overrated careers

[flyingiguana]

http://education.yahoo.net/articles/five_overrated_careers.htm?kid=1O1M9

 

might be a bit of an odd take on careers, but possibly interesting.

 

"Do you dream of a glamorous life as a doctor? Maybe you envision a great career as a teacher. While these are both admirable occupations to hold, it's probably in your best interest to do your homework before you commit to a costly education in either field.

 

That's because these are just two of the careers that may not be as great as you think. Long hours, poor job prospects, and less than stellar pay are just a few reasons they might be overrated.

 

The good news? There are alternative careers that could be more promising and allow you to work in the field of your dreams."

[Heather in Neverland]

I read that article. The only problem is their "alternative" to being a teacher is to become a principal. Well, first of all, it is pretty rare that someone becomes a principal with zero experience as a teacher and if they did, I wouldn't want to work for them. Secondly, being a principal is no walk in the park. You think working with students is hard? Try working with teachers.

[Lady Florida.]

I've never known a teacher who went into the profession for the money or prestige.  :lol:

 

I became a teacher because I loved teaching. I never remember wanting to do anything else besides teach children. Most of my colleagues (there are always exceptions so I won't generalize) enjoyed the work, even though we complained about the pay and the fact that we often had to take our work home and spend our own money on classroom supplies. We vented to each other, but we loved what we did everyday. Few teachers go into teaching with the idea of career advancement. Again, there are exceptions. However, most of the teachers I knew in my 22 year career wanted to teach. Most of the young people I know going into it today want to teach. 

 

I think the author of the article doesn't know much about people who actually choose teaching as a profession.

[flyingiguana]

I read that article. The only problem is their "alternative" to being a teacher is to become a principal. Well, first of all, it is pretty rare that someone becomes a principal with zero experience as a teacher and if they did, I wouldn't want to work for them. Secondly, being a principal is no walk in the park. You think working with students is hard? Try working with teachers.

 

Yeah, I liked that one.

 

Because, of course, we need way more principals than we do teachers?

 

And I was wondering where principal school was, cause I'd never heard of one.

 

And the doctors I know all lead glamorous lives.  Of course.

[Sun]

The doctor one amuses me. Lots of people work long hours, so I don't see that as a negative for being a doctor because I doubt that the people becoming doctors would otherwise choose jobs that don't requite lots of hours.  I still see that as one of the careers where one can make a good living with good job security, making it a good option if one is interested and can make it through without too much in loans. The high cost to get there is what I'd see as the real problem with medicine!

[sbgrace]

The doctors I know (in my family and related) are over-worked. All the ones I know, around my age (40) and younger anyway, carry high debt. If I had a child of mine was drawn to a medical field, I would want to steer them toward other medical careers.

 

 

I'm a former PS teacher. I agree with others that no one goes into teaching expecting great pay (though, honestly, I felt paid well..I made more than my CPA husband after about 5 years). I also don't know of any principals who weren't first teachers and it's generally a high stress job.

 

That said, elementary teaching listed is iffy employment here. It's very difficult to get an elementary job. Many newer elementary teachers I know spent years in aide or similar low paying positions. I know majors who never got a job in the field. Lots of schools are cutting staff and budgets. Many teachers are increasingly frustrated with testing and regulations. I think a lot of people drawn to classroom teaching also have a personality that tends toward planning and directing their own work, and education is less like that all the time. 

 

 

 

I can certainly see how the last three listed are not stable bets for careers either.

[Crimson Wife]

Most people interested in becoming an elementary teacher are attracted to helping children learn. Speech therapists, occupational therapists, and Applied Behavioral Analysts also work directly with children to help them learn, but tend to be much better paid than elementary school teachers. You would need at least a master's degree, but many states already are requiring teachers to get their master's within a certain number of years after initial certification.

[G5052]

Money isn't everything either.

 

I made big bucks (relatively) as a research scientist and program manager.  It was a good job for a single woman and then a married woman with no children.  But now?  I have no interest in going back. Teaching is low-stress for me and pays some bills and for a few extras, and also is much more family-friendly.  

