Need advice / wisdom

[MajinLaRue]

Greetings fellow traders! I'm hoping you all can give me some advice on starting a new career (it's strange that this doesn't seem to be an actual professional service that I could find). I'm a 32yo male, married, child on the way. Like a lot of my peers, I feel I was sucked into the "you have to go to college!" stigma that my parents, grandparents, elders etc. fed me while growing up. I have a bachelor's degree in Biology which I am very thankful for. It certainly is interesting and important knowledge to have, however, I don't feel that it has really propelled me any further in life than if I didn't have it. My current employment is based off of a certification that I earned in 3 days, and it has gotten me far more work than my degree ever has. However, I'm pretty much at a dead end with this job, and to find something else would really only be a lateral move. I know with a degree like this, I really should have gone to graduate school, but it just isn't in the cards for me right now as I need the money for other things. I guess what I really want is some sort of career that will train me and have guaranteed work after I'm finished, with a good salary (52,000 a year would be a great start) and decent benefits. I have a wide array of skills, and I consider myself very teachable and could honestly learn to do just about anything. I know Truck Driver will come to mind first, but I just don't know if I would have the patience for it (sitting in traffic, dealing with other drivers, being away from home for extended amount of time). Other than that, I am open to almost anything. Would any of you fine people be able to point me in the right direction? I appreciate your time!

Kindly,
Sage

 

[Mr. Goodbar]

Trades

 

[joel2000]

One of the sponsors on ODT has a great setup if you don’t mind turning wrenches on heavy equipment. A trade that’ll be here for many more moons to come.

edit: Yancey Bros. Cat

 

[wolfmanrogers]

If you don't leverage your biology degree now, and pigeon hole yourself into a non-degree related field you'll likely be sorry. The last thing you want to do is put in a bunch of work to get into an "in the mean time" job while you wait for the money to be enough to reconsider grad school. At the very least look within your field, many employers will pay for your continued education as well. It's a great time to be looking for a job, don't waste a wonderful chance to further your career in a field where you can utilize your degree.

Blue collar trades are fine for young men, but when you get older you'll be glad you're not in the field.

 

[BlackJackAce]

Having retired from a major defense contractor I can honestly say any degree you hold will get you in the door in a support position like logistics, procurement, etc. My experience is that entry level employees start at an annual salary that is usually greater than those of other employers in the area. Of course the starting salary will depend upon the location. The contractors I've worked for/with have usually provided good training with promotions and merit increases as a reward for performance. My last employer had excellent benefits and several bonus programs. Of course my experience may not be what an employee experiences now. I would hope that given the current shortage of workers and glut of job openings that it is now an employee's market and employers would provide a generous salary and benefit package to attract talent.

 

[Ken Ford]

Greetings fellow traders! I'm hoping you all can give me some advice on starting a new career (it's strange that this doesn't seem to be an actual professional service that I could find). I'm a 32yo male, married, child on the way. Like a lot of my peers, I feel I was sucked into the "you have to go to college!" stigma that my parents, grandparents, elders etc. fed me while growing up. I have a bachelor's degree in Biology which I am very thankful for. It certainly is interesting and important knowledge to have, however, I don't feel that it has really propelled me any further in life than if I didn't have it. My current employment is based off of a certification that I earned in 3 days, and it has gotten me far more work than my degree ever has. However, I'm pretty much at a dead end with this job, and to find something else would really only be a lateral move. I know with a degree like this, I really should have gone to graduate school, but it just isn't in the cards for me right now as I need the money for other things. I guess what I really want is some sort of career that will train me and have guaranteed work after I'm finished, with a good salary (52,000 a year would be a great start) and decent benefits. I have a wide array of skills, and I consider myself very teachable and could honestly learn to do just about anything. I know Truck Driver will come to mind first, but I just don't know if I would have the patience for it (sitting in traffic, dealing with other drivers, being away from home for extended amount of time). Other than that, I am open to almost anything. Would any of you fine people be able to point me in the right direction? I appreciate your time!

Kindly,
Sage

I am home a minimum of every other night and weekends.

 

[BlackJackAce]

One more thing to add. Being willing to relocate is definitely a plus if you work for a large defense contractor and probably any major corporation. That's how this small town Wisconson boy ended up in wonderful middle Georgia!

 

[BH-ATL]

I worked at Coke and there was at least one engineer with a biology degree and a lot of the flavor developers had biology degrees. At this point you need someone to show you how to use that degree (if that is what you want) to get into some science arena. Plus with the market being tight people with science degrees should be in demand. BTW - I was a trained chemical engineer and did mechanical design for 40 years -- go figure.

 

[rbstern]

Some thoughts:

If you can get GA certified, you can teach in your field of study. Maybe not an immediate possibility, but something you can work at on your own time. Pay is pedestrian, but you can earn extra by teaching summer school (or enjoying the time off).

If you have computer skills, there are dozens of potential directions. A couple of self-directed courses in coding will have you capable of doing entry level software work. Same with network certifications, computer security, etc.

As previously stated: Trades. Welding, plumbing, electrical, heavy equipment maintenance. Huge shortage of skilled trade labor.

Real estate is a great self-starter field with high earnings potential, but the timing is VERY bad right now.

Lab or medical office technician: Biology degree is a good platform for doing the grunt work that may eventually lead to a more advanced career in a medical related field.

Law enforcement. Pretty much every major department in the state is short of people. This is a not-for-the-faint-of-heart choice. In addition to the physical rigors, there is a difficult social stigma on the whole profession. But, with your biology degree, you may have a path into forensic police work after graduating from an academy and putting in a couple of years of grunt work.

You're young. You have the next 30 to 40 years to develop a career (or two). As long as you can pay the bills, you'll never be wasting time by getting more education, certifications, apprenticing experience, and/or self-taught skills.

 

[BlackJackAce]

One last thing. I have a 31 year old son and 29 year old daughter. Something I've always told them is to apply for any job that interests you even if you think you're not qualified. Don't tell yourself no, leave that to a prospective employer. Not sure if that's wisdom or just advice. I do know that it's worked for me. You never know what a hiring manager is really looking for or what they may see in you.