Martian

Or, Mars needs to figure out what the hell he's doing with his life.

The basic premise is this : I can't keep doing what I'm doing. My life is slowly but surely slipping out of my control, the debt is piling up and I need a way out. I'm taking action to avoid ending up in a hole (or on the street), but I need to move forward. Hence the whole going to school thing.

Anybody who feels like it, I'm looking for a good idea of what your career is like. What do you like about it, what don't you like about it, does it pay well, are there any additional benefits or drawbacks to it? What sort of prerequisites are there for your field?

My primary fields that I'm interested in are either automotive, law enforcement or music. A military career is unfortunately not an option. Canadian TFPers in particular are folks that I'm interested in hearing from, since that's what's most relevant to me, but it's not an exclusive. I'm not concerned about where the job is located and if the work you do relates to the work I might be able to do, then I'd like to hear about it.

Thank you all for your time.

__________________
I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said

- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

DEI37

Hell, I can't even sell me on what I do. I'm with you. I don't make any real money, and it's getting old...quick.

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Generally speaking, if you were to get what you really deserve, you might be unpleasantly surprised.

Topper

Just think VERY carefully if you ever face the decision to go into managment. (doesn't really matter what field you're in) Nothing like being held responsible for the mistakes of those working for you.

Nimetic

Haha. As opposed to being held responsible for mistakes of your boss?

DEI37

Yeah, I hear that. I already get crap from him for his mistakes!!!

__________________
Generally speaking, if you were to get what you really deserve, you might be unpleasantly surprised.

cj2112

I read this yesterday, and I tried to think of a way to sell you on an exciting career in the commercial cabinetry industry, but then I realized it was impossible.

JustJess

Hm. Neither of my careers (future or current) really fit with your interests, I don't think. I currently work in Human Resources, doing all the Immigration work for the hospital. It's paperwork heavy, but I'm pretty anal retentive so that's not bad, and I am actually helping people. Coming here means a change in life at least, and certainly a grand addition to their education and knowledge. Most of the people I deal with are happy to have me. That's nice. Recruitment is like that too - everyone needs you, so everyone is nice. I trained on the job, but most places want you to have some legal knowledge. Paralegals would do well with this. Money - wide range, especially depending on where you work. Easily $50 no experience - $100K with experience.

My future career is as a Physician's Assistant. Why the change? Got to get away from the desk, it's not for me. And I will be Really Useful. My goal (right now) is to be in an ER, because of the variety and the volume of patient responsibility. You need several science/math courses, and you can get a certificate, or a BS, or a Master's as a Physician Assistant. 3rd fastest growing job in the US. Salaries in the US are around $75K average for people walking out of school, for any of the types of PA.

Hope that helps.

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My heart knows me better than I know myself, so I'm gonna let it do all the talkin'.

Lucifer

Martian, I'm not sure I could sell you on my job or not, so I copied this out of the "typical day at your job" thread. If you didn't know it already, I'm a Merchant Marine Officer for a shipping company from St. Catharines called Algoma Central Marine. I work about 8 months of the year and make about $55,000 to $70,000 depending on which ship I'm working and how much overtime is available. My hourly wage is $26.75 and I clear about $1200/week. I'm on the navigating side, but there is also an engineering side available. I went to Georgian college in Owen Sound for 3 years to get my diploma, and my marine license. I was employed immediately on graduation. There is a photo of my ship in the Toronto Meetup May 13 thread.
Here's a typical day:

11:30 pm - get woken for watch by the ordinary seaman (OS) of the 3rd mate's watch 8-12
11:45 pm - on the bridge, get COFFEE!!, talk to the 3rd mate, look in the radars, check the ecdis, gyro compass, let eyes get adjusted to the dark, look out all the windows for other ships, talk about what to expect in the next four hours (what ships are around, course alterations, radio call in points, etc)
11:50 pm - Sign in the Logbook, and plot our position on the chart. The ship is now mine. Big responsibility for this huge hunk of steel, it's million dollar cargo and the 30 sleeping souls on board.
11:55 pm - call the engine room, check the clocks have the same time in their control room as we have on the bridge
For the next 4 hours, I mainly keep lookout the windows, shoot the shit with my wheelsman, watch for the lights of other ships that may come close to us, plot our position on the chart every 30 minutes and make log entries every hour, alter our course as necessary to avoid other ships, big rocks, land, etc., call traffic control on the VHF radio and let them know where we are, sometimes if I feel particularily bored, I will fill out the weather code sheet and call it in to the coast guard.
3:30 am-ish - get things ready for the 1st mate to take over at 4 am. Make fresh coffee, make sure the charts are updated with latest position, courses and alterations.
4:00 am - off watch now, I watch tv for an hour or so depending on how tired I am and sleep till 11:00 am when the 8-12 watchman wakes me for lunch.
11:50 am - see above, except now it's daylight and I can do chart corrections while on watch, when I'm not avoiding other ships, big rocks, land.
3:20 pm - dinner break. 1st mate comes up and relieves me of watch, so that I can come back and relieve him at 4:50 pm so he can go to the galley and get his dinner.
4:50 pm - relieve the 1st mate for dinner for 30 minutes.
5:20 pm - get my dinner and watch tv and go to bed, cause there'll be a knock on my door at 11:30pm to start another day.

If we are in port loading or unloading cargo, I'm in command of the deck and the cargo operations for the hours between 12-4, and I'm available for overtime for the two hours preceding my watch and the two hours after if the other mate's need a hand, like for leaving/entering port or taking the ship up rivers, etc.