 

[G5052]

Most people interested in becoming an elementary teacher are attracted to helping children learn. Speech therapists, occupational therapists, and Applied Behavioral Analysts also work directly with children to help them learn, but tend to be much better paid than elementary school teachers. You would need at least a master's degree, but many states already are requiring teachers to get their master's within a certain number of years after initial certification.

 

Several local friends who took some time out to homeschool their children were told not to even apply unless they had their master's in hand.  Jobs are available further out in poorer districts, but most people have to take into account where the rest of the family wants to live  :huh: .   

[Farrar]

The doctor vs. RN one makes a lot of sense to me.  Someone I knew who became a doctor said she has occasionally wished she became an RN instead, especially early in her career in part because "long hours" is a bit of an understatement when you're expected to work for a couple of days straight.  I think now, several years down the road, she's happy with her choices, but at the time, she felt like if she had become an RN, she would have had a much saner life and still been doing much of the work she was doing anyway.

 

The chef one, to me, was off though.  I mean, most people who go to cooking school want to do creative things with food.  I know the reality is that you're likely to end up not running your own restaurant, but I don't think the dream is to "be near food" so the idea of being a manager instead seems odd to me.  Also, the pay difference wasn't that great.

 

I agree with Crimson Wife that if a person wants a different career working with kids and schools, that specialists like speech/language pathologist or reading specialist are the jobs that are the best alternatives.

[Alicia64]

You have never been married to one or known one very well.  Most docs I know would probably choose another career if they had it to do over again.  plus no children of any docs I know are going into medicine.  They don't want the lifestyle with horrendous hours.

 

One of my sons is interested in medical work. Do people who do a specialty in nursing make a good salary? Which specialty makes the most? Do male nurses make more? (Because they can do the heavier work?)

 

I think it really matters because this particular son wants his own kids homeschooled -- meaning his income will likely be the sole income so he's aware that he needs to make enough to support a family.

 

Alley

[Dmmetler]

One of my friends has a husband who is a PA, and I think that might be a good choice for a DC interested in medicine. A lot of the "minute clinic" type places rely heavily on PAs and Nurse-Practitioners for minor medical care, and it seems a less expensive, less demanding, but still very stable career.

 

 

[sunnyday]

An option that a lot of physicians I know are urging young people to consider is Physician Assistant. It's a shorter (cheaper) course of study that results in being able to work at almost the level of independence that a physician enjoys, and a very competitive salary.

[StephanieZ]

One of my sons is interested in medical work. Do people who do a specialty in nursing make a good salary? Which specialty makes the most? Do male nurses make more? (Because they can do the heavier work?)

 

I think it really matters because this particular son wants his own kids homeschooled -- meaning his income will likely be the sole income so he's aware that he needs to make enough to support a family.

 

Alley

 

Well, no, male nurses don't earn more! That would be illegal and wrong . . . 1) Women can do heavy work! You're not talking Olympic weight lifting here . . . 2) The lead/head nurses (RNs, etc) aren't doing grunt/heavy work! That'd done by less skilled staff. 

 

Nurse anesthetists and similar specialties can make great money. Some quick googling can lead you to plenty of data on nurse specialties that are the most lucrative.

 

But, they are never going to make what MDs make (on average) . . .

 

If a child wants to go into nursing and make bank, they should plan to specialize and/or move into administration. IMHO.

[Chris in VA]

NICU nurses do pretty well. 

 

As far as teaching goes, you have to be willing to move to where the jobs are. I guess that's true for most professions. 

 

It's good to be informed as to the realities of the job you want. If your definition of "dream job" is to have a career where you never have to sacrifice anything, you get paid tremendously well, you are always respected by everybody, you can take off whenever you want, you don't need to go into a bit of debt or work hard to get there, and you will always be comfortable...Well, that's just stupid and immature.

