I have no idea what to study/find a career in

[polishgenius]

Is there really no proviso for New Zealanders being able to study in Australia despite not being citizens? I find that hard to believe.

Anyway, there's no need to get stressed about not knowing what you want to do. I'm 28, and I've only just started on anything resembling a career path, and I drifted onto that essentially by accident. If you haven't already got one specific thing you're aiming for, don't force things, but like others have advised, try different things and just see where it takes you. The important thing is not to get disheartened if one or another thing doesn't work out.

[TerraPrime]

Re: Library science

There are different areas of library science, and some areas actually are heavily involved with working with patrons. Almost all librarians work with patrons in one way or another, but reference librarians' main job is to interact with the public. So if you don't think you want to be interacting with a lot of people that directly, that's one area of librarianship you want to stay away from. That said, there are plenty of other areas that don't have such heavy emphasis on interacting with the public, such as cataloging or archiving.

In the United States, a degree for library science is Master's level work, so it requires a Bachelor's degree first. The Bachelor's degree specialty area doesn't matter, though your undergraduate area will often become your specialty area if you go into collection development or liaisons to academic departments (for academic librarians, which have a slightly different set of duties than public librarians or law librarians). I am not sure how it works in Australia.

In general, if you like interacting with people but find retail to be stressful, you might want to seek out jobs where you will interact with the public but not in a way that puts you in service to them as a restail setting. So, for instance, certified nursing assistants work with people but not in retail. Another example would be community activity organizers at the local YMCA. A third example would be nature park guides or guides for museums. There are options out there that will allow you to work with people but not in a way that is like retail where you feel you have to provide a service to them in order to make a sale.

[Arkhangel]

Is there really no proviso for New Zealanders being able to study in Australia despite not being citizens? I find that hard to believe.\

They're allowed to study, of course, but they pay international fees, which are obviously a lot higher than domestic fees. If I were in that position, I'd go back to New Zealand for my degree and return when I had it.

[armidil0]

Become a starving artist. Then you could put your wretched soul on display and become a non-starving artist.

[jet199]

My theory is that most people secretly know what they want to do but it is often weird or crazy so they deny it.

Mine is acting and working in theatre so I have to do a sensible job full time (accounts) and do what I love either in amateur theatre or bits and pieces professionally which I can fit in around work.

A couple of books which helped me were:-

The Bliss List - J.P. Hansen

I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was - Barbara Sher

What Should I Do With My Life? - Po Bronson

I was reading the last one and I just suddenly realised I wanted to be a writer, I knew it and had always known it. However I am dyslexic and have a bit of a phobia about writing and avoidance behaviours around it because of that. I realised that I could do want I wanted through righting, storytelling and looking at the human condition, through acting and theatre and went in that direction. I had always wanted to act as well but, quite rightly, knew there was a million to one chance of me making a career out of it so I had suppressed that want as well.

If your dream job is near impossible to get into the pick something you find easy for your main job and get qualifications in it. Then do what you love as your hobby or keep trying to make it your job but have your "proper job" to stop you from staving (and fund the expenses which will have to pay to get a foot hold in your dream career).

[Raja]

I'm fairly certain that citizens of New Zealand pay domestic student fees as opposed international fees for tuition. The only thing they're probably not entitled to is financial help in the form of Australian student loans.

[peterbound]

I'd say, 'be a fire fighter' but doesn't seem like an option for you, as you are not a native.

Can you go back to NZ and maybe join the Military?

[Arkhangel]

I'm fairly certain that citizens of New Zealand pay domestic student fees as opposed international fees for tuition. The only thing they're probably not entitled to is financial help in the form of Australian student loans.

Really? I have an NZ friend who I thought mentioned she was paying international fees, but maybe I misunderstood.

[lady narcissa]

Well according to this website:

http://www.newzealand.embassy.gov.au/wltn/LivingAust.html

As a New Zealand citizen, can I study at an Australian University?

New Zealand citizens can study at Australian tertiary institutions and are eligible to pay domestic, not international fees. However, many New Zealand citizens will not be eligible for any kind of student loan to pay university fees, or be eligible for a student allowance to pay for living costs. Go to the Australian Government Department of Human Services website for more information on student allowances, as well as the Study Assist website for information on student loans.

As to the original question...I was always very lucky, I always knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life from a very early age. But it evolved and changed frequently over the years as I learned about new things and new careers through classes I took, places I visited, places I worked and volunteered, and people I talked to.

At one point in high school I knew I wanted to work in a museum. I spent three summers working in museums (2 volunteer, one a paid internship) and I learned while I loved working in museums, the curators I worked with who all had PhDs were earning very very small salaries that I knew just wouldn't work for me in the long run. But I wouldn't have known that without talking to the curators I worked with.

