Journey to finding my first job in my career field?
So I am a recent college grad. I have a bachelors degree in Criminal Justice, although I’m not 100% sure exactly what I want to do with it I have applied to a plethora of jobs in that field and haven’t been sucked up at all. I received my bachelors May of 2021, meaning I have been trying for over a year. I had an internship at a DA’s office while enrolled in school still and is a tad bit of my experience. My resume has been checked by several highly qualified people and they think it’s great. So my question is, what should I do differently to redirect this path? I’m not seeming to find any luck with what I’m doing and I’d really love some clarity because I’m starting to lose hope. #jobsearch #application #interview #criminaljustice #collegedegree #stuck
Try looking at jobs you might not have thought are in your field but actually are. Criminal Justice jobs on Indeed are anything from probation officer to investigator at Sea World. Good luck! https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=Criminal%20Justice&l=San%20Diego%2C%20CA&mna=5&aceid&gclid=Cj0KCQjw54iXBhCXARIsADWpsG9K9u72LGxkeOgAmT1-teQhrPsp6xdZqw0fADWRQ2vT1Z1eTcOnhbAaAiVLEALw_wcB&vjk=247588c042aed569
It is hard to find a job entry level. All you can do is keep applying for the jobs. Every interview you go that helps you get better. Also, you should apply for entry-level jobs. The job position requires 2-3 years of experience, there will not call you back.
Dillon, you are not "100 percent sure exactly" what you want to do with your degree. That's a sign, a BIG sign, you need to do some thinking. Do you live near a Progressive call center? They'll start you around $16/hr - with benefits - & you can earn a living while you sort things out. But it doesn't HAVE to be Progressive, although you DO have to sort things out. What do you LIKE to do? Make people laugh? Teach? Help people? What did you love to do when growing up? Don't be afraid to chase a dream now. You are actually in great shape. If you decided to pursue a separate path, you've already got several prerequisites. Get a job with decent pay & decide what you REALLY want to do. If you were burning up to be in some type of law enforcement, you'd probably be in grad school by now. Take your time & think it through then choose the path that's right for you. As a matter of fact, I DO write poetry.
Good luck
Have you thought about what your plans are after getting the Criminal Justice? The reason I ask, when I first went for that degree my goal was to work my way up into the legal field. That never happened due to a family matter.
Time changes everything, when I went back to school, I got into networking. You mention being involved with the DA's office, was that something you would want to get more involved with? A suggestion I can also give is to make a visit to your local police station then ask suggestions how you can learn more about learning criminal justice. It is entirely up to you for choosing the specific path you desire but starting at the police department may be the right way to go as you can break out into so many directions.
Investigate what positions are available for your degree. See which ones sound most like you. You're at the beginning of your career, so now is the time to find your best path. Did you enjoy your time with the DA? Can you network with them to find something? Can you run your resume past them? Everyone has their own preferences for resumes. In the meantime, just keep going. It took me over a year to get my first job out of university, and I have two degrees. It's hard out there for job hunters, just have to keep going. Maybe see if you can narrow your focus. Check out anything the career site AIIs send you to see if they look reasonable, but remember, AIs are idiot savants. Just because they think you fit or not doesn't mean they're right. It's a hard slog, but the only way out is through.
First you need to do is go some of these lawyer offices and ask them about your degree and when you got it and your name your resume you know you got to put down a lot of stuff but you can go to a lot of these law offices and see if they will hire you but you got to keep trying don't give up yet cuz there's a lot of jobs out there in the world that people do not want okay good luck believe in God and he will make everything happen for you
Over Nine Years.
You should research work availability in the field your looking into. You should see if there’s a similar field you can enjoy the same lifestyle pay and benefits in where you can get some experience. You should join groups on Facebook in your career field
eg. police office Facebook-police officer job post group
Try looking for a job as a junior fraud analyst. They require a criminal justice degree but little to no experience. Also most of them require you to be proficient in Microsoft Suites. Make sure you have these skills. Getting your first job is always difficult. I think a lot of people are applying for these same jobs. You have to keep looking on sites likes Jobcase and keep applying. If you can partner with a job recruiter do that as well. They helped me get my first job. Just remember, you should never have to pay the company in order for them to help you. Legit companies get paid when they place an individual. I wish you all the best.