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> I was overqualified for most minimum wage jobs. The author lost me here. I have taken jobs way below my expectations to make ends meet. I got startlingly clo
by deckar01 8y ago
> I was overqualified for most minimum wage jobs.
The author lost me here. I have taken jobs way below my expectations to make ends meet. I got startlingly close to not making rent, but I took a job that barely got me by and rode it out until I was able to move to a company that understood the value of my experience.
- sam0x17 8y agoPeople are often turned away for being overqualified at such jobs.
- dsfyu404ed 8y agoSo go through a temp agency. They don't care how over-qualified you are. You're just another body on their call list. If they don't like you they won't call you with any work. Edit: I worked for temp agencies for through college. At the time I probably would have been more useful to them automating some parts of their workflow. They stored everything in spreadsheets but manually copy pasting everything around for their workflow. I kept my mouth shut and did the work they asked me to do.
- Aloha 8y agoEven temp agencies will not take you for the same reasons often - you're too qualified for an entry level role, but no one will hire you because of a lack of recent experience - the min wage, and temp places dont want you, because they assume you will leave as soon as you find a better role.
- dsfyu404ed 8y agoI've worked for temp agencies. That is absolutely not the case. They don't care if you're over-qualified. If they think you're going to leave they're just not going to give you any temp to hire or long term roles. They'll still call you up when the convention center calls them up asking for bodies to serve food and sweep floors. If you are over-qualified then working for a temp can give you access to potential employers who (after you've shown them you're not a deadbeat while working as a temp) you can then approach about a direct hire position in something you're qualified for if they happen to have one available.
- ska 8y agoThe author may just have meant that he was rejected from such jobs due to being honest about his education when asked, which is a fairly common practice.
- nradov 8y agoThere's nothing dishonest about omitting irrelevant qualifications and experience from a job application.
- ska 8y agoSure. But if you are asked directly you may not feel comfortable lying about it.
- nradov 8y agoI can't imagine that the McDonald's manager is going to ask whether you have as Master's degree but just didn't write it down.
- ska 8y agoNo, but people ask - what were you doing between date A - date B where there is a gap in your work history. If you present as something unexpected (more educated, different social class, different age range, etc.) to someone hiring, they are often going to try and figure you out.
- umichguy 8y agoGenuine question for you (and anyone else), while on the topic. If you had a Master's degree and all you did was "normal" office job type stuff, but now if you want to do hourly burger flipping or whatever else, how would you go about tailoring your CV? You can drop a degree or something but now you have to also account for 5 to 7yrs of full-time job experience.....I am trying to rack my brain.
- 8y ago
- yardie 8y agoI have been refused jobs where the person highering had less experience and fewer qualifications than me and felt I was a threat. In one case the technical interview turned into me unknowingly shaming them in front of the CEO because they weren’t using modern best practices.
- nyghtly 8y agoA minimum wage job may have allowed you to make rent, but it isn't a reliable path out of homelessness. If you're homeless, not only do you have to find a cheap apartment, but you also need to be able to put down three months rent (first, last, security) all at once. Could you have made rent that month if it cost 3x as much? Could you have made rent if you had to leave work early to check into a shelter everyday by 3pm?
- watwut 8y agoOverqualified means that employers don't want you, because they assume you will leave very quick or will not be motivated or there is something wrong with you. Employers assume that overqualified people are getting lower job just as temporary solution and prefer someone who will stay longer.