medtech Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 http://news.nationalpost.com/2011/06/11/todays-graduates-too-few-jobs-not-enough-pay/ My friend with a masters in engineering who is working as a librarian showed me this. Make you glad to be in the growing healthcare sector where jobs are plentiful for the most part... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mourning Cloak Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 Actually, when I read it, the article seemed to suggest that the problem was one of attitude rather than anything else. “The funniest thing is that if Generation Y is entitled, it’s because their parents raised them to be that way,” said Lauren Friese, a 27-year-old London School of Economics graduate and entrepreneur who three years ago launched TalentEgg, Canada’s leading online resource for university graduates making the career transition. “Their Baby Boomer parents were telling them that they could do anything — that it’s okay that they didn’t do well in class, and ‘You struck out in your baseball game but, hey, nice swing.’ When those same Generation Y’ers come into their workplace, Baby Boomers are the ones wondering why (the recent graduates) arrive on Monday as an intern and expect to be given the responsibilities of a CEO by Friday.” . . . . “Students need to step up and realize that a career is not just going to happen to them,” she said. “They need to plan.” This actually seems to reflect the overly optimist, unrealistic attitude that many students seem to have towards medicine. They think, oh, I should be a doctor, but I can't get into med school here in Canada . . . but that's not because I'm not smart enough / don't test well enough / don't have the right extracurriculars, it's because the entry requirements are too high . . . so I'll go abroad and it'll all be peaches and cream when I have the MD from No-Name Caribbean Island. But the very same thing happens. The degree doesn't mean that doors automatically pop open and people hand over big bags of money. And guess what, it never did. In summary, school is easy. Life is hard. Plan accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MD2015 Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 Those of us in med school in Canada and beyond have avoided that pitfall. Even in a poor economy, patients continue to come and need physicians. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dentopia11 Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 this is how a post-recession economy works...employers have tied their hands, are getting more out of their reduced work force and are reluctant to incur the extra costs from hiring more work force...having said that and having now experienced getting a job in the post-recession economy (i was a 2010 graduate unfortunately), I believe that this economy is more about skills as opposed to degrees...you may have a bachelors or even a masters in engineering but its worthless if you have not once stepped in the real world to buildup skills (e.g. become an expert at one of the most frequently utilized softwares in ure industry?) that ure industry requires...gone are the days where ure degree alone would get u the job...come to think of it though, all recession has done is reduce the workforce size...so obviously employers have access to a competitive workforce and can more easily cherry pick the best/most suitable applicants... and believe me, the way we're running things in healthcare now, i dont think we're far from getting a hit as well...just look at the ballooning budget...the only thing preventing a real policy change in the structure of healthcare system is that politicians dont know what can be done to improve it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isix Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 this is how a post-recession economy works...employers have tied their hands, are getting more out of their reduced work force and are reluctant to incur the extra costs from hiring more work force...having said that and having now experienced getting a job in the post-recession economy (i was a 2010 graduate unfortunately), I believe that this economy is more about skills as opposed to degrees...you may have a bachelors or even a masters in engineering but its worthless if you have not once stepped in the real world to buildup skills (e.g. become an expert at one of the most frequently utilized softwares in ure industry?) that ure industry requires...gone are the days where ure degree alone would get u the job...come to think of it though, all recession has done is reduce the workforce size...so obviously employers have access to a competitive workforce and can more easily cherry pick the best/most suitable applicants... and believe me, the way we're running things in healthcare now, i dont think we're far from getting a hit as well...just look at the ballooning budget...the only thing preventing a real policy change in the structure of healthcare system is that politicians dont know what can be done to improve it I'm a recent graduate myself and am considering myself lucky and blessed to have gotten into med, where hopefully, there won't be such a problem finding a job 10ish odd years later... but even in medicine (and I'll admit I clearly don't know too much seeing as I haven't even started first year yet) it seems that the MD + residency is no longer enough. Almost everyone is doing a fellowship and further training continuously to make him/herself more competitive. Clearly there are more residency positions for most specialties (e.g. neurosurgery) per year than there are jobs. It's scary, but it won't be long where the only "safe" bet will be family medicine (even more than it is now) because if our government won't hire that many specialists, it will be way too difficult to continue training while supporting a family and paying back debt.