Your Job/Occupation?

[SaintessHeart]

Currently serving my National Service. I was hoping to be a lawyer specialising in computer crimes.

If I fail to get into law school or as a job under computer engineering, I might just sign for Blackwater as a mercenary. Need that money.

[Niv]

I'm a pet shop boy atm, work 4 hours on Saturdays.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Niv

I'm a pet shop boy atm, work 4 hours on Saturdays.

Is there a chance you can get me a giraffe or komodo dragon?

[Niv]

I'm not made of giraffes and dragons! :O

[cheerio_888]

I used to be a teacher. Next week, I'll be a textbook editor. =)

[Vairna]

im an army medic so is my bf and future husband, who is also a member of this forum

we're both off to afghanistan soon, bit nervous about it

[Nosauz]

Originally Posted by Vairna

im an army medic so is my bf and future husband, who is also a member of this forum

we're both off to afghanistan soon, bit nervous about it

hope you guys stay safe over in a scary place like afghanistan

i'm just a student but for the summer i'll don the lab coat and do some part time research, eh that reading backlog just got bigger

[Yaoi_Daisuki]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Currently serving my National Service. I was hoping to be a lawyer specialising in computer crimes.

If I fail to get into law school or as a job under computer engineering, I might just sign for Blackwater as a mercenary. Need that money.

Where are you from mate? I am enlisting this july too, gonna say bye to my pc very soon

[Solafighter]

Pilot - Currently flying BAe-146 200 for Lufthansa.

[Lil' Wayne]

I read an article on recent graduates and what they should do now that the economy is on summer break.

PL: Is the plan of college kids still pretty much the same? The rich kids work for dad or live off a trust, the middle and upper middle class kids go get internships at consulting and finance outfits and head off to those jobs where you work for twenty-five years at something you don't really like and then hopefully retire early?

AM: It's a mixed bag. I admit there is a healthy feeling of independence from most students I speak with. I sense that there isn't a whole lot of pride in going to work for your father anymore, or at least admitting to it publicly. On the other hand, when no other paying options exist except that one some are willing to suck it up. However, you'd be surprised by the herds of anxious students still dying to get entry-level positions on Wall Street. With head count on the banks being cut and pay scales decreasing like an avalanche, there are still an unfortunate number of students chasing just dollar signs. It's a perfect example of the entitlement my generation expects. Because they understand portfolio theory and the discounted cash flow model, they think a six-figure job should be waiting for them. Reality hasn't caught up with the idealistic culture yet. Expectations are still high that Wall Street will turn around, and the money will flow again. It may or may not, but I don't think anytime soon. And finally, there is nothing wrong with a job on Wall Street. But, many don't know what they are getting into beforehand besides the paycheck.

The "work then retire" culture is the same, only because that's still what is being taught. That's what are parents are doing, so that's the culture we know. But, a difference I've noticed is that there is the expectation that we'll hold various careers in a similar field, with the more glorious, exciting ones coming with time. It's still climbing the ladder, just with different shapes of notches. There's the expectation of having to climb, with splashes of randomness every now and then.

If you're currently working, what advice would you give to recent graduates now that all the jobs are gone? If you're a recent graduate, how are you dealing with the possibility of a life on welfare and food stamps? Or if you're like me with no advice to give, how are you making out during our summer of discontent?

I was in San Francisco for the Fourth and fully 3/4ths of the people I know there are unemployed. Amazingly, no one is looking for a job. They're all taking the time to travel, spend time with friends, work on their own ideas for start ups and generally recapture whatever magic was lost when summer vacation went away. It made me feel like a sucker for having a job.

[otakujohn]

Currently a Software Test Engineer for F5 Networks in Seattle, WA. I've been with the company since 2006.

My previous 5 jobs were also CS related, so I guess that's my career.

[Ledgem]

Even though this data can be entered and found on a person's profile, it's sort of enjoyable to have it all compiled into one place to read.

Currently a graduate student engaged in immunology/molecular biology research. I'm fast becoming disullusioned by the research climate, and will likely not pursue research as a career (at least, not fully). Not to mention that time-wise (that is, time to perform experiments, time to read papers, and overall time on your brain to think these things over) it's quite brutal, there's a lot of stress because competition for various discoveries and for funding is quite high, and looking ahead, the pay is pretty awful (adding insult to injury). The research itself can be fun and rewarding at times, though.

