How did your experiences with education set you up for a career? What choices did you make? What advice can you give to people starting out at the beginning of their working life?
Posted by: RW | 29.11.2009 10:32pm
I think holding to a 'career' notion is a real difficulty. Life and work just isn't that way - most of us don't 'decide' or 'choose' - we are mostly 'selected' (or, particularly during schooling years, de-selected) or just stumble into. Most of us don't set out on a path and stay on it. There's plenty of research that shows that.
It worries me that young people are '(de)selected' at age 3, 5, 11, 14 or whatever for a particular pathway - it is naive to pretend that they 'choose'. There's plenty of research about that, too.
Having said that - I trained in clothing design back in the 1960s. I sort of 'selected myself'into that - I loved clothes and I was fascinated by people but I also hated exams and tests (no good at recall - though good enough to get me through the necessary hoops). I only worked in the trade for a short time. However, the generic futures-soaking-up instincts and other skills I honed have always stood me in good stead. I later became a teacher; worked on an an advocacy project; and, amongst other things, have spent many years in education policy work. I still find my work exiting.
Looking back it is easier to see the connecting enthusiasms in the voyage - looking forward it must be very hard to know what gets you excited enough to really want to know more/do more about it. And then there are the hoops, the keys to doors that you must have. Whatever, I think that 'choosing' something broad that can lead to other things is a good idea. That may be vocational (as in clothing design) or it may be non-vocational (as in, say, philosophy) - but at rock-bottom, learning to learn and wanting to learn is the key thing - in whatever ways and in whatever places that suit you best.
Posted by: John Gibbs-Newton | 16.08.2009 10:58am
I suppose I am nearly at the end of my careers - but who knows? However I still remember the day I was inspired for my first career. I was 14, it was on a school trip, in 1961 at Easter when we were taken to Pompei in Italy. I can still taste the dust, feel the heat, hear the broken English of the guide and see the incredible sight of the town buried in ash nearly 2000 years earlier. What builders the Romans must have been to have planned such a beautifully laid out town with all the facilities that anyone could need and do it so well that it would survive so intact after all those years. 5 years later I found myself as a builder's labourer, migrated into management and later into many other things (computing, engineering, logistics, business consultancy). But it all started on that day, although I might not have realised it at that time.
It is therefore ironic or perhaps fate or even the reason why I do what I do now - head an organisation that has at its core providing real experiences in for young people in real places of work for the purposes of education and career information. The Industrial Trust has done this for over 185,000 teachers and students. And we know from the feedback how successful this is in providing insights to the reality of the world of work, the relevance of classroom learning and opportunities available for careers. Videos, websites, textbooks, leaflets all have their place but real inspiration comes from exposure of all the senses to reality.
Posted by: Edge | 30.03.2009 05:19pm
Retraining has doubtless saved many from being stuck in an unfulfilling job or career. We'd like to hear more stories from people who have made radical U-turns in their own life.
So, do you choose a job for money or love?
It's an old question, but one that's always worth asking, so get posting!
Posted by: Anonymous | 20.03.2009 07:15pm
I trained for a 'fall-back' career. For several years I worked in this area arriving strictly at 9.30 and leaving at 5.30 on the dot. I didn't feel fulfilled but I found it helped to get through the day if I computed every quarter hour how much money I had earned. I worked out that if I could just get to 3 pm, 5.30 came quite quickly.
Then I retrained to something I loved. I arrived early and left late and worked (unpaid) at home on research. I would do this work for free if I was unable to be paid for it.
Follow your heart and your interest.
Posted by: Ray | 09.09.2008 01:19pm
Now here's a story I was doing really well at uni studying radiography, had a bit of a time with an an emotional issue in the second year but kept on going with the course then second year they brought into the course thses stupid bloody assignments about qualative and quantative research bugger all to do with radiography and I was *****ed off by it many students were getting *****ed off with the rubbish they came up with to get this degree! Radiography is practical and theorectical but they just put things in the degree that were of no relevance to the job you would hopefully get. The government decided in they wisdom to do this.....stupid gits! The qualification used to be a diploma and the radiographers who passed this are beeter at their job I think. I was stopped from going further with the cousrse by an "incident" with a radiographer in one of the hospitals over me not being prepared for the ct placement, but not reading a book about it before I got there I only knew I was going to be there with a hours notice......... I am now very depressed isolated and living on benefits because of the things that went on @uni and the hospitals the hospital staff especially bullied me often saying that they had to go through it when they were students too....I said that don't make it right!!!!
