In need of advice to start my job search in economics/commerce jobs.
June 16, 2013 7:18 AM Subscribe
I've just finished my masters in International Relations and am going to kick off my job start in earnest from next week. I have questions about where I should be looking for work, what options might be open to me, and would appreciate some advice.
My time as a graduate student has mercifully come to an end in the last couple of days, and now I need to find a job.
I am not your traditional new grad, for better or for worse. I'm 31, and before starting grad school, I'd been living in overseas for about 5 years, mostly working as an English teacher.
I now have a master's in International Relations from a pretty good school, but I didn't get great grades while completing the program. It is a rigorous program. Really strong students finish with GPAs in the 3.7-8 range, and the average GPA of people coming out of the program is about 3.4, while mine is a shade over 3.2. I'm not sure if that is a substantive difference or not when it comes to competitive employers or not. I actually understand what I've studied reasonably well, but I had my first serious run in with depression in the middle of the program, lost the ability to function at a high level for a bit, and for a while my grades took a hit. I've generally thought that for a lot of jobs, grades aren't necessarily that important, but I have a fairly thin resume so I am not sure how else employers can evaluate me.
While I haven't aced all my classes, I've found a lot of what I've studied to be interesting and I feel like I've learned quite a bit. I have enjoyed my econometrics related coursework, have gotten reasonably proficient with STATA. I'm interested in things to do with international trade and all of the things that effect trade flows between countries, be it changes in tariff regimes, political instability, changing consumer preferences, etc.
Some things I am particularly good at include:
Public speaking
Writing
The ability to work comfortably with a wide variety of people.
Approaching difficult questions from a variety of angles.
Japanese; speaking and reading (due to living overseas)
Keeping all of that in mind, I have a few questions.
1. What kind of companies/organizations should I be looking at?
I have recently been applying to some positions with the federal government, including an economist position with the Bureau of Economic Analysis, an International Trade Analyst positions with the International Trade Commission and a few other positions in the Commerce department. These jobs seem like ones that I'd enjoy, because they involve a lot of detailed research into the kinds of things I've studied for this degree, but I think my chances of landing this type of position is slim. First, very little government hiring is happening right now due to the sequester. Second, these positions are competitive, and they ask for my transcript and I suspect that my somewhat low GPA might get me screened out from the start.
I've been told that political risk analysis jobs might be a good fit for me, given that they involve a lot of writing and a lot of in depth research and analysis of a country or region, both things I like, but I am not sure exactly where to look for these types of jobs.
Are there other positions that I am not thinking of that would involve similar work and might be likely to hire someone like me? I'm mainly focusing my job search on D.C. and New York, but are there other parts of the country I should consider as well?
2. How can I best sell myself to prospective employers when I do apply? Like I said, I have a degree from a good school, but not amazing grades. I have a few research papers that I did quite well on that I would be happy to submit as examples of what I am capable of, but not a whole lot else. I have learned a lot about international economics in general, and more specifically about trade regulation and how to do econometric research, but I don't have straight As in those subjects; more Bs and B pluses, so I don't know that I can point to that and tell prospective employers that I am an expert in those areas based on my grades alone.
My previous work experience involves an entirely unrelated internship (environmental services for city govt) in my first year out of college, followed by several years of teaching English in Japan, and then about nine months working at a web development company there where I helped coordinate projects with my company and other companies abroad.
Any ideas on how to market myself for these positions?
3. If I just don't have the requisite background to get these types of jobs yet, where are some other places I could look to work for a few years to gain skills in economics/trade related work/research that would help position me to go after these jobs again in a few years?
Lots of questions here, don't feel that you have to tackle them all, but it would be great if I could get at least a few answers to some of what I've asked here. Thanks.
My time as a graduate student has mercifully come to an end in the last couple of days, and now I need to find a job.
I am not your traditional new grad, for better or for worse. I'm 31, and before starting grad school, I'd been living in overseas for about 5 years, mostly working as an English teacher.
I now have a master's in International Relations from a pretty good school, but I didn't get great grades while completing the program. It is a rigorous program. Really strong students finish with GPAs in the 3.7-8 range, and the average GPA of people coming out of the program is about 3.4, while mine is a shade over 3.2. I'm not sure if that is a substantive difference or not when it comes to competitive employers or not. I actually understand what I've studied reasonably well, but I had my first serious run in with depression in the middle of the program, lost the ability to function at a high level for a bit, and for a while my grades took a hit. I've generally thought that for a lot of jobs, grades aren't necessarily that important, but I have a fairly thin resume so I am not sure how else employers can evaluate me.
