Wondering if I should go back to granulate school
 

I have been wondering lately if I should go back to school and get a masters degree. In just about anything. Maybe psychology or who the fuck knows? Something that will enable me to earn some money.

I am having a lot of doubts (for like the past ten years) about my photography career. Even looking at other photographers work makes me kind of ill. I feel very cynical about the whole industry. It's all crap. Crappy craptastic crap. Crappetty crapulent crap.

My wife thinks I would make a shitty shrink because I get impatient with people's crap. Tonight she allowed that I would probably make a good gestalt therapist...

Whatever, suppose I got a pair of dark glasses and pretended to be a blind shrink, then I could just roll my eyes or snooze while the patient was yakkign about their crap. Maybe this is not the right attitude to have.

But I still wonder if I should go back to school to get a better degree. Now I kind of wish I HAD gone back to school 6 years ago to become and MRI tech when I had the chance. I'd be just about done by now.

Crappy crapness

Go back? Sure. For psychology? This will not "enable you to earn some money," my friend.

There's nothing wrong with jumping tracks. Ten years is enough time spent hating what you're doing, find something new. But here's the deal: this is either a fast-track to a new career path that earns you money, or this is for self-improvement/edification/happiness blah-di-blah. You have to decide which it is. Given what little I know of your personality, being a counselor is neither going to make you happy nor rich.

I'm not sure what sort of jazzed-up MRI tech certification you were looking at, but I don't see any that take 6 years to complete. The community college here has them starting at 2 years. Obviously I think the medical tech angle is a cool gig, myself. Or you could combine the two: if you want to be a therapist, look at speech therapy, or occupational therapy, or physical therapy--something where the folks actually have an excuse, and aren't just whining about their mothers. Our previous occupational therapist was charging $240/hour, though I don't know what portion of that went to the clinic she was part of.

ouch! Question No Fair!

Yes, photog ind sucks. No, Psych ind is not the way forward.

I think you'd make an awesome nurse. Srsly. Can't really say why, just a gut feeling.

Thanks. I certainly think this is about fast track to more money. I have to agree with, I guess, both of you and my wife re: counselling. (was it my response to bbro "what are you, retarded?" that gave you the impression I lack the je ne sais quoi to be a counselor?) I'd pretty much suck at it, or hate it.

I'll look into the MRI thing again, when I did look at it last I remember that a BFA in scultpure didn't supply all the pre-requisite body-part classes they wanted me to have. Maybe things have changed.

Nursing? I'm not sure I would want to deal with a lot of fluids and spooge. I'd be pretty good at giving kids band-aids and dinosaur stickers though.

btw was the "granulate" deliberate?

I'm telling you, you should look into occupational therapy. It's a mix of old and young, helping people with fine motor and sensory tasks, either rehabbing after an injury, or because they're young and have disabilities. You help the old guy organize his key chain by feel now that his eyesight is gone, then you ride a gigantic swing with a hyperactive 3-year-old with sensory integration problems, then you help the wheelchair-bound adolescent improve their hand strength so they can learn to feed themselves. Everybody loves their OT, and nobody releases fluids on them. :)

Yes, I do have a collie degree you know.

I will investigate this. I looked into the AA in MRI/Rad Tech at a nearby college and it is only 60 credits. (actually 78, but 18 of those like algebra and english comp I've already done.)

Choose carefully. You definitely should go back but not for Psych. You can still go back and do something Rad though, there is a market for it. What is your undergrad in? Anything to do with science?

Sadly, no science in undergrad. Going back to HS I was on track for a pre-med thing, lots of science, advanced bio, anatomy, etc. then a whole lot of shit went down at my school with budget cuts, my two favorite teachers were let go and replaced with a total prick who had it out for me, meanwhile my parents split up during my junior and senior year so I got derailed. I didn't end up going to college until I was 32 and went back to get a degree in photography after already having over ten years of professional experience in that field. After one week I realized I could have taught any of the undergrad photo courses so I switched majors to sculpture, got my degree and went right back into photography...

So, I have a good science aptitude, some familiarity but no college science experience.

Prostitute, Au Pair, or Assassin.

There's your sign, or is that a little too close to home? You could teach with a master's.

I have taught photography already, as an adjunct, with a BFA. To find a tenure track position would require a doctorate just to buy the lottery ticket increasing my odds from 0:80,000,00 to 1:80,000,000. Infinity better, but not great odds.

Also I really don't want to teach, being an adjunct pays shit and there is no guarantee your class will run. Pay is from $1700-$3000 per class per semester.

The nice thing about crazy people is that they are always making more of them. It's either a growth or stable industry when the rest of the economy is tanking. Yeah, hospitals aren't getting funded the way they used to, but there are always jobs.

If you have the personality for it, I'd suggest Crisis Counselling rather than traditional counselling. You do end up dealing with some of the same people and some of the same problems, but the landscape is always changing.

BTW, I referred to it as "gradual school," especially since I was taking one class a semester for most of my Masters.

Ft3, have you thought about going into "industrial design"?

Maybe it's close enough to photography and sculpture that you would feel comfortable,
but still be going into a new field with potential for good $.

I worked with two men that were industrial design specialists at a major manufacturer.
They helped me with three design projects for my own clients,
and I was amazed at their creativity and technical skills.
When they finished, the products were so "right" and "clean",
my clients signed off on them within just a few minutes of my "reveals".

I know these two fellows made good $ from their homes, cars, etc.
And even more importantly, they enjoyed going to work each day.

