help! i'm training for totally the wrong career (possibly)

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hey,

I've done 2 years of a degree in social welfare (in UK) I'm having loads of problems with the placement cos its all communication skills (surprise surprise i'm crap at!) i've always known i'm bad at social skills but until recently assumed i would learn them eventually, more recently i've realised i learn them a bit (slowly) but as logical rules mainly. i'm never gonna be the best at that type of thing. why do a job i'm always gonna be bad at!
also started to consider probably I have AS (have an assessment later this year with psychologist dunno when yet!)

so: i think i'm going into totally the wrong career - I was really intelligent in school but its like i chose my worst skills to train in
Do i finish the degree - (i've got 2 years to go as i'm going part time next year cos of mental health problems)
or retrain in something else? or do a masters in something else after?

My main interest is environmental stuff but i'm more in2 the campaigning side than sciency side so i dunno about working in it - campaigns would be all communication again! any ideas of suitable stuff 2 go into?

I'm good at logical stuff and exams rather than essays

where can i find information to help me choose a career - and what kinda thing would involve more of my strengths not the things I'm bad at?


Sooo stressed about this

thanks

Well,

My sister started university two years after my mother died. My sister started nursed training becuase my mother had always wanted to go back to school for nursing. About two years into a four year program, my sister realized what she was doing. She contacted the school's placement center and asked for help. They did personality tests to see what she liked and was good at. After looking at her tests and the classes she had already taken, they made suggestions as to what she might like and could change into without losing much time, ie areas where most of her classes would still count. Some of the suggestions seemed a bit odd at the time but she thought them though and went with one of the odder one and has been happy ever since.

Is this a specialized school for social work? If not, they might have a career center which could help you decide what you want to do.

BeeBee

you can go to the websites for greenpeace and/or friends of the earth if you're into campaigning, and i'm sure not all of it would involve social interaction. might be worth asking them what they'd want in terms of training.

http://www.foe.co.uk/press_for_change/jobs/
http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/ (the "working for greenpeace" link is in the list on the left, but the link is several pages long, so i haven't posted the direct link!).

insofar as Master's degrees go - there are many which have a non- scientific environmental bent to them. have a trawl round different institutions (i can't think of any to suggest specifically, but the new universities tend to have a wider range of subjects, as far as i can see).

hey sounds like a good idea - one of the problems is if i FINISH this degree then i cant get student loan for another one, if i drop out I can - but really scared of that big a change!

Thanks for the links
hmm

"Use written and verbal communication skills to communicate complicated messages authoritatively and clearly to different audiences including through drafting materials, use of web sites and giving presentations." could be a problem
but i'm sure i'll find something on there !

wow have just found another useful site
http://www.environmentjob.co.uk/

In the kind of transition economy we are currently in you are better off if you follow your heart into what you truly love doing.

Is there a need for social work skills in the environmental field.
Yes, most definately.
Will such work present unique challanges.
When will any work with NTs not present unique challanges for us Aspies.

Is it ok to be scared. Of course.
But, you're doing the right thing.
You're communicating your fears and insecurities to a group of people who will be dedicated to supporting you. Keep going in that direction.

The best advice, talk to your schools career counselors.
Be honest with them about your fears and aspirations.
They are there to help you too.

Smiley:

Just be careful of what you do end up doing. If you are not good at your job and your skills need improvement, it could cost you.

Smiley, why not finish just this term, and be determined that at the end of this term you will either switch to another program or take some time off to re-evaluate. Use this term to gather information on other options. You are exactly right, if you finish a degree you can't use, you will have trouble financing an additional degree.

I agree with the others who are suggesting using career testing services at your school. But use that only as a springboard. I found that the people doing career-guidance kind of work are overeager to encourage people to follow their dreams, and not so great at figuring out what someone can do within their limitations. And that kind of thing guided me right into a degree I can't use. I also assumed that with some experience I wouldn't be so "shy," and that I could analytically learn most of the things I would need to do. I was wrong, and it has taken a toll on me. Going into the wrong field of work can cost you more than time and money.