Any second or third career learners here?

I have been considering starting a second career for some time now (I am 40). I have worked in journalism/broadcasting for more than 20 years, including a stint as a television reporter, without even so much as an Associates degree. I have interviewed scientists, presidential candidates and heads of state, and most everybody who knows me considers me to be reasonably intelligent. I am going to purse at least a BA or BS, but I fully intend to obtain a Masters of some type, also.

Here is my question: if you had it to do over again (or perhaps you've already done it) what type of degree would you obtain which would have the biggest monetary return on investment? I would really like to get into a field where I can make as much money as possible for the next 10-20 years to sock away for my "Golden Years", although I don't ever really plan to retire (how boring). I would just like to have the money to live very comfortably and travel.

I have done some research on what are expected to be the "hottest jobs" over the next decade or so. Medical fields, engineering and law all seem to be the best-paying professions, but I don't exactly want to spend a decade in school either. The degree I pursue need not be DL, but of course it would help.

I am looking for a degree with the greatest utility, which can be obtained in a reasonably short amount of time, say 4 to 5 years (I fully expect to study full time, if I need to) which can be used in more than one career field if I decide to move into another job down the road.

My thinking was either some type of engineering degee, or possibly a business BA and then an MBA. Pharmacy is also a possibility, although I'm not sure how many years of study that would require.

I'm not asking anyone to pick my future career. I guess the question I'm really getting at is, which type of degree would lead to the best payscale and have decent job security in the future? It's a question I'm asking more out of curiousity than anything else. I've noticed petroleum engineers make great starting pay, but of course I think petroleum-run cars may be on their way out as hybrids and other vehicles become more popular over the next two decades.

I was thinking there may be others here who have also gone back to school, switched careers and found greater financial success. I picked my first career because it was fun, but "fun" doesn't always lead to financial security, as I have discovered. I love to learn (I read non-fiction history and text books for fun), so switching to an unrelated field doesn't bother me at all.

Anyone?

 

Go for a BA at Charter Oak (www.cosc.edu), Excelsior (www.excelsiorcollege.edu), or Thomas Edison (www.tesc.edu) and follow that up with an MBA. If you're still thinking about engineering when you're done with that, get a master's in petroleum engineering first and then, while working as a petroleum engineer, get a master's in automotive engineering so you can design cars that run on alternate fuel sources (you know, so you can put your old bosses out of business). Come to think of it, your thesis project for that third master's degree can be to design a car engine that runs on cow dung. Naturally, the car engine that runs on cow dung could be a good entrepreneurial venture. And you could market your cow-dung powered cars over the Net. So your MBA degrees should be in Entrepreneurship and E-Commerce. And, since you like reading history books, get an MA in Civil War Studies at American Military University! That oughta keep ya busy in retirement! - Theo the Educated Derelict

 

Since you want to make lots of money as a result of the career change I would suggest a growth field like network / infrastructure / systems security.

www.fhsu.edu
www.apus.edu
www.champlain.edu

Those will give you some ideas about your potential career options for the next 10-20 years.

 

I will beleive that when I see it! I started my BSIT after nearly 15 years in the Semi industry with the hopes of being a Network Security Analyst - (or something like that) got my MCP, CCNA, A+ - just to find out that some 25 year old snot nose was getting the jobs at $50K a year to my $100K. (and now they are outsourcing).

I doubt any (and I mean any) tech sector job has potential career options for 10-20 years. You have to evolve not matter what part of the tech you are with.

 

Re: Re: Any second or third career learners here?

Ted,

While a realize you're being somewhat facetious, I have thought of the Big 3 route. It's just a matter of which degree to pursue ( I already have about 58 credits in journalism/broadcasting).

Petroleum engineering does look interesting, but again...how much longer will those jobs really be viable? I doubt the future is in cow dung I like the possibilities I see with biodiesel, actually.

Engineering seems to have good possibilities, but I have read posts here from engineers who complain about outsourcing and the declining payscale.

I'm something of a Civil War buff, and I do think AMU's history degrees look very interesting. That will have to wait until I get my "career" degrees.

 

TCord1964,

What do you love? I mean really love?

What, if you were doing it for a living -- and not worrying for the moment how good of a living -- would make you think to yourself at night "Boy, I sure hope the night goes fast... I just can't wait to get back to work tomorrow!" or something at least akin to that sort of enthusiasm?

Seriously. What is it? It seems to me that any and all persons thinking of a second career, and who don't really know in precisely what field they'd like to pursue it, should never think about money until after they've thought about what sort of work would trip their triggers, money be damned. Once determined, it seems to me that figuring out how to convert that kind of passion into a money-making proposition would be alot easier than figuring out one's passion based on where it falls on the income scale.

