30 year old arts graduate struggling to get by

If you are drifting from helpdesk job to helpdesk job, then you probably need to sit down and focus on starting a career in a particular field.

A good example would be to choose an industry, for purposes of providing an example here, let's say finance. You use your degree to get into an "entry level job" in a financial organisation (a lot of people do this to get into a particular industry), once you are in, and have done e.g. 6 months or so (and not fucked it up), then you have a pick of a very wide range of more specialised jobs, let's say client service for a specialised area (income, funds, etc). Once you have done a stint there, you usually have a very good idea of where you want to really put your effort into, something like compliance, or risk management, or whatever. That is the point where you start earning proper money. Likewise you now have a "trade". So if you want to go to another country, you can go straight into a proper field without having to "start from the bottom"

If you think you are 30 and "too old" to do this, you aren't. I've known several who have entered a brand new industry at age 30 to 40, and done exactly the above.

"But I don't know anything about X (e.g. finance)" - Irrelevant. Certain specific vocations require a certain path, many don't. Having a degree is an entry card for many industries and fields.

"The grass is greener in another country" - Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. I've lived in a good few countries now. They all have their own issues.

"I've sent out hundreds of CV's" - Jobs don't come to you, you go to them. Unfortunately, even in a job-rich economy, you still have to chase. Go to recruitment agencies, push, push.

"I'm doing badly in interviews" - Interviews can be learnt. I've seen quivering wrecks with anxiety become excellent at interviews in the space of a week. A lot of great material out there. I can prep someone on the phone for an interview in maybe 20 mins. Once the basics are learnt it applies for any type of interview for any job, well worth the investment of a few hours.

Ah very good, I just added that for anyone else reading (not aimed at you specifically) as I've seen several posts quite similar in theme to this one before

Luas or bus driver could be a good idea. Plumbers earn great money, but you would need several years training for that. The thing about buying is, what do you aspire to buy? Your parents dont have any land you can build on ?

Yep

Even though house prices are insane mortgages usually end up cheaper than renting and you dont end up an elderly retired person with insanely high rent bills. In 20/30 years this country is going to have a huge crisis of elderly homelessness because home ownership is now so difficult for people from 20s to 40s.

Im not the OP

Cool. You do that. 😐

I used to bike out there as a kid, a beautiful place, you'd have americans who would dream of living in a cottage in the hills near Tinahely or Shillelagh, plus you have the annual Tinahely show to look forward to. I mean winter is dour enough but so is the rest of Ireland.

I bought on my own aged 29 and I was one of the last of my friend group to do so. They all got into serious relationships very young and bought between the ages of 21 and 25. This was in celtic tiger, some overpaid and stuck in an unsuitable house for years and years after the crash. I rented and saved all through my 20s, moved into a better job and then bought in the downturn for 60% of the cost it was pre crash. On my own, although GF lives here now. I have a smaller mortgage than them all and a nicer house than most.

Moral.....all good things come to those who wait. At 28 I had neither a house nor a GF, at 30 I had both.

Wasn't for social media, wasn't for keeping up with the Jones next door, was for me and when the time was right I struck.

Top reasons:

• Society/Government looking down on women who want to stay home and raise a family rather than having a creche do it for them. Result is higher incomes for couples leading to higher property prices, cutting most singles out of the chance of buying even a 1 bed apartment in Dublin.
• All those social houses built/acquired reduce the stock available for workers to buy, making demand higher and prices too.

You could do a 3 year course and be well on your way to a salary much higher than you are on now. You could even do a 1 year Level 6 and get yourself into a technicians role on pretty decent money. Twice your current earnings for a start.

Correct. If you want to live in, or near Dublin, your current salary is sh!t and you need to change that. This is what everyone on here has said to some degree.

I was thinking the same. Needs to be in a personal problems forum.

OR.... you can work abroad and save money like so many people did, get the deposit for a home and come home once you have spent your time working abroad?

Honestly, you need to grow up.

I did Arts in UCD and now work in IT having gone back and done another couple of years in college after graduating. I thoroughly regretted doing Arts and found at the time there was far too much advice given out about how it's a good general education and base level to go on to do something else etc. Yes you get the slagging about how useless a qualification it is from the general public but looking back now I found people within education were trying to counter that too much with their advice and there was not enough realism about what life will be like immediately after graduating. You're seventeen when you're filling out your CAO after all, you know absolutely nothing about the world.

I also now suspect a troll. (I HOPE a troll): Pity the poor little rich kid who went to Uni and can't get a house cos of unmarried mother's and foreigners. Now they have to slum it. It's like a Pulp song. Lol.