UKC

If you could retrain for any job, what would you choose to do & why?
Something I've been thinking about a lot lately.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Archaeologist or geologist.

No idea what the money is like, job opportunities or stress at work factor but I do get immensly jealous and inspired when I have to do any work with the county archivists.

In reply to Andy Mountains: A vet. I'm sure its stresful at times, but I'd quite like to help some critters.

In reply to jdawg_85:

Pilot

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Since I work in an industry that's coming to the end of its life, I've been giving this some thought recently.
I quite fancy moving into energy efficiency or renewable energy consulting. My working background is 25 years + in engineering with 10 years experience in high voltage motors and generators, and I've got some experience in domestic construction. I'm a project engineer and engineering coordinator with my current employer and I'm studying for an Environmental Science BSc hons with OU, so I should be fairly well set up for it when the time comes, providing I finish my degree before the job ends.

In reply to Mr_Yeti:

Me too. I'm starting my PPL next month so it may still happen, although I might need to win the lottery before I'm able to fly anything larger than a Cessna!

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Obvious really - Astronaut !

Great pay (I assume), huge cool factor, and probably zero chance of any actual work and danger as no one can actually afford to put astronauts into space nowadays.

Just lots of slumming around getting paid and looking cool

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Archaeologist, specifically Wiltshire County archaeologist because Wiltshire's got loads of great bronze age and neolithic stuff to dig up.

In reply to Toby S:
I'd go for Heli pilot!
Had the opportunity to start down that path as a youngster, but went to Uni instead. Benefit of hindsight etc etc!

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Accountancy... always going to be a need for it.

Just not sure how I can, as I can't afford to re-train.

Iain

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Ron Jeremy just retired.....

E

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Law - all the young lawyers I work with seem to be making a fair packet without actually putting all that many hours in. They all seem to enjoy it immensely as well.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Consulting.

In reply to nickyrannoch:

I still have a guilty pleasure watching Time Team


"So what does the geophys tell us"

"Well these lines here could indicate a tudor period outter wall, or perhaps a roman road or a bronze age fort...."

"..and the pottery fragments?"

"well these are possibly early saxon and could have formed part of a ceremonial bowl, or perhaps they Phoenician in origin and were brought to these shores by early traders...."

"Why does it say Homebase across the bottom"

"f*ck"

In reply to Tall Clare:

Here's my watch. What time is it?

In reply to JonC:



Apparently US astronauts are only paid a relatively basic government salary. Something in the order of $90-120k. However I did hear a story, could be a myth, that they get paid a milage allowance too. So a month on the ISS is worth maybe a million miles on top of the basic salary.

As to the OP well I'm a mechanical engineer with around 10 years experience largely in construction. Due to the construction market having collapsed here in Ireland I'm having to retrain. Because I have a lot of QSing, financial and commercial experience I've decided to do management accounting. It's not something I'd have seen myself doing ever before. However I always enjoyed the financial side of stuff and it's a way of retraining without having to go back to the very beginning career wise as I all ready have a lot of similar(ish) experience.

In reply to Ridge:

Hah!

It can't be that difficult, right? And there's money to be made, right?

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Nothing now, I started retraining 4yrs ago at the age of 33 to be a Paramedic. A friend of mine is 34 and halfway through retraining as a radiographer. Never say never! I think it's very rare now that when leaving school you really know what you want to do for the rest of your life.

The one other thing I would have liked to do, but didn't because salary wouldn't have been worth it at my time of life, is archaeology.

In reply to Tall Clare:

You should get into taking 'corporate' art photos, the sort of pics that adorn the walls of wanky office receptions. They pay a fortune for 'arty' thought provoking images that reflect company values and mission statements etc. You would be a lot better then some of the crap I have seen believe me!

In reply to Cú Chullain:

I'm an affected arse who thought sticking with analogue was a good idea, though...

One of my friends posted this on my facebook yesterday, which sounds like what you're suggesting: youtube.com/watch?v=E3k8qWTn4Rg&

I plan to beat him with a shovel next time I see him.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Foreign correspondent - Middle East preferably.