[KongZilla]

I'm currently working under family business with my dad. But I'm planning to get enrolled into filming school next year to chase my dreams of being a film director! ^_^

[otakujohn]

Originally Posted by Ledgem

Currently a graduate student engaged in immunology/molecular biology research. I'm fast becoming disullusioned by the research climate, and will likely not pursue research as a career (at least, not fully). Not to mention that time-wise (that is, time to perform experiments, time to read papers, and overall time on your brain to think these things over) it's quite brutal, there's a lot of stress because competition for various discoveries and for funding is quite high, and looking ahead, the pay is pretty awful (adding insult to injury). The research itself can be fun and rewarding at times, though.

You have my respect and admiration sir. As hard as that must be, it's highly honorable work. Ever get into discussions of Evolutionary Biology? Even though it's a breeding ground for troll invasions, I like to read the biology and general science related threads on richarddawkins.net. It's good fun.

[Ledgem]

Originally Posted by otakujohn

You have my respect and admiration sir. As hard as that must be, it's highly honorable work. Ever get into discussions of Evolutionary Biology? Even though it's a breeding ground for troll invasions, I like to read the biology and general science related threads on richarddawkins.net. It's good fun.

Thank you for the kind words, they mean more to me than you probably thought they would.

I know of some researchers who get into evolutionary biology, but it isn't really my area. My current projects have me mapping intracellular pathways (tracking receptors and protein interaction cascades), ideally for the sort of stuff that'd be useful in drug therapies or even just explaining why some things are the way they are. I do consider evolution slightly (as in, how something may have developed as a response to the rise of something else) but that technically isn't evolutionary biology, and it's probably not what you had in mind

[Kimitachi]

Originally Posted by Ledgem

Even though this data can be entered and found on a person's profile, it's sort of enjoyable to have it all compiled into one place to read.

Currently a graduate student engaged in immunology/molecular biology research. I'm fast becoming disullusioned by the research climate, and will likely not pursue research as a career (at least, not fully). Not to mention that time-wise (that is, time to perform experiments, time to read papers, and overall time on your brain to think these things over) it's quite brutal, there's a lot of stress because competition for various discoveries and for funding is quite high, and looking ahead, the pay is pretty awful (adding insult to injury). The research itself can be fun and rewarding at times, though.

I'll teach you something I've learned since I started university/college:

1st postulate: Knowledge is power.
2nd postulate: Time is money.
Now, you know this physic's equation: Power= Work/Time
Then, considering that Knowledge=Power, we have: Knowledge= Work/ Time.
And you know that Time=Money; Knowledge=Work/Money.

If we want the money: Money=Work/Knowledge .

When knowledge tends to '0', money tends to infinite ( does not depend on the amount of work done).
So the Less you know, the More you earn .

[TinyRedLeaf]

A little over a year ago, I became a journalist for a newspaper.

Well, I may be stretching the definition a little, as I'm not actually working as a reporter, but rather as a sub-editor. Sub-editors, sometimes known also as copy-editors, are the guys who comb through a finished copy to check for errors, while making corrections to ensure that the text conforms with a publication's housestyle or, if need be, to rewrite entire passages for the sake of clarity and readability.

Sub-editors are also in charge of designing and laying out pages. And, finally, they're the ones who write the headlines that scream for your attention.

It has recently occured to me that I have a somewhat schizophrenic job. A perfect sub-editor has to have a sharp eye for detail, to the point of being anally retentive. At the same time, he has to have the creative flair needed to improve copy, and to find the right balance of grey text, pictures, captions and headlines that would "sell" a story.

Intuitively, then, the job seems to require a mix of clashing personality traits: the qualities of a stubborn perfectionist pitted against those of an insightful artist.

Not surprisingly, good sub-editors are very rare.

Intuitively, too, I know, deep down inside, that it's unlikely that I'll make it as an effective sub-editor in the long run, simply because my strengths lie elsewhere. And, yet, I took up the job one year ago because I wanted the challenge.

Having been a former programmer and a self-taught magazine editor, I felt an urgent need to find out exactly where I stood as a professional. Was I really as good as some people said I was? Too often, I felt like a fraud. I could not shake the nagging suspicion that things had been going a bit too smoothly for me. I was terrified by the thought that, perhaps, I had not been stretching myself far enough.

So, one year later, what have I learnt? I've discovered that I was right: I've been a victim of hubris; I did not know how much I did not know until I joined the paper.