[Crimson Wife]

My youngest DD sees a pediatric neurology nurse practitioner. The M.D. handles the more complex cases in the clinic while the N.P. handles the more routine ones like DD. When DD had her EEG done, the M.D. looked over the results to verify there was nothing to be concerned about. But I've never actually met her (which I'm hoping won't ever become necessary since that would mean a high possibility of there being a serious issue).

[Sun]

You have never been married to one or known one very well.  Most docs I know would probably choose another career if they had it to do over again.  plus no children of any docs I know are going into medicine.  They don't want the lifestyle with horrendous hours.

 

That assumption is beyond funny to me. I am in a family of several doctors, my best friend is a physician, and I have several doctors as friends and neighbors. My social circle is largely physician families. They all gripe about how medicine is changed, but every single one of them makes a very nice income. That can't be said of most professions. Some specialties have horrible hours; others are more manageable. The family practice docs that I know (including the above-mentioned best friend) work 2.5, 3, or 4 days per week. The ones who work four days per week are considered full-time in their practice groups; the same is true of the pediatricians I know. The ones who work part-time (the 2.5 and 3 days per week ones) make very good salaries for 2 or 3 long days per week. How many other professions let you have four days off per week and still make a salary that could be the sole support of a family?

 

There are more grueling specialties that require or almost require in-house call regularly, but all of the physicians I know in those specialties are quite well compensated ($200,000 at the low end up through $400,000 or more) for their work in those fields. The academic physicians I know also have great flexibility in the hours they work when they're not doing clinical work.

 

As for the children of the physicians I know? Many are still to young to choose a career, but among those who have older children, I've started to notice many heading to medical school in their late 20s or early 30s after they've given other careers a try.

 

I know doctors love to gripe about their jobs, but I think many of them have lost perspective on exactly how hard other professions also work. Yes, conditions have changed for the worse, and practicing medicine is more frustrating for many reasons now than it was 30 years ago. It's still one of the few professions where you have amazing job security and excellent financial compensation.

[StaceyinLA]

As far as the comparison of a CRNA to an anesthesiologist, I can tell you my nephew makes between 600K and 700K/year, and the CRNAs on staff with his group make in the 150K range. That's quite a large jump in salary.

 

What's bothersome to me is how less educated folks are taking on much of the work. I'm not knocking a CRNA or PA or anything else (I know a few of both), but when I'm worried enough to see a doctor, I want to see my MD. By the same taken, if I'm getting put to sleep, I want an anesthesiologist to do it, not the nurse anesthetist. Sorry.

[Crimson Wife]

What's bothersome to me is how less educated folks are taking on much of the work. I'm not knocking a CRNA or PA or anything else (I know a few of both), but when I'm worried enough to see a doctor, I want to see my MD. By the same taken, if I'm getting put to sleep, I want an anesthesiologist to do it, not the nurse anesthetitist. Sorry.

For a lot of routine care, seeing a M.D. is overkill. I didn't need a M.D. obstetrician as a low-risk 31 y.o. who had 2 previous uncomplicated regular deliveries. The nurse-midwife was perfectly sufficient, and there was a M.D. available right there in the L&D ward had his/her services been needed. It doesn't take 4 years' worth of med school plus several years' worth of internship & residency to learn routine prenatal care & non-surgical deliveries. Obviously I'd want an OB for a C-section or a VBAC or with multiples, and I did choose one for my 1st baby (as 1st time moms are more likely to have complications). But a R.N. with a master's in midwifery is perfectly capable of handling a low-risk mom (especially in a hospital setting).

[FaithManor]

Dh never works less than 60 hrs. and 80 is common with several weeks of 90+ per year. He is on call even

when we are on vacation...the phone frequently rings in the middle of the night. When I buy tickets t

plays or concerts for the kids, I do not buy one for him because if we all head out together and his

phone rings we are sunk. We learned the hard way after turning around too many times and missing out.

 

He is not a doctor. He is an Oracle Database Architect on a global account so technical support and

troubleshooting must he provided 24/7. He doesn't make big bucks either. We are comfortable, but until

this most recent position became available job security was non existent.

