CAREER CHANGE SUGGESTIONSI obtained a Master' s degree in social sciences and have since turned 40. It might as well have been in kite flying. I believe that I am the subject of discrimination in my field, age has nothing to do with it, except to the extent that anyone can deduce age on their application design package. I want to change professions since I believe that this is a disaster. I am willing to relocate for work (by now, that is all I want to do) and my resume has been posted for over one year with few interested in interviewing. I no longer care. I am told not to leave the profession, since that is my best revenge, but I am severely hampered by up and down income and feel that the application process is psychologically insulting. This profession has become a danger to the welfare of others time and again, now I am included in those they have harmed. I don' t want to continue, I want to sue everyone involved. One attorney advised me that the cost of suing for a non-hire is too expensive. I did not find this encouraging, since it means that I do have a case, but, again, not the money. Hello. I'm not sure based on your message, what field of work you're in. Is it Social Work? Or are you some kind of Therapist? Also, what do you mean by application design package? Your message was a little vague as to what you do/did and what kind of career/job you'd like to pursue. Just out of curiosity, why did you choose to pursue a Masters in Social Sciences? Granted, I'm not familiar with this kind of degree or line of work, but I know that pursuing a dregree in business, marketing, human resources, finance, or engineering (for instance) will open more doors for different career goals and opportunities for people seeking a career change. I'm not pooh-poohing your degree. I think it's great....my hat's off to you. Have you joined any networking groups? Is your resume an eye catcher...does it brand and market you to the fullest extent? Is your resume too long, or too copy heavy? Are you being unrealistic with your salary expectations, or over-zealous with your qualifications and achievements? Re-evaluate what direction you want to go with your career. It doesn't help your situation to get distracted with revenge and mad at society. Employers aren't out to get you. Please keep a positive, upbeat attitude in your job search. Having a bitter and negative disposition will come through in interviews and through normal conversation with people. We all get frustrated, but you have to roll with the punches and swallow your pride sometimes. I'm assuming you're responding to job postings and leads through other sources in your area. if you're concerned about your age, you might want to tweak your resume to delete prior jobs you've had in the past and perhaps not mention dates for older college degrees...so on and so forth. This way your resume sounds like somebody in their late 20's/early 30's. I know it sucks, but sometimes you have to "dumb down" your resume to get calls. It has worked for me. Don' t waste your time and engergy sueing people, spend it on how you are going to get a job. I agree with the last person...maybe you need to change your resume? The first step is to generate interest in your resume. I got some great ideas from the "For Dummies" series of books on resume writing. I used a great format, bullet points highlighting my skills, succint in copy. also utilized "action" words like "negotiated," "facillitated," "attained" Made my history for the last 15 years, left out college dates and put search easy words in my copy that related to my industry so that headhunters would find me in an internet search. Because the country is so litigous, you can sue anyone for anything, but unless you have proof that you wre the utmost qualified person for the job and you were turned down because of discrimination, you do not have a case. The majority of the cost comes from the research it takes to prove discrimination. The attorney is not going to take a losing case unless he is guaranteed to be compensated for his time above and beyond all court costs and filing fees. The attorney who talked to you didn't say you had a case, he said it was too expensive to prove. Totally different. If you are serious about switching professions and want to stay in the medical field, switch to an executive assistant position or a unit secretary, a moniter tech, billing, psychiatric intake, which I would think your social services degree and experience would make you an ideal candidate. Stay away from the mindset you seem to be in which is bringing you down and causing you to lose faith. Interviewers can sense this and if you go into an interviewer thinking that they won't hire you anyway and are out to get you because everyone is, it will show through in your answers and demeanor. | |
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