Need Career Advice

[healother]

I've made enough comments about this in other threads, that I figured its time I make a thread devoted to it. Warning: this could be long, skip to the cliffs if you have a short attention span.

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I am pretty lost at the moment in deciding what I want to do with my life. I know this is not a question you can just have other people answer for you, but I figured I would post up on here for ideas.

I am 22 years old, and just graduated school with a BA in psych / business minor. As some may know, there aren’t too many places looking for people with BAs in psych. I choose a psych degree because the classes were fun and my parents wanted me to go to college. I do not want to go to graduate school, or do any more schooling if I can avoid it.

Right now I am living at home with the parents, and I want to move out, be independent and be on my own. I live in a large metropolis area and rent isn’t cheap here unfortunately. I have no clue exactly what the cost of living is, but I know 1 bedroom apartments are 600-700 (depending on which part of town you are in). Right now I don’t know of anyone looking for a roommate, but that’s okay, because I think I'd prefer to live alone.

I currently am unemployed and have been for a few weeks, just got done doing a 3 month IT contract in a desktop support position. I am pretty good with computers and worked at the helpdesk in college for 2 years, so I could probably continue this route, but honestly I'm not sure if I could stomach it for very long. Also I'm not sure if I could ever afford to buy a house, if working as a lowly IT helpdesk person.

I like jobs that are very physically active, but I know that in reality people nowadays are paid to use their minds not their bodies. For example, I'd love to load boxes or something 8 hours a day (boxes not heavy enough to break my back, though) but I know that jobs like these only pay 10 bucks an hour or so tops, which I doubt I could live off of in my city.
I also like jobs where I’m trying to market an idea or product to someone, but not if it means working on commission.
I also like problem solving and fixing things, hence why I kind of like IT. But I would probably get sick of IT after awhile.

I know I should find a job soon, but…
I don’t want to jump into some other contract where I'm in the same boat looking for another job in a few months. Nor do I want to pick some crappy job or some low paying job, where I want to find another in a few months.

So, that’s the boat I'm in.


Cliffs:

-I'm 22 yrs old. Looking for a job. Have a BA in psych / business minor. Don’t want to go back to school. Have some IT experience too (but not sure if I could keep doing IT)
-Need a job that pays enough so that I can move out and live in an apartment or something (rent is 600-700 around here for 1br apartments)
-I like marketing ideas/products, I like fixing things, and I like active jobs
-I don’t like contracting jobs, commission jobs, and prefer not to work extremely inactive jobs.
-Need advice

 

[UA_Iron]

shoulda stayed in college one more year, thats what I'm doing.

 

[jnevin]

You should invent something really really cool and make millions.


You're welcome.

 

[Falklands]

You should have got an honest decent job after High School rather than Pissing about in college doing a waste of time course.

 

[NickyE3]

you could be a school guidance counselor or a school psych

 

[justinjones1963]

I'm on my 4th degree. I have an AS in computer science, BS in Business, MBA and working on a JD. I head off to get a PhD after this. Working 9 months out of the year for 100K+ and doing consulting work and business ventures on the side will help add to that amount. Management and law suck because of the hours. I like making my own schedule. Going to school is a breeze and in the end it will all pay off.

 

[-SD-]

Dont take courses because they are "fun". Take them for their future probable economic benefit.

 

[healother]

shoulda stayed in college one more year, thats what I'm doing.

oh yeah? what are you staying another year for? Are you double majoring?

You should have got an honest decent job after High School rather than Pissing about in college doing a waste of time course.

lol, way to point out the obvious and the things that cant be changed.

you could be a school guidance counselor or a school psych

im not sure if i trust in my abilities to guide other ppl though, im not even sure if i can guide myself? plus i think you need a masters degree or higher for most of that stuff. i know my academic advisor actually had a doctorate.

i know i know, you all are probably wondering why the hell i got a degree in psych. honestly i have no idea.

I'm on my 4th degree. I have an AS in computer science, BS in Business, MBA and working on a JD. I head off to get a PhD after this. Working 9 months out of the year for 100K+ and doing consulting work and business ventures on the side will help add to that amount. Management and law suck because of the hours. I like making my own schedule. Going to school is a breeze and in the end it will all pay off.

congrats if you are able to be in school, only work 9 months a year and make 100k. that takes major skill! What is JD?