I'll try not go too native like Robert Fisk

This is something I very very nearly did a few years back and am seriously thinking of doing now. I did follow up on a couple of suitable masters courses - a couple at Leeds Uni School of Politics looked appropriate and had I not got divorced and then had to work for the man would have given it a go.

It is a very very difficult career to follow, even moreso if you are a 42 yr old nobobdy trying to get into the hallowed corridors of war reporting. For my job, i have to distill often complex situations into something resembling the reality, for the layman to understand. This requires good interpersonal skills, as the numbers and document bundles only tell half the story. It would be a good basis to use in reporting - the ability to ramble on with strangers and still figure out what the beginning, middle and end will be.

Never mind, I'll just keep pressing the button and receiving cheese until I can afford to go to Yale....or Sheffield.

In reply to John Rushby:

I remember you talking about this a while ago. You're halfway there already - you've already got some suitably complex scars.

In reply to Tall Clare:

ha

and I did used to live in a war zone.....

In reply to John Rushby:

Keighley?

In reply to John Rushby:

You've got the wrong accent you need a middle class accent like what mine is to do that sort of thing.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

I'm seriously thinking of retraining to work in a medical postS something like ODP (Operating Dept Practitioner), Paramedic, Radiographer...
But I would need to do a 1 year access course at college, then do a degree. I'm 37 now so its not too late, but the thought of a 3 year degree is not something I'm convinced I could cope with.
Still unsure.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

That's exactly what my mate did - an access course, and she's in her first year at uni. Hard in mid 30s, but doable - she has a student loan, is living in halls etc to save money, and working as a vet nurse (her old career) whenever she can to support herself.

If you want to train as a Paramedic you don't have to do all that, depending which ambulance service you approach. West Mids now do a student para programme where initial training is 12 weeks then they put you through uni 1-2yrs later. I think London do the same. South Yorks used to, but I'm fairly sure they don't now. Worth enquiring anyway.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

My brother in law started to retrain as a pilot at the age of 35. It took a while, but he now flies the well-heeled around Europe. He used to run a garage and body shop. He has fixed his nice new aeroplane with a shoe lace on two occasions now and saved his esteemed employer a small fortune as a result

In reply to Andy Mountains:

I did it... Got my PhD, and worked as a research scientist for a couple of years. Jacked that all in, and in a couple of months (presuming I remain injury free and final things go well in these final weeks) I will be an Army orrificer. Quite a change!

In reply to Andy Mountains: again id love to be a fast jet Pilot

In reply to dan: I passed the aptitude tests for that (and all the other stuff they had aptitude tests for) but failed the interview because of my limited vocabulary and no sense of humour.

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

They noticed as well then...

In reply to Andy Mountains:

I'm just completing my final year of retraining as a radiographer (therapy, not diagnostic). Loved every minute and cant wait to get out there and get a job!

In reply to Submit to Gravity:

I thought those were the traits selected for by the RAF interview board!

In reply to Andy Mountains: pornstar

In reply to all the aspirant archaeologists:

I hope none of you ever meet me!

I'm looking at retraining as a building surveyor. I'm currently trying to get an idea how employable I might be and far I might go at my age before making the committment. I currently work as a buildings archaeologist.

In reply to Andy Mountains:
Surgeon, sniper, motorcycle racer, carpenter/cabinet maker.

I sometimes wish I'd gone with computing instead of biology (did joint degree). i'd have got rich(ish), but not had nearly as many 'woah! that's COOL!' moments. My volunteer ambulance driving got cut short, would still like to have done that..or a traffic cop

In reply to Andy Mountains:
Re-train?

In reply to Andy Mountains:

PPE, SPAD, Westminster revolving door gravy train.

D

In reply to Andy Mountains:
cooper or blacksmith for me, i really wish i'd dug my heels in with my parents when i was 15 and got myself a skilled trade rather than follow a totally useless post compulsory education.

