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Job hunting is terrible
My husband wants me to do something so that I don't just sit in the house all day and get depressed, preferably either going back to school or getting a job. He has a very good point, but finding a job is terrible. It was terrible 5 years ago and it's terrible now. I have a Master's in a marine biology, and that's pretty much useless. You really need a PhD to do anything. I've looked at everything in the area, and there really isn't much of anything. He works at the university 45 minutes north, and it looks like I'm going to have to work/study there too (the nearest large city, and a good city for marine biology).
Today after dropping him off at work (one car) I did some job searching and dropped my resume off at a few places. The aquarium isn't hiring in my area, but I left a resume anyway. I also dropped a few off at some whale watching places. If I'm not employed by December, it's back to school with me.
Re: Job hunting is terrible
Job hunting is depressing and takes it's toll but you need to hang in there and keep it up. I wouldn't suggest going back to school just to do something. It is going to cost you money and limit your job hunting. I have a similiar degree and understand your frustrations. Is there anything else you might be interested in trying that doesn't require a new degree?
Another option to fill your days is volunteering. Could you volunteer at the aquarium or a local zoo?
Job hunting is terrible, but it sounds like you've acknowledged that to do anything in your field you will have to go back to school for your PhD? Are you looking for a career in Marine Biology or are you open to trying something else (even temporarily)?
If your day to day activities aren't influenced by money, as Santorini mentioned you could get involved in volunteering. That would "get you out of the house" so to speak, enrich your life and give you something to talk about during interviews while you're looking for a job. And it's very "feel good" so that might help with the cabin fever/depression. Even if it isn't necessarily related to your field giving back to the community always looks positive. And who knows, when you volunteer if an organization has a paid opening they might look to the people they already work with to fill it.
If another industry or volunteering don't appeal to you then I'd say good luck next semester!
Is there any way you can turn your education and background into a self-run company?
Do you have any talents or skills you can market and transform into a self run business?
I would strongly suggest you go that route --- job hunting is beyond horrendous. I've been through 8 recessions and the job hunting market's the worst that I've seen it: it's positively dry and the majority of the "ads" I see, even on legit local websites and through our daily newspapers' jobs on line, are mostly fake ads --- no company email or fax number to send your resume to. There is an email addressed attached to send your resume to: officejob@ freeemaildomain.com.
You'll google the fax number and it comes back to no legitimate business or company.
If you choose to pursue a non-marine biology job, I strong advise you to omit your masters degree from your resume. Only include "BS in biology, Faber University" as your education. You'll automatically be pegged as "OVERQUALIFIED" once these people see you have a masters degree. Sand and true fact of the job hunting world.:(
Wishing you luck.
I learned this one. I used to list everything on my resume and was either rejected from jobs for being underqualified or overqualified. Before moving and eloping I was a motel maid- I didn't even include my BS on it, just my high school diploma. DH wouldn't ever ask me to do anything like that again, because we really don't need the money that much (a maid salary would be pocket change).
I actually have a few people with Masters degrees working in my bakery cafe. I never turn down an application on basis on education (although I do usually require a high school diploma or current enrollment) but I will almost always ask about it. There are lots of reasons- some people are still students, some people are having a hard time on the job market and are looking for any job they can, some people just don't like the subject of their degree anymore. All of these reasons are valid- their level of education doesn't always dictate how good they are at their job. I want to know about their education and their goals because I like knowing about my employees, because I actually care about them.
It's sad when I see other businesses rejecting people on the basis of overqualification. It presumes that there are plenty of jobs in those areas.