my degree is not useless OR suck it forbes magazine

(subject heading: higher education)


so as we were getting picked up from the airport in Lima by representatives of the school, we met one of the other teachers who was newly hired.  we got to chatting and he said that he was a school counselor.  not a guidance counselor, but a mental health type counselor.  now, the state of the US economy and educational system has been failing and it seems that anyone who is not an outright teacher is at risk for losing their job (or never ever being hired somewhere new), so i asked this counselor, "is it difficult to get jobs as a school counselor in an international school?"  because this whole international school thing is new to me.  and he sort snickered and proudly told me that school counselors are really sought after.  "school counselors, high school math teachers, and librarians," he said, "those are the positions that are most in demand."

librarians?!  say what?  (please read: "you like me, you really like me!")

which brings me to this highly offensive article from forbes about the best and worst masters degrees for getting jobs.  so it's no surprise that the "best masters degrees" to get are in computers, sciences, medical professions, etc.  pretty much, it was a long list of things that i would never be interested in.  even if i sold my soul and tried to enter one of these fields despite my complete lack of interest and passion, i still can't even fathom how i could possibly pull it off.

and what was the number one worst masters degree to get?  library science of course!  well, what's number two then?  surely every single one of my interests wouldn't be the worst possible masters degree to get, right?  drumroll please .... number two is english!  of course!  that's what my undergrad is in!  and i am a non-paid unpublished writer!  okay, i can't go 0 for 3 can i?  and number 3 is .... music!  ah yes, music, that was the degree i entered college for before i switched to english.  damned.  certainly number 4 must be something i would never be interested in, like basket weaving or criminal justice.  c'mon ... fingers crossed number 4 is basket weaving .... no, it's education!  which i recently went back to school for so i could be a certified school media specialist.  yay!  every one of my major interests that shapes who i am has been deemed useless by forbes magazine!

what is interesting is that the magazine seems to only rate the validity of a masters degree by salary and the potential for job growth in the future.  so something like being a librarian or a music teacher which will probably pay an okay salary and give you good benefits and hopefully the type of job satisfaction where you go home and feel that you've helped shape lives, has no value in their evaluating rubric.

and yet here i am, scouted out by an international school, flight paid for, apartment provided, salary very reasonable, employed in a job that i find stimulating and satisfying.

so suck it forbes ... my degree is not the worst.  not at all.

xoxo
miss dewey d.

p.s.  how's the publishing industry treating you right now?