Just a thought.

Seriously: What do you love? I'm interested in figuring this whole thing out with you here; and so I'm asking you to just forget about money for a moment and think, instead, about kind of work would make your heart flutter and would put a satisfied, egaged smile on your face every single day.

 

That's just it, DesElms...I'm already doing it, and have been for more than 20 years. While I truly enjoy the work, there is no longer any money in it. As a matter of fact, there never really WAS a lot of money in it. But, as I hit middle age and I look down the road and see that my wife will need more medical treatment, not less, and the kids will be going to college, I realize that I have financial commitments that my current line of work will never allow me to meet. I have always followed the train of thought that if you do what you love, the money will follow. Well, in some professions, that just doesn't hold true. Not only that, but the business is changing and heading down a road that I'm not sure I want to follow.

While my background is in news reporting, I have thought about getting my BA and then an MBA and working in PR. It's a related field and there is certainly more money in that.

As for my interests, I do like writing, working with audio and visual equipment, doing voice-over work and just generally being creative. I enjoy studying history, following current events and politics and learning new things. I did not enjoy learning in high school, and quite frankly, I found it boring. It's better to develop an interest in learning sometime, rather than not at all.

I'm not intimidated by studying a completely new field in something totally unrelated to anything I have done before. In fact, I think it would actually be a lot of fun, and that doing something new would help keep life from becoming routine and stagnant.

Heck, maybe I'm just having a mid-life crisis With all the people here going back to school or starting an academic career later in life, I thought perhaps someone here might have had a similar experience, and made a successful transition into something new

 

Re: Re: Re: Any second or third career learners here?

(1) not necessarily

(2) seriously - many if not most good entrepreneurial ideas come from transporting an idea from one geographic context to another (e.g., espresso was an idea imported from Italy to the US) - and I did see a documentary that discussed how people in Southeast Asia use elephant dung as an alternate energy source - but since there aren't too many elephants in the good old USA we may just have to use cows - note also that dung is a good source of methane

(3) that was to keep you busy during retirement - keep your mind active - stave off those degenerative diseases of the mind, you know

Theo the Educated Derelict

 

Actually, the idea of obtaining an engineering degree and working in the energy industry really does appeal to me. There will always be a need for power. I'm most interested in Alternative Energy Technology. There are a few programs for this, but not by DL. The options for an engineering degree by a distance are also extremely limited. I have been looking into the possibility of a straight science degree by DL, and then a Masters in Engineering (there are a LOT of MS programs in engineering available online). However, I haven't had much lucking finding a straight Chemistry, Biology or Geology degree online. I'm not so much interested in electrical engineering as I am in mechanical or chemical engineering. The University of North Dakota has a few progams. Very expensive, and they are the only ones I can really find which are available at a distance, unless you count Kennedy-Western

The other field I've seriously been considering is Pharmacy. I have found only one DPharm program online, at Creighton University http://pharmacy.creighton.edu/newpharmacyVer2/pharmacy/pharmacyindex.asp

Does anybody know anything about this program? Does it have regional accreditation? It is the only program I have found where you can start a pharmacy degree from scratch. It's an online program with a few short residencies. It is VERY expensive, but if I decide to pursue this I'm hoping I can get some scholarships if I score well on the PCAT.

If I wind up leaning toward Pharmacy, I plan to first go through the Pharmacy Technician program at a local vocational school and try working part-time as a tech to see if I even like the field. The Pharmacy Tech program is $400, and financial aid is available.

I'm still waiting to hear if anyone else here has done an "extreme makeover" and changed careers like this

 

Say, there, my dude! Creighton U is a prestigious Catholic school in Nebraska that was founded in 1878. They are regionally accredited by the North Central Association, and they have professional accreditations from the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business, the American Dental Association, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education, the American Bar Association and the American Association of Law Schools, the Liason Committee on Medical Education, the National League for Nursing, the American Council on Pharmaceutical Education, and the American Physical Therapy Association.

 

http://www.bbk.ac.uk/study/distance.html

Angela

 

I just thought I would give an update to my original post. I have done a lot of research over the past few days. I haven't really made up my mind yet, but I'm HEAVILY leaning toward a pre-pharmacy AS at a local community college (a combination of DL and B&M classes). I figure even if I wind up moving or chaning my mind, the credits will still apply to most BA or BS programs I would otherwise be interested in, including Journalism. If I start the program and decide I like it, the credits will satisfy the entry requirements into a PharmD program.

I have located at least one training program with a drug store chain which gives paid training to become a pharmacy tech, so taking classes for pharm tech would not even be necessary. I was looking at this as a way of gaining pharmacy experience. I would apply the extra money toward my studies.