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-Stark Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 On the flip side, actual medical training requires a very long period of slowly increasing responsibility and advancement up a fairly set and well defined hierarchy. You certainly start at the bottom and I suppose part of the reason we shouldn't care is the clear path forward. but even in medicine (and I'll admit I clearly don't know too much seeing as I haven't even started first year yet) it seems that the MD + residency is no longer enough. Almost everyone is doing a fellowship and further training continuously to make him/herself more competitive. Clearly there are more residency positions for most specialties (e.g. neurosurgery) per year than there are jobs. It's scary, but it won't be long where the only "safe" bet will be family medicine (even more than it is now) because if our government won't hire that many specialists, it will be way too difficult to continue training while supporting a family and paying back debt.... Oh, it's enough, but that's not to say you'll find a job exactly where you want it. For maximum flexibility, get more general, flexible training you can fall back in if you have trouble as a subspecialist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apache Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 don't worry, there will always be jobs at the medicentre refilling prescriptions, checking for ear infections, doing physicals, handing out antidepressents... pessimistic i know, but totally true, these guys make relatively good cash too due to high patient volume... i think the next boom is in 24 hour medicentres to take the burden off the 80 percent of er cases that don't need to be in the er, especially if they pay a differential for working nights. It's scary, but it won't be long where the only "safe" bet will be family medicine (even more than it is now) because if our government won't hire that many specialists, it will be way too difficult to continue training while supporting a family and paying back debt.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isix Posted June 12, 2011 Report Share Posted June 12, 2011 That is true, you're right...with doctors making more money by rotating through walk-in clinics, there's a lot of cash to be made and jobs to be had... But how many of us, at least at this stage in our medical careers (you know, the "0" stage ) desire "just a job" making lots of money? While most of us premeds/early docs are in it to help people, there's also the desire for intellectual stimulation... Anyways, that's a moot point. I have zero experience atm. I'm just trying to say that it must suck to be working at a medicentre if your passion was endocrinology or something. Then again, what do I know about large student debts and raising a family... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erk Posted June 14, 2011 Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 In my experience, people I know with science degrees who have troubles finding work usually have that problem because of a lack of creativity and drive to search, not because of lack of availability. The vast majority of science undergrads I know have jobs in their field, and those that don't usually gave up after their first rejection. Not to say the job market isn't bad, but there's a lot of work out there for science majors. It just might not be what you expected coming out of university. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isix Posted June 14, 2011 Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 In my experience, people I know with science degrees who have troubles finding work usually have that problem because of a lack of creativity and drive to search, not because of lack of availability. The vast majority of science undergrads I know have jobs in their field, and those that don't usually gave up after their first rejection. Not to say the job market isn't bad, but there's a lot of work out there for science majors. It just might not be what you expected coming out of university. Yeah, I'll definitely admit I'd be one of them had I not gotten in this cycle...being on the waitlist for a while, I started looking for science jobs for the year, only to find most research assistant jobs need at least two years of experience and I only have a couple of months due to a 4th year thesis project. I absolutely suck at job searching, but I guess one really needs to start at the bottom of the totem pole and not expect some job sent from the heavens just because they hold a bachelor's degree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted June 14, 2011 Report Share Posted June 14, 2011 I think education is kind of becoming devalued outside of the professional sector and academia itself. I was talking to a friend who once considered doing a master's in her field and she's decided against it. She says the master's-holding staff at her office make only about $8,000/yr more than she does with a bachelor's degree, and they basically do the same job. No point in burying yourself in loans for tuition and living expenses for 2 years when that's all you're going to get out of your degree. Same thing for a lot of other jobs - if you have a bachelor's, at a lot of jobs you'll find yourself supervised by people with high school diplomas. I honestly think that if you don't aspire for a professional or academic career, you're better off saving your money if going to school will put you in a lot of debt. It's even more pronounced in the States, where postsecondary education is no longer affordable to many families who might be otherwise interested in pursuing higher ed. If you are going to be in your late 40s by the time you pay off your loans, with no retirement savings to your name, why bother? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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