Dont take courses because they are "fun". Take them for their future probable economic benefit.

i took courses that interested me, which is what everyone told me to do. and now i have paddled down the wrong crick.

i should have thought about future economic benefit but i didnt want to think about that back then and now i am paying for it.

 

[Lestat]

hey bro, good post.

First off, I'll tell you a little about me, you may or may not know this, but most people here have heard some or all of this info at some point.

I was a Psych undergraduate major, minor in CSE, I started as a CSE major though and had an extensive object oriented programming background.

When I was 21, I went through the same panic you are going through now. Although unlike you, I was just finishing my JUNIOR year in school. I had to switch majors so I didn't fail out of college (Physics KILLED me, fuck you samote!).

I got a job through a temp agency doing some really low level bullshit accounting. I processed payroll for a bunch of temp employees that worked at a large company. I started at 8.50 an hour but within 3 months was making 12.75/hr. On that pay I could afford my rent, food, and car insurance, that was about it. I live in San Diego, an expensive city.

I knew I didn't want to do this accounting long term. I got involved in some process improvement projects at my company, and like most process improvements, they involved technology, which got me working with IT people.

From there I networked within my company to get an internship in IT. I never had to do any help desk, that is the lowest level of IT here and they don't get treated very well and don't get paid well. My internship paid $18/hr. I was a junior business intelligence developer/report writer. I started out with almost no working knowledge, but went to training, met with other co workers, and just absorbed all I could.

Also, to give me some credible technical background on paper, I completed an M.S. degree in Telecommunications. I was able to do this at nights and on weekends through a reputable university.

After a year as an intern, I was promoted to a Programmer Anayst. Was making around 22/hr then.

Since then I have taken more training, also trained to become a project manager and managed some pretty big projects (we're talking projects that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars). I now make 80K+ nearly 40/hr and that will continue to go up because with what I am doing now I will move to management eventually and would like to one day be involved in the strategic direction of IT in this company. I got into a very high demand part of IT. Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence. Its not too difficult, but its not something you can slouch through. Ultimately the skills that push my career forward are basic ones: communication, both written and verbal. Assertiveness. Pleasant demeanor. reliability. People come to me with projects because they know I can get things done, see things to the end, and empathize with the end users.

I'm not saying do exactly what I did. BUT I didn't exactly PLAN this all out. I knew I wanted to work in IT. I saw myself more as a network engineer though, but I like what I do even more because I have a lot of end user interaction and I really work with the business, not just all behind the scenes stuff.

So what would I advise you to do? Check out some temp agencies, see what types of entry level positions you can get into. Don't worry about pay so much now as EXPERIENCE. I was able to do what I did because I got into a large company with some growth potential. I'd suggest the same. Get in somewhere that you can LEARN, learn learn learn bro, learn how to interct and work with people professionally. Learn business processes. Learn specialized software if possible. Things will start to come together for you over time and more doors will open. Don't be afraid to start small, just make sure it has SOME room for growth so you don't get stuck doing something you hate or something that bores you for more than a year or two at a time.

 

[healother]

hey bro, good post.

First off, I'll tell you a little about me, you may or may not know this, but most people here have heard some or all of this info at some point.

I was a Psych undergraduate major, minor in CSE, I started as a CSE major though and had an extensive object oriented programming background.

When I was 21, I went through the same panic you are going through now. Although unlike you, I was just finishing my JUNIOR year in school. I had to switch majors so I didn't fail out of college (Physics KILLED me, fuck you samote!).

I got a job through a temp agency doing some really low level bullshit accounting. I processed payroll for a bunch of temp employees that worked at a large company. I started at 8.50 an hour but within 3 months was making 12.75/hr. On that pay I could afford my rent, food, and car insurance, that was about it. I live in San Diego, an expensive city.

I knew I didn't want to do this accounting long term. I got involved in some process improvement projects at my company, and like most process improvements, they involved technology, which got me working with IT people.

