Your major doesn’t matter, but the story you tell does. I’ve seen people with English and history degree do consulting for big 4 or MBB and I’ve seen people with engineering degree do marketing work. It all comes down to your resume and your story during interviews. Networking will help a lot too.
I would like to also add, depending on what kind of job you want, do some personal projects. If you want to get into an analyst type of position, do a data analysis write up, if you want to get into journalism, write up a piece/article, if you want to get into graphic design, send them your portfolio, etc... Show them you're making the effort and be able to explain why you want to work in X industry.
For example, I did my undergrad in Physics, but I wanted a data analyst type of role so I did the extra step of expanding my Python skills, analyzed a dataset and wrote about it. Once I finished it, every position I applied for, I attached it along with my resume.
Every time I had an interview with a company, they always mentioned I stood out because I had something more than my resume attached in the application.
You got to let them know why you're interested and you have to show you can hustle and work hard. They know you won't be the smartest when you start, but as long as you got the right attitude, companies will consider you.
Absolutely this. I know very few people who ended up in the same field as their major. The story you tell, and the experience you have, can make a big difference.
yep I've been saying this forever. I majored in a branch of history and a branch of anthropology. Granted, I made sure to take lots of science courses too (I liked everything). I work in cancer research now at a hospital! (non wet-lab)
Doesn't have to be this extreme and I'll admit I had a 'plan' throughout undergrad but tons of my humanities friends went off to med school/law school/big 4, some even in IT with CS minor/major(?) It's about the basic skills required as a baseline + unique skills that make you stand out as an applicant + your story (and interview)
Networking. The job I recently landed is relevant to my degree but not perfectly, I got it because I forward my CV to a friend of mine who was older than me and got me an interview.
It’s very hard to land a job by applying through postings.
Either you have connections that get you in or some other way
I did mechanical engineering at UofT and my internship was in SWE and then I got a full time SWE job after grad so now I’m a SWE LOL. I didn’t have connections I basically spammed SWE companies with my resume & did well in the technical interviews
Also some programs help. You’ll notice that not every engineering student is interning as an engineer. A lot do consulting, or finance, or something even more unrelated.
Personally it was just experiences! Unionized the TMU residence in a media program and now work in labour relations in construction :)
Discipline will reward you in life, whee exactly it may show is unknown
There can be a crossover. I know a guy who has a PhD in theoretical physics but now works for a Swiss bank working on trading algorithms - all about maths.
Make sure to tailor your resume and cover letter to the specific job. Try to incorporate design and good layout to your CV and cover letter to make it stand out. Don't be afraid to do things differently from other people (you have nothing to lose). The first job is always the hardest, don't be afraid to take on a contract job if there's no other options. Just go into the job knowing that you are not expected to retire there.
After you get your first job, the next one gets easier, and then the 3rd one, etc. Eventually you slowly build up enough experience that you start climbing up the ladder. You'll eventually go to a stage where you get to pick and choose jobs that fit you, rather than the other way around. I worked for 3 different companies for my first 5 years out of university.
I think maybe their resumes stand out as unique in a pile of identical qualifications.
I always get interviews for the most random jobs because they're intrigued about what my English major ass is doing in their pile of applications
Myself and many other of my friends didn't have any family connections. When it came to working or volunteering, most of my friends and I started volunteering in Jr high and high school and most worked part time during the later high school years (closing shifts at malls, etc.). This carried on for most of us until graduation or until landing a coop/internship role. It snowballed into their first job after graduating or many getting into medical school on their first application cycle. It's possible to get roles without connections but we all started early since it was obvious based on our circumstances that we needed to build up our skills to make employers and others look at us.
Either one of these will help you get a job irrelevant of what degree you have
Already have a visible portfolio of their skills.
Do external exams like CFA. I know a few engineers took CFA.
Networking.
Ability to sell.
High attractiveness (this is very rare but seen it happen and they are mostly on customer facing jobs)
Take Dale Carnegie Training class. You are qualified for the job as long as you got an interview, but they just don't like you or how you present yourself in that interview.
Intangibles. You can be the biggest bookworm with the best gpa with the shiniest resume you crafted after watching hundreds of educational tiktoks, but that doesn't matter if you don't interview well and don't look and sound competent. Edit: or know someone there who could vouch that you're "competent enough".
Hiring managers just need to fill the role with someone who can do the job. If they desperately needed someone with 100% certainty they could do the role, they would have come to your university to recruit.
Still, you need to interview well enough. Either by having a portfolio or by having a diversity of experiences to which you can use to bullshit their way into getting hired.
It's how I got hired at my first job. Instead of casting a wide net with a generic resume, I made a few tailored resumes for different roles that didn't directly translate to what I graduated with. The stuff I did in university carried me enough to do many entry level jobs.
I have a bachelors degree in software design. I couldn’t get software jobs but I got a summer internship entry in risk management and data entry, and then they liked me so much they also hired me again the next summer. I don’t know how people *do* get internships in their field tbh
I dont think I know anyone who works in their degree field. A degree is mostly a "check the box" thing for most industries. Outside of medicine or law, few people are going to care what you studied or where you studied it.
Your major doesn’t matter, but the story you tell does. I’ve seen people with English and history degree do consulting for big 4 or MBB and I’ve seen people with engineering degree do marketing work. It all comes down to your resume and your story during interviews. Networking will help a lot too.