Build boats, little boats with extravagant price tags for wealthy people. Boats for people too busy making money to use it, but want the bragging rights that come with a high priced boat, and since they aren't going to use it why go to the trouble of storing a big boat.

Bruce is spot on.

Have you taken a career test lately? If not, it might help. Contact your local junior college. Most of them do career counseling for no or low cost.

I'd love to do that sort of thing, not sure how I could get into that field w/o an ID degree. I know I'd be great at it though.

It's a deceptively small market and w/o creating a highly desirable brand no one would want to pay the premium price, and puts me back in the spot I am in now, namely I would have to market myself and I haven't got the cash or time or chops to do that. The appeal of a regualr job is not having to do all the cold calling/marketing. Another problem with that line of work is that like woodworking and photography an awful lot of the people with the money and interest fancy themselves as weekend hobbyists who want to get their hands dirty.

see above


Funny, I took a career test right after graduating and of the top ten careers they outlined for me, I had already done 9 of them. The only thing I hadn't done was be a detective.

It was really uncanny. I wonder if my aptitudes would have changed since then.

[/Coaxing mode: intense]

Famous last words ?
One is regret, the second is optimistic confidence.

Any degree is primarily a credentialing "union card".
It just gets your foot in the door.
So an AA from your local community college is an easy first step,
especially if some of your photography income can be maintained for a couple of yrs.

[/Coaxing mode: off]

I just took one of those free career tests. It was very long and detailed, and required signing up for a lot of spam mail and then discarding offers for stuff I don't want or need.

Anyway, when all was said and done ... it told me that I wouldn't be suited to my current profession because I'm insufficiently sensitive to the plight of the homeless and don't care about other people, but that I might consider becoming a professional athlete.

(I also scored high for tech jobs like computer programmer or highly skilled jobs like doctor).

I still think boats.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to do boats. I'd like a marketing/sales department is all.

Find a partner to handle the S&M?

(pun very much intended)

I find myself in a similar position to you. I feel stagnant and want am trying to evaluate whether a career change is wise or not (metalworking or aircraft maintenance -- something that engages both my head and hands, anyway).

I'm also kicking around starting my own business. To do that I need to start finishing things and getting them out the door ("Real artists ship" - Steve Jobs). My inability to do so is not procrastination from perfection. I'm afraid it's procrastination from disinterest.

Well if you want to be all practical and shit, boats are out. But I still think it would be a good profession for you, Starving Boat Builder has such Je ne sais quoi.

Hmmm... there really are people who love that S&M shit... I wonder if you could hire someone on commission with broad enough contacts? I'd hate to see you not creating.

Well, then, it's elementary, dear Footson. :p:

.

I never worked out what to be, so I had children....

Maybe you should sculpt '57 Chevys for the Chinese.

I have resisted responding to this thread because I don't want to rain on anyones parade but :) do NOT go into any healthcare job without knowing exactly what the eff you are in for.

I am (was? yeah, def. WAS) a compassionate, caring, deeply feeling person. My 20 years in health care (as a rad. tech and RN) burned the living shit out of my humanity and I became a shell of who I once was.

I did a lot of different types of nursing, too. Cardiac rehab, occupational, psych (by far the WORST was psych) and free standing clinic (also short part time gig in private doc office - doesn't pay enough to pay bills) - they all had one thing in common: sick people.

turns out - not only do I not like most people, I really don't like sick people. They're whiny and needy and most are unwilling to help themselves. Some of them make a career out of being sick and those are 80% of the people you see - the pros. It was soul killing. It really was.

that's my experience. I am sure there are those who LOVE it. I thought I would and I was very wrong.

eta: a sense of humor did not help.

Noted!

Thanks, Bri. I hadn't thought of that. I had assumed I'd be behind the glass and operating the machine. I already feel the impatience with people who won't help themselves or even try, so I can only imagine what thigns will be like in a few years. Even if I remember to repeat the mantra of "it's paying the bills, it's paying the bills" I'm not sure about how long I could take that. I will consider the perspective. I suppose it comes down to what sort of misery do I want to tolerate?

I bleed all over the interwebz like that and you tell Griff 'noted!' - ?

*disappointment runs amok*


;)

eta - HA! Posted too soon!

Welcome to my world. ;)

Also noted because I replied to him in the brick car thread.

You'd be surprised at how much interaction you have to have. Not as much as some health care workers, but more than you want.

Disappointment is the chariot to enlightenment.

So, considering the weather, I'd wait until spring to make the trip.;)

But I agree with Bri. I don't think I would have the patience for the people. There are those who do, and thank FSM for them, but I know I'm not one. I also hate innards and bloods and culinary regurgitations.

Of course, I have been looking for a job suited to things I do like and do well: professional sleeper, professional reader, professional pop-culture reference sayer.

My chariot awaits! :D

Comedy writer and think-tank thinker.

Yes, my dream. I keep thinking I'll be discovered through my posts here. :o

edit: professional sarcasm would also be a good field for me.

:lol: We must've had the same birth mother

You're my brother from another mother?

Wait: you're my sister from a twisted mister?

Eh, I got nuttin'

motherSHIP, I meant mothership

nanu nanu

Shazbat!

Gesundheit

Hey footski, I know you're getting a lot of advice in this thread, and I don't want to be left out. Have you considered anything energy-related? I've been getting contacts from recruiters trying to hire energy auditors, energy efficiency engineers, and program managers.

Here's one company that's hiring: (www.clearesult.com).

I'd go for a job like that, if I had the energy.

HA!