›
This forum is in permanent archive mode. Our new active community can be found here.

How can I help my friend? (And other non-computing career advice)

trogdor9trogdor9
edited January 2013 in Everything Else
I posted this in the random questions thread and got no response, but this is pretty important to me, so I hope you'll pardon the double post.

A close friend of mine hates her job. She teaches preschool and, while she loves working with the kids, she hates everyone she works with (and she's also not making very much money - which she would be able to cope with, if she actually enjoyed her job). She's worked at a few other preschools and had the same problem, so she's willing to leave the field if that's what it takes. She's got a BS in applied math and is ridiculously smart, but she hasn't actually used her degree (aside from a few tutoring jobs on the side) since she graduated a few years ago. I really want to help her, but I have no idea how to look for jobs that aren't in the IT field. How can I help?

Comments

  • SailSail
    edited January 2013
    Shouldn't she know where to look? And is she set on leaving her current job? And would this be in something for teaching or something math-related? Does she even want to do something other than teaching?
    Post edited by Sail on
  • trogdor9trogdor9
    Shouldn't she know where to look?
    Ideally, yes, but she's not had a job in the field in a long time and I'd like to help in any way I can. Part of the problem is that she can't afford to pay the cable bill, and can only use her phone's 3G data for Internet connectivity (or go to the library or some other hotspot, obviously)
    And is she set on leaving her current job?
    She can't afford to leave until she's got an offer, but yes.
    And would this be in something for teaching or something math-related?
    Ideally, math-related, I think - I'd hate to generalize, but there isn't much reason to believe that any other place in the same field would be better for her.
    Does she even want to do something other than teaching?
    Originally (when she graduated), she was skeptical that she would enjoy a job in the math field, but it honestly couldn't be much worse than her current situation. Even if she has an equal amount of hate from a math job, at least she'd be able to pay the bills.
  • InvaderRENInvaderREN
    I'm from New Zealand, but I assume this hold true wherever you are: Most, if not all government departments need people to deal with public requests for data, statistics, interpreting statistics and making it understandable to the person/organisation who requested it. Preparing reports etc.

    Could she not slot in to any kind of general data analyst type position?
  • trogdor9trogdor9
    Could she not slot in to any kind of general data analyst type position?
    Almost all data analyst positions I've seen list SQL as a requirement, which she does not know. Is this a typical requirement? I'm no DBA, but I might be able to teach her some SQL - for now, at least, anything that requires it is a no-go.
  • InvaderRENInvaderREN
    Could she not slot in to any kind of general data analyst type position?
    Almost all data analyst positions I've seen list SQL as a requirement, which she does not know. Is this a typical requirement? I'm no DBA, but I might be able to teach her some SQL - for now, at least, anything that requires it is a no-go.
    I'm no DBA either, but I believe you can still be the "middle" person who makes specific requests to DBA's for data and then you do the interpretation, presentation, liaise with the customer.

    At least where I work, I believe they are two separate roles.
  • SchnevetsSchnevets
    There are certainly a lot of programs trying to place young professionals in teaching positions. Teach for America is the first thing to pop in my head as well as this master's scholarship that I keep seeing ads for on the subway (hopefully my blend of Google-fu and tomorrow's commute will bring some results). Sure, her current job isn't the precise "STEM professional" qualification they are looking for, but she may just stand out.

    Otherwise, anecdotes from my education friends suggest that if she wants to get into education, take anything that brings her in close proximity to teachers. Every teacher I know got their job through a reference/recommendation of some other teacher they met (oftentimes they were camp counselors).

    Education, like any other industry, is (increasingly) centered on who you know. Kumon and other formal tutoring businesses would probably be more conducive to her career objectives than a preschool. Also, SAT prep-work tends to pay really well, and was shockingly in demand when I did it (admittedly, that was 5 years ago, and her area may be different).

    Finally, obligatory FRCForum advice of "What do you mean you don't know technology? Do you hate free educational resources that make you a wizard among humanity? Bork bork bork!"
  • AprecheApreche
    Finally, obligatory FRCForum advice of "What do you mean you don't know technology? Do you hate free educational resources that make you a wizard among humanity? Bork bork bork!"
    THIS
  • ShiamShiam
    This seems problematic. Unless she's already sort of set on looking for new work just finding job posting probably isn't going to do much (and isn't something she can't do just as well). For looking for positions depending on what he objections are, I'd suggest looking into oil/prospecting companies as well as data analysis companies. Science and the tech sector at large are often willing to hire someone with a math background that can do the work they need.

    In general I would suggest looking up a local professional adviser or something similar and getting her in touch. Also putting her in touch with various industry people you know or people who've also done similar career changes can help.
Sign In or Register to comment.