Going back to school. Again. a waste of time?

[mario_C]

Hi everyone, I hope this is in the right category. If not, let me know how we can move it over.

This is definitely about self-improvement and doing better in life...or is it? Its' a boring business degree, and will be my 3rd. This is not about being a professional student - I want to do better as a professional, most likely freelancer. I'm 54 going on 55, an Ub3rLyft driver (they're paying for it!) so no hope of office employment anyway - I went off that rez years ago, they don't like it when you try to come back.

Am I making another mistake? Should I bother, or just settle for being a grunt looking for dates?

[S2B]

What job do you have now? Does it support your way of life?

what do you gain getting another degree?  There should be something to gain besides bragging rights.

after all those degrees - do you drive for Uber as your job? If so, why not a job in your area of your degrees?

[Alpacalia]

First, you're not a "grunt."

I don't think age needs to be a barrier to pursuing your professional goals. Freelancing, depending on the type of work, often requires a diverse skill set so if you have two business degrees already that's definitely a plus and may give you some additional leverage.

What type of industry are you looking to provide freelance work in?

What is your ultimate goal with going back to school and getting additional degrees? 

[basil67]

So many questions.....

If the degree is "boring", will you actually enjoy doing that work for a job?  

Is the freelance work something which you have prior experience in?  Do you have contacts in the industry?  What's your business plan for getting this off the ground?   And what was the outcome from your previous two degrees?

4 hours ago, mario_C said:

Am I making another mistake? Should I bother, or just settle for being a grunt looking for dates?

Are you doing this to make yourself more dateable?  Or is it because you particularly enjoy the profession which you're trying to get into? 

 

[mario_C]

Hi, everyone! To answer your questions, the major is Human Systems Engineering a.k.a. Human Factors, with a User Experience concentration. What's that? Basically I make interfaces of stuff like apps or appliances more user friendly and practical...eventually.

Prior degrees were film school (never do this) and a diploma in computer programming (which I've had jobs doing, but I can't get work doing it anymore). This new one utilizes my work and scholastic experience under a new hat, so I guess there's a need for it.

[S2B]

Why can’t you just work work work?

right now - do you make enough money to support yourself? Do you live on your own?

who has paid for all this school? How did you support yourself while doing so much school?

[Alpacalia]

So why do you need another degree to start freelancing doing app development? Is that the niche you ultimately want to get into?

I have a degree in Natural Science but I need to finish additional training for my major in order to be hired in a healthcare setting and perform medical diagnostic procedures (radiology technology) but I would think with your existing degrees you can start developing apps but just need to start finding client opportunities to work on app development projects.

Edited July 24, 2023 by Alpacalia

[mario_C]

4 hours ago, Alpacalia said:

So why do you need another degree to start freelancing doing app development? Is that the niche you ultimately want to get into?

I have a degree in Natural Science but I need to finish additional training for my major in order to be hired in a healthcare setting and perform medical diagnostic procedures (radiology technology) but I would think with your existing degrees you can start developing apps but just need to start finding client opportunities to work on app development projects.

Yeah, I think that is my no. 1 career (and life) issue: I have zero people skills, which means no ability to network. They don't teach that in school. I make excuses that offshores are doing what I do for $6/hr so maybe more education will give me an edge, but...at the end of the day, it won't teach me to just go out there, be interested in clients and their BS, and get contracts.

I'm just bored with Ub3rLyft driving, driving around bad neighborhoods in 90 degree heat looking for work. But how do you move on from that? Well, this ain't LinkedIn, I know....but how do you get better with talking to people about stuff that's real? How do you make connections with people?

That's where I'm at now, then. Good luck, Alpacalia, with your own school stuff.

[S2B]

How many hours each day do you work driving?

no amount of degrees will help if you don’t start being open to doing more to help yourself on a daily basis. 
heck, you COULD just work the baggage area of an airport if you don’t have people skills. As long as you are willing to work work work - you will earn money.

this seems more like the issue is you’ve spent your life avoiding people and working.

[basil67]

6 hours ago, mario_C said:

Yeah, I think that is my no. 1 career (and life) issue: I have zero people skills, which means no ability to network. They don't teach that in school. I make excuses that offshores are doing what I do for $6/hr so maybe more education will give me an edge, but...at the end of the day, it won't teach me to just go out there, be interested in clients and their BS, and get contracts..................but how do you get better with talking to people about stuff that's real? How do you make connections with people?

Yes, learning social skills is problematic.  And there really wasn't the focus on teaching them when we were young.   I suggest you Google 'adult social skill group' and see what you can find near you.  They are small groups run by psychologists and you and the others will learn the nuances of interpersonal and business discussion.

As for your degree, if you're finding it "boring" and can't see how to get a business up and running, how about you take a break while you figure out if it's really the right fit for you.  

 

[mario_C]

On 7/24/2023 at 5:13 PM, S2B said:

How many hours each day do you work driving?

no amount of degrees will help if you don’t start being open to doing more to help yourself on a daily basis. 
heck, you COULD just work the baggage area of an airport if you don’t have people skills. As long as you are willing to work work work - you will earn money.

this seems more like the issue is you’ve spent your life avoiding people and working.

