Jobs Outside of Majors Vancouver WA

An accounting graduate gets a job as a passport specialist with the federal government. A music major and an art history major both find their niche in public relations. A sociology grad ends up working for a major nonprofit organization as a speakers' bureau coordinator.

These are all true stories and proof positive that you can land a job in a field outside the scope of your college major -- if you know what to do.

Get Experience

You may think you've got the wrong degree for the career you want to pursue. But you can make up for that -- and then some -- by grabbing hands-on experience however you can.

"If you're going into a career that's unrelated to your major, experience speaks volumes," says MacKenzie Lucas, an art history graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison who is now working as an assistant account executive in the Chicago office of PR giant Ketchum.

While still in college, Lucas completed two PR-related internships: one in a U.S. senator's office and the other with a boutique PR agency. She even interned at Ketchum for two-and-a-half months after she'd already graduated, which helped her land her current job.

Identify Transferable Skills

Many skills you've gained in college are transferable, meaning they fit a wide range of fields and careers no matter what your major.

Beth Moseley is an accounting graduate of Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. She recently began working for the U.S. State Department as a passport specialist, conducting background checks and looking for instances of fraud in passport applications.