From there I networked within my company to get an internship in IT. I never had to do any help desk, that is the lowest level of IT here and they don't get treated very well and don't get paid well. My internship paid $18/hr. I was a junior business intelligence developer/report writer. I started out with almost no working knowledge, but went to training, met with other co workers, and just absorbed all I could.

Also, to give me some credible technical background on paper, I completed an M.S. degree in Telecommunications. I was able to do this at nights and on weekends through a reputable university.

After a year as an intern, I was promoted to a Programmer Anayst. Was making around 22/hr then.

Since then I have taken more training, also trained to become a project manager and managed some pretty big projects (we're talking projects that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars). I now make 80K+ nearly 40/hr and that will continue to go up because with what I am doing now I will move to management eventually and would like to one day be involved in the strategic direction of IT in this company. I got into a very high demand part of IT. Data Warehousing and Business Intelligence. Its not too difficult, but its not something you can slouch through. Ultimately the skills that push my career forward are basic ones: communication, both written and verbal. Assertiveness. Pleasant demeanor. reliability. People come to me with projects because they know I can get things done, see things to the end, and empathize with the end users.

I'm not saying do exactly what I did. BUT I didn't exactly PLAN this all out. I knew I wanted to work in IT. I saw myself more as a network engineer though, but I like what I do even more because I have a lot of end user interaction and I really work with the business, not just all behind the scenes stuff.

So what would I advise you to do? Check out some temp agencies, see what types of entry level positions you can get into. Don't worry about pay so much now as EXPERIENCE. I was able to do what I did because I got into a large company with some growth potential. I'd suggest the same. Get in somewhere that you can LEARN, learn learn learn bro, learn how to interct and work with people professionally. Learn business processes. Learn specialized software if possible. Things will start to come together for you over time and more doors will open. Don't be afraid to start small, just make sure it has SOME room for growth so you don't get stuck doing something you hate or something that bores you for more than a year or two at a time.

thanks for the post, that is an interesting story, how you maneuvered around like that.
sounds like it worked out well for you.

did you ever have a time where you just didnt know what the hell you wanted to do for your next job?
thats where i am at right now and its pretty freaky. I suppose I could just find a temp agency, and hop around randomly, but everytime i change (like when the contract ends on a good job) it feels a little sad, also i have really low inertia when it comes to finding new jobs, lol.

im trying to decide how important wages are to me. i know that one day i want a house, but other than that i have no large financial aspirations.
but im not sure how much money should be a goal for me. i know some people have had misguided lives focusing on wealth and comfort as their goals.

then again though growth can mean other things too besides wages, like just learning a different skill or something and finding a more enjoyable job. I'm just not sure if the job i desire is high up on the tree or lower on the tree, lol.

 

[Lestat]

thanks for the post, that is an interesting story, how you maneuvered around like that.
sounds like it worked out well for you.

did you ever have a time where you just didnt know what the hell you wanted to do for your next job?
thats where i am at right now and its pretty freaky. I suppose I could just find a temp agency, and hop around randomly, but everytime i change (like when the contract ends on a good job) it feels a little sad, also i have really low inertia when it comes to finding new jobs, lol.

im trying to decide how important wages are to me. i know that one day i want a house, but other than that i have no large financial aspirations.
but im not sure how much money should be a goal for me. i know some people have had misguided lives focusing on wealth and comfort as their goals.

then again though growth can mean other things too besides wages, like just learning a different skill or something and finding a more enjoyable job. I'm just not sure if the job i desire is high up on the tree or lower on the tree, lol.

for wages, I just wanted something that was livable. I make more money now than I thought I would, I have some extra things that are definitely luxuries (like I bought a brand new car in 1999, I have taken some great vacations, I eat out a lot, etc).

I didn't really know what I wanted to do when I first started working, I just knew I needed to figure out how to support myself fast because I was still getting my car insurance and rent paid by my parents while I was in college and that was about to come to a screetching halt!

When i say temp agencies, I mean more like recruiting firms, look for temp to hire positions, not finite contract jobs that will end with no change of being hired on as a regular employee.

