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Remember..College Degree Doesn't Matter

Flash

SEVAL/ECMO
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
True. I'd say the exception is experience. If you've done all the stuff the job opening is asking for then that helps. If you have no experience and a degree then you might be ok. If you a relevant degree and experience then. you're probably looking good.

I think it is less an exception than you might think for most JO's leaving the service.
 

jtmedli

Well-Known Member
pilot
For better or worse that's pretty much how the civilian hiring process goes. The first wicket to most jobs is your resume. If it doesn't look like what the company is looking for then you'll never get past the first wicket and on to an interview.

I'd say that degree matters a great deal post Navy. As beans mentioned, if you plan on leaving or get told to leave you better hope you have a degree that will set you up to work in an area you're interested in. as my peers leave the navy I've seen several guys with basket weaving degrees have a hard time finding work. Let alone work that allows them to keep their same QOL. Guys I know who had technical degrees didn't seem to have as much trouble.

If you don't think it happens all the time at tons of companies you are in for a big wake up call, the average time a corporate recruiter spends on a first look on an application is around 30 seconds at best, the second cut is longer. I had one recruiter who is at a large well known company tell me they only have time for about 10 seconds per resume.

for the record I don't like it, I have seen many people I would consider tools get interviews because they knew how to tweak a resume.

Yeah I know it does. Just hoping that my future employer isn't one of these types of places. Anyone who says having an Engineering/Tech degree is "no better than (insert basket weaving here)" is lying to themselves or pissed off about how they wasted their time in college. Sorry, but that's the truth.
 

Flash

SEVAL/ECMO
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
...Anyone who says having an Engineering/Tech degree is "no better than (insert basket weaving here)" is lying to themselves or pissed off about how they wasted their time in college. Sorry, but that's the truth.

Or they got a job that doesn't need one.
 

Recovering LSO

Suck Less
pilot
Contributor
No one cares about your GPA except other schools.
And AMCSBs selecting CVN nukes... If you played your cards "right" as an undergrad you can almost eliminate that as an opportunity. Hey, maybe I just cracked the nut for all the non-VFA guys looking to get picked up for CAG....!
 

Spekkio

He bowls overhand.
Yeah I know it does. Just hoping that my future employer isn't one of these types of places.
In lots of big companies the person giving your resume a first look is not a person who you will interact with on the job and doesn't even know what the stuff on your technical resume means. You don't get to interview with someone who will appreciate your STEM knowledge until the communications major former sorority girl passes you along.
 

exNavyOffRec

Well-Known Member
In lots of big companies the person giving your resume a first look is not a person who you will interact with on the job and doesn't even know what the stuff on your technical resume means. You don't get to interview with someone who will appreciate your STEM knowledge until the communications major former sorority girl passes you along.

unfortunately this is true, sometimes they are given specific guidance, other times they are told to compare to the job description.

many companies have started using "knock-out" questions, they are simple yes or no answers, such as "do you have experience doing X" if you put no then your application is dead.
 

Beans

*1. Loins... GIRD
pilot
No one cares about your GPA except other schools.

I have had a different experience and found >1 person who has cared and who has a hand in my future employment. It's at least possible that a good GPA can pay dividends for much of one's professional life.
 

Jublov

Play Top Gun Til' the VHS breaks
Sorry I been gone, away, pilot shit keeps you busy, but anyways, yes major can be a factor depending what you're going after, want to go nuke? Major in nuclear engineering then, but that's not my cuppa. This is sought for aviators strictly
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
Or they got a job that doesn't need one.
I'm in no way endorsing a STEM degree as superior, unless of course you want to work in that field. My point is that you should get a degree in a field that you want to work in if/when you get out. If you want to weave baskets then that basket weaving degree isn't useless. I'm advocating being aware of how a degree can potentially limit or benefit you in the future.

As to the HR process, the best thing you can do is to have your resume seen by people other than HR. This usually means the hiring manager or a buddy on the inside who can socialize your resume to people who understand what it says. If they like what they see they can help you to tailor your resume so you can make it through the HR wicket.
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
Sorry I been gone, away, pilot shit keeps you busy, but anyways, yes major can be a factor depending what you're going after, want to go nuke? Major in nuclear engineering then, but that's not my cuppa. This is sought for aviators strictly
What everyone is telling you is that it can matter for aviators because there may come a time when you need/want to do something other than fly. If you take the time and effort to get a real degree then you can have a Plan B. You may fly your entire professional life and that degree is just a pretty sheepskin on your wall but at least you'd have another option if all of a sudden you couldn't fly again (like the guys I know who were diagnosed with diabetes, cancer, etc or have special needs kids as examples).
 

jtmedli

Well-Known Member
pilot
You don't get to interview with someone who will appreciate your STEM knowledge until the communications major former sorority girl passes you along.[/QUOTE

Yeah don't even get me started on that process. I'm not looking forward to dealing with that if/when I eventually get out of the Navy.
 

exNavyOffRec

Well-Known Member
As to the HR process, the best thing you can do is to have your resume seen by people other than HR. This usually means the hiring manager or a buddy on the inside who can socialize your resume to people who understand what it says. If they like what they see they can help you to tailor your resume so you can make it through the HR wicket.

yes, but you want to know what some companies are doing? mandating all resume's be submitted via the online process, I have had 2 friends that helped me with my resume but their companies had put out everything had to be submitted online, I never made it past the screening, yet another friend of ours who's resume was nearly identical to mine made it through and was hired.

I had another friend of mine that helped me out as well but with that company it went to the hiring mgr, they had my resume put into the system and have been told I am on the interview list when they start the interviews.
 

roflsaurus

"Jet" Pilot
pilot
True. I'd say the exception is experience. If you've done all the stuff the job opening is asking for then that helps. If you have no experience and a degree then you might be ok. If you a relevant degree and experience then. you're probably looking good.

That's what I would have thought until I interviewed for a LDP position with Rolls Royce. I had a 3.8 GPA and MANUFACTURED electrical harnesses for Rolls Royce engines while I was at FRC. I don't think companies care about degree, GPA, or experience. I'm honestly convinced that the corporate selection process looks something like this...
 

707guy

"You can't make this shit up..."
Networking is the key to getting hired. It is about who you know and who they know that can get your foot in the door. Resumes are nice and needed but the key is finding someone on the "inside" to get your name in front of the right people. Also I believe most large companies are using software to screen resumes. It doesn't even get to a human unless you have certain key words in your resume.
 
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