“With everyone rushing to acquire a degree, I always thought having a masters was the best thing. That it was the only thing that could set me apart. Now I am stuck,” confesses John Kuria, a teller in a local bank.
John is stuck in a job he does not love and he has done everything to get out of it. He has been reading widely about how to get a job with a masters degree and all the articles never seem to help.
He has been applying for all jobs he comes across, but no employer responds to his request.
This is his story:
“I have a job that pays my bills, but with each passing day I feel more depressed and thoughts of quitting my job are always on my mind. My reason is because I feel I am better than this.
One year after completing my KCSE, I flew to the UK to study. Studying there is expensive and it cost me 3 million shillings per year to undertake my degree and masters.
This summed up to 12 million shillings. I now posses a degree in Business Management and human Resource Management and a first class honours master in strategy and International Business.
Having been sponsored by my parents I decided to take initiative and look for a job. After all, they had done so much for me already. I currently work in an esteemed bank in Nairobi as a teller.
It is my first full time job. I am disappointed in myself because after investing a lot and studying hard I am just a bank teller. Counting people’s money yet I ought to have a very senior position somewhere.
It is not fair at all!
I feel that I am settling for less and while I still need to pay my bills I am not happy with this job.
Should I quit or job search while in this teller job or I’m in this because I lack experience?
Please help.”
What Advice would you give John?
this is just a beginning be strong think outside the box coz I think being self employed nowadays is the best option.
Dwelling in the done will never undo it.
For you to get to the top management position that you are dreaming of,you’ll have to acquire more than the university papers, it comes with a concoction of smart/hardwork, a lot of discipline and perseverance.
Being a teller, this gives you even a better field to improve on all of the above mentioned.
Reason enough why the “fancy” office titles that you have an appetite for will always come with more attributes and qualities not forgetting the big numbers experience.
My genuine advice to you is that you should not quit…likes of Centum’s CEO James Mworia started as interns and made it to the top.
There is only one way and that is up.
Just stick to that current job you have and remember that you are not the only one who have a master degree,there are so many out there and even some don’t have that job.
So try to to do other professional courses related to your profession such as CPA or ACCA,and continue to gain more experience in the place where currently you are placed.
With more experience and professional course attained ,you will be better placed to get a new and big opportunity down your way.
So just be patient bother and never lose hope!
I think my biggest concern with John is his attitude. Success will not be handed over to you, you have to take it! Whinning doesnt help either. Within your current organization, apart from whinning, have you done anything that sets you apart from then rest of the ‘ordinary’ tellers? Opportunities come in different shapes for example during staff planning meetings, you writing Concept Note proposing something for your bank based on your high qualifications. Second you need to be ready to move to a less glamorous entity, but one that offers you an opportunity to maximise use of your skills. I am in Communication and the best grounding for me came when I was working for an organization with almost no budget (not even for transport) so I had to be the Graphic Designer, Editor, Web Designer, Writer and even Marketer. The organization had no budget for training so I asked them to negotiate with the service providers e.g web host for hands one training and that helped me a lot.