Tell us about your work history..

[Riverman]

12 years and one third class OU degree later, I finally got out, and came to Uni in York. During my Archaeology BSc I got into cycling, and a bit of casual work on bike tryout roadshows. Carried onto an MSc, still doing casual stuff on roadshows, and some odds and ends of teaching in the Department, and then went into Company of Cyclists fulltime, as an admin assistant and then into operations, taking on more responsibility for individual shows.

Got PhD funding after a year, so went back to Uni fulltime. Various teaching stuff was a condition of the grant, so I did that. Also, picked up one day a week working for the fabulous Velo Vision magazine: admin, writing, general stuff. Also, casual work on the local community recycling project, collecting at the kerbside.

Life got in the way, and I never completed the PhD. More or less the week I quit, I heard of a 4 day a week post with the recycling guys, applied, got it.

Hey Arch. Under the rules layed down by John Denham last year, you'd never have been allowed to get proper funding for that second BSc. They abolished funding for what they call 'equal or lower qualifications' and forced them to pay international fees of around 10k a year.
http://www.hefce.ac.uk/learning/funding/elq/
http://www.ucu.org.uk/index.cfm?articleid=2947

The government want to reassure you though that they encourage lifelong learning.

Apologies if that seems like trolling but it just caught my eye.

 

[ACS]

Left school in '74, worked as an apprentice butecher for 9 months then joined the RAF on a 3 year contract my intention being to get some life experience and apply to become a Police Officer.

Left the RAF 28 years later, planned to do 30 but with a 3rd hot spot tour looming I threw in the towel and got promoted to Mr.

Short spell as unemployed (3 months or so) then self employed IT contractor ('cause no one would employ me). Took a job offer from an agency client 3 internal promotions in 5 years and life has kind to me.

 

[ASC1951]

Had a paper round when I was 13, then worked in the same shop as a sales assistant when I turned 16 being paid £2 per hour!

My godson gets more for his paper round than I was paid for my first job.

Grammar School in the Black Country, university, then local authorities in Hampshire, Somerset and Yorkshire, left in 1982 to start my own firm, merged it with another one, retired last year, started a couple of little training businesses a few years ago which are still going, started a small charity this year which has almost reached crawling stage.

I have spent all my working life as a lawyer. I suppose my dad must have made it sound interesting, because that is what my brother and sister did too, although all three were exclusively public sector. I've never had much personal ambition but I do like the creative side of business and if I was starting again I think I would have liked to have been an engineer; certainly I would have chosen a job which didn't limit me to England and Wales. I had to make up for it by spending all my spare time caving, climbing or cycling.

 

[Sh4rkyBloke]

When I was at School I had several Paper Rounds - one in the morning, one in the evening, the weekly freebie paper and also a Sunday morning round. (in the days when they used to pay a penny per delivery per day so I got the huge amount of about £1.98 a week for my morning round!!). Passed 9 GCSEs and went to College.

During my College time I got spends by working at MacDonalds (the shame!! ) and then later at a Supermarket in my home town so a lot closer and better money. Got 3 A Levels and went to University

University was a fun filled time in Manchester, and spends were obtained during the holidays back at my Folks' house in Ripley, Derbyshire (can I get a "Whoop Whoop"!?! ) by working in a large Muliplex Cinema.

Upon completion of my Degree in Applied Physics and Scientific Instrumentation I did some work for a few weeks in a local(ish) Makro store which was being refitted, then moved to a permanent job as a Marketing Assistant at a local College... yeah, I know, the link between Physics and Marketing is often a topic of conversation throughout the country.

Whilst working there I completed the Advanced Certificate in Marketing then moved back to Derbyshire to take up the position of Marketing Co-ordinator of an Agricultural and Horticultural College where I stayed for about 2 years. Whilst there I started on the Diploma in Marketing.

Completed the Diploma and then got a job back in Manchester as the Marketing Officer for the OU in the North West. Worked there for just shy of 2 years before getting bored with Marketing and retrained by completing a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer qualification.

