What's a halfway decent career to change into? My current outlook is grim.... - Page 2

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Posted: 12/13/2011 9:46:32 AM EDT

[#1]

Quoted:
The newest fad on this forum is the oil business.

There is some good money to be made.

When it is there to be made. When oil sunk in 08-09 my little brother had ZERO oilfield work for almost a year and a half. He took any construction or home improvement job that he could.
RIght now its on the up and up but its sure not bulletproof.

A buddy of mine is a construction welder and right now hes jumping through ridiclous hoops just to keep work on the table.
FTR brother is a pipeline welder. From what I get out of both, they are looking to get out quick. Competition is choking out alot of welders, the market is saturated, and its making old men out of them QUICK.

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:46:39 AM EDT

[#2]

Quoted:
If you can do the math, then I recommend Engineering. Average salary in my area for fresh out of college is in the $50-60K range depending on discipline.

I am somewhat in that field now as a verification engineering inspector.

My math certainly isn't up to a PE level and don't think I could do it.

I have noticed a LOT of mechanical inspector positions open. Is that mostly HVAC?

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:46:43 AM EDT

[#3]

Quoted:
If I were to look into networking/IT ..Where would the starting salary be for a capable person right out of school? Everyone tells me I should go into networking / IT / security stuff but I'm just not sure.

I honestly don't see you getting a job in IT unless you're sitting home at nights tinkering with a computer. Can you walk into an interview and say "here's my degree, and here's this cool thing I worked on just to see if I could do it"? Because if not, then you're just another dude with a big degree and no value.

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:51:46 AM EDT

[#4]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Repo man.

I've had some well qualified, and well funded, former coworkers fail in their attempts to make a run at it here.

One of my customers was making $75 a hook, working for someone else, using their equipment, which isn't terrible if you're doing a few a night. Can't do it armed in FL, however.

Repo biz is much worse now than ever before.
The bank are only paying $2-300 per recovery, so driver aren' making anything. Most are between $50 and $75 per recovery.
Ten years ago they were paying $4-500+ for repossessions.
I've been shot at twice and had a gun pulled at least twenty more times. Times are hard and people are more desperate. I'm not getting killed for $75.

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:52:34 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Industrial maintenance / plc programming

Not a terrible suggestion. There's an amazing amount of that shit installed all over the place.

I envision being sort of a field-engineering / technician type of job where you're troubleshooting and fixing old dirty crap in the middle of the night, because that's the only time they shut it down. Travel and odd hours.
Not a huge market, but it's got a reasonable work outlook. Those guys also do a small cottage industry of parting out the old but functioning components on ebay when they upgrade a system.

Not necessarily. If you get lucky you can get on at a long term project doing maintenance contract work. I've been an electrician at the same jobsite for 12 years and rarely do we get called in after hours. I make a decent wage for the area and it's fairly laid back work most of the time.

Young people aren't getting into it these days so it's hard to find entry level people to fill positions. We're hiring now and it's hard to find entry level people even willing to try it.

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:54:20 AM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Certified automotive techs are always in demand. Good money working for a dealership.

Heard a story on the radio this morning about an aircraft company that takes folks coming out of a technical college. The students spend about $2K to get certified to fab sheet metal or something. The company hires them on for $12/hour and trains them to work on planes.

A motivated mechanic learns about fabrication, AC and DC electrical systems, hydraulic systems, etc. After five years on the job he's making $25/hr, and they can't keep them any more, because the auto industry snipes them for $5-10/hr more. Even better deals to go do contract work wrenching on planes in a war zone.

The plane company can't afford to retain them and can't afford to stop training them up.

I didn't catch the details or geographic location, but they talked about several companies needing talented mechanics to the tune of 100's of people. It was interesting and supports what you posted.

I think I heard the same story this morning (NPR). They said the mechanics start out at $12/hr, and top off at $28/hr. That seems like a ludicrously low top end for such a technically demanding job.

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:55:18 AM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Machinists and Welders are in pretty good demand, and should be for the forseeable future.

Yeah. That's why those trade schools are doing such a booming business and the apprenticeship programs are robust.

Reason why the trade schools and apprenticeship programs are dying is because no one wants to do it. That is why good money is to made there.

I don't believe this. If folks could earn a decent living by standing in front of a machine, turning handles, making ships, and writing G-code ....... they would be lining up to do it. Men like to tinker and craft things. It appeals to lots of folks.

