Korean Job Discussion Forums

[pangaea]

So, I'm teaching now but I am thinking it may not be what I choose as a career. I do enjoy my job, but I realize that the things I enjoy about my hagwon teaching job are the things that I won't have in a career teaching job anywhere else, especially in the US. Right now I am trying to decide on a Master's program and I am trying to narrow down my options. I am trying to decide between Education, Library Science, or something else that may be a good fit for me. Here is what I am thinking:

Why I like teaching:

I like kids (most of the time)
Small class sizes
Flexible lessons - the school provides the books and a few guidelines. I plan the lessons using materials I gather myself.
Little interference from anyone.
Due to the language barrier, I don't deal with parents.
At the end of the day, I go home and leave work at work. I do some lesson planning at home, but that is mainly because I want to be prepared for class and it reduces stress and the amount of time I spend at the school.
*Long vacations*

Why I think I would not want to teach at home:

I have no patience for red tape.
Sometimes I feel like I am running out of patience when I am teaching (which I'm sure happens to many other teachers.)
Dealing with problem students on a regular basis. (attitudes, drug problems, etc.)
Dealing with problem parents on a regular basis.
Work would come home with me every day.
Walking on eggshells due to the chance of being shot, sued, or falsely accused of abusing a child.
I'm afraid I would burn out spending so much time with kids that I would not want kids or would be out of patience and energy at the end of the day and that it would effect my time with them.
Due to my experience with school growing up, I hate being inside schools. It makes me very uncomfortable and a little depressed. The few times I have been inside a school as an adult, I have felt relieved that I didn't have to stay there. I know this is a personal issue, but it is not one I can control and it could turn out to be a deciding factor.

I think Library Science might be a good fit for me. I was an English major, I enjoy reading and writing, and I like organizing information. I am also something of an introvert so dealing with books or files all day long with little contact with people would be fine with me. In fact, I am quite happy doing paperwork.

What I am wondering is if there are any other careers out there that might fit what I am looking for. These are things I am considering.

I have no interest in climbing the corporate ladder.
I have been a supervisor before and it is overrated. I don't care to do it again, though I guess I would to move up in a career I enjoyed.
The thought of public speaking makes me physically ill.
I don't like dealing with people (i.e. customers or clients) as part of my job so I would like a career that would involve a minimum of that.
I am terrible with math, so accounting is out.

So, does anyone have any ideas on good careers for introverts who want to make a decent amount of money with as little stress as possible?

(Sorry for the long post.)

[machoman]

i heard librarians make pretty good money. but it looks like you've answered your own question in your post. you obviously don't want to teach, being a librarian seems to be the logical choice.

but the risks factors you listed for a US teacher isn't necessarily true for all schools/age levels. if you work at a middle class/upper middle class elementary, you won't be dealing with those problems.

[redaxe]

So you don't like kids, parents, audiences, customers, people in general, or numbers.

I guess you could be a writer?

Your post is just a big long list of things that you don't like and don't want to do. And even the few things you said you like about your job are mostly just things that you don't have to do at your job.

What do you like doing?

[machoman]

i guess it's like that saying, people do the things they do because of the money they don't make. pangaea chooses the career she chooses because of what she doesn't like.

but, that's not necessarily a bad thing. when i chose my major, i knew i didn't want to sit in a corporate office all day long.

[Draz]

I considered library science but I rejected it for two reasons: lots of competition for the good jobs and there is just way too much working with people involved in that job. I like having coworkers and, you know, having meetings or "exchanging ideas" or whatever, but I hate interacting with the general public. They are dumb, and it hurts. There are library jobs that don't involve much of this but refer back to reason for rejecting #1.

Edit: Also library school is just over-priced watered-down business/accounting/comp sci anyway.

Now I'm going to try engineering. I'm pretty good at math, and according to my research pretty good + working hard is more than sufficient to get through the coursework.

[Pa Jan Jo A Hamnida]

You could make the effort yourself but that would be making an attempt.

[pangaea]

redaxe wrote

[Easy Rider]

Clearly Librarian, Assistant in an academic dept or academic researcher.

[pangaea]

Pa Jan Jo A Hamnida wrote:

[redaxe]

[youtuber]

OP,

I have taught in Canada, and your concerns about teaching in the West are spot on. Teaching in Korea is NOTHING like teaching at home. Best to avoid it in my opinion.

Library Sciences......lots of girls seem to choose this as a master's. Why? Because it seems kind of appealing and mostly because there is no specific prerequisite degree required. Honestly though....are they building many libraries? No. I have heard that there are other things you can do with that degree, but I am not sure what. Maybe an office administrator? Records keeper?

May I suggest reading a book called What Color is Your Parachute? Read that and your vision will become clearer. Seriously.

In Canada, there is waaayyyy too much immigration happening and virtually every field now is very competitive. You can study all you want, but there is no guarantee you will be employed in said field. Surprisingly, engineering is looking to become saturated due to Canada's ridiculous (ie 250,000 new immigrants every year) immigration policies.

So what is the answer? I really don't know. There is no hurry to choose. Going back to school is a very expensive proposition and if you can do a career change without getting another degree, that would be ideal.

[Easy Rider]

I have a friend just like you who doesn't want to work where he has to interact with people. He also loves cinema so he says his dream job is an archivist at a london film museum / institute.

[Tundra_Creature]

Maybe work in the education field, but not as a teacher? Principal, Curriculum Development, Educational Technology, Ped Counsellor, etc? Work at a smaller college/uni instead?

[pangaea]

I like reading, writing, and researching so I think I will look for something in that direction. Crime analysis is also something I might be interested in, though there are very few specific academic programs for that title and I think landing a job as a crime analyst involves mainly being in the right place at the right time.


Tundra Creature wrote:

[iselynjenniep]

after teaching here for awhile, i have decided that i want to get my MLIS... will probably start online next fall. i like working with kids and i like the idea of having summers off so i will probably do a school librarian track... teaching is just not for me but i feel i would be perfect as a librarian.
here is the list of ALA accredited online programs in the US:
http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=lisdirb&Template=/cfapps/lisdir/lisdir_search.cfm