AIBU to refuse to do volunteering/unpaid internships/big society shit to get a job?

[underneaththelimetree]

I have a phd (biology area ) and have done volunteering in the past. I cant even get a paid internship as there's so many other people that have just been kicked out of a job in the same area of work/ done 1y+ of volunteering to get that specific job.

I dont want to stay in academia, it's not practical for most women and the vast majority of phd female friends are dropping out after theyve finished (but this is another rant topic).

Ive volunteered in the past, have a good c.v.and i really cant afford to volunteer for months on end without a job. My confidence is low and im wondering why i ever did a stupid phd in the first place. Im now mid/late 20s with nothing to show for it and no career at all. To make things worse there are no jobs in the public sector, where i think i could make a massive difference to conservation research.

I just feel like im getting nowhere and nothing will change unless the tories simultaneously suffer from sudden adult death syndrome the economy recovers

gggrrrrrrrrrr AIBU/ WWYD?

Yes YABU if you want to get a job in a competitive field like conservation research. This has always been a difficult field to find decent work in.

You should either have chosen a field taht was easier to get into and where volunteering wasn't expected in order to get a job; or accept that you will find it very difficult to get a job in this field.

BTW there are a very small numbers of jobs like this in the charity sector.

i would like to add that im being very flexible (not just looking at research jobs) and i AM applying for jobs in the private sector as well. Just... nothing...

i saw a job for a research officer in the sussex area if you're interested i could gie you the details.

yes yes, i am of petty much the same mindset at the moment.

kwondering why i wasted years on generic degree when i should have been more career focussed

did you know you have to get a degree to be a fucking youth worker now?

and at this point - i hae been made redundant btw, i can't just re skil or re train, i can't afford to get another degree, or do on the job training to be a social worker/youth worker

im pretty much screwed with shitty small career area on my cv and a shitty degree

Yanbu to be upset about the current employment market because its really tough. However YABU to think you're any different to anyone else... Some careers are incredibly difficult to enter right now, and you may have to readjust your thinking. No one has a god given right to a specific job. You'll just have to take what comes. I know dozens of really bright graduates who are stacking shelves or behind a bar.

To be fair, though, lesley, choosing your career path however many years ago, maybe that level of volunteering wasnt needed then!

Sorry OP, but niche subjects often lead to roles where there is fierce and intense competition for very few jobs and the cream of the crop will get them.

It does sound harsh but maybe try volunteering in a related area that interests you where there are great opportunities for you to find paid employment afterwards?

OP... your second post came in after I'd posted mine. Hope you find something good very soon.

You don't need a degree to be a youth worker. You do need a degree or post degree qualification to be a decently paid youth worker. Most youth workers are unqualified or what is called locally qualified (pass course run by their local council) but they are very poorly paid.

I do sympathise, as at the moment it is very very hard to find a job.

YANBU, my sister was in your position in the early nineties (last time the Tories were in power, hmm)she had a postgrad in microbiology and couldn't get a job for 4 years.

She had two children and then retrained, she has never, ever, used her qualifications which took her 5 years to attain- a huge waste of time and money for her and for the state.

I would urge you to keep trying to find employment in your sector if you can, and volunteer in the mean time- employment experience makes all the difference in tough times with many grads, and it might give you the edge which lands you a job. Good luck, I hope you get something soon.

Thereisnospoon

Conservation research has always been a highly competitive area and difficult to get into without volunteering. Obviously even harder at the moment.

Yabu. You don't want the economy to recover, you want public spending back where it was.

I have a close friend who works in conservation research. She did masses of volunteering and jobs in related fields, before finally getting a job in conservation research 3 years ago.

Just had a big argument with my mum who although she has dementia, does get lucid moments and she chose to ring me up and talk about politics.
Going on and on about all the people who are losing their jobs and how everything is going to pot because of the conservatives and libs.
Well NO! They are sorting out the mess that Labour left behind and ALWAYS leave behind, so it makes the conservatives scapegoats as usual.
Then has the cheek to have a go at me because I've got a self-employed job and could not have done it without the help of my DH.

