Find me a career!

[Naetha]

Hi guys, my name's Ellie, I'm an environmental consultant, and I'm not happy in my job - help me find a new one, please!

The only problem is I don't have a clue where to start I have a degree in Environmental Geology, and 2 year's postgraduate and one year's undergraduate experience as an environmental consultant, which basically involved writing reports giving environmental advice to big clients, and site investigation work (digging holes, taking samples for chemical analysis). My company are currently trying to push me into specialising more in stuff like contaminant plume modelling or hydrographic modelling, which means as much to me as it does to you. More to the point, I've already tried it a little, and I'm crap at it - I feel like I'm being pushed well out of my depth when I'm already treading water. I've thought about trying a different company, but realistically they're pretty much all the same (in terms of what they do), and I'd have to prove to them that I'm not just a waste of space.

I enjoy parts of my job - I enjoy writing reports, and travelling around the country a fair bit (but only because it gives me time to slack off or nosey around), I enjoy reviewing maps and finding out the history of a site (i.e. again noseying about). Thats pretty much it though - I'm not keen on having too much responsibility, I'm not big on leadership, but I am good at supporting. I enjoy talking to people and generally interacting with them, if anything I find it easier to get on with strangers than people I know.

I have no real career ambitions - I don't want to be a manager or a team leader or anything like that, I'm generally happy at my level, and not overly driven by money - I'd like to get paid more, but not distraught if I'm not. (I currently get paid £17k with a £3k car allowance)

Unfortunately even after writing all this, I still don't know where to start about trying a new career - I have thought about teaching, but I don't know if:
a) I could hack it in a classroom with 35 bolshy teenagers
b) If I want to go back to Uni to retrain for a year
c) If I'd be able to physically do it - I have a chronic illness that can make my life a misery sometimes, and means I sometimes need a lot of hospital/doctor visits.
d) They'd want me for who I am (I have a tattoo on my wrist, a couple of piercings etc, into metal and stuff). Are teachers allowed to be normal people too?

Help me please

 

[Cadiva]

I thought you were getting the chance to go to Canada hon with the company?

Anyways, irrespective of that, have you thought about something like the National Rivers Authority or British Waterways?
Both do sort of similar things to you but they're more involved with conservation and preservation work rather than big business.

As for teaching, I'm sure there's plenty of teachers who are 'outside' the box as it were, you could do your PGCE at Trinity and All Saints College at Horsforth (now part of Leeds Uni) and then go and teach to infants - they're a lot more fun and a lot less hassle than teenagers

Whatever you decide though, you've got to enjoy what you're doing, nothing worse than spending 8 hours or more a day doing something you hate, no matter how good the money is.

 

[Thadius]

Hi guys, my name's Ellie, I'm an environmental consultant, and I'm not happy in my job - help me find a new one, please!

The only problem is I don't have a clue where to start I have a degree in Environmental Geology, and 2 year's postgraduate and one year's undergraduate experience as an environmental consultant, which basically involved writing reports giving environmental advice to big clients, and site investigation work (digging holes, taking samples for chemical analysis). My company are currently trying to push me into specialising more in stuff like contaminant plume modelling or hydrographic modelling, which means as much to me as it does to you. More to the point, I've already tried it a little, and I'm crap at it - I feel like I'm being pushed well out of my depth when I'm already treading water. I've thought about trying a different company, but realistically they're pretty much all the same (in terms of what they do), and I'd have to prove to them that I'm not just a waste of space.

I enjoy parts of my job - I enjoy writing reports, and travelling around the country a fair bit (but only because it gives me time to slack off or nosey around), I enjoy reviewing maps and finding out the history of a site (i.e. again noseying about). Thats pretty much it though - I'm not keen on having too much responsibility, I'm not big on leadership, but I am good at supporting. I enjoy talking to people and generally interacting with them, if anything I find it easier to get on with strangers than people I know.