It's dying because we no longer have enough industry to generate the volume required to make it float. Specialized, nuanced, niche market with few choices and intermittent demand. Whatever it is you're doing, it could evaporate over night.

I have to agree, was in the industry from 97-2004 (and still am somewhat) and I teach sometimes at a tech school for machinists...I don't see it being the "we need lots of new machinists!!!" industry that is portrayed here.

Not a bad job at all if you get in the right spot though. Higher skill positions such as toolmaking and full-on CNC programming specialists (over 3 axis or other higher than "average" stuff) are the areas to be in.

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:56:58 AM EDT

[#8]

North Dakota is calling you

Posted: 12/13/2011 9:58:00 AM EDT

[#9]

If your background is clean and you dont mind hard work you can make from $50-$80 thousand a year in trucking.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:00:49 AM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
Machinist Job Listings

So how does an amateur machinist break into the machinist world?

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:02:19 AM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Industrial maintenance / plc programming

Not a terrible suggestion. There's an amazing amount of that shit installed all over the place.

I envision being sort of a field-engineering / technician type of job where you're troubleshooting and fixing old dirty crap in the middle of the night, because that's the only time they shut it down. Travel and odd hours.

Not a huge market, but it's got a reasonable work outlook. Those guys also do a small cottage industry of parting out the old but functioning components on ebay when they upgrade a system.

Depends on the company. The place that I worked at scheduled shutdowns to work on the PLCs or you could program with the equipment running (not for major changes unless you like to buy funny-tasting peanut butter). It has been a decade since I did any of that, though. My memory may be fuzzy. I was a CAD designer, not into PLC programming as much.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:03:14 AM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
Medical or leo.

I'd stay away from LEO a lot of cities cutting back and with the regulations a officers are under anymore I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:10:05 AM EDT

[#13]

Long term care. The Baby Boomers are getting old, and demand for various levels of elder care is booming. My brother makes $75K as director of social services at a skilled nursing facility.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:14:03 AM EDT

[#14]

Quoted:

Quoted:
People are gonna say "nursing". Don't do it.

This. Hospitals are on hiring and pay freezes and everyone from big state schools to po-dunk community colleges are churning them out like there is sitll a shortage.
I suspect due to Obamacare, medical is going to be the next industry to go TU.

Physician Assistant.

Pay is good, with Obamacare (and other Medical insurance changes) there's going to be a LOT of demand for "Physician Extenders", and the training is reasonable for most people (and nowhere near as expensive as getting an MD/DO).

AFARR

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:15:36 AM EDT

[#15]

Check out opportunities in North Dakota.

I have read many articles on how well they are doing there what with the oil business, and related support.

If I only had about 40 years back.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:18:24 AM EDT

[#16]

Quoted:

Quoted:
People are gonna say "nursing". Don't do it.

This. Hospitals are on hiring and pay freezes and everyone from big state schools to po-dunk community colleges are churning them out like there is sitll a shortage.
I suspect due to Obamacare, medical is going to be the next industry to go TU.

Physician Assistant.

Pay is good, with Obamacare (and other Medical insurance changes) there's going to be a LOT of demand for "Physician Extenders", and the training is reasonable for most people (and nowhere near as expensive as getting an MD/DO).

AFARR

Might not be a bad gig but but before long a PA will just be a glorified RN.
Cant speak for the entire country but around here currently employed LVN's are getting the axe and new ones are being turned away which means RN's get knocked down to grunt status.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:18:35 AM EDT

[#17]

Computers is still a good field, but you have to have an actual marketable skill - not just data entry or web design. A skilled systems administrator or computer architect should be able to find work.

Energy is another good field although it does have boom/bust cycles. Oil exploration, petroleum engineering, etc. The world isn't about to stop wanting energy.

Medical is good too - it is almost by definition a growth field unless the US can ever get medical spending under control. Skip nursing; go for something where you are a well-trained technician like radiologic technologist or medical sonographer.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:26:32 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
Certified automotive techs are always in demand. Good money working for a dealership.

As a certified automotive tech at a dealership, I say "no."

ETA - Here's why.

The pay system that most automotive techs work under is kinda screwed up in that once you get to the point where you're making pretty decent money per hour, you're costing the business more money than Joe Nobody next to you. Why pay you $25/hour to do a job when home boy over there can do it for $15/hour? There's a little gray area where if you stay dumb and don't really care about advancing your skills and knowledge, and you don't really mind bending a few morals, where you can work not too hard and make good money doing it, but some of us like being able to sleep at night.