There was an area of engineering I was interested in, Alternative Energy Technology, but it's not availably locally or by DL, as far as I can tell. Engineering programs locally are full-time, which is not an option for me right now. I found some DL engineering programs at University of North Dakota that look good, but extremely expensive.

 

You might check out the MS in Renewable Energy Technology at Murdoch University. http://wwwonline.murdoch.edu.au

 

I don't have a bachelors yet, but I did notice that Murdoch has a BSc in Energy Studies, with the option of obtaining a double major in Accounting, Business Information Systems, Chemistry, Computer Science, Economics, Environmental Science, Law, Management, Marketing Management, Physics, Sustainable Development and Renewable Energy Engineering (double degree). The program is available online. This looks VERY interesting!

Downside: tuiton per year for the 3 year program is $8,000 U.S. , or $24,000 for the whole program. That's not including books and other fees.

I just wonder about the utility of an Australian degree in the U.S.

 

If you looking for a field that pay$$$, certainly pharmacy is a good choice. I have many friends in that field. It is a lot of hard work though. Academically, more difficult than medical school.

 

Well, I'm not afraid of a lot of hard work. However, part of me wonders if I'm smart enough to take all of the Math and Chemistry courses. I guess I'll find out when I take the PCAT!

 

Tcord...Seems you and I are in a similar boat. I have been a Law Enforcement professional and have moved up the ranks for the last 10 years. I have thoroughly enjoyed the field but I'm not enjoying it anymore so I am looking for a new career path. I have always loved Engineering ( Mechanical is what I'm most interested in) but am unable to find DL Degress for this filed unless it is extremely expensive. If I find anything else I'll let you know and please do the same for me.

 

First of all, my congratulations on your courage to change careers!!! This is easier said than done, and many people who would love to experience new options are just too afraid of the consecuences.

If you want to make money AND travel, why not a degree in International Affairs? For instance, there's a Bsc. In Politics and International Relations through the prestigious University of London External Programme.

It's prestigious, demanding, inexpensive and offers a double concentration in which your professional experience has already given you a head start.

If you need any extra tuition, there are several institutions offering it, but only one in South Africa for this degree, to the best of my knowledge.

It will only cost about GBP 2500 for three years full time, and you can follow that by a Master's or 2. For instance, an MBA and a MSt in International Relations from none other than Cambridge University.

Alternatively, you could enrol in the Online MA in Political Science from Virginia Tech, which offers several electives in International Affairs.

Political Scientists are the best paid social scientists in the US (US$80 000 a year on average, although this would imply a PhD)), and if you have interviewed so many important people, I am sure you can knock a few doors. Political lobbying seems to pay well, and you are already quite familiar with the field.
Best of lucks,


joi

 

Well, when I graduated from high school in the early 1980s I went straight to work instead of attending university. I started out as a data entry clerk (basically) for a trucking company and within a year I was promoted to an auditor position responsible for examining each invoice prepared the previous night and correcting those that were erroneous. Examining 10,000 invoices in a mere 2 hours was challenging yet right up my alley. After almost 7 years with the organization I wanted a career not just a job. So I decided to take the plunge and go to college and earn a diploma in computer programming and systems analysis. Let me assure you the decision to leave a stable employment situation and attend school with no guarantee of success was not easy; it took almost a year be get up the courage. I graduated with the diploma in 1992 and enjoyed turning a hobby into a career. I am fast approaching a point in life where I may have to change careers yet again.

From data entry clerk (employee) to information technology professional (consultant); a significant change in direction.

 

I work in senior management for a large multi-specialty medical clinic. We have several pharmacists on staff. Pharmacy school is generally a six-year program (2 years prereqs and four years professional school) leading to a PharmD, although a few schools offer a five year program.

My pharmacists tell me that it is extremely competitive to get into any pharmacy school right now, and most schools have tens to scores of applicants for each open slot. Consequently, they are very selective in granting admission. I am told there is a major difference between meeting the admission requirements vs. who actually gets in. Those who are admitted generally greatly exceed the admission requirements listed by the school. At the U of Washington School of Pharmacy, pharmacy tech school does not satisfy the prereqs for admission.

If you are seriously thinking about pharmacy as a career, I strongly urge you to first sit down with an admissions counselor at your nearest pharmacy school to discuss your plan. You may find that a pharm tech program will not be sufficient. It would be unfortunate for you to go through such a program only then to discover that you won't be admitted into pharmacy school.

On the upside, at least as of this date, new pharmacists right out of school are being offered $ 85-100K to work in retail.