It's been a humbling experience, and a timely wake-up call. There is much work ahead of me, even as the gap between my peers and I grows ever wider. Strangely, though, I find myself relishing the challenge even as I quiver before its apparent difficulty.

And I also find myself recalling a certain episode from Hataraki Man (2006):

Spoiler for Hataraki Man, Ep11:

Shinji (salesman in a construction company):
"There just aren't many jobs where you get to create something like your stories, Hiro."

Hiroko (editor, Weekly Jidai magazine):
"But... I don't really create anything. It's just a continuous flow... Collect information, release it, collection information, release it..."

Shinji:
"Then why?! Why do you always go so far?! It hurts me knowing I can't do that! I know it isn't your fault, Hiro, but I just can't go that far... When I look at you, all I see is my worthless self!"

=======================

(a day later)

Hiroko: (in dazed despair)
"Why have I taken work so far that it's come to this?"

Fumiya (photographer/paparazzo, Weekly Jidai):
"...Because you like it. Your job, that is."

So, to anyone reading this who is in need of career advice: You'll know when you've found the job you want when you find yourself living for work as though it's your calling in life.

[arias]

I have what some people would consider a great job. I started working in the gaming industry after I graduated as a translator but gradually moved to marketing and now operating manager. It's an incredibly tough job and I put in about 100 hours a week for now, but hopefully this will go down to normal hours once our game is launched and gets some stability.

I am currently the project lead for the browser game Heroes of Gaia (http://www.heroesofgaia.com) and we're entering into our closed beta next Monday. It's an awful lot of work and there's a ton of pressure to deliver.

If you're intending to come into the asian gaming industry and have a leading position, be prepared to burn the hours and put in a ton of extra effort. If you're just looking for a job, then plenty of us go home at 6 right after work.

[nanafan]

well i graduated last year with a history degree, and i am not a teacher, and don't plan on it. since i graduated it has been hard finding a job. right now i work at fed ex, i basically do manual labor. i work there at night and i have been looking for a job during the day for awhile now, and can't find one. i am not exactly sure what i want to do besides getting a master's in library science. but i am not sure if i want to go to school just yet.

[barcode120x]

I was gonna make a thread on "your job/occupation" but found this thread. Although it's quite old, why not bump it up and fill it with current individuals x)

My first occupation is that I am a college student. I just recently got accepted into the nursing program down here in southern California. Waited 2 years; however, time flew and next thing I knew, I got the acceptance letter. I already went through orientation, bought most of my equipment and books and met my future 2-year classmates (60 of them O_O). I officially start the 25th of this month. As of now, I'm just reading my fundamentals book as well as working on dosage calculation and math problems for pharmacology.

I have two jobs currently. I work at my current community college as an instructional aid for adult students with disabilities. What it boils down to is that I tutor students with all kinds of disabilities in basic level classes such as English and Math, all the way up to college level courses such as college algebra or statistics or psychology, etc. In addition to tutoring, we have an ABI, or Acquired Brain Injury program where brain injured patients come here to work on memory and cognitive strategies. My primary job is to tutor, but when I am free, I sit down with several of these ABI clients and work with them on strategy-type programs for the brain. I've been working there for over a year now, but this winter intercession is my last session working there due to the fact that I need all the time I can get for the nursing program. Currently, I only work 10 hours during the weekdays since intercession is a bit short (normally during spring and fall semesters I work 19). I will definitely miss this job and as I have loved working with the speech therapists and fellow tutors. I will miss some of the students I tutored, others I will not haha.

For my second job, I work at a nearby private hospital as a Lift Team Technician (aka mobility technician). I work with a partner and we go ALL throughout the hospital helping assist nurses and CNAs reposition their patients with a a major focus on working with ICU and CCU. My department that we are under is physical therapy so in addition to repositioning, we do chair-bed and bed-bed transfers as well as assisting patients in standing up/sitting down. We don't walk them around as that's the PT's job but we help them get up and down. I currently work 16 hours, two 8-hr graveyard shifts on the weekend. We are soon changing to 12 hour shifts to better work one-on-one with the night nurses. Once we officially switch to 12-hour shifts, I will be working just one day a week (hopefully haha) instead of two. I love working with the night nurses and there is always something new every shift. This job provides me the perfect hospital experience for my nursing career and I most likely will be working at this hospital when I graduate.