Also understand that if you're on top of your game and good at what you do, you're gonna get stuck doing the gnarly shit that no one else can really fix. Usually, these cars are gonna be under warranty, and warranty pay is balls, usually about 1/3 to 1/2 of what that same job would pay if the customer was footing the bill.

Even when the pay system works right (and it rarely does), it's heavily seasonal - as I type this post right now, I've worked on two cars all day. I'll have been here ten-ish hours, and I'll get paid for about two. So if you ain't got some chips stacked up for the slow season, things are gonna get kinda gnarly.

In addition, if you plan on being a serious tech, I hope you're ready to go $5-10K into debt right off the bat if not more, buying tools and equipment that you're never gonna get your money back on. It's deceptively easy to get into the tens of thousands of dollars buying quality gear.

You'll be exposing yourself to carcinogenic chemicals and substances on a daily basis, cuts, bruises, burns, sprains and strains, you'll be contorting yourself into shapes and figures that the human body was never intended to be in to fit in and around engine compartments and under dashboards.

All for an average starting yearly salary of about $28K.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:30:27 AM EDT

[#19]

Something service-related.

HVACR maintenance/repair/installation - Heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration. As long as those systems are installed in the US, someone will have to install them, take care of them, repair them, or replace them. And, in ALL parts of the country.

Electrician - People like lights. And the internet.

Plumber - People really, really like indoor plumbing. Also, someone above mentioned septic service.

Most local community colleges have programs geared toward all of those areas. See what yours has to offer.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:33:08 AM EDT

[#20]

All the folks saying Oil and Gas industry should also mention that it is a 'cyclic' industry. Always was and unless Barry nationalizes it will always have ups and downs. This industry is amazingly efficient at sheding workers when oil or gas prices take a dump or when demand drops. Lived (poorly) through the dips in 1982, 1986 and 1992.

Finally got smart.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:34:42 AM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:

Quoted:
People are gonna say "nursing". Don't do it.

This. Hospitals are on hiring and pay freezes and everyone from big state schools to po-dunk community colleges are churning them out like there is sitll a shortage.
I suspect due to Obamacare, medical is going to be the next industry to go TU.

Physician Assistant.

Pay is good, with Obamacare (and other Medical insurance changes) there's going to be a LOT of demand for "Physician Extenders", and the training is reasonable for most people (and nowhere near as expensive as getting an MD/DO).

AFARR

Might not be a bad gig but but before long a PA will just be a glorified RN.
Cant speak for the entire country but around here currently employed LVN's are getting the axe and new ones are being turned away which means RN's get knocked down to grunt status.

They're going to do whatever's cheaper. In the case of providers, they're going to push as much primary care down to the Extender level as they possibly can (PAs and ARNPs). Whenever a Medicare patient is seen by an extender, the Federal Government automatically discounts their already-meager reimbursement by another 15% (so they automatically pay you 85% of Medicare rates).

AFARR is exactly right about the proliferation of PAs. I just directed a neighbors daughter towards PA school instead of Medical-School+Pediatric-Residency. You only put in six years compared to 11-12, make almost as much money, and don't shoulder as much liability. PAs and ARNPs have a bright future... because they're cheaper.

Are they the equal of a fully-trained MD? Sure... just ask them

. But in all seriousness, they're adequate for quite a bit of primary-care and office practice. Are they going to catch the minutia and subtle stuff compared to a physician with twice as much training? Maybe after a decade or two of clinical experience... but it will be "good enough" for government work.

And before you ARNPs and PAs jump my sh*t, I have worked with extenders (and employed extenders) my entire career, and they're fantastic providers.

They also know their limitations... which is essential if you don't want to kill patients.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:37:21 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Certified automotive techs are always in demand. Good money working for a dealership.

As a certified automotive tech at a dealership, I say "no."

Same here, I agree. Every year we make less and are asked to do more.
It's the only job I know of where the more you learn and the better you get the less you will make.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:44:48 AM EDT

[#23]

<–––––– Currently a Mech Eng.

If I had to do it all over again, it would be RN. I would not be tied to industrial areas like Mech Eng. With an RN you can work litterally anywhere.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:45:41 AM EDT

[#24]

Honestly, I believe careers are 90% geography right now, in anything technical/trades. Identify the needs in your area and fill them is the best advice I can give, and nothing lasts forever, so if one demand is for niche, specific skill sets while another is for adaptable skills, go for the latter.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:47:04 AM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Machinists and Welders are in pretty good demand, and should be for the forseeable future.