Well for goodness sake, did it by myself, did not need his money and even if I did it's mine anyway as we are supposed to be a familly unit.

My mum has NEVER worked by the way and she is the ultimate 'kept woman' Made me so angry I slammed down the phone.

I will ring her back, but when I want to.

Going back to the thread, yes I think especially young people should take on voluntary work as it shows how much of a hard worker you are and if you can be bothered to get out of bed for a voluntuary job, then you will for a paid job.
Too many kids moan about not having the experience, well now they can do something about it.

Get out there and prove yourself, that's what's needed!

I can understand your frustration but I think by refusing to volunteer YABU - you are cutting off your nose to spite your face. Unless you have childcare issues or something else that makes volunteering prohibitively expensive, you may as well do some voluntary work while looking for a job, if the opportunities are there.

How are you supposed to eat if you volunteer? How is the OP supposed to keep a roof over their heads if they work for nothing?

I'd like to see the advocates of volunteering try living on nothing whilst working for nothing.

i wasnt expecting you to be so aggressive- i have plenty of experience, done LOADS of volunteering and ive worked so hard in the past.
i accept that i am probably being unreasonable in not wanting to work for free now- maybe i should just go on the dole and volunteer? i would volunteer anyway if i had a job but the point is i cant afford to unless i take money from the state- so pointless and i would feel like a failure if i did this- i know i was probs stupid doing a phd but i thought back then i wanted to be an academic.

i feel for you custardo- i hope things look up soon

That's what the benefits system is for, no? Aren't volunteers eligible just the same as everyone else?

AND live at my mothers like a teenager- couldnt afford to rent anywhere or keep the car or work anywhere where there wasnt public transport.....

I apologise Lesley, sorry! I wasnt aware.

'Yabu. You don't want the economy to recover, you want public spending back where it was.'

If DC and his little Etonian buddy and all their cronies think I'm going to pay for their bankers' pals' cock ups whilst fronting them huge bonuses and big pensions by working for free they can get straight to fuck.

Until they walk the walk by doing their own jobs for free or for next to nothing because, well, they don't actually need the money, they can take their Big Society claptrap and shove it up their arses.

The only thing I'll be volunteering for are campaigns to get them out of office when the time comes.

absolutely agree with expatinscotland

Volunteering should be something people do out of kindess/compassion/belief that it is important. I DO volunteer fgs but not on the full-time basis that is required to get a job-not just in conservation but in many sectors. I feel that at the moment it is an exploitation to make people work for free to get a job- with a vague promise of maybe perhaps you might be able to get a paid job afterwards.

Er.. the bankers bonuses and cronyism were alive and kicking under the Labour Government. From the way some of you are talking, it would look like well paid jobs were 10 a penny until the minute the ConDems got in power

I think YABU. The days when academic qualifications guaranteed you a job are long gone.

'I feel that at the moment it is an exploitation to make people work for free to get a job- with a vague promise of maybe perhaps you might be able to get a paid job afterwards.'

It has the knock-on effect of making it significantly more difficult for those who can't afford to work FT for free. Then these people can be further pilloried by fools who believe that really because such people aren't dedicated enough, willing to sacrifice enough, and are therefore deserving of not getting jobs in certain industries, yet somehow those who are born wealthy enough to be able to do such jobs for free then get a paid job aren't just lucky but better.

It's a Victorian-era mentality that should be consigned to a shameful part of history.

Times are really hard and I fully sympathise OP. However volunteering can be a really good way of building contacts and getting yourself out there. If you already have a foot in the door so to speak and your work ethic is next to none then in all likelihood you may get a job before a post is even advertised. I wanted to work in domestic abuse and was told that the majority of staff started as volunteers. I was told they rarely if ever advertise posts for this reason