie about being passionate in regards to the job they're going to do.
It depends on the school. In some schools it reads communications degree and then major such as Journalism, PR, Broadcasting, etc. (or in my schools case it also has a specialization after that such as Print and Web Media, etc.)
Personally I just put down the major, instead of just Communications because it's much clearer (I just put down B.S. Journalism Minor Political Science and haven't had a problem yet, though it helps I've had experience in journalism and advertising; though I'm about to go back and get my Masters so hopefully that'll help even more).
Fun note, Communications isn't the only one that does that. My brother has a degree in Human Ecology, which covers a lot of fields as well, but his actual major is nutrition and dietetics.
Edit: However if her actual major was "Communications," she's pretty much boned looking for a job especially without any internships or contacts.
EshTending bar. FFXIV. Motorcycles.Portland, ORRegistered Userregular
edited May 2010
From what I've heard, communications is really hard to find a job with without a masters. Kinda like Poli Sci or Psychology. A lot of people take them because they're "easy" majors.
Posts
Look for any management training programs or sales positions. Major companies such as Hertz, Stake and Shake, Shermin Williams, etc, have management training programs.
What does she want to do?
Not to be a downer, but as someone who studied communications (advertising), I can tell you that competition is very fierce. Most people who make it in the field started building up contacts while in college via clubs, internships or fellowship programs. If you GF waited untill now to start networking, she's several steps behind.
I get the impression that this is the case, because most people who network early already know what they want. This brings us to the question: What does she want?
If she is interested in programming, she can start to teach herself. Depending on the language she decides to learn, it will probably take several months to learn, and a couple of years of constant use to master. The good news is that, contrary to popular belief, a computer science degree is not required in order to get into that field.
As Protein Shakes said, you can't really do much with a degree in communications. It's more like a stepping stone to something else. At home, all my older siblings and I work in the communications field. We all have a basic communications degree, but we did Master's in diferent areas.
I would really encourage her to figure out what she wants, because I know from experience the type of sacrifice that communication type jobs have. If you don't love that type of work, you'll be miserable.
Subject matters less than ability.
It's all a matter of using things in your favor. I've seen a lot of my old class mates move into fields that you can easily combine, such as graphic design, or teaching to others that I can't even begin to imagine how they'd fit together, such as politics, law or even programing. Because of its broad nature, communications can be a match to almost anything.
But things don't magicaly turn up roses, she has to find her spot, she has to identify what she wants and make it happen. If she waits on the dean's list, she's gonna see lots of oportunities pass her by.
I wish her all the luck in the world! But luck is no substitute for hard work.
Edit:
MagicToaster's Secret to Success and happyness!
Step one: Know what you want.
Step two: Work to make it happen
It depends on the school. In some schools it reads communications degree and then major such as Journalism, PR, Broadcasting, etc. (or in my schools case it also has a specialization after that such as Print and Web Media, etc.)
Personally I just put down the major, instead of just Communications because it's much clearer (I just put down B.S. Journalism Minor Political Science and haven't had a problem yet, though it helps I've had experience in journalism and advertising; though I'm about to go back and get my Masters so hopefully that'll help even more).
Fun note, Communications isn't the only one that does that. My brother has a degree in Human Ecology, which covers a lot of fields as well, but his actual major is nutrition and dietetics.
Edit: However if her actual major was "Communications," she's pretty much boned looking for a job especially without any internships or contacts.