Ever thought of going into the medical field? Nursing is not bad, you can specialize. There are all sorts of different non M.D. positions too that pay a ton. You can work the heart and lung machine during surgeries with a couple years of school and it ends up paying 75K+

 

[-SD-]

Yea, but lestat is, you know, geigh. so its all relative.

 

[healother]

for wages, I just wanted something that was livable. I make more money now than I thought I would, I have some extra things that are definitely luxuries (like I bought a brand new car in 1999, I have taken some great vacations, I eat out a lot, etc).

I didn't really know what I wanted to do when I first started working, I just knew I needed to figure out how to support myself fast because I was still getting my car insurance and rent paid by my parents while I was in college and that was about to come to a screetching halt!

When i say temp agencies, I mean more like recruiting firms, look for temp to hire positions, not finite contract jobs that will end with no change of being hired on as a regular employee.

Ever thought of going into the medical field? Nursing is not bad, you can specialize. There are all sorts of different non M.D. positions too that pay a ton. You can work the heart and lung machine during surgeries with a couple years of school and it ends up paying 75K+

ahh, i see. Also , in San Fran, actually 80k probably doesnt do as much as it would here, given the cost of living and all.

im living at home with my parents so im not paying rent. unfortunately this acts as a deterrent for me to grow up.

so when you say recruiting firms, you mean that the firm doesnt pay you but rather the company you are actually working at does, right? there is temp to hire and there is also contract for hire too.
but I dont like it when there is a middle man collecting the check, and then paying me, lol.

i havent thought of the medical field too much, probably because my mom is a doctor and it scares me about how busy she is, lol. but you are right, i bet it pays pretty good.
I'm not sure if i could do medical work or not, itd be pretty scary trying to save someone's life, and getting sued if i failed!
And there is also the issue with the further schooling, and whether or not i could stomach the studying!

 

[justinjones1963]

JD - juris doctor = law degree

 

[NickyE3]

im not sure if i trust in my abilities to guide other ppl though, im not even sure if i can guide myself? plus i think you need a masters degree or higher for most of that stuff. i know my academic advisor actually had a doctorate.

i think my dad got hired as a school psych with a BA and then took night classes for his master's while working

 

[-SD-]

ahh, i see. Also , in San Fran, actually 80k probably doesnt do as much as it would here, given the cost of living and all.

im living at home with my parents so im not paying rent. unfortunately this acts as a deterrent for me to grow up.

so when you say recruiting firms, you mean that the firm doesnt pay you but rather the company you are actually working at does, right? there is temp to hire and there is also contract for hire too.
but I dont like it when there is a middle man collecting the check, and then paying me, lol.

i havent thought of the medical field too much, probably because my mom is a doctor and it scares me about how busy she is, lol. but you are right, i bet it pays pretty good.
I'm not sure if i could do medical work or not, itd be pretty scary trying to save someone's life, and getting sued if i failed!
And there is also the issue with the further schooling, and whether or not i could stomach the studying!

You will relish the possibility of returning to school after years of soul-robbing career choices. Trust me on that one.

 

[NickyE3]

hey lestat,
just curious of what hardware you are familiar with and any certifications? Im in some CCNP courses now but am not very fond of Cisco curriculum. I took the CCNA cert test and didnt pass - didnt study much and took a year between the first set of ccna courses and the second set of ccna course. Im not too fond of having to retake a cert test every 3 years since they cost a little bit.

 

[healother]

i think my dad got hired as a school psych with a BA and then took night classes for his master's while working

i could do that, as long as i was confident in my abilities to counsel people, lol.

You will relish the possibility of returning to school after years of soul-robbing career choices. Trust me on that one.

unfortunately the only way ill probably learn something like this is through experience

 

[Lestat]

hey lestat,
just curious of what hardware you are familiar with and any certifications? Im in some CCNP courses now but am not very fond of Cisco curriculum. I took the CCNA cert test and didnt pass - didnt study much and took a year between the first set of ccna courses and the second set of ccna course. Im not too fond of having to retake a cert test every 3 years since they cost a little bit.

I'm a software guy, I work with 3rd party apps. Informatica, Cognos, Control-M, Tibco, are a few of the more widely used ones. The only code I write now is SQL, and I'm usually using a GUI for that.