Switch careers later in life
I am past 40 now and want to change careers. I've been doing sales or admin work most of my life. I've also worked as a document analyst. I took a quickie technical writing class at a community college. I am not sure how to get a job as a technical writer. I've also thought about law school but seems that the legal field is way too crowded. What if I spend 3 years in school then can't get a job? I don't like sales so don't want to go back to that. I would like something where I can use my Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator abilities, perhaps something that involves writing or editing manuals as well
You don't indicate where you live and some areas are much better than others for jobs in the field you wish to pursue. As far as I am aware, the writing industry is a tough one for people with degrees associated with this field. but I would hazard a guess that the best places for you to start looking would be for low level jobs at magazines or publishing companies. Once you have proven yourself capable and worthy of producing quality work, you can move up as fast as the company will allow. Which may not be fast at all. Another, and somewhat easier, field to get into may be associated with Advertising. A position in which you would be able to create ads and write about different products. Again, you would probably need to start with an assistant position and work your way up. Don't expect to go into a field, though, with limited knowledge and no degree and command a salary comparable to what you may have been paid in your previous career. I don' t mean to burst your bubble but I don' t think you have a strong enough background in technical writing to get more than the most entry-level work in that field. I also don' t think you have a strong enough background for anything that is primarly Photoshop or Illustrator. You are however, correct that it may not be smart to spend a lot of years in school learning something that isn' t marketable at the end. More importantly, you should very scattered and really not sure what you want to do. I recommend you see a career counselor first. You alma mater, community college or yellow pages should have some. Sit with a professional who can really evaluate your skills, abilities and interests and show you what careers you might be well suited for. They can also show you related fields you may not have considered as well as discuss the job market in your area, help with your resume and practice interviews. I think it would be a very good move to give you some direction before you go too far down any paths.
I am willing to take an entry level job.
Don' t give up on technical writing. The demand for technical writers is increasing all the time. I' ve been making a good living as a technical writer since 1986. Here' s how I did it. I got a BA in Psychology. Then I got a 1-year Certificate in Computer Programming. This was 1982, when it was easy to get computer jobs. I got a beginning computer programming job for a low salary. Once I got there, it became clear that my real skills were related to writing. By 1986, my company had created a position for me and I was a Technical Writer. I am still doing this work. In 2000, I went to community college and took a year' s training in Oracle database skills, just to keep myself up to date. I' ve never had a technical writing course, but I have a good career in the field. These days, I' m called a "Business Analyst," because I focus mainly on writing requirements documents. You' ll find yourself better treated and better paid if you have the skills associated with the field in which you' re writing. For example, to write technical manuals concerning construction matters, it' s wise to have a B.A. or A.A. in Construction Technology. I recommend that you (a) locate th field about which you wish to write, then (b) talk with a counselor about putting together a course of study that includes both the field about which you' re writing and several technical writing courses. If it turns out that you' re interested in software, then I recommend you get an entry-level job as a QA person. You' ll get to test programs. From there, it' s often easy to make the jump to documentation. You could do this job while pursuing a degree. Many companies are desperate for decently-educated QA people. The U.S. government' s Occupational Handbook lists Technical Writing salaries and I' ve found these to be accurate. Good luck to you! | |
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