There’s be a lot fewer failed projects if “that’s a stupid idea” was allowed to percolate back to the customer. And the customers’ firms were smart enough to ensure that their people who propose stupid ideas aren’t allowed near their vendors.
Nurse anesthetist can indeed be a very lucrative and in-demand position, but it is considerably more than a four year degree as you rightly point out.
Hell, I was talking to a physical therapist trainee today. That job requires a doctorate. So 4 years undergrad, plus practicals plus a PhD (D.PT actually) program.
Color me impressed but also not really thinking that’s truly necessary to sort out simple exercise programs for folks w bio-mechanical challenges.
Customers who know nothing about how a product is put together won’t react well. It’s not stupidity. Somethings that look easy to a customer can be horrible to implement, and not worth it. On the other hand some things that the customer thinks are difficult are easy. In one of the projects I managed, which was software for internal customers, one of the users suggested something during a meeting. He was apologetic because he thought it was tough. It was done by the end of the meeting.
No one is asking the second question because there is no single answer.
I don’t even think people are asking the first question either. There are loads of good paying jobs that are easy to get but you have to move around all the time or are never home (military, trucking).
The question from the title was ‘Most Useful’. Meaning, I guess, most applicable, easily employable almost everywhere that your qualifications are necessary. Perhaps even globally.
In their first post, the OP did provide additional details; they were asking about a job that’s stable, and pays reasonably well, without a need for additional post-graduate work (emphasis in the quote below is mine):
Nice downplay. Every job in the world mostly deals with basic, common problems, but that’s not the skill requirement, since the human bodies and the biomechanical challenges in them vary tremendously, with an extreme range of severity / complexity.
When my sister became a Physical Therapist you only need a BS. Soon after they added a Masters requirement, and now it’s a Doctorate. There are reasons, and a PT today is expected to be able to do much more than sorting out simple exercise programs. Not all patients will need what a PT can provide, but all have them available.
I have often thought that this is one of the jobs most highly suited to many flavors of neuro-spicy people. Not all pharmacists work in highly people-oriented retail environments. In hospitals, mail-order, and compounding pharmacies, there is very little interaction with the public. What interaction does occur is with medical professionals and is about making sure things a re precisely accurate. The work is methodical and highly process-oriented.
The trouble is the educational environment does not reflect that. It’s a crying shame.
That’s not terminology I’ve ever encountered before but I like it. Was that your coinage or am I just out of touch with what the cool kids are saying these days?
I want to expand on this a little.
I have a degree in engineering, and have worked with hundreds of other people who have degrees in engineering. I have noticed there are two types:
They got a degree in engineering because they have a genuine interest in it, perhaps even a “passion” for it. They enjoy doing technical work at home (fixing things, building things, etc.) Not only are these the best engineers, but they seem happy at work.
They got a degree in engineering because they heard it pays well and offers job security. They have no passion for it, they hate their job, and are pretty miserable at work. Their performance is mediocre at best.
Please, please, please… do not push someone into engineering because it “pays well,” else they will fall into group #2.
I think this is vastly oversimplified and leaves out the entire middle ground of “it pays well, it’s stable, and I’m fine with it.” I don’t think one must hate anything that isn’t their “passion” or that any 40-hour-a-week gig done primarily for money (something you’d quit and never look back at if you won the lottery) is bound to make one miserable. Yes, some jobs will. But a job that’s just a job and not a calling does not have to be an awful thing.
Also, I don’t know where the folks asking live. Some jobs/industries are more location-specific than others. I mean, accountants can get jobs most places and chemical engineers not so much.
You can also go with: “I don’t want to spend all my time designing, but I’d be okay with being a Project Manager or an Inspector.”
That’s what the kids are calling it these days, LOL! “Neuro-spicy” is a fairly inclusive term, referring to Autism, ADHD, Tourette’s, and other things I don’t know I should be adding to this list.
This is an important point. There is still a large need for actuaries, and a few years back, every was touting this as the up-and-coming best job to train for. But nobody mentioned that the majority of jobs are in St. Paul Minnesota, which is not the climate for everyone.
It’s amazing how many career and further educational opportunities open up with a math degree.
One of my younger relatives is a PhD economist. He’s totally an academic, but the jobs available in industry to folks like that are insanely lucrative. Because of the economic power of good analysis applied to the huge datasets that modern computerized industry creates.