 

My dad works 80 - 100 hrs. per week as the owner of a small business. He made $29,000 for all of that

labor and stress last year

 

My brother works similar hours for Hewlett Packard and has zero job security to show for it except that

if you don't work the unpaid overtime you'll be canned at your performance review for not being a "key"

performer.

 

A lot of people who are not doctors work hideous hours and struggle to find any family time. The working

conditions for a lot of Americans are very poor. I think the author is rather misinformee. Yes, I adored

teaching and gladly accepted low pay at my favorite Lutheran school. I know many people working long hours

or low pay and sometimes both just to pursue their passion.

[redsquirrel]

It really depends on the state in terms of the benefits of being a teacher vs being an OT or SLP.

 

For example, the SLPs and OTs and PTs are all private contractors in my state. That means they do not belong to the teacher's union, they don't get a pension or health insurance or paid maternity leave or any of the benefits that come with being a teacher. I have one friend who is a SLP and she had to go back to work 6 weeks after having her baby because she only got the standard state mandated disability leave. If she took more without it being medically necessary she would be replaced. My other friend who is a teacher was able to take a full year off to be with each of her babies (without pay but maintaining health insurance) and return to her job. She could have taken two, but couldn't swing it financially. The OTs and SLP don't get paid for half days or vacation weeks, but the teachers are salaried for the full school year. Here the OTs and SLPs and PTs have to reapply every year to be assigned to the schools, they are not assured a job from year to year. They are also expected to work from 7-4 every day so they are often traveling to see early intervention kids before school hours and after school hours.

 

It is also two very different jobs. If someone wants to teach then they might not be interested in being a SLP or a PT. I hear them talking frequently and each often say they could not do the others job, lol.

 

As for 'male nurses' they should not be doing 'heavier' work than the women. My stepdad is a nurse and this is a pet peeve of his and all his nurse friends. They are nurses and not orderlies. If it is work that an orderly should be doing then it should not be passed on to a nurse who happens to be a man. They have the same education and training as the women and just because they are men doesn't mean they have do more of the crap parts of the job.  I know, I know, the reality is that  nurses of both genders are called upon to do an awful lot of heavy lifting, but as a profession they try very hard to draw the line between work that is done by a highly trained medical professional and someone who was hired to do the physically hard parts of the job. Nurses of any gender aren't supposed be emptying bedpans anymore. And, no, you don't get paid more or less for doing the same job just because of your gender. Male nurses aren't particularly uncommon anymore. My step dad is now retired but he had plenty of male coworkers.

 

My mom raised 4 kids on a nurse's salary so yes, it can support a family. She also worked a ton of overtime and every holiday to support the family. People have mentioned NICU nurses earning a good salary, and that is true. They have specialized training and are paid for it, same as surgical nurses. But, they also work intense hours. A friend of a friend is a NICU nurse and she works 3 days on, 4 days off every week. That first day off is usually spent in bed sleeping.

[bettyandbob]

You have never been married to one or known one very well. Most docs I know would probably choose another career if they had it to do over again. plus no children of any docs I know are going into medicine. They don't want the lifestyle with horrendous hours.

A significant number of my niece's med school classmates are children of MD's. Your blanket statement doesn't fit everywhere.

[Sun]

But there is SO much more to life than money... Quality of life counts as well. No one here works the hours you describe. I'm living gone at 5 or 6am back at 7 or 8 unless he is on call like tonight. He is putting a car wreck victim back together as we speak since he is on call. Probably wont make it home if something else comes in. Then a regular day tomorrow. Constant missed kid activities etc. I think he might choose a job where he saw his kids more often if he had to choose again.

 

You are right that there is a lot more to life than money, and it sucks to miss your husband (or your parent) a lot.

 

I mainly wanted to point out that there are lots of careers that demand lots of hours without the financial compensation or the job security that medicine offers.