In college I knew I wanted to major in history and become a history professor. But at my college your first two years you had to take some required classes and then select additional classes from among different areas of study so you got some math, science, history, literature, foreign language, and arts classes in. One class I took to fulfill my arts requirement introduced me to architectural history and urban planning which I just loved. So I ended up getting a masters in architecture which is something I never would have considered before that class.

So my advice if you don't know what you want to do is start putting yourself in a position to find out about new things and possibilities. This thread is a good start but find a way to take some classes and do some volunteering (at a hospital or a library or museum, etc.) and as you go along and do those things talk to people about what they do and hopefully you will find something that interests you.

[deleted01]

I wouldn't worry too much about what you want to do long-term. My degree is in something completely different to what I'm doing now. It may be that you need to try a few things before you find something you love. Maybe try some work experience placements?

[Tyria]

I came here to say pretty much what Terra said. To add to the education, in Canada you can also do a Library Tech program in community college, if you don’t want to go the full librarian route (not everyone who works in a library is a librarian). It’s a two year trade program here. That’s how I started. When I started working in a university library, I found out that they would pay half my tuition, so I did a BA. Then I went and did the MLIS at another nearby uni. I’ve been working in libraries for over 20 years now, but just got the MLIS four years ago.

You also have to decide what type of library appeals to you. I’m a Reference Librarian at a midsize university, so I’m often on the front line:

• It’s not really all that calm or peaceful (the main floor of our library is one of the busiest spots on campus and not a quiet zone).
  
• You have to be prepared to spend considerable time with one person who can sometimes get frustrated that you can’t find what they need/want/our uni doesn’t have access to/can’t order in soon enough "because my paper is due tomorrow and I’m just starting it"
  
• You have to be able to coax info out of people, because they will think you are a mind reader (a couple of hours ago: “I need stuff on garbage in water” means “I need only peer reviewed articles on the effect that microplastics found in the Great Lakes have on local wildlife”).
  
• Most people are awesome, but there are still those who will yell at you, patronize you, and treat you like a personal secretary, because they don’t understand what you do (when I tell people that I’m a librarian, I often here that it must be pretty easy, because I just check out books and tell people to shut up. Yep. Hear that a lot).
  
• We’re part of a consortium, and I do an online shift where I can have anywhere from one to seven questions at a time from universities and colleges across the province. I have to know their resources, policies, etc., and the people I help can’t see that I’m helping others at the same time or that I’m not based out of their library. You gotta be able to move for these shifts.
  

If you like the idea of a uni library, but not the public part, there is the Archives, Cataloguing, Acquisitions, Administration, and Document Delivery, to name a few departments that don’t have the public aspect to it.

I have never worked in a public library, but I assume it’s much the same except you cater to people of all ages. I did run three public school libraries right out of the Tech program. The high school kids were ok, the little kids were meh, but I’m not really a kid person unless they belong to friends or family, and the junior high kids were full on hormonal bastards. Not a fan of school libraries. Only did it for a year. I also ran a library for a private company. That was ok, but kinda boring. I also worked in another department in my current library. All of these I did without the MLIS. If you are looking for just back office library work, you can get by without the MLIS degree and just do a Tech program.

I would suggest that you see if there are any volunteer opportunities or bottom of the rung shelver jobs at a local library. That would give you an opportunity to see what goes on, and to talk to people in the different departments.

[The Notorious]

I enjoy organizing things, cleaning, or doing certain monotonous tasks, and I'm happiest when I'm alone. I would also love to be able to listen to music at work because it makes me happy.

TL;DR. What is a good career path for an awkward person?

I think being an independent/freelance house-cleaner hits all of the above marks for you. It also pays quite well with well-reputed house-cleaners bringing in about 200 bucks a day or more in cash from what I know, there's also the bonus of tips!

[Dr. Pepper]

I think being an independent/freelance house-cleaner hits all of the above marks for you. It also pays quite well with well-reputed house-cleaners bringing in about 200 bucks a day or more in cash from what I know, there's also the bonus of tips!

:agree: As soon as I read the OP, this was my first thought.

I'm much like you, DeathYon. Introverted and sort of weird around people. I prefer being alone and cleaning and organizing are the things I do when I want to feel zen or something. A few years ago I moved during an awkward time of year and was unable to find a job fast enough so I spent five months cleaning houses while I kept looking. It was seriously the most enjoyable job I've ever had. The only thing I didn't like about it was having cleaning supplies in my car all the time. But coming home with adequate money and feeling relaxed each day was pretty great.

