I am 27 looking for a graduate job with a 2:2 degree and no experience

I am looking for some advice looking for my first professional job at 27 with no experience. I was diagnosed with schizophrenia after graduating at 22, but the onset of it started in my third year, which resulted in me graduating with a 2:2 degree. I spent the next year doing random and crazy stuff until I was stable on medication. I worked as a waiter (promoted to supervisor) for a couple of years then I relapsed and spent the next two years going in and out of the mental health ward... I am 27 now and this time I am sure I won't relapse again as together with the doctors, I have found the right combination of medications that works well for me. But now I am looking for a graduate job at 27 with a 2:2 degree and no professional experience. I wonder if there is anybody with more or less the same experience (life circumstances and all that) who still manages to find a decent job?

Reply 1

hotpud

Original post by Anonymous

So you there are two ways you can look at this.

What job do you want to do? (The correct answer BTW isn't any old job). Once you have figured that out, what skills and knowledge do you need in order to do that job? Then work backwards enrolling on courses and or self-teaching the necessary skills until you have something you can sell. This will likely take 6 months to a year minimum.

What degree do you have? What skills can you offer? Your options then rest on what you have to give. If your evaluation yields that all you have to offer is being a supervising waiter, then that is the direction you need to travel or go for option 1. Either way, applying for random jobs on a hope and a prayer will not work.

Just remember - businesses are in the business of making money. They hire people because the skills and expertise they bring affect the bottom line and bring money into the business. So if you are looking for a job, you need to be asking the question, "What do I bring to the table that will enable a business to make money?" If the answer is not much then step one is the way forward. This is why for me, doing a degree straight after school is an utter waste of time / money for most.