I have no real career ambitions - I don't want to be a manager or a team leader or anything like that, I'm generally happy at my level, and not overly driven by money - I'd like to get paid more, but not distraught if I'm not. (I currently get paid £17k with a £3k car allowance)

Unfortunately even after writing all this, I still don't know where to start about trying a new career - I have thought about teaching, but I don't know if:
a) I could hack it in a classroom with 35 bolshy teenagers
b) If I want to go back to Uni to retrain for a year
c) If I'd be able to physically do it - I have a chronic illness that can make my life a misery sometimes, and means I sometimes need a lot of hospital/doctor visits.
d) They'd want me for who I am (I have a tattoo on my wrist, a couple of piercings etc, into metal and stuff). Are teachers allowed to be normal people too?

Help me please

Id love to be able to be a teacher, especially in an inner city school

Shame I dont have the qualifications for it

Would really love to take a load of chavvy teenagers and make them into something that isnt utter shit

 

[Amildin]

Be a doctor

 

[Naetha]

I thought you were getting the chance to go to Canada hon with the company?

Not this company I'm afraid - when I go to Canada, its gonna have to be off my own back

Thats the other thing I forgot to mention in my original post! I'm hopefully moving to Canada in two years time, so I don't know whether to put stuff off until after then, or what...

As for teaching, upper primary sounds a good place to start (9-11 year olds), although I'd be tempted to go for secondary, simply as it would be more of a challenge, and as Thad pointed out, probably more rewarding

 

[Cadiva]

Not this company I'm afraid - when I go to Canada, its gonna have to be off my own back

Thats the other thing I forgot to mention in my original post! I'm hopefully moving to Canada in two years time, so I don't know whether to put stuff off until after then, or what...

As for teaching, upper primary sounds a good place to start (9-11 year olds), although I'd be tempted to go for secondary, simply as it would be more of a challenge, and as Thad pointed out, probably more rewarding

Hehe, I've done a bit of volunteer work at primary level (classroom of seven year olds) and they were just awesome. The amazed looks on their faces when they actually get something they've been taught was just incredible.

Trouble with teenagers is half the time they don't want to learn, whereas under 10 kids are usually still fascinated with the world and everything around them (not every one but you know what I mean).

Doing teaching and getting your PGCE certificate would probably open up more options in Canada as well.

You could also look at the National Trust, they have people with your kind of qualifications working for them, as do English Nature.

 

[Darksword]

porn.

 

[Thadius]

Not this company I'm afraid - when I go to Canada, its gonna have to be off my own back

Thats the other thing I forgot to mention in my original post! I'm hopefully moving to Canada in two years time, so I don't know whether to put stuff off until after then, or what...

As for teaching, upper primary sounds a good place to start (9-11 year olds), although I'd be tempted to go for secondary, simply as it would be more of a challenge, and as Thad pointed out, probably more rewarding

Ah wait

You speak french dont you?

My friend who is at uni(well more of an aquatence) , is studying french and she can go to canada to teach english(or something)

 

[Darksword]

on a slightly more serious note you seem like you might enjoy history or archiology. Dunno wht the moneys like in eithar but meh could be fun digging about ina trench.

 

[Thadius]

on a slightly more serious note you seem like you might enjoy history or archiology. Dunno wht the moneys like in eithar but meh could be fun digging about ina trench.

Hmm, that might be fun

Spending all week down a muddy hole, prodding at bones

 

[Mikah75]

on a slightly more serious note you seem like you might enjoy history or archiology. Dunno wht the moneys like in eithar but meh could be fun digging about ina trench.

gobshite
why im not gonna do a degree in ancient history and archaeology, you'll be lucky to get 15k a year in archaeology (providing you can either get a job! which is rare as teh demand is kind of non existant)... anyway
school is not the same as it used to be, the children are far worse than ever before, its not just they dont want to learn, they have a passion to break teachers, and theres prob only 5% of the population who are actually capable of trying to stop them, in my school teachers me and everyone else respected or knew not to mess with, no one dared too but now the kids are telling them to fuck off, and just walking out of school, they dont care anymore; only senior staff can tell them off effectively, but soon as their backs are turned, it continues
i would not recommend teacher at secondary level for anyone tbh, i'd love to do it personally but i couldnt keep my temper with them, i'd love to teacher history but only if it was definate that i could actually teach, which will not happen
however, maybe something in A level or university teaching, or! private/public schools might be an option or grammar schools, if the tripartite system exists where you would consider travelling too?