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I am a brother to dragons, and a companion to owls.
- Job 30:29

1123, 6536, 5321

Zeraph

I sometimes question those official lists about fastest growing jobs and what-not. I think theyre really what whomever is responsible for making them needs most, rather than what would be best for the individual. Not that I can blame them I guess, but I wouldn't completely trust them.

Does anyone know any interesting jobs like the one listed above that give on job training and you only need a BA or BS for? The time is coming (1 more semester) that I will be graduating with a BA (or BS really, I'd take like 1 more lab) in psychology from ASU and I need to decide if I want to go to graduate school. I'm really not sure what I want to do. I'd make a good scientist but part of me is just bleh at graduate school for psychology. I'm starting to wonder if I should have taken engineering instead or something...

Jimellow

Please elaborate on this advice/comment more.

Thanks.

__________________
Desperation is no excuse for lowering one's standards.

Elphaba

Martin, I have read that people skilled in automotive maintenance using computer diagnostic techniques are in high demand and making respectable wages. (Last I heard it was $30+ an hour). I would caution you in that maintenance is expected to become specific to the maker of the vehicle, which may ultimately end independent services.

If you like problem solving and have a knack for understanding complex systems, automotive maintenance may be a good choice for you.

Topper

I'll start with what worries me the most at night.. Confidence. Before I started managing years ago, I performed the tasks my reports did. I was very good at what I did. Very detailed oriented, lots of drive, I had real "passion for quality" as they like to put it in the software industry. I did my work, and I stood by my results. If my work was questioned by others, I could (and did) immediately disagree with them.

They were mistaken.
They miss-configured something.
There was nothing wrong with my work.

Why? Because I had done the work myself, I had carefully and diligently performed every task like it was second nature to me. I have confidence in the work that I did.

Remember the saying "If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself"? Well I believe it's mostly true. People may do something "right", but they will almost never do it the same way you would. Doesn't mean the job is done incorrectly, just means a different level of detail may have gone into it, work may not have been double checked like you would have done, etc

Skip ahead a few years to today. I routinely have to stand up for the work my team does. Am I mostly confident in the work they do? Yes. For the most part I have a great team, with a lot of bright, talented people. But I will never be as confident as if I had done the work myself. People make mistakes. I've made them. But individually, those mistakes are rare (for some more rare then others). Get a team of people together though, and you see mistakes more often. Make one person responsible for that entire team, and I see mistakes the TEAM makes all the time.

As a manager, I'm held accountable for the work my team performs. If someone messes up, I can't point my finger and lay the blame on them. A good manager takes responsibility for their team. I can't take credit and reap the rewards for all the good work they do, and yet wash my hands of the mistakes they make. And a good manager does not blame their employees for mistakes the manager makes either (as Nimetic and DEI37 unfortunately have to deal with).

And that's just scratching the surface. I could go on for a lot longer about so many things, but don't want to hijack the thread. It’s a topic all unto itself.

Martian

Elphaba - Had things worked out differently, I might be doing that already. I spent two years trying to find an apprenticeship before I gave up - nobody wants to hire a kid with no experience and there's no way to get experience other than to be hired. In other words you need a friend in the biz, which I don't have.

Keep 'em coming, folks. The more options I know about, the better equipped I am to pick the one that seems right for me. Tell me as much as you can about your chosen profession; I listed my primary interests, but I'm not opposed to a different career if the opportunity arises.

__________________
I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said

- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

streak_56

Martian.....

I knew no one at all in the electrician field when I started. I called a few companies and literally in Alberta (I don't know where you're from in Canada) they'll hire anyone in a trade. If you need tools then they'll pay for them. Being an electrician means that you'll still go home tired from a hard days work but not as dirty as a plumber. I love it and wouldn't choose anything else.

Ustwo

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Agents of the enemies who hold office in our own government, who attempt to eliminate our "freedoms" and our "right to know" are posting among us, I fear.....on this very forum. - host

Obama - Know a Man by the friends he keeps.

Charlatan

How I picture a young impulsive Ustwo...

"I want to be a Den-tist"

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"My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars."
- Old Man Luedecke

fresnelly

In order to take a career in the theatre, you really have to like the artform, because the hours are odd and the money can be spotty.

That said, there's plenty of work in this city as a stagehand. Wages range from $13/h at the smallest venues, up to $30/h in "A" size union houses. Interstingly, the difficuly seems to go down as the wages go up. Most of the non-profit theatres here in Toronto pay $15/h. The trick is knowing someone who will recommend you, and the best place to get hooked in, is through one of the local college theatre programs (2yr diploma, or 4yr BFA). A lot of beginners also start in the production rental houses, organizing and maintaining lighting, sound and staging gear.

In theatre you work on a show to show basis and are "self employed" in the eyes of Revenue Canada, though that could change in the near future. Most are on a call list for the producing companies, rather than the venues. Essential tools include a crescent wrench, steel toes, knife, and (if you're a carpenter) a cordless drill gun.

In a similar vein, conference and event venues use armies of less skilled workers to put in trade shows and the like. The work is mostly physical and not very satisfying, but can be steadier than theatre and concerts.

Generally everyone who works in 'the biz' was bitten by the bug early on, or fell into it.

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Building an artificial intelligence that appreciates Mozart is easy. Building an A.I. that appreciates a theme restaurant is the real challenge - Kit Roebuck - Nine Planets Without Intelligent Life