[Theda Baratheon]

ugh i'm in the same boat i w3ill graduate (hopefully) with an ancient history degree in under a year and have absolutely no idea what sort of jobs i can even do with that

[TerraPrime]

As a piece of general advice to all college students:

It is not enough to get a degree, if your goal is to get employed. Degrees are, by themselves, no longer enough to make you competitive in a job market unless yours is a skilled degree area like engineering. What you need to help make you successful at job-seeking are things like internships, research experience, work experience in your field, and/or other types of evidence of your skill level (e.g. if you're graphic designer major then have a portfolio of your work). Usually, the end of the sophmore and beginning of junior year is your time to start, but there's no time that is too late to start. Begin with contacting your departmental advisor, and then browse through the list of faculty in your chosen area of study. Contact the ones whose work interest you, and tell them you are looking for internship or student independent work experience. Then, stick to a project and finish something. That's something you will ahve on you resumée that will set you apart from others. It will also allow you to experience what it is like to actually work within your major.

In some majors, this process is built in, e.g. teaching certification here requires that you do X hours of teaching internship, but most majors don't have a formalized system. I am also not sure how non-U.S. institutions work about that. But I can guarantee you that almost all universities will have a way for undergraduate students to be engaged in independent work under the guidance of a faculty. That is what you want.

[lessthanluke]

I'm 26 and still have no idea what I want to do with my life. Maybe I will work it out in a few years. We shall see.

[Aemon Stark]

I certainly want to echo Terra's comments here. It's pretty key to seek out work and other opportunities for "hands-on" experience while in a degree program, and to think of how you will use your degree in the future. A general degree can be used for almost anything, and it's important to point out that apart from engineering and some applied programs, doing a history or biology degree does not allow you to find a job "in your field". Undergrads don't have "fields" but that first degree is the starting point.

I didn't really figure out what I wanted to do until I was done undergrad, and the number of times I thought about changing my degree program certainly reflects that. Ironically, I started out in engineering, decided a I didn't want to be an engineer, and did an arts/math degree instead. But even a degree like engineering doesn't consign you to a particular career - it is merely a start - and my brother went on and got his B.Eng after me but changed tracks with an MBA and now works in insurance finance!

If i'm getting at anything here it's that you *do* need to get an education, but what you start learning is merely a springboard to career, not a determinant of it.

In terms of your self-professed introversion, I wonder whether this would be something better approached as a challenge rather than a barrier. I might have called myself an introvert at your age too - maybe I still am - but I've found that the older I get, the less this matters, and the more any feelings of awkwardness become less relevant. One of the reasons I went into medicine was to "stretch" myself, and socially is one aspect of that.

Anyway, it's easy to feel little direction at 19. I don't think my interests square very much with yours - I hate routine and prefer to be on the go and doing stuff, punctuated by periods of chatting and planning for whatever I need to do next.

Otherwise, I did work in my uni library in undergrad. I thought it was okay, but the "customer service" aspect could be fairly busy/stressful, typically during class changes or over lunch. Other aspects of the job like shelf-reading were godawful boring. I suppose that might have been okay if I'd been able to listen to music, but for reference, when I was in undergrad most people didn't have cellphones (which certainly couldn't play music then) and I would have had to have used my Discman (iPods existed but were really expensive and only compatible with Macs... which no one had then either).

[polishgenius]

ugh i'm in the same boat i w3ill graduate (hopefully) with an ancient history degree in under a year and have absolutely no idea what sort of jobs i can even do with that

I don't know quite what went down for you, but this is the sort of thing that happens when (1) kids have to start deciding their future and eliminating options at 13-14 years old and (2) it's considered more and more obligatory to go to uni when you leave school, regardless of whether you have any actual plan for where you're going and what you're doing after.

Out of every single person I know back in England from school or uni, literally only two of them are doing what they actually studied at university - and one's a mental health nurse, so a very specific profession and career path. Everyone else has come out of university and either tried to get into their line of work but, for one reason or another, given up and done something else, or just had no concrete idea in the first place and mooched from job to job (several are still mooching - as I say, I only stopped last year, and only last month did even that resolve into something with a concrete medium-long-term goal to aim for). My sister just spent two years doing a Masters in history only to realise that she's not going anywhere with it and start a course in midwifery instead.

I don't mean that to be depressing, because it's not, it's just the way life is (I presume that's true in other places too, but certainly in the UK) now. It's certainly the case that our parents may tisk and tut and worry because in their time it was (I get the impression) more common to be settled by your mid-twenties (I'm not entirely sure for England, since my parents and family are coming from a Polish perspective where that was definitely true and to some extent still is, which has affected their attitude towards me and my siblings), but for us, that's not the norm. I think as long as people understand that and are prepared for it, that's fine, but I don't think institutions or 'the grown-ups' in general have really cottoned on yet, not in any formal, concerted way.

This also ties in to the increasing amount of time people spend living at home with their parents.

[Theda Baratheon]

Yeah, I get the impression from my Father that I should have very clear career goals now, AT TWENTY, and that if I don't then something is Very, Very Wrong.

[maarsen]

Yeah, I get the impression from my Father that I should have very clear career goals now, AT TWENTY, and that if I don't then something is Very, Very Wrong.

Silly me. I waited till I was 30 and married before I set very clear career goals.