In reply to Frank4short:


It may be different nowadays, but the Apollo astronauts were paid the normal salary for their rank plus the standard supplement for being away from base, around $8 per day. From that they had deductions as the government were providing food and accommodation whilst on a mission to the moon.

Michael Collins tried to submit a claim for travel expenses at 8cents per mile, around $84000 but found out someone had already tried that and had been presented with a bill for 1 moon-ready Saturn V rocket at $185000000 in return.

Anyway, I digress. I always wanted to be a lumberjack. Leaping from tree to tree, as they float down the mighty rivers of British Columbia. With my best buddy by my side, we'd sing, sing, sing

In reply to Andy Mountains: I would have liked to have been a doctor or some sort of paramedic. Skills you can use literally anywhere in the world. I should have been doing quite an advanced medics course starting tomorrow, but it's been postponed. Oh well!!

N

In reply to Andy Mountains:
yo andy ,my mate pete (you probably know his wife sylvia who used to work at gary's sport shop in queensferry)left a good job at gressers in s'croft,(i told him he was stupid)Went to kelstertom college for 12 months to qualify in health and safety and is now living in dubai working for a japanese company,living on a boat in the most luxurious harbour in the world..bastard, im not jealous at all.
another thought....window cleaning ?

In reply to colina: Window cleaning..mate of min eset up a round. now employs 2 people, works 2/3 days a week, looks after his kids, rakes in £30,000...
looked into it here, rounds already taken .

In reply to Andy Mountains: commercial diver. i would still consider it if the industry picked up.

In reply to Removed User: the perpetual state of professional archaeologists is to wonder what they can retrain to do as a real job that pays the rent. But by the point they get a real job paying real money their knees and backs are too shagged to enjoy it.
Me, I wish I'd taken up the offer of a cabinet making apprenticeship when I was 16. What did I do instead? Became an archaeologist...

In reply to Mooncat:
The job of a County Archaeologist is, on certain levels, to stop people digging up all those sites...

And whether we will have any County Archaeologists at all in 2 years time is open to question.

In reply to Andy Mountains:
coach driver ..should be a vacancy in bristol coming up.youve got nothing against cyclists have you?

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Pararescue. I dont regret what i did tho.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Saying NO.

In reply to Andy Mountains: I've been qualified as an ODP for 18 months now, trust me the training time goes really quickly and there's no tuition fees to pay either so if you can live on £550 a month bursary you're sorted.

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Pilot

I reckon we'll soon have enough to form a UKC Airforce!

In reply to Andy Mountains:

I'm seriously considering retraining at the moment. Tree surgeon, Teacher or Physiotherapist. Teacher would be the least expensive and quickest, Physio would take years and i'm unsure of the money in Tree surgery. There doesn't seem to be many jobs in this industry (Tree surgery). Anyone know any different?

currently training for the royal marines, hopefully specialise as a mountain leader.

In reply to Andy Mountains: I retrained as a nurse at 30 and there were people on the course in their late 40's and early 50's. You have plenty of time!!!

In reply to Tall Clare:

A heady mix of Conning and Insulting people

In reply to teflonpete: Pete I may know of someone you should speak with, unfortunatly they are in Australia, but should be over in June

In reply to Andy Mountains: Been pondering that, I know my industry (Petrol Retail) but just been made redundant. Should I

a) find another industry role
b) Try to develop career into wider market in similar role
c) Take a year out and retrain
d) Start my own business doing all sorts of stuff but mainly consultancy to the industry

Anyone any advice because I'm not sure I know.

J

In reply to RCJ:
all the best mate, something I'm considering as well

In reply to Andy Mountains:

Combat submission wrestler under Erik Paulson and Catch expert with Billy Robinson and open a club teaching kids the beauty of the sport.

Then we build a UK team go across the pond and smash the Yanks.

Unfortunately you need 30+ years experience and UK limp lists don't like contact sports

In reply to efrance24234: efrance's pornstar partner