# Anyone else have a hard time explaining their job?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-have-a-hard-time-explaining-their-job/503464>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [July 18, 2009, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-have-a-hard-time-explaining-their-job/503464 "2009-07-18T19:51:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\
**Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-have-a-hard-time-explaining-their-job/503464/61 "2009-07-21T13:09:41Z")

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I’m a grad student. That isn’t the hard part, everyone knows what a grad student is. It’s the part where I have to explain what “public policy” is that gets complicated.

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**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\
**Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-have-a-hard-time-explaining-their-job/503464/62 "2009-07-21T13:21:22Z")

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I’m a grad student in an obscure branch of an obscure branch of computer science. To motivate the problem I’m trying to solve requires a decent level of mathematical knowledge.

I’m sure my inability to express what I do adequately is a damning testament of my communication skills. I usually just say I’m a computer scientist, if asked. If probed further, I say I do a lot of maths; this usually shuts people up.

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**Author:** ![Arglefraster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@Arglefraster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arglefraster)\
**Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-have-a-hard-time-explaining-their-job/503464/63 "2009-07-21T18:26:50Z")

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My actual job is pretty easy to explain - I’m in IT, doing tech support.

The hard part is when people ask me about the company I work for. Then I have to try to explain what credit insurance is.

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**Author:** ![lizardling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f4b2a3/32.png) [@lizardling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lizardling)\
**Post date:** [July 21, 2009, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-have-a-hard-time-explaining-their-job/503464/64 "2009-07-21T19:24:46Z")

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“I’m a technical writer.”

_blank look_

“I write the documentation for Product XYZ.”

_still blank as most people have never heard of this product_

“Manufacturers use our product to make the things you folks actually use.”

“Ohhh. That’s very nice.” And then they go find someone else to talk to. Documentation just isn’t sexy. 😛

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