Hey thanks south bank university and the NHS hospitals who I had placements with you really hepled to ***** my life up......education well what do you think I think about it?
Posted by: BASH | 05.09.2008 12:58pm
A CAREER IS YOUR LIFE SO DON'T MTREAT IT AS A JOKE AS I HAVE AND I AM REGRETING IT EVRY HOUR OF THE DAY AS NOW I WORK A 12 HOUR SHIFT AT NIGHT AND I HAVE NO TIME TO DO ANY THING ELSE I HARDLY SEE MY FAMILY OR FRIENDS ANY MORE SO TO ALL THOSE YOUNG PEOPLE OUT THERE DON'T MESS WITH YOUR CAREER OR YOU WILL SHURELY REGRET IT ONE DAY THNX
Posted by: Kimberley Hopkinson | 04.09.2008 08:55am
Hi i have just found out that i got a job at £land everyone there is soo helpful but i wanna work at the tatto shops cos i wnat a tatto on my arm saying MUM. However the grades i got were v.good but i really wnat an A*in Drama cos i liek it init.
Posted by: KE | 02.09.2008 03:10pm
For everyone who's had awful or non-existant career advice . .
Thought you might like to know about the series of free seminars I did on career direction. It really helped clarify my direction and make me aware of what I needed to find out next.
I got my place on-line at:
www.90DaysToYourDreamCareer.com
It's free so good luck and hope you get a place too!
Posted by: sarah | 17.08.2008 08:00am
My experience in the education system has really toughened me up and made more more determined to work harder t reach my goals. Whilst doing my A-levels, I had teacher telling me i'd never get and A in subjects, intidating me and encouraging me to drop subjects! After plenty of hard work I managed to get A in the modules but missed an overall A adn so i went and re-took my A2's in a private college... and then eneded up with even worse grades because my english teacher didn't really understand what was expected in an english literature and language course. He was inconsitent with teaching and it sparked many arguments between us. The wost thing about it i that it is my english that is holding me back in my other subjects because they alll require essays! Now I'm stuck... probably going to a ***** university with the A-levels I wanted to better... and to make matters worse I want to be a lawyer and employers demand high level grades!!!! I'm going to have to get an english teacher and re-do whilst doing a degree!!!
Posted by: darlhing | 15.08.2008 09:10am
can i have some information abut busines and study abut care need?? thank you
Posted by: Jags | 14.08.2008 09:56pm
I found a company which offers training and employment at once.
Let me explain, this company offers I.T training and a PAID job contract at the same time. They are currently training me in I.T (MCSA, MCSE) and also pay me a £15.000 salary from the start, which no uni can offer. Their is a fee but compared to uni its pennies. Im gaining REAL hands on experience and also getting paid. I know 6 months down the road I will be certified and also have experience to put on my C.V, which makes me employable.
Posted by: Kimberley Hopkinson | 14.08.2008 09:29am
Education begins when your are born and ends when you die.
What we call the education system is really an "intellectual muscle training scheme"
designed to sort the men from the boys.
Those who leave school at 16 become
skilled, semi-skilled, and unskilled workers.
And at times of full employment earn enough to have a middle class standard
of living.
Those who go on to university then do the jobs, like running the country etc
They belong to Socio-Group 1 to 4 with what was once the working classes occupying Socio-Group 5
Whatswrong with that??
Posted by: sabrina | 13.08.2008 10:41am
i have finished education and i feel lost in the world of work i don't have 1 main idea that i want to go on and pursue in my life.
Posted by: Jackulin Israel | 13.08.2008 10:39am
Dear sir/madam,
I am a Registered Nurse in India. I want to practice my Nursing carrier in UK.At present I am working as a senior care assistant.I want to improve my carrier as a registered Nurse that was my ambition.I don't mind doing any course with O.N.P.(overseas nursing programe)to get my adaptation. Can you please give advice.
Thanking You
Your's sincerly
Jackulin Israel
Posted by: Daniel Kirkwood | 13.08.2008 09:34am
My experience in education guided me into an area which i didnt really enjoy. Studying the wrong subject which in the end really wasnt for me. Always keep your mind open in what you want to do! There's always another option.
Posted by: Mr. Craig Thomas | 12.08.2008 12:00am
It’s not that a career wasn’t something we discussed or talked about and its in now way a reflection on the quality of my education, its just all my subjects were academic and none of them really had a vocational focus. I learned a lot from holiday jobs and work experience that I pretty much arranged myself to gain valuable experience and just to get the basics of a work environment. In short there was a lot of room for improvement.