 

[Darksword]

gobshite
why im not gonna do a degree in ancient history and archaeology, you'll be lucky to get 15k a year in archaeology... anyway
school is not the same as it used to be, the children are far worse than ever before, its not just they dont want to learn, they have a passion to break teachers, and theres prob only 5% of the population who are actually capable of trying to stop them, in my school teachers me and everyone else respected or knew not to mess with, no one dared too but now the kids are telling them to fuck off, and just walking out of school, they dont care anymore; only senior staff can tell them off effectively, but soon as their backs are turned, it continues
i would not recommend teacher at secondary level for anyone tbh, i'd love to do it personally but i couldnt keep my temper with them, i'd love to teacher history but only if it was definate that i could actually teach, which will not happen
however, maybe something in A level or university teaching, or! private/public schools might be an option or grammar schools, if the tripartite system exists where you would consider travelling too?

Teaching A level should be good fun, im doing my A level exams at the moment, and there is alot more mutual respect between teachers and pupils at A level, such as i know half my teachers by first name, and everyone pretty much does their work and enjoy it to a degree, even tho it seems a bore, i actually dont enjoy alot of things but i do enjoy the interaction of the classroom etc.

 

[[HB]Jpeg]

Hi guys, my name's Ellie, I'm an environmental consultant, and I'm not happy in my job - help me find a new one, please!

The only problem is I don't have a clue where to start I have a degree in Environmental Geology, and 2 year's postgraduate and one year's undergraduate experience as an environmental consultant, which basically involved writing reports giving environmental advice to big clients, and site investigation work (digging holes, taking samples for chemical analysis). My company are currently trying to push me into specialising more in stuff like contaminant plume modelling or hydrographic modelling, which means as much to me as it does to you. More to the point, I've already tried it a little, and I'm crap at it - I feel like I'm being pushed well out of my depth when I'm already treading water. I've thought about trying a different company, but realistically they're pretty much all the same (in terms of what they do), and I'd have to prove to them that I'm not just a waste of space.

I enjoy parts of my job - I enjoy writing reports, and travelling around the country a fair bit (but only because it gives me time to slack off or nosey around), I enjoy reviewing maps and finding out the history of a site (i.e. again noseying about). Thats pretty much it though - I'm not keen on having too much responsibility, I'm not big on leadership, but I am good at supporting. I enjoy talking to people and generally interacting with them, if anything I find it easier to get on with strangers than people I know.

I have no real career ambitions - I don't want to be a manager or a team leader or anything like that, I'm generally happy at my level, and not overly driven by money - I'd like to get paid more, but not distraught if I'm not. (I currently get paid £17k with a £3k car allowance)

Unfortunately even after writing all this, I still don't know where to start about trying a new career - I have thought about teaching, but I don't know if:
a) I could hack it in a classroom with 35 bolshy teenagers
b) If I want to go back to Uni to retrain for a year
c) If I'd be able to physically do it - I have a chronic illness that can make my life a misery sometimes, and means I sometimes need a lot of hospital/doctor visits.
d) They'd want me for who I am (I have a tattoo on my wrist, a couple of piercings etc, into metal and stuff). Are teachers allowed to be normal people too?

Help me please

will speak to my sister in laws dad "he some sorta boss for a big danish company that does tunnels" (cant remember company name) but i know he and his team travel all around the world (he is lebanon atm) .. he may have ideas as to what kinda careers you could go into that may suit your qualifications.he may even have job openings. afaik his job pays v v well summin like 7k a week iirc.. he always bragging how much money he got

 

[Jai13]

if you get the PGCE or whatever it will prob help you application for a visa in Canada because you can become a public sector worker and i agree going off schools in my area be 6th form or primary but if you don't like responibility too much theres a lot of planning

 

[Haggus]

The problem with secondary school is kids HAVE to go there to learn.