Yeah. That's why those trade schools are doing such a booming business and the apprenticeship programs are robust.

Yup..We had 2800+ applicants for 90 positions last year.

Posted: 12/13/2011 10:50:01 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Certified automotive techs are always in demand. Good money working for a dealership.

As a certified automotive tech at a dealership, I say "no."

Same here, I agree. Every year we make less and are asked to do more.
It's the only job I know of where the more you learn and the better you get the less you will make.

Ain't that a mind fuck?

It took me a few years to figure it out, but with the flat rate pay system, we eventually price ourselves right out of business.

Posted: 12/13/2011 11:00:24 AM EDT

[#27]

IMO id stay away from the machinist field , My Father owned a machine shop for 30 + years my grandfather owned it before him . There was money in it but overseas production has really had a effect on that field. My father passed we still own the buisness my uncal runs it now and barely keeps 3 guys working .

Posted: 12/13/2011 11:51:03 AM EDT

[#28]

Quoted:

Quoted:
The newest fad on this forum is the oil business.

There is some good money to be made.

When it is there to be made. When oil sunk in 08-09 my little brother had ZERO oilfield work for almost a year and a half. He took any construction or home improvement job that he could.
RIght now its on the up and up but its sure not bulletproof.

A buddy of mine is a construction welder and right now hes jumping through ridiclous hoops just to keep work on the table.
FTR brother is a pipeline welder. From what I get out of both, they are looking to get out quick. Competition is choking out alot of welders, the market is saturated, and its making old men out of them QUICK.

Yep. Its feast or famine. Down here, it's going to get even worse for welders ,once Northrup Grumman/ Avondale Shipyard closes. There'll be , what, 12 -15 Hundred (!) welders out of work. Imagine being a welder looking for work in Southeast Louisiana when that happens in the next 2 years.

Posted: 12/13/2011 11:54:42 AM EDT

[#29]

Quoted:

I'm considering heading back to school but am unsure if it's even worth it. I'm looking to land something stable and have a salary of at least 42k...

Suggestions?

The only business I hear about that's booming is the oil business.

Find an oil field and sign up.

Posted: 12/13/2011 11:57:09 AM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:

Auto repair technicians and parts managers - people are hanging on to older cars right now. Anything from repairs at a dealership garage to oil change/servicing locations. Tire shops probably a good start as well.

That is one shitty paying career field, and while it's not "back breaking" work in the traditional sense,

hunching over under hoods all day or working above your head will certainly do a number on you.

Posted: 12/13/2011 11:58:20 AM EDT

[#31]

The pay system that most automotive techs work under is kinda screwed up in that once you get to the point where you're making pretty decent money per hour, you're costing the business more money than Joe Nobody next to you. Why pay you $25/hour to do a job when home boy over there can do it for $15/hour? There's a little gray area where if you stay dumb and don't really care about advancing your skills and knowledge, and you don't really mind bending a few morals, where you can work not too hard and make good money doing it, but some of us like being able to sleep at night.

Also understand that if you're on top of your game and good at what you do, you're gonna get stuck doing the gnarly shit that no one else can really fix. Usually, these cars are gonna be under warranty, and warranty pay is balls, usually about 1/3 to 1/2 of what that same job would pay if the customer was footing the bill.

Even when the pay system works right (and it rarely does), it's heavily seasonal - as I type this post right now, I've worked on two cars all day. I'll have been here ten-ish hours, and I'll get paid for about two. So if you ain't got some chips stacked up for the slow season, things are gonna get kinda gnarly.

In addition, if you plan on being a serious tech, I hope you're ready to go $5-10K into debt right off the bat if not more, buying tools and equipment that you're never gonna get your money back on. It's deceptively easy to get into the tens of thousands of dollars buying quality gear.

You'll be exposing yourself to carcinogenic chemicals and substances on a daily basis, cuts, bruises, burns, sprains and strains, you'll be contorting yourself into shapes and figures that the human body was never intended to be in to fit in and around engine compartments and under dashboards.

All for an average starting yearly salary of about $28K

Good point. I wanted to be an auto mechanic growing up. I had a knack for it and changed my first clutch at 16. My dad insisted I get a 4 year degree and did. I now know a couple of mechanics. at 50 years old, their bodies are broken and they are both severe alcoholics. I'm sure its not true of all mechanics, but damn, wrenching on cars all day in the heat has to be tough on the body.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:02:20 PM EDT

[#32]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Certified automotive techs are always in demand. Good money working for a dealership.