While I haven't aced all my classes, I've found a lot of what I've studied to be interesting and I feel like I've learned quite a bit. I have enjoyed my econometrics related coursework, have gotten reasonably proficient with STATA. I'm interested in things to do with international trade and all of the things that effect trade flows between countries, be it changes in tariff regimes, political instability, changing consumer preferences, etc.
Some things I am particularly good at include:
Public speaking
Writing
The ability to work comfortably with a wide variety of people.
Approaching difficult questions from a variety of angles.
Japanese; speaking and reading (due to living overseas)
Keeping all of that in mind, I have a few questions.
1. What kind of companies/organizations should I be looking at?
I have recently been applying to some positions with the federal government, including an economist position with the Bureau of Economic Analysis, an International Trade Analyst positions with the International Trade Commission and a few other positions in the Commerce department. These jobs seem like ones that I'd enjoy, because they involve a lot of detailed research into the kinds of things I've studied for this degree, but I think my chances of landing this type of position is slim. First, very little government hiring is happening right now due to the sequester. Second, these positions are competitive, and they ask for my transcript and I suspect that my somewhat low GPA might get me screened out from the start.
I've been told that political risk analysis jobs might be a good fit for me, given that they involve a lot of writing and a lot of in depth research and analysis of a country or region, both things I like, but I am not sure exactly where to look for these types of jobs.
Are there other positions that I am not thinking of that would involve similar work and might be likely to hire someone like me? I'm mainly focusing my job search on D.C. and New York, but are there other parts of the country I should consider as well?
2. How can I best sell myself to prospective employers when I do apply? Like I said, I have a degree from a good school, but not amazing grades. I have a few research papers that I did quite well on that I would be happy to submit as examples of what I am capable of, but not a whole lot else. I have learned a lot about international economics in general, and more specifically about trade regulation and how to do econometric research, but I don't have straight As in those subjects; more Bs and B pluses, so I don't know that I can point to that and tell prospective employers that I am an expert in those areas based on my grades alone.
My previous work experience involves an entirely unrelated internship (environmental services for city govt) in my first year out of college, followed by several years of teaching English in Japan, and then about nine months working at a web development company there where I helped coordinate projects with my company and other companies abroad.
Any ideas on how to market myself for these positions?
3. If I just don't have the requisite background to get these types of jobs yet, where are some other places I could look to work for a few years to gain skills in economics/trade related work/research that would help position me to go after these jobs again in a few years?
Lots of questions here, don't feel that you have to tackle them all, but it would be great if I could get at least a few answers to some of what I've asked here. Thanks.
It looks like you would be well-suited for a position in International Business Development (new business) or as a Regulatory Analyst.
posted by lovelygirl at 8:21 AM on June 16, 2013
posted by lovelygirl at 8:21 AM on June 16, 2013
I'm not sure this helps, and sorry, I'm not well versed in international relations, however. I have a friend that has had a sort of similar experience to yours and has the same degree. She worked for union organizers for over a decade and then made the decision to accept a position as a regional marketing director for a large well known women's clinic. Seems to me you can do quite a bit with that kind of degree.
posted by camylanded at 4:48 PM on June 16, 2013
posted by camylanded at 4:48 PM on June 16, 2013
Best answer: Are you keen on working in some governmental capacity, or would you be open to the private sector? DC has lots of think tanks and contractors who deal in trade policy and analysis, like this opportunity at IHS Global Insight. That said, applying for federal jobs can be a bit of a crapshoot if you're not a veteran, as hiring preferences will usually put them ahead of the pack pretty early.
Honestly, your questions would be best answered by doing informational interviews with folks who are currently doing the jobs that you want to have, so you may want to reach out to folks in your alumni network and/or the industry associations (like the Society for Risk Analysis or the Women in International Trade) you have an interest in.
Good luck!
posted by evoque at 9:02 AM on June 17, 2013 [1 favorite]
Honestly, your questions would be best answered by doing informational interviews with folks who are currently doing the jobs that you want to have, so you may want to reach out to folks in your alumni network and/or the industry associations (like the Society for Risk Analysis or the Women in International Trade) you have an interest in.
Good luck!
posted by evoque at 9:02 AM on June 17, 2013 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by parmanparman at 8:01 AM on June 16, 2013