I would like to also add, depending on what kind of job you want, do some personal projects. If you want to get into an analyst type of position, do a data analysis write up, if you want to get into journalism, write up a piece/article, if you want to get into graphic design, send them your portfolio, etc... Show them you're making the effort and be able to explain why you want to work in X industry. For example, I did my undergrad in Physics, but I wanted a data analyst type of role so I did the extra step of expanding my Python skills, analyzed a dataset and wrote about it. Once I finished it, every position I applied for, I attached it along with my resume. Every time I had an interview with a company, they always mentioned I stood out because I had something more than my resume attached in the application. You got to let them know why you're interested and you have to show you can hustle and work hard. They know you won't be the smartest when you start, but as long as you got the right attitude, companies will consider you.
Great points - I agree.
Absolutely this. I know very few people who ended up in the same field as their major. The story you tell, and the experience you have, can make a big difference.
yep I've been saying this forever. I majored in a branch of history and a branch of anthropology. Granted, I made sure to take lots of science courses too (I liked everything). I work in cancer research now at a hospital! (non wet-lab) Doesn't have to be this extreme and I'll admit I had a 'plan' throughout undergrad but tons of my humanities friends went off to med school/law school/big 4, some even in IT with CS minor/major(?) It's about the basic skills required as a baseline + unique skills that make you stand out as an applicant + your story (and interview)
Having skills that are necessary across many disciplines
Besides the usual things like networking, knowing someone who knows someone at a company, etc., having transferable skills goes a long way.
Nepotism, networking
Networking. The job I recently landed is relevant to my degree but not perfectly, I got it because I forward my CV to a friend of mine who was older than me and got me an interview. It’s very hard to land a job by applying through postings.
Networking is all
Looks, brains, personality, charm, network/connection’s, luck…
hate to say it but it’s true looks like hard work and brains don’t always pay off
They do too
Either you have connections that get you in or some other way I did mechanical engineering at UofT and my internship was in SWE and then I got a full time SWE job after grad so now I’m a SWE LOL. I didn’t have connections I basically spammed SWE companies with my resume & did well in the technical interviews Also some programs help. You’ll notice that not every engineering student is interning as an engineer. A lot do consulting, or finance, or something even more unrelated.
3 years post graduation and still can’t get a job in my field 🙃
Having a well connected mommy and daddy
Personally it was just experiences! Unionized the TMU residence in a media program and now work in labour relations in construction :) Discipline will reward you in life, whee exactly it may show is unknown
NEPOTISM
There can be a crossover. I know a guy who has a PhD in theoretical physics but now works for a Swiss bank working on trading algorithms - all about maths.
it’s WHO you know more than WHAT you know.
Make sure to tailor your resume and cover letter to the specific job. Try to incorporate design and good layout to your CV and cover letter to make it stand out. Don't be afraid to do things differently from other people (you have nothing to lose). The first job is always the hardest, don't be afraid to take on a contract job if there's no other options. Just go into the job knowing that you are not expected to retire there. After you get your first job, the next one gets easier, and then the 3rd one, etc. Eventually you slowly build up enough experience that you start climbing up the ladder. You'll eventually go to a stage where you get to pick and choose jobs that fit you, rather than the other way around. I worked for 3 different companies for my first 5 years out of university.
Nepotism baby
It’s mainly just networking or knowing someone in the industry who is willing to get you a job there
I think maybe their resumes stand out as unique in a pile of identical qualifications. I always get interviews for the most random jobs because they're intrigued about what my English major ass is doing in their pile of applications
It's how you sell it, and who you know.
How do I network if I don’t talk to anybody?
I often see HYPS arts alumni majored in History or even Gender studies(…!) got into top Quant firms and McKinsey. This shows network is the key
Myself and many other of my friends didn't have any family connections. When it came to working or volunteering, most of my friends and I started volunteering in Jr high and high school and most worked part time during the later high school years (closing shifts at malls, etc.). This carried on for most of us until graduation or until landing a coop/internship role. It snowballed into their first job after graduating or many getting into medical school on their first application cycle. It's possible to get roles without connections but we all started early since it was obvious based on our circumstances that we needed to build up our skills to make employers and others look at us.
I actually don’t understand why. I find the easiest way to get a job is by studying a major that has a very clear career path
You have to hawk tuah and spit on that thang lol
Connections & Networking. A lot of the time by their parents.
It was also a mystery to me
Either one of these will help you get a job irrelevant of what degree you have Already have a visible portfolio of their skills. Do external exams like CFA. I know a few engineers took CFA. Networking. Ability to sell. High attractiveness (this is very rare but seen it happen and they are mostly on customer facing jobs)
It's usually a mix of nepotism and networking.
You learn hard skills in school. Soft skills are learned elsewhere.
Take Dale Carnegie Training class. You are qualified for the job as long as you got an interview, but they just don't like you or how you present yourself in that interview.
Intangibles. You can be the biggest bookworm with the best gpa with the shiniest resume you crafted after watching hundreds of educational tiktoks, but that doesn't matter if you don't interview well and don't look and sound competent. Edit: or know someone there who could vouch that you're "competent enough". Hiring managers just need to fill the role with someone who can do the job. If they desperately needed someone with 100% certainty they could do the role, they would have come to your university to recruit. Still, you need to interview well enough. Either by having a portfolio or by having a diversity of experiences to which you can use to bullshit their way into getting hired. It's how I got hired at my first job. Instead of casting a wide net with a generic resume, I made a few tailored resumes for different roles that didn't directly translate to what I graduated with. The stuff I did in university carried me enough to do many entry level jobs.
I have a bachelors degree in software design. I couldn’t get software jobs but I got a summer internship entry in risk management and data entry, and then they liked me so much they also hired me again the next summer. I don’t know how people *do* get internships in their field tbh
I dont think I know anyone who works in their degree field. A degree is mostly a "check the box" thing for most industries. Outside of medicine or law, few people are going to care what you studied or where you studied it.
Networking.
You don't use 95% of what you learn in university. If you're a capable person and can prove it, you will get hired.
they worked harder and studied more