Heard a story on the radio this morning about an aircraft company that takes folks coming out of a technical college. The students spend about $2K to get certified to fab sheet metal or something. The company hires them on for $12/hour and trains them to work on planes.

A motivated mechanic learns about fabrication, AC and DC electrical systems, hydraulic systems, etc. After five years on the job he's making $25/hr, and they can't keep them any more, because the auto industry snipes them for $5-10/hr more. Even better deals to go do contract work wrenching on planes in a war zone.

The plane company can't afford to retain them and can't afford to stop training them up.

I didn't catch the details or geographic location, but they talked about several companies needing talented mechanics to the tune of 100's of people. It was interesting and supports what you posted.

I think I heard the same story this morning (NPR). They said the mechanics start out at $12/hr, and top off at $28/hr. That seems like a ludicrously low top end for such a technically demanding job.

I don't think I've known a mechanic making more than $14/hr, dealerships really don't pay shit.

And that's especially true when you average it out, with days they get sent home early, or standing around not getting paid.

Then there's all the training. That never ends.

There might be one exception, I knew a master tech who was a dealership's tranny specialist.

Actually the only tranny guy they had, and he was there a LONG time. I think he was in the $20ish range.

And he was pretty miserable.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:03:29 PM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:

They also know their limitations... which is essential if you don't want to kill patients.

Exactly what my MD/DO friends said when I was exploring this.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:04:23 PM EDT

[#34]

Quoted:

Damn dude, you summed that up perfectly.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:06:34 PM EDT

[#35]

Quoted:
Medical or leo.

LEO?

My small city just hired six officers. They had 2500 applicants after the paper applications were screened. After the written test, PFT and oral boards they were still in three digits...

Then they hired six applicants that were the kids, son-in-laws or brothers of senior officers.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:08:59 PM EDT

[#36]

Tattoo removal?

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:11:20 PM EDT

[#37]

Get a job as an insurance adjuster. You'll do just fine.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:11:24 PM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:

Good point. I wanted to be an auto mechanic growing up. I had a knack for it and changed my first clutch at 16. My dad insisted I get a 4 year degree and did. I now know a couple of mechanics. at 50 years old, their bodies are broken and they are both severe alcoholics. I'm sure its not true of all mechanics, but damn, wrenching on cars all day in the heat has to be tough on the body.

It is tough on the body, pretty much one of the shittiest, dirtiest jobs there is...

And if you can show me a mechanic that's driving a really nice newer car, and living in a really nice house,

who doesn't have a doctor for a wife, or maxxing the shit out of credit cards, I'll be pretty amazed.

It's a guaranteed modest living.

There are exceptions though, import specialists have a pre-installed client base with loads of scratch.

But you'd have to be an independent to make money, as all the dealership rules still apply.

I don't even think I'd suggest trying to specialize in transmissions anymore, because more often than not,

when someone's transmission goes, the car is at the point where it's disposable, versus the repair bill.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:11:28 PM EDT

[#39]

Quoted:

People are gonna say "nursing". Don't do it.

That's what they tell every single laid off guy around here at the unemployment office. "I ran a forklift for 10 years at the plant, know of any forklift jobs?" 'You need to be a phlebatomist!"

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:11:42 PM EDT

[#40]

Quoted:

Quoted:
People are gonna say "nursing". Don't do it.

This. Hospitals are on hiring and pay freezes and everyone from big state schools to po-dunk community colleges are churning them out like there is sitll a shortage.
I suspect due to Obamacare, medical is going to be the next industry to go TU.

Yep

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:11:55 PM EDT

[#41]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Certified automotive techs are always in demand. Good money working for a dealership.

Heard a story on the radio this morning about an aircraft company that takes folks coming out of a technical college. The students spend about $2K to get certified to fab sheet metal or something. The company hires them on for $12/hour and trains them to work on planes.

A motivated mechanic learns about fabrication, AC and DC electrical systems, hydraulic systems, etc. After five years on the job he's making $25/hr, and they can't keep them any more, because the auto industry snipes them for $5-10/hr more. Even better deals to go do contract work wrenching on planes in a war zone.

The plane company can't afford to retain them and can't afford to stop training them up.

I didn't catch the details or geographic location, but they talked about several companies needing talented mechanics to the tune of 100's of people. It was interesting and supports what you posted.

