99% of the people I know who are RNs (im the RN poster) knew that that is what they wanted to do for awhile. The few people I knew in nursing school who thought "ah this is a good career with good job opportunities and good pay" flunked out. These days you have to have a BSN,which full time, will take you 4 years. It is also harder to get a job these days. As a new hire,you won't get first pick of hours and you may pull long shifts. I make 6 figures and work 3 18 hour shifts a week.

Judging by your posts,i don't think an RN is a good fit for you.

Anonymous wrote:It kind of helps to know what you enjoy doing. On this board, you are going to find a HUGE selection of jobs and careers (for instance I'm an RN and DH is an exec). What do you like doing? What are your strengths in? Science? Math? Writing?

No offense, but if you are planning to choose a career path based on salary and how interesting it sounds, you're setting yourself up for failure.

OP here,
You are most likely absolutely correct. Please elaborate on how you like being an RN. Likes, dislikes, advantages, disadvantages? I'm not against going into the Medical Profession. I have considered it, but it requires a lot more time than some of the other choices out there. Yes, haters, there are males nurses!

Do you plan to work while going to school? Full time or part time? Look into some local IT programs but with the interests you list,I'd doubt you'd get a 6 figure job immediately without some higher education. For instance, i know a few people in architecture who had to go to grad school (competitive ones at that) and it took awhile to get to a successful point in their career.

Forensics -yeah not 6 figures without an advanced degree.

I'd say your only option to make good money with limited education and experience would be in the IT field. Particularly as a programmer. Look into courses. You dont necessarily have to get a college degree if you are able to take classes that teach you Ruby,etc.

OP here,

I knew that I would be persecuted, so I was merely trying to point at my own weaknesses in my statement. That's why I disclosed that it was a decision that we made prior to children. I've been a sideline observer and have witnessed how people are quick to judge on this board. I put myself out here anyways looking for advice. Some is good and some is just intended on being hurtful, but since I have to accept the bad with the good, it's all good to me!

I was making decent money, up until a couple of years ago, when I was caught up in a RIF and laid off. Now that I'm only making about 65% of what I used to and the industry that I'm in seems to be stagnant, at best!, I feel it has become a dead end - go nowhere but down kind of a job. It's a wholesale business that manipulates products to make a profit. Think along the lines of an individual department within a home improvement store. We are the middleman in-between the manufacturers and the installers. The only real thing to sell is cheap pricing and the ability to finance weak companies that take forever to pay. We are a dime a dozen now. Customer service is expected to be included in the cheapest price possible. With the internet everyone can shop for the lowest pricing possible.

I was pulling in six figures before and I know that I can find something to get me there again. In the Washington, DC Metropolitan area it's hard to raise a family with a six figure income. It's even harden with less. The cost of consumables keeps increasing. I'm just trying to survive!

I do have an interest in areas such as; Mathematics, Forensics, IT, Engineering, Architecture, most things outdoors or working with my hands that stimulate my mind. There has got to be something that has an even balance of income and satisfaction. I just need to find it.

Thanks to those with constructive criticism! For the haters out there - keep hating if it makes you feel good. It's fun to read.

OP if you are struggling this much and plan to take on more debt, your wife needs to get a part time job. Unless the kids are not in school, she can work a few hours during the day just for some extra money. A part time job could easily cover groceries and a couple of other minor expenses.

Also, are you prepared to do your "dead end" job while going to school full time? Are you going back part time?

It sounds like you have not given this more thought other than "I'm going to go back to school". This does not bode well.

OP, I understand your frustration but it's hard to give you advice without more information. For instance, what do you make now? You say you're struggling but on what salary? Like a PP mentioned, you could put out a bunch of money for schooling, only to end up in a job situation that pays as much (or less) than you're making now.

You also have children that are moving towards college age. Are you sure putting yourself in front of them in the line for resources is a smart idea?

Have you applied to college yet? Where are you planning on attending? Some careers (particularly IT) you can get away with doing community college or other similar programs.

But here is how it sounds to me: In order to get the high paying job that you think you deserve, you need to go to a good school with a good program. You need to do internships in that field and gain work experience. When you graduate, considering the job market, you will be lucky to get a job that pays more than 50K. Now you are in debt from school and still making crap. It just sounds like you have some seriously unrealistic expectations about what you "deserve". What is your dead end field? Most fields which are "dead end" do have a chance for growth if you get more education. Can you go to school in a field similar to what you are doing now? Then, your 25 years of experience will hopefully count towards a new job after graduation.

I really don't think you are thinking this through that well.

I agree with the last two posters. His way or the highway. You can't have it both ways.

HA PP, I couldn't figure out why OP"s post bothered me. I also suspect I know OP, or at least someone exactly like him...and the attitude you describe is SO right.

Anonymous wrote:I'm getting ready to start college in my early 40's. I already have over 25 years experience within, what I consider, a dead end industry for me.

I’m intelligent, catch on to things new to me rather quickly, I have excellent work ethics (always on time and never miss work unplanned), I am a go getter, I always exceed goals and outperform my peers.

