don't be like me.

"would you recommend me being an art major?" 

is something that i have been asked so many times since graduating college. i don't know what is worse, having people think you are all of the sudden wise because you graduated college, or that i don't know how to answer the question.

because there are so many things that come to mind when someone says that they want to be an art major. first, what do you plan on doing with the art degree? if you're answer doesn't involve graphic design, you probably aren't going to like my answer. if you are like me, creative and artsy, then you will be stubborn when it comes time to listen to what people have to say. i thought that i had the world in my hands when i graduated. i thought to myself "i'll find a job in my field." yeah, no. that didn't happen. yes, i found a job, but its not in my field, or even close to what i was learning in school. i enjoy what i do, but it wasn't what i went to school for. 

so, here i am. eight months after graduating from college, and here is what i have to say: don't go to school to be an art major. why, ali? because, don't be like me. majority of the time i feel like i wasted my four years on a degree that i don't even use. no, i don't regret going to school and meeting some of my best friends that i will take with me everywhere i go. but i regret the decision i went with in my major. 

i'm not saying that you can't be an art major and do great things with it. i'm not saying that at all, but what i am saying is that add something to that art degree that will get you places. a business minor, or a business major with art as a minor. my theory is that you can be creative and artsy no matter where you go. but you hardly ever get paid for it. yeah, sure, every once in a while i get a few clients for my photography business but that's not what brings the bacon home at the end of the day. 

my job at the company where i work right now, it doesn't ask me what the value, shape, contrast, etc. is in the office that i'm working in. it asks me, have these papers been filed yet? if not, put them into the computer system. if  they have, they need to be filed. no one here is asking me about Egyptian art or about the history of the art. all the things i learned about in school, don't really matter right now. the pictures that i took mean nothing to my job. 

i'm not saying that i'm just going to give up on photography. i am just telling you the truth. it will be hard as an graduate, even harder if you're an art degree graduate. if you are in college, with time on your side, take my advice and don't declare art as your major. don't be like me. be smart. declare a major that will benefit you in the end and get you a good paying job that will bring home the bacon. i'm telling you this because i know better know and i hope you are better off in the long run. because no one is going to look back and say "so what did you like most about art history class?" your boss just wants the confidence that you can do your job and do it well.

For those of you that are art majors and you're mad at me, you know I'm right. Don't come crying to me when you can't find your dream job because no one in the art industry is hiring. Be smart, do your research, go back to school if you have too, just DONT. BE. LIKE. ME.

Network. Make friends with the company you're working for, do what it takes to get where you want to go. Work hard. Pay your bills.

I am in no way of being a genius on living the poster child of a graduate student. But I've been there, I know what you will be going through. The loan payments start coming and the panic and worry starts to sit in. Worrying about will only make it worse, trust me. Find a job, hell, two jobs if you're up for it. i'm no expert, but complaining about your situation isn't going to make it go away. i know  i complained about it in the past and i'll probably complain about it in the future. but for now:

now, go bring home the bacon.

--the girl with the bird tattoo.