I think I heard the same story this morning (NPR). They said the mechanics start out at $12/hr, and top off at $28/hr. That seems like a ludicrously low top end for such a technically demanding job.

I don't think I've known a mechanic making more than $14/hr, dealerships really don't pay shit.
And that's especially true when you average it out, with days they get sent home early, or standing around not getting paid.
Then there's all the training. That never ends.

There might be one exception, I knew a master tech who was a dealership's tranny specialist.
Actually the only tranny guy they had, and he was there a LONG time. I think he was in the $20ish range.
And he was pretty miserable.

The story was specifically about aircraft mechanics, and that they were in incredibly short supply. $28 is too low.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:13:53 PM EDT

[#42]

Quoted:
IT is currently, and always will be, a booming field.

No field is always "booming", there is "boom" and "bust".

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:16:38 PM EDT

[#43]

If I were willing to do physical labor and get dirty, I would look into home weatherization/energy efficiency rehabs. The gubment will probably be throwing money at energy conservation for years to come.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:17:53 PM EDT

[#44]

Sales. Make sure it's a product you believe in and has good gross margins so comp is there.

I'm a salesman. I'm measured solely by my performance and if I deliver no one bothers me. I'm in management now, but if I produce I'm golden. If I don't produce I'm history of course, but I don't think about that.

The world will pay richly for good salesman. Yes siree.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:26:01 PM EDT

[#45]

Quoted:

The story was specifically about aircraft mechanics, and that they were in incredibly short supply. $28 is too low.

I got that, but I was replying up the quote tree. Subject began with certified auto wrenchers at dealerships.

Aviation has it's own set of unique financial problems. If airlines won't pay pilots shit, how much ya think they budget for mechanics?

Only guy I know wrenching on anything that flies is a chopper mechanic, he does alright, but certainly not great.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:32:24 PM EDT

[#46]

Farming & Septic.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:36:52 PM EDT

[#47]

Welding is very much in demand around the Midwest and if you can do aluminum even better.

CNC with blueprint capabilities is in demand if you are willing to move.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:37:32 PM EDT

[#48]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Auto repair technicians and parts managers - people are hanging on to older cars right now. Anything from repairs at a dealership garage to oil change/servicing locations. Tire shops probably a good start as well.

That is one shitty paying career field, and while it's not "back breaking" work in the traditional sense,
hunching over under hoods all day or working above your head will certainly do a number on you.

QFT

I was talking to my cousin around Thanksgiving. He's been a mechanic for 10 yrs or so. Was making a whopping $20K/yr at a dealership.

Got a job at a vo-tech teaching auto repair. Doubled his pay overnight.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:40:27 PM EDT

[#49]

Quoted:
Something service-related.

HVACR maintenance/repair/installation - Heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration. As long as those systems are installed in the US, someone will have to install them, take care of them, repair them, or replace them. And, in ALL parts of the country.

Electrician - People like lights. And the internet.

Plumber - People really, really like indoor plumbing. Also, someone above mentioned septic service.

Most local community colleges have programs geared toward all of those areas. See what yours has to offer.

I don't recommend doing residential electrical. Commercial or industrial is fine. The competion out there when building is slow is unbelievable and residential service calls aren't going to make you rich.

Posted: 12/13/2011 12:43:40 PM EDT

[#50]

If I was young and was about to start over I would go into process engineering. In more demand that petro-chemical engineers and has been that way for at least the last 15 years so it's not really a boom/bust deal. Safety engineers are always in demand but it's too much of a BS job (in some instances) for me to take seriously at it for a career.

I'll agree with the don't go into medical. A good friend of mine is a nurse (as well as his wife) and has been at it for about 15 years and likes it. He works in a trauma unit. He just started a new job where he teaches those working on an accelerated masters nursing program and he says the same thing - too many damn people in the field just because they heard there is money to be made in it and have no natural ability in the area. From trying to hire some engineers over the last 10 years I can say that's part of the problem with engineers as well - too many that want the money but have no business being an engineer. Probably the same for a lot of good paying sectors, they attract people based on the money that have basically no interest in the job or natural ability in it.

Unless it's something easy to get into and out of of (like working in an oil field) I would shy away from stuff that is boom and bust related. Getting into the oil field work isn't bad because you can start at the bottom really easily and work your way up as long as you have a plan for the bust. But jobs that take serious investment to get into that are booming I would stay away from. Get into something slow and steady that you enjoy and have some natural ability/intersest in it.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - What's a halfway decent career to change into? My current outlook is grim.... (Page 2 of 4)

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