I like challenges that stimulate my mind. I think outside the box. I prefer to lead, not follow. I don't need to be micro-managed. I am very analytical. I am mathematically inclined. I am truly driven by money - even though I'm currently not making as much as I should be based on my experience - and I never let money interfere to cause me to make bad, immoral, or corrupt decisions.

I am happily married (over 15 years). We have multiple children from this marriage that are all under the age of 15. My wife is a stay at home mom. We struggle financially to make ends meet. I don't need answers telling me that my wife needs to get a job. We decided together, before having children, to this agreement. This is a request for advice for me and my future in the workforce, not hers.

I feel as though there was a fork in the road and the majority of life swerved one direction and I, UNFORTUNATELY, decided to take the less beaten path. I am looking for directions back to reality.

I'm looking for advice from people that are happy with their current or past careers. I would like to know your career and the salary range to expect. Even though you are happy with your career selection, there are always negatives with every job. Please indicate any negatives you have experience too. Please be honest. I'm trying to re-invent myself, as I'll probably be in the workforce until I drop dead, so I am attempting to avoid any pitfalls there may be while searching for a job that's perfect for me!

From reading your post this is what I gleaned...

You don't really want advice. You want to be right about everything. You blame external forces for your problems and it's never your own choices or your own fault.

The first part in bold - you only want to be those things, but you are not.

Because no one who really has those qualities stays in a dead end job for 25 years.

Nor do they think or say that they are going to stick with a decision long term that they made when they were young, didn't have a family, and one that makes a hugely negative impact on them.

Saying "don't tell me to change!" goes against someone who then says they want to reinvent them self. There is no reinvention without change.

You can't be driven by money but at the same time say your are struggling financially and always have been and yet over the years do nothing to change it. The two contradict each other.

Surveyor
Fighting with your neighbor about where to put the fence in your backyard? Ask a surveyor for help. Surveyors measure and draw what the Earth's surface looks like, determining official land, air and water boundaries. They write descriptions of land for deeds, leases and other legal documents; define airspace for airports; and take measurements of construction and mineral sites.

Education: A bachelor's degree in surveying or a related field; every state requires that surveyors be licensed.

I agree with PP who said something about web developers or programmers. They are ALWAYS in demand. PA is also a good choice, although I think now it is more like 6 years (4 years undergrad plus 2 years after). It is a good field, but you have to be prepared to put in a good amount of time in to make a good salary. My PA friend works about 60 hours a week and only pulls in about $120K.

Can you let us in on the dead end industry you've been in for 25 years? Even knowing that you want to do a 180 away from whatever that is, will help get an idea of your skillset. By "starting college" I'm assuming you mean an undergraduate degree? Would you consider yourself technology savvy?

I'm trying to consider the positions where you can really maximize a 4 year Bachelors degree (if that is what you're intending), which in my mind are things like web developers, IT positions, even some medical like physicians assistants. There is such a broad range of things - as PP mentioned do you have an interest or strength in science? I was just reading an article about PAs (phys assts) and how they are virtually like an MD but with much less schooling (think you can be one after a 4 year degree? someone correct me if I'm wrong?) and they actually make pretty decent money, median salary of just under 100K.

DH is a corporate attorney (Bachelors + 3 years law school) and I am an Epidemiologist at a consulting firm (Bachelors + 2 year Masters). Together we make about 225K gross but we also spent plenty of money and time on school and that doesn't sound like what you're looking for.

It kind of helps to know what you enjoy doing. On this board, you are going to find a HUGE selection of jobs and careers (for instance I'm an RN and DH is an exec). What do you like doing? What are your strengths in? Science? Math? Writing?

No offense, but if you are planning to choose a career path based on salary and how interesting it sounds, you're setting yourself up for failure.

I'm getting ready to start college in my early 40's. I already have over 25 years experience within, what I consider, a dead end industry for me.

I’m intelligent, catch on to things new to me rather quickly, I have excellent work ethics (always on time and never miss work unplanned), I am a go getter, I always exceed goals and outperform my peers.

I like challenges that stimulate my mind. I think outside the box. I prefer to lead, not follow. I don't need to be micro-managed. I am very analytical. I am mathematically inclined. I am truly driven by money - even though I'm currently not making as much as I should be based on my experience - and I never let money interfere to cause me to make bad, immoral, or corrupt decisions.

I am happily married (over 15 years). We have multiple children from this marriage that are all under the age of 15. My wife is a stay at home mom. We struggle financially to make ends meet. I don't need answers telling me that my wife needs to get a job. We decided together, before having children, to this agreement. This is a request for advice for me and my future in the workforce, not hers.

I feel as though there was a fork in the road and the majority of life swerved one direction and I, UNFORTUNATELY, decided to take the less beaten path. I am looking for directions back to reality.

I'm looking for advice from people that are happy with their current or past careers. I would like to know your career and the salary range to expect. Even though you are happy with your career selection, there are always negatives with every job. Please indicate any negatives you have experience too. Please be honest. I'm trying to re-invent myself, as I'll probably be in the workforce until I drop dead, so I am attempting to avoid any pitfalls there may be while searching for a job that's perfect for me!