If you goto teach at a college, people are there to learn.

Theres a big difference and it's why i'd recomend teaching college/uni or even primary school.

 

[Mikah75]

Teaching A level should be good fun, im doing my A level exams at the moment, and there is alot more mutual respect between teachers and pupils at A level, such as i know half my teachers by first name, and everyone pretty much does their work and enjoy it to a degree, even tho it seems a bore, i actually dont enjoy alot of things but i do enjoy the interaction of the classroom etc.

i feel the exact same way; my passion is in sociology, and i consider my teacher a friend. Normal London born bloke, incredibly funny, but also an amazing teacher and has led me to my love of the subject where i love doing the exams and essays and want to persue it at university, i could easily teach it at A level which will probably be one of my back up options
What i find irritating is the people that whine and moan saying they dont teach you like adults, thats because you are not acting like an adult:/
The interaction like you say, is very good, and we can have a laugh and a chat but will get on with the work
I really enjoy A level

 

[Darksword]

i feel the exact same way; my passion is in sociology, and i consider my teacher a friend. Normal London born bloke, incredibly funny, but also an amazing teacher and has led me to my love of the subject where i love doing the exams and essays and want to persue it at university, i could easily teach it at A level which will probably be one of my back up options
What i find irritating is the people that whine and moan saying they dont teach you like adults, thats because you are not acting like an adult:/
The interaction like you say, is very good, and we can have a laugh and a chat but will get on with the work
I really enjoy A level

u got the Theory exam on friday? <sigh> i keep forgetting stuff, my teacher for theory is a top bloke but crap teahcer, my other teacher rocks. I keep forgetting specifics like critical theory or what merton said and stuff. Teach meh. Its a fun subject coz you learn all the different arguments etc, but its lost its spark by the end of A levels for me just need to kepe my A

 

[Mikah75]

nope im all finished
i did Families and Households, Education and Theories and Methods- which is coursework for us
but if you need any help pm me, im 99% (100% is impossible) sociology man

 

[Naetha]

will speak to my sister in laws dad "he some sorta boss for a big danish company that does tunnels" (cant remember company name) but i know he and his team travel all around the world (he is lebanon atm) .. he may have ideas as to what kinda careers you could go into that may suit your qualifications.he may even have job openings. afaik his job pays v v well summin like 7k a week iirc.. he always bragging how much money he got

Thanks for the offer, but I kinda want to make a break away from this sort of stuff! I spent 3 months working as a geotechnical engineer on the Thames Tunnels for the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, and although the work was interesting, it was hellishly hard and I felt even more out of my depth doing that than I do now!

I wouldn't mind a bit of creativity in my job either - the most creative I can get at the moment is drawing a site layout plan, or rewriting reports!

What I want is a job that I can be quietly content with, where I'm not always being pushed to my limit in terms of working hard for promotion or learning new, complicated technology. Although I'm good at science in general, I'm not good at technical stuff, or much to do with maths or physics.

The pinnacle of my academic career came at the age of 16 when I got 6As and 6A*s at GCSE, unfortunately it all went downhill from there, with my A-level results being poor (BCD in Biology, Chem and Maths) and my degree being even poorer (I only just scraped a 2:2).

Unless I find a particularly rewarding career, I see no reason to strive to improve myself for the benefit of the company that I work for if I see no real benefit to myself, or have no real interest in it. Obviously if I'm interested in something I will develop that intererest, but not for the sole benefit of a company

Your replies are really helping though - getting me thinking

 

[Shadoo]

gobshite
why im not gonna do a degree in ancient history and archaeology, you'll be lucky to get 15k a year in archaeology (providing you can either get a job! which is rare as teh demand is kind of non existant)... anyway

Im doing a degree in ancient history and archaeology

I would say teaching is the best option. If you are movng to canada would you be able to get qualifications there? If you are going in two years, might be best to wait, as at least you will have a degreee from the country you wanna work in!

 

[Gamah]

wtf, 17K after all that? I get paid more than that and I don't have anything like a degree :||

 

[Thadius]

Become a policewoman!