[Dmmetler]

For a lot of routine care, seeing a M.D. is overkill. I didn't need a M.D. obstetrician as a low-risk 31 y.o. who had 2 previous uncomplicated regular deliveries. The nurse-midwife was perfectly sufficient, and there was a M.D. available right there in the L&D ward had his/her services been needed. It doesn't take 4 years' worth of med school plus several years' worth of internship & residency to learn routine prenatal care & non-surgical deliveries. Obviously I'd want an OB for a C-section or a VBAC or with multiples, and I did choose one for my 1st baby (as 1st time moms are more likely to have complications). But a R.N. with a master's in midwifery is perfectly capable of handling a low-risk mom (especially in a hospital setting).

 

I'll also say, as a high risk mom with prior severe complications, Pregnancy-induced hypertension on the verge of pre-eclampsia, and a prior C-section, who had an OB, Perinatologist, CNM, Ultrasound tech and Maternal-fetal RN case manager assigned by the insurance company, even then, the CNM was the one who handled most of the regular appointments, talked to me daily about my levels and provided monitoring, and so on. It would have been overkill for the perinatologist, or even the OB, to have a phone consult daily or to actually give the non-stress tests and biophysical profiles, and the CNM, Ultrasound techs, and maternal-fetal RN were much more able to talk to me and reassure me and keep MY stress down.

 

Even in the case of severe situations, there is absolutely a place for that first tier to handle the more regular procedures. and it was the RN case manager who picked up, over the phone, that I needed to go to the hospital-because even though I only felt "Strange", she was experienced enough to tell that, even though both the OB and perinatologist had said, one the day before, and one that day, that there were no signs of any problems and I should be fine through the holiday weekend. Because she did, I ended up in the hospital before pre-term labor got too strong, and was already IN the hospital when I went into full blown PE-which let my DD be delivered before it seriously affected her or my health.

[LMV]

Hmm....

 

*I'm a physician with a stepson who is a 4th year medical student, a daughter who is a freshman studying molecular biology and strongly considering medical school, and two more daughters who at least tell people they want to be doctors.  Ok, I think my three year old probably hasn't given it much thought and is somewhat in her want to be like mommy phase.  I think my nine year old has given it some thought or at least enough to have decided she wants to be a pediatric pulmonologist.  I have no vested interest in any of the four of them pursuing medicine and I don't think any of them are looking for glamour (or at least not expecting to find it via a medical career).  I have and would support them towards this goal if it was their goal because I love them and believe in them following their dreams.  

 

*Personally I would not encourage my oldest daughter to become a PA (which is nothing against PA's) because I don't think she would find it satisfying. My other two medically interested children are young enough that I don't have a complete sense on this issue for them.

 

*I do believe that midlevel providers have a valuable role in our health care system but I think how they are best utilized is still a bit of an evolutionary process. Most of the midlevel providers I've seen get into trouble have  not been good at understanding where there limits lay and or haven't been adequately supervised and supported by their supervising physicians.

 

*Male nurses shouldn't be used as "grunt labor".  In the year 2013 pretty much every hospital should have a "no lift" policy anyway.   

 

 

 

 

[Catherine]

As far as the comparison of a CRNA to an anesthesiologist, I can tell you my nephew makes between 600K and 700K/year, and the CRNAs on staff with his group make in the 150K range. That's quite a large jump in salary.

 

What's bothersome to me is how less educated folks are taking on much of the work. I'm not knocking a CRNA or PA or anything else (I know a few of both), but when I'm worried enough to see a doctor, I want to see my MD. By the same taken, if I'm getting put to sleep, I want an anesthesiologist to do it, not the nurse anesthetitist. Sorry.

I'm not sure what part of the country you live in, but that salary amazes me. I'm an internist, and I don't work full time, but the salary of the hospitalists and primary care docs I know is much closer to the nurse anesthetist (the same in fact) than the anesthesiologist. It may also be a differnec between academia and private practice, where the salary difference is sometimes close to 100%, but still. I guess it's the field you go into if you have huge, huge debt.

[Barbara H]

That "article" isn't really an article at all. It appears to be some kind garbage writing smacked together the purpose of encouraging people to follow links and have their personal information sold, most likely to online and for profit education programs. There is no author or any reason to believe there is anything wrong with the careers that are being called "overrated."  Just junk really.