With my new qualification and no experience in IT I managed to bag a job as a Network Technician back at the College where I had started my Marketing "career" as the Principal knew me and knew that I was perfectly capable of picking things up quickly... for my end of the bargain I promised that I would stay there for a minimum of one year.

One year and a day later I was starting work at a University in Manchester as an IT Officer doing User Support type gubbins. Did about 8 months as that before getting a promotion to a new Web Team that was set up, and became a Web Developer. Still here nearly a decade later... but getting itchy feet.

The only problem now is that I want to fly helicopters, and this is not cheap... so I suspect I'll be staying put for the moment, unless I can fathom out a way to go and get paid to learn to fly, then use these skills as a Search & Rescue / Police pilot or similar.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

I got four desultory A levels after doing approximately bugger - all work for them. Went to Polytechnic and - following a similar strategy - failed nearly everything in my first year; had to spend the summer holidays doing resits of all my exams. I went on to get a 2:i Honours degree and an M.Sc., which I promptly used to do absolutely nothing with, instead choosing to go and work in the milk processing room at Dairycrest near Telford. After two and a half years of that, I decided it was finally time to get my HGV licence, and I've been driving trucks ever since. I still haven't used my academic qualifications and I've forgotten most of it now.

 

[Kablinsky]

My employment history is incredibly dull apart from. . .

1994: I was accused of stealing £1 million of share certificates from HSBC and was tailed by probably the worst undercover policeman in history.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

1994: I was accused of stealing £1 million of share certificates from HSBC and was tailed by probably the worst undercover policeman in history.

 

[Over The Hill]

While at school-
Hotel porter
Picture framer

Left School at 15 (after O levels)
Bank Clerk (1 year)
Office worker for a mining company (1 year)
Assistant manager in jewellers shop (5 years)
Set up my own jewellery repair and sales shop (5 years)
Payroll Clerk (1 year)
Jewellery repair business (workshop without the shop) (12 years)

That gets me to be around 40 in 2000. Had to stop doing jewellery repairs due to health problems (problems with hands and wrists).
Trained to be a property Lawyer and worked as conveyancing assistant (4 years)
Qualified and became a fee earning lawyer (6 years)
Self employed handyman and a stock auditor (when laid off work)

As of this week started back in conveyancing as a consultant working from home. I am working with a remote link to the office but basically am self employed.

 

[Paulus]

I left school at 16 with 2 O levels and 6 cse's in 1974. Started on the railway as a Railway Operating Apprentice. Qualified as a second man in 1976, and qualified as a driver in 1979. I'm still there.

 

[4F]

Left school in 81 with no O levels and a few CSE's with no real idea what I wanted to do.

Nearly joined the army but Northern Ireland worried me

Moved to Felixstowe almost straight away (due to parents work)


Hundreds of jobs in shipping available at the time, it seemed the natural thing to do

Started as YOP (forerunner to YTS) stayed there 6 years
Next one lasted 3 months and that was the longest 3 months of my life
Next one lasted 10 years before company went bust
Been here now for 13 years and for the last 18 months as branch manager

 

[Rhythm Thief]

1994: I was accused of stealing £1 million of share certificates from HSBC and was tailed by probably the worst undercover policeman in history.

That was me!


... bugger. I'm still no good at it.

 

[dodgy]

Joined RAF at 19. Worked in Intelligence (yeah, yeah I know). Moved into IT security and was lucky to be immersed into some very interesting work with a lot of training.
Left the RAF after 17 years and now work in IT Security for a large bank.
No regrets.

 

[Over The Hill]

I am glad to see so many of you have a similarly complicated life. Up until now I had this idea that everyone else had it all sussed out and I had not.

 

[ColinJ]

I am glad to see so many of you have a similarly complicated life. Up until now I had this idea that everyone else had it all sussed out and I had not.

Hmm... I'm further away from where I want to be than I was 25 years ago and I wasn't even close to it then!

 

[gary r]

Left school at 15 in 1979 (no qualifications)
16-17 Baker (dogs body in a bakers)
18-20 Motorcycle Despatch Rider in London (came away unscathed after 2 years and i reckon my crash was due so i packed it in)
21 trainee in a data cabling company ( cable puller)
still working in cabling/networking currently at Heathrow