Plenty of work in Armley!

 

[Phooka]

a mate off mine worked for ze Goverment with some enviromental thingy.. maybe check your 'local' goverment as they got their hands in everything. Descent pay and ofc good working condition, and vacation plenty

 

[Darksword]

nope im all finished
i did Families and Households, Education and Theories and Methods- which is coursework for us
but if you need any help pm me, im 99% (100% is impossible) sociology man

hmm we did families and households and education last year with methods.

Crime and deviace, stratification, religion and theories and methods this year.

gotta use it all for the synoptic paper

 

[Mikah75]

i only did AS, our teacher last year didnt really teach us, we complained all year and they didnt listen, so they sacked her at the end of the year, and we all had to retake the AS only

 

[Jeremiah]

You sound like you should get back to Uni and be a Research Assistant! Here's why

1) Lots of reports! Not to mention papers and journals - Be known in your field! (no pun intended!)
2) You get to travel a lot - Conferences, Research Field trips,
3) Lots of research -> hence, lots of map and history reading!
4) An OK pay (Probably not as much as you are on just now)
5) Meet loads of people who have the same interests as you, people wont cry when you talk about work
6) Easy going-ish. Plenty of oppertunity to skive off, as long as you dont mind putting in the hours when you need to.

I had no idea when I graduated what I wanted to do, so I ended up going back as a research student. Its scary, but I love it, wouldnt change it for anything. Theres nothing like being on the cutting edge of your field, actually doing the research that loads of people end up using to shape the industry

 

[Ezteq]

sorry i havent read all the replies here so might be repeating some one but what did you want to do when you were a kid? or did you ever think "hmm quite fancy doing that" basically you wont know what your dream job is unless you go out and try loads or different ones.

when i was a nipper i quite fancied the thought of being a librarian (which was thoroughly frowned upon by the adult in my life, they wanted an actress *sigh*) so i gave up on that idea any hoo im now busy studying and applying for library work

just have a go at lots of different stuff and see what fits, and remember its not the money its the satisfaction (unless its like enough money to retire on in a few months, then its the money).

good luck missus

 

[Naetha]

For years and years and years I wanted to be a vet, but I couldn't get the right A-levels (you need 3 or 4 A's) and as I'm allergic to most animals I found it occasionally impossible!

I've never really been overly ambitious or driven thinking "right, this is what I want to do with my life", its just kinda come along and I've gone with the flow.

I think one of the problems I have, particularly in the job I'm in at the moment is that I'm no good with maths or physics, and I need to have a good understanding of one or both to be able to rise above the glass ceiling that I'm hitting at the moment. This is also the reason why I don't think I'd be able to make it as a research student! Half the time at my work I don't really understand what I'm reporting on, even when its been explained to me.

I think my plan of action for now is to stay where I am, and research both a teaching career and an IT career. My husband (as do most of you guys) work in IT support, and I think thats definitely something I'd be able to do. I'm guessing though that I would come across a similar problem though - I'd have to specialise to get above a certain level. I'm fine at troubleshooting, fix most of the simple IT problems in my office atm, built my own PC etc but I'd still need professional experience and/or a qualification. Despite what computeach tell me on the TV every day, I know its nowhere near that easy to retrain for IT and get a good paying job.

The other option is teaching (I'm guessing btw that we have no teachers that regularly scan off topic!) but the pay is poor for the hours that you have to put in, and although you get 6 weeks off a year, you still work approximately 50 hours a week.

As for the other options, I know my local authority aren't recruiting anyone in my sector atm, the Environment Agency again require specialisms that I just can't do (hydrogeology or flood risk assessment experience), English Nature, English Heritage etc either require specialisms, or aren't recruiting...

Ho hum

 

[Svartmetall]

I have to say most of the people I've known who've gone into teaching have hated it and left or or are actively trying to get out. In the end you've got to do something that doesn't drive you insane - your job isn't your life, and it shouldn't have the power to adversely affect your life.

 

[Konah]

estate agent