Becoming a careers advisor

I have realised that the best thing I love about my current job is I get to meet a lot of people and help them but I am not earning enough for a 25 year old.

Me and my girlfriend were talking and it seems that a career advisor could be a great job for me, the jobs start at around £18k and go up to £40k. All I would need to do is a 1 year post graduate course in which I could still run my business part time.

I am basically bored and want a new challenge.

Just wondered if anybody knew anybody with this job and what the reality of it is.

 

Many, many years ago I worked for Liverpool City Council Youth Employment Sevice (which became the Careers' Service) as a Careers' Advisor, but decided it was not for me long-term.

The reality then (and presumably the basics of the job are similar) was that you interviewed lots of schoolchildren about possible careers; visited employers to encourage them to take on school-leavers; and tried to match people to jobs/careers.

I would say that the upside of the job is working with people; the downside is possibly the same! You need above all to be a good listener, and to be able to convince starry-eyed youngsters that they might have to consider alternatives to rock stardom or being a supermodel without being too dispiriting/depressing.

Of course, in many parts of the country, the alternatives for the uneducated tend to narrow down to a life of crime or the armed forces, and this lay behind my decision to quit.

 

AT

this is a tricky one...

There are no set rules on age and how much you shoiuld be earning AFAIK.....if you have a job you (reasonably) enjoy ...that counts for a lot these datys.. I mate once said so long as you don't hate/ dread your job (or similar) your probably ok.

If you feel as though you are under achieving ...thats probably another matter.

I would suggest ......no one pays any one 18k a year (and certainly not 40K/year) for nothing. (I would) find about what the job entails.....but don't be under any elusions.....even 18k means probably fairly high stress levels, certainly at times, at least to start with.

I am a lot older that 25 (regrettably) and certainly don't earn 18K (also regretably). I ahve a job 4.5 miles away that I can forget about and ....I sleep at night.

My penn'orth FWIW.....HIH.




David

 

why don't you see a careers advisor?

 

My mates are all stuck in dead end office jobs, but my GF is very close to becoming a shrink so compared to her I feel like I am under achieving a lot.

 

Not to labour a point...

I went into work aslt night as usual at 7.00pm...

To cut a long story short.....there was gas leak at the fcatory in the section where I work (@ abiout 2.00 am)....my supervisor hit the fire button....get the bells going....

The manager then has to decide what to do with 40 staff....and deal with the leak.....and dangers...

He eventually sent most of us home at 2.30.

Some people I suppose would revel in thaT situation....I know I wouldn't........and wouldn't deal with the thats sort of semi crisis well. Thats where the guy is earning his (approx 18K ahgain) money, phoning people up (His boss+ gas contractors) at 2.30 am to get production going again as soon as poss.

 

I know all about it...my sister makes £50K as a iniveristy head of dept, my brother makes double that (estimated) selling jet fuel.

YOu've got to do you own thing...whats right for you.



:MILD:

 

Well said. Nothing wrong with being ambitious, but there's always going to be someone better off than you. 'Find something you enjoy doing and see if you could make a living from it' would iideally be a careers officer's first point!

 

Good advice. Financially I'm a major under-achiever in my family (especially since I quite IT) but my siblings liken my family to the 'Good Life'; we're chilled out and I work my own flexible hours, but we're very short on wedge which does take the shine off things.

Money isn't everything although I do admit that it certainly helps, but don't judge your success on your salary.

Do the careers advisors still use an equivalent of 'Cascade'? - their computerised career selection effort. I remember it recommended that I should become either a dental assistant or lab technician!

 

...and are you?

 

No, I'm now a self-employed stonemason .

 

Is it you who thinks you are under achieving, or is your GF telling you that? Just wondering... :rds2:

I have met people who seem to think that working for yourself means you are basically not working and lazy.

You usually give up some money when you run your own business. But you do have the freedom to work the way that suits you.. to a degree.

 

It is the way I do it

Tony.

 

Quite right. The 'freedom to work in your own way' has its benefits, but the flip-side is (IME) a blurring of work and free time, so that you don't have a time when you entirely switch to leisure mode. My mobile is always on and I get rung up 7 days a week including evenings, and I'm often thinking about things I need to sort for jobs that are coming up. I'm not committed to remaining self-employed indefinitely, but it's certainly an eye-opening experience and you can learn a lot about yourself .

 

AT with respect I think you need to see a careers advisor.

 

It was the paperwork and accounts that stuffed me...

...My Dad (retired Acc) set it up for me.....but made it so ******* complicated (as is his want) in his enthusiasm......

...that and the weather (gardener.....)

 

Mullardman over on PFM.

 

is that mostly gravestones....or non a tall (other?)

 

WEll said indeed......

 

No, none at all, that stuff is dominated by Chinese granite slabs and machined lettering with off-the-shelf motifs. A hand crafted headstone with any character is positively unwelcome in 99% of council cemeteries and (sadly) many parish churches. Cheap and cheerful rolleyes: well you have to think of your inheritance) is where it's at these days, and twatty council rules mean that substantial traditional headstones that might lean but rarely fall are out and short stubby bits of off-cut kitchen work surfaces that sit on concrete blocks and are easily pushed over are in. And if you install a headstone that subsequently fails the council 'push test' (yes, they do it, I'm not kidding) then at best you'll need to take it out and re-install it, and at worse you're going to pray your insurance is good.

No, I stick to masonry repairs, non-monumental lettercutting, traditional lime mortar repointing, and the occasional bit of arty sculpture. Oh yes, and anything else that comes along that will pay the mortgage .