28, Looking for a Career, need help

[hsedin33]

Wow, tons of support and advice in here! Thanks everyone, I'll be looking into all of this.

[Dazzle]

volunteer first cuz u obivously got no experience

[JoeyJoeJoeJr. Shabadoo]

If your interested in a trade but don 't know if you'll like it I reccomend a trades exploration program. The course at BCIT allows you to try a variety of trades for a few weeks each so you can see for yourself if you have the interest and aptitude to continue. Along with that, a portion of your tuition is applied to your next course and you get fast tracked through the application process. From what I have heard many entry level courses have waiting list up to a few years so that advantage alone is worth the trouble.

[c00kies]

I'm in my 2nd year of University and I'm already changing what I want to do lol. I wanted to go into Pharmacy, but my GPA is too low for that, but luckily, high for a lot of other things. I was thinking of Psychology, as I loved it in High school and in the classes I'm in now. I also seem to be obsessed with serial killers (I know almost every real life reference that shows like Criminal Minds make). I do not want to be a Psychologist or counselor though, but am leaning more towards experimenting with development, brain research, or even becoming a profiler.

I just hope I can narrow it down before I hit 40 haha.

[allkill326]

I'm in my 2nd year of University and I'm already changing what I want to do lol. I wanted to go into Pharmacy, but my GPA is too low for that, but luckily, high for a lot of other things. I was thinking of Psychology, as I loved it in High school and in the classes I'm in now. I also seem to be obsessed with serial killers (I know almost every real life reference that shows like Criminal Minds make). I do not want to be a Psychologist or counselor though, but am leaning more towards experimenting with development, brain research, or even becoming a profiler.

I just hope I can narrow it down before I hit 40 haha.

[Five For Fighting]

Furthering your education is not always the answer. I "took a year off school" ended up in retail progressing through the ranks. I am now a manager of a box store that treats their people right and pays a great wage. It is the least stressful job and I am enjoying every second of it. Now not all retail is that good, however; it can be found! I don't regret my decision for a second as I am having a lot more fun and making more money than most of my friends who went to university.

[allkill326]

Furthering your education is not always the answer. I "took a year off school" ended up in retail progressing through the ranks. I am now a manager of a box store that treats their people right and pays a great wage. It is the least stressful job and I am enjoying every second of it. Now not all retail is that good, however; it can be found! I don't regret my decision for a second as I am having a lot more fun and making more money than most of my friends who went to university.

[Bruce Boudreau]

Crap man. I'm scared of my future too since I have no clue if I'm good at anything. Hopefully I don't end up being a guy who can't find a steady job to hold down.

I am also scared off of university costs but my parents for sure want me to have a degree as a foundation to build on. In what I'm not really sure right now.

[Five For Fighting]

$72,000 base. An average of $8,000 bonus. Full benefits, 6 weeks vacation. Plus other perks. Granted I have been in management for over a decade. I am fully aware that there are university graduates who make much more than I do. That said I see a lot of my friends who struggle to find a job or work as a teacher putting in many more hours than I do for far less and very large loans to repay. At the end of the day the money is nice but I do what I love. Leading a team of other managers and associates for a kick ass company is my dream job. I never wake up not wanting to go to work. I get to have a major impact on the career development of everyone working for me. I love it!

How much do you get paid, may I ask? I want to compare your wages to those of university graduates with jobs.

[î мцšт вяздк чфµ]

its never too late to get an education. the important thing is to try and find a career that you love/like.

[allkill326]

$72,000 base. An average of $8,000 bonus. Full benefits, 6 weeks vacation. Plus other perks. Granted I have been in management for over a decade. I am fully aware that there are university graduates who make much more than I do. That said I see a lot of my friends who struggle to find a job or work as a teacher putting in many more hours than I do for far less and very large loans to repay. At the end of the day the money is nice but I do what I love. Leading a team of other managers and associates for a kick ass company is my dream job. I never wake up not wanting to go to work. I get to have a major impact on the career development of everyone working for me. I love it!

[Five For Fighting]

I am not sure what country your living in but if its Canada you are talking about you are dead wrong.

My hourly wage in 2012: $38.46

Average Canadian in 2012: $25.12

The following are averages for careers that need more than a high school degree.

Architect: $30, RN: $34, Physiotherapist: $34, computer engineer: $35, Lawyer: $40, engineering manager: $43, Dentist: $70.

So yes of course there are much higher paying jobs, however it is not necessary to furthar your education to get a very well paying job. At my current trend I will be making $100,000 in the next 3 years and hope to be near 120,000 in 7 years.

Again I am not doing what I do for the money. I do it because I love the job. Going to school just to get a degree is idiotic, however if your dream is to be a lawyer, dentist, professor etc then it makes sense and the cost is worth it!

[Buddhas Hand]

An acquaintance of mine teaches the Plumbing program up here in Dawson Creek at Northern Lights College. He says if you want to make tons of bucks and don't mind being around human waste a lot, you will be busy until the day you retire.

[AriGold]

$72,000 base. An average of $8,000 bonus. Full benefits, 6 weeks vacation. Plus other perks. Granted I have been in management for over a decade. I am fully aware that there are university graduates who make much more than I do. That said I see a lot of my friends who struggle to find a job or work as a teacher putting in many more hours than I do for far less and very large loans to repay. At the end of the day the money is nice but I do what I love. Leading a team of other managers and associates for a kick ass company is my dream job. I never wake up not wanting to go to work. I get to have a major impact on the career development of everyone working for me. I love it!

[GLASSJAW]

$80,000 in total is nothing, really. There are a plenty of professionals or should I say, university graduates who get paid over $100,000 at minimum. If you thought not going to university and earning 80 grand is an accomplishment, I think you must be living in the 80s or the 90s. Nowadays, the median pay is even $70,000-$80,000.

Only way to raise your wage? Study and earn a degree.

[JimLahey]

oh my god, this dude is seriously out of touch

[aGENT]

$80,000 in total is nothing, really. There are a plenty of professionals or should I say, university graduates who get paid over $100,000 at minimum. If you thought not going to university and earning 80 grand is an accomplishment, I think you must be living in the 80s or the 90s. Nowadays, the median pay is even $70,000-$80,000.

Only way to raise your wage? Study and earn a degree.

[Five For Fighting]

I am glad I am not the only one who feels this way LOL.

[Five For Fighting]

You are 100% correct on furthering your education not necessarily being the way to go. I'm in sales, to be specific food sales, last year I was making $45,000 but was laid off with the rest of the company. Now i just got a new job after 5 years in my field and I'm making $63,000 + up to $10,000 bonus + Free new SUV, Gas and Insurance ( I value it at $12,000, $1000 a month ). So with no university or college degree I'm making around $75,000. In my final interview for this job I beat out 3 people who have a university degree of some type, so it's not always the way places go, sometimes experience outweighs degrees.

[CB007]

$80,000 in total is nothing, really. There are a plenty of professionals or should I say, university graduates who get paid over $100,000 at minimum. If you thought not going to university and earning 80 grand is an accomplishment, I think you must be living in the 80s or the 90s. Nowadays, the median pay is even $70,000-$80,000.

Only way to raise your wage? Study and earn a degree.