Just had a think about what I want to do when I leave university.

Ive come to the conclusion that I dislike office work, its just "ugh... same thing again". I cant drive yet, and next year I will have a degree in Computer Science with knowledge and information systems (aka... AI), which is great, but do I really want to go into IT.

Been working for an IT Training company for the last 3 years pretty much, and just when things start looking up for me I get bummed. Moved to tutor support and got a raise in line with it, but now im more of a "aww the kid needs cheering up here mate, any chance you can take the call" because the average person on a distance learning course is a emotional wreck whos disheartened about the fact that their distance learning course involves LEARNING!.

Today a colleague who was clearly having trouble answering the questions a student posed to him ended up bumming off a student with some crap answers

"What does a HUB do?"
"What layers of the OSI model does a firewall work on and how?"
"What is a bridge?"

Simple questions, but the guy got the answer of "You dont need to worry about such things at this stage of your course" which is complete bollocks, and said because the guy answering had no f**king idea what the answers were despite the simplicity.

So yeah I get stuck with "cheer this guy up mate, I cant be f**ked with the mopy sod" crap. But then out of the blue I may be given a job such as developing some ASP.net testing system for our students which was fun to play about with, or I get given some genuine questions such as those above to answer, once in a blue moon.

So yeah... staying here after uni  = nono.

And if all IT work (after 3 years!!!) is this sh*te doing IT is a no no. Perhaps im being an arse but come on ffs... im not a councillor, I like to be challenged by some network issues or questions, but not have to deal with a lass whos in tears on the other end of the line because shes too thick to understand the course.

But yeah... what options are there available for graduates? Ive looked into BAS, and "they" style organisations, but to be honest the places for those are so hotly contested for that I doubt Id get into them. Ive messed with computers since I was 13yrs old, so I dont have any other real hobbies that involve anything other than computers.

Id like to get a pilots licence at some point but again... being a Civil aviation pilot is a hell of a lot of work and is effectively going to put me into bankrupcy to even achieve that after Uni, not even sure its possible without a mathematical degree, or A Level.

What do you reckon I should look into? Equally out of interest, what do you want to do? Really think about it, as if anyone asked me "what do you want to do" and I said something without thinking Id say "IT" but yea... really consider what you want to do for your life.

Become an Electrican, then in a few years start your business doing Industrial installations.

Its what part of me wishes I had done when I graduated.

Quote from: NimrodBecome an Electrican, then in a few years start your business doing Industrial installations.

Its what part of me wishes I had done when I graduated.

Snap, me too.  

My Uncle does it

Quote from: M3ta7h3adWhat do you reckon I should look into?

not sure but IT is such a big area that to have a crap experience in one area doesnt mean that all of it is bad

think of it from the POV of say another profession - imagine you were a qualified solicitor who found himself working for a legal training company - would you conclude Law is crap simply because your job involved talking to mongs on correspondance courses. fact is a solicitor could find himself doing anything from working for some big finance company in a tax haven earning wads of cash or working for next to nothing for charity or not for profit org doing human rights cases etc...

same with IT - tis such a big area that surely a bad experience in one area doesnt mean youd have a bad experience in another.

For example when I was in Iraq there were civilian IT people out there earning wads of cash - they never left the air station & were never in any danger but becasue they were contractors they had to get paid tonnes of cash - they lived in big portacabins - drove to work accross the base in little buggies & generally didnt seem to do a lot - was EDS that supplied them IIRC

Surely as a graduate you have plenty of options tbh.. from grad schemes with big companies to joining small firms & having a big influence in helping them grow. Every organisation needs IT staff these days - there are developers in the city earning stupid ammounts

Im sure there are people working in IT who can give you better advice - but what Im basically trying to get across is that in such a large industry a bad experience in one part doesnt necessarily mean it is all bad.

Most of what electricians do is pulling cables into grotty dirty spaces in buildings though Its not a techy job.

My father became a civil pilot after many years in the Raf and then as test pilot for various air firms. Be like Dave, join up and learn to go and drop things on people in a warm climate

Quote from: M3ta7h3adId like to get a pilots licence at some point but again... being a Civil aviation pilot is a hell of a lot of work and is effectively going to put me into bankrupcy to even achieve that after Uni, not even sure its possible without a mathematical degree, or A Level.

here is a suggestion

learn a bit about derivatives

get a job doing development in the front office of a bank or hedge fund

.......few years down the line - buy your own plane

Quote from: Dave

Quote from: M3ta7h3adId like to get a pilots licence at some point but again... being a Civil aviation pilot is a hell of a lot of work and is effectively going to put me into bankrupcy to even achieve that after Uni, not even sure its possible without a mathematical degree, or A Level.

here is a suggestion

learn a bit about derivatives

get a job doing development in the front office of a bank or hedge fund

.......few years down the line - buy your own plane

Not wrong. Banking and Insurance are definatley the two big pay sectors.

I guess the real first question to ask yourself is; What do you enjoy doing with computer and IT general ?

Dont just think about your work experience; think about your course, the stuff you play with, gadgets you use, networking, problem solving, the whole shebang.

Write down a list of all the things you really enjoy doing and, where possible, prioritise them. Then perhaps youll get some idea of an industry / type of job that you will enjoy doing.

I really enjoy my job because of the customer facing, people interaction I do. Sure I love the development and geek stuff too but I could get that in any job, I put up with the shoddy pay of this job because it is just what I want to do (atm at least).

oh one other thing...
The career choice you make now doesnt have to be for life. That depends on what sort of person you are. I get the feeling that I could well get bored of developing software in the next 5 years. If I do and I still have to work then I might look at switching to something else, though probably still in the IT industry.

like dave said, its such a big feild im sure theres somewhere youll like working.

personally if I was in IT i think id rather be at a smaller company where my input really counted... plus its a good place to work up from