I go for a daily quota at this job. Some days it's a few hours, sometimes...longer. But money isn't a huge issue - not any more so than anyone else.

I have different interests that I struggle to keep at, which is its own problem.

On 7/24/2023 at 6:03 PM, basil67 said:

Yes, learning social skills is problematic.  And there really wasn't the focus on teaching them when we were young.   I suggest you Google 'adult social skill group' and see what you can find near you.  They are small groups run by psychologists and you and the others will learn the nuances of interpersonal and business discussion.

As for your degree, if you're finding it "boring" and can't see how to get a business up and running, how about you take a break while you figure out if it's really the right fit for you.  

 

Thank you for that! I used to do the meetup stuff all the time, but lately it seems to be nothing but trivia nights and other bull-oney social activities. Where do professional people or creative people meet anymore? Do they at all? I get that the scene was hurt bad by the pandemic, but nobody wants to do anything in person anymore? Everyone would rather just troll on Discord or whatever...

[Alpacalia]

1 minute ago, mario_C said:

Everyone would rather just troll on Discord or whatever..

Hee. That made me chuckle.

I have no idea what Discord is but seems about right.

Have you joined groups specifically geared for entrepreneurs in your niche? Are you providing relevent content?

I was trying to find a very specific Meetup group in my area but I find a lot of Meetup groups meet via Zoom (which I don't want).

Why do you find that you lack social skills? You're a driver. I've always found Uber drivers personable, pleasant and talkative. Of course every now and then I'll get a moody or angry one that drives like a maniac and I'm praying for dear life but overall I find them sociable.

 

 

 

[mario_C]

I'm glad you had positive experiences with your Uber rides. No, really! I shouldn't care about the stupid job, but...if I have to do it, I'll do my best.

I do have some opportunities to be sociable - most riders do not want to speak, and I hear enough complaints on the internet that riders specifically don't want to speak to the help, as it were, so it's nice to know some riders don't mind talking to the driver. Usually I get a vibe from the rider that conversation is acceptable, and then we open up and talk. I try to make the most of those opportunities.

[mario_C]

Oh cool, I'll have to repeat precalculus in the fall. 😅🤪😫💀 I hope they don't expel me or start charging me hundreds of dollars because the "scholarship" is null and void.

But I got a B- in my core class, yay! It was mainly a psych class, which is perfect for this site  and maybe for other issues I'm facing?

Now I'm getting in a much needed break. You guys rule, thank you for commenting. (I try to do that in here where I can.)

[Alpacalia]

 Yay with the B- in your core class!!🤸‍♀️👍

Precalculus. Hard stuff! That is one of those classes where I imagine your brain feels like it's imploding.

Haven't had to take it, thankfully. When I had to re-learn algebra I cried out of frustration. 😂

[glows]

Hey OP - see if there are student organizations you can get involved in especially in the business faculty. Run for office, get elected, fill a role. It’s a fun experience and you’ll also be mingling with other students and industry professionals.

[Els]

On 7/24/2023 at 12:36 PM, mario_C said:

Hi, everyone! To answer your questions, the major is Human Systems Engineering a.k.a. Human Factors, with a User Experience concentration. What's that? Basically I make interfaces of stuff like apps or appliances more user friendly and practical...eventually.

Sorry I'm late to the party, hopefully this is still relevant...

So errr, I work in a very closely related field and have made hiring decisions, and IMO 99% of the apps out there who are looking for a UI/UX designer are just going to hire a person with a good portfolio of previous design work. It does help to have a degree, since some employers will set that as a filter, but it doesn't matter terribly much what exactly the major is.

You already have a degree, two in fact, so I honestly don't see the point of getting yet another one. But regardless of whether or not you get this degree, if you want to get work designing interfaces, especially as a freelancer, the most important thing that you need to do is to build your portfolio. Try to do some volunteer work for reputable open source projects... that's always a nice way to buff up your resume. Make some UI/UX designs for your own basic app or just mockups for show, create a website and put them all in there. Get an internship if you can. And, of course, please make sure that your website itself showcases your skills... always gives me a chuckle when someone is applying for a design role but their website looks like I designed it.

To elaborate, the problem with the degree that you are proposing is that in the vast majority of real world scenarios, the "human factors" are already known. With apps for example, Google and Apple have both already done the research and published user experience guidelines for the developers and designers who make the apps. There is no need for most app companies to hire a person in that role to reinvent the wheel. I can see a niche usage for this degree in, well, the abovementioned research teams, as well as for a handful of projects that are pioneers in their field. But how many people do you think those teams will need? The global demand will be extremely low.

Edited August 22, 2023 by Els

[mario_C]

You guys have given me some food for thought. I'm browsing other majors.

Somehow I'm actually doing very well in statistics 101 right now, but the major...damn that is a LOT of math. Which I just failed.

Sigh. What to do?

[S2B]

Instead of spending all that energy on school - spend it working!

when you work = you make money! Heck, even my kids learned that when they were 17-18 years old.

the problem here being that you don’t seem to HAVE to make money! 
more school doesn’t always equate to more money… especially when a person has poor work habits.

consider moving out - then you’ll be forced to work work work.