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Inside New York City: A Young Person's Guide to the City

How to Market a Liberal Arts Education
By Connie Thanasoulis-Cerrachio

I graduated from New York University (in 1984) with three things:

1 - a BA degree in English Literature,
2 - no clue of what career I wanted, and
3 - no plan to get started searching for a career.

Nonetheless, ten years after I graduated I loved my work and was earning

over $100,000 (remember this was the early 1990s) and six years later I
was making over $200,000 and a couple of years after that, just under
$300,000.

If you have a Liberal Arts education, it's my goal to slice years off of

your quest to have both a rewarding career and to earn the income you
want. In fact I've recently started a firm (with two friends) called
SixFigureStart to do exactly that, give you the information, and the

power, to springboard into a career that excites both you and your bank
account.  Here are some tips.

Tip #1:  A liberal arts education teaches a student how to learn by
thinking through issues.  And what firm wouldn't need someone to do

this, on a daily basis?!  So when you interview, make sure that you give
specific examples of how innovative you can be, even if it's in a
non-business environment. For example, you and a group of peers at your

high school wanted to raise $10,000 dollars for a charitable event, and
you were falling below your goal with just 30 days to go.  So you came
up with two ideas (and be specific) that ensured you met your original

goal.  One idea involved soliciting help from the Football Team to sell
t-shirts at the weekly games and another was to hold a handball
tournament with an entry fee.

Tip #2:  A liberal arts education has variety so you can go anywhere and

do anything.  The benefits to any company here are clearly undeniable as

you will not be limited by a specialization.  In my first position at
Citigroup, I was in a marketing group and I expected to think up new and

better ways of marketing our product.  So I cringed when I was asked to
create revenue analysis from our eight retail centers.  But I dove into
this and because it wasn't my strength, I checked the information two

and three times, asked others to proof it, and by the time it went to my
boss, it was in great shape.  I even suggested a more effective format
which was adopted.  It was a huge confidence booster and I now felt just

as comfortable with numbers as I did with creative marketing ideas.

Tip #3:  Show your passion for the major you chose.  I LOVED English
Literature, especially 18th Century English Literature, but how could I

possibly sell that to Citigroup?  When I interviewed with them, I
described why I specifically liked Beowulf and compared one of the
characters to Riply in the movie Aliens, because both where driven and
defined by their maternal instinct.  I made a connection that surprised

the interviewer--one that was passionate, genuine, colorful and
different.

Tip #4:  Know and embrace your skills as a Liberal Arts major.  Liberal
Arts majors know how to communicate, both verbally and in writing.  This

is critical to any business.  I can't tell you how many business majors
lack the common writing skills necessary to produce an effective email.
During the interview, talk enthusiastically about a project you worked

on and how you kept your teammates apprised of its status. And talk
about how critical that communication was because it ensured that
everyone was on the same page and individuals weren't wasting time going
in different directions. Be proud of the fact that you wrote the final
team project, compiled feedback from other team members, and presented
the final version to the professor and the class. Effective
communication is the backbone of any business and any firm that cannot

do this will fail.

Tip #5:  Your resume should proudly state your Liberal Arts skills:

-exceptional problem-solving, creative thinking and communication skills

-strong teamwork and leadership skills

-the ability to conduct research and organize it clearly and effectively

-evaluative and critical thinking skills

-the ability to meet goals and deadlines, while managing time effectively

Remember to connect these skills to specific achievements.  All
businesses consider these skills critical to their success and would
embrace any candidate that can demonstrate them effectively.

We wish you success in your career search!

All information is copyright © SixFigureStart 2007. Columnist Connie
Thanasoulis-Cerrachio is a founding coach of SixFigureStart, a success
coaching firm for students and recent graduates (
www.sixfigurestart.com).
Ask a question or propose an idea for future columns at 212-501-2234 or at
info@sixfigurestart.com
.