Those on the spectrum not good at math and science....

Post Reply New Topic

I'm no good at maths and science at all. I got the lowest grades in maths and science at school, and I really cannot go through with learning it all again. The trouble is, most employers are looking for people who either have good social skills or good IQ, and I have neither, so I'm f****d.
Most NTs who don't have a high IQ end up working in retail, because they don't look for good grades in retail so much. But you need to be socially able to work in retail - you really do. And I haven't got the right social skills either. So, I suppose I will either have to go on disability benefits, live on job-seekers the rest of my life, live in a cardboard box, or kill myself.

Many people missed the second part of my question.....any Aspies/other autistics with DECENT JOBS (or have even had decent jobs in the past) not in the math and science fields? I'm guessing it's no for the people who have answered so far....

I don't mean a six-figure income or anything, but a salary one is able to live somewhat comfortably on.



Well yeah that's obvious. This is why autistics can get jobs as engineers or computer programmers....those skills are in demand. Other skills aren't so in-demand that employers are willing to hire one of us



You sound almost exactly like me. I failed Biology (only the second semester though) and got a D in geometry.



ONLY 9 in 10? LOL.


Me too



No offense, but this doesn't help at all. I KNOW there's NT's with successful careers that aren't in a math/science field. Take two people who go to law school....an NT and an Aspie.....they make the exact same grades. Who's going to be more successful? It's pretty obvious, as the NT has better social skills, which are necessary to be a lawyer. Aspies' weak social abilities don't keep them from being computer programmers or engineers because those skills are in such high demand.



I'm sorry, but this is simply not true. Employers value EQ as much, if not more, than IQ. NTs with strong social skills get good jobs even with an average IQ.

Edit: I see you're in the UK....maybe what I said isn't true there....at least not to the extent it is in the U.S.

It's terrible in the UK at the moment. Because of all these stupid government cutbacks, employers have become very picky of who they are employing, and retailers want someone with excellent customer service skills (yes, the word ''excellent pops up on every retail job advertisement), and administraters want someone with really good grades. I can't go back to college and re-study all my grades again, because a) it costs for people at a certain age and over now, b) I will probably fail again and waste all the money I paid for, and c) because studying stuff I'm not interested in bores me rigid, I won't get a passing grade anyways.

I see lots and lots of people whom I knew at school working in shops, and I remember those were the ones with low to average IQ, and the serious, cleverer ones went on to study complicated stuff at university and got good jobs. So all that's left for me is....retail work. But soon, in another, say, 10 years or so, there aren't going to be any more shops left in this part of the UK, because every shop firm seems to be financially going downhill, one by one. What the f**k is this f*****g f**ked-up country going to become of?! !! !! !! !

I always thought that those on the Spectrum often excel at math and science. Especially at math. I did not receive good grades in math in school, but later figured out that it was the method of teaching math, that caused the problems. I don't do calculations the same way as other people with whom I've discussed it. I can't really explain it, and some day I'd like to explain it in the form of a book written for the Autistic math student. I "see" the equation as various groups or sets of ones; not in a linear string. Again, I can't figure out how to explain it. But if you ask me, "What's the square root of 9", I won't think about a math formula. I'll see blocks of ones, grouped in specifically shaped stacks or rows, and I will see imaginary lines dividing those groups, and will identify the division of the three groups, and count 3 in the evenly divided one-of-three groups. Sounds weird, and I would say it's nonsense if I read what I just wrote. But that being said, there is something different about how we make math calculations. I do not understand how anyone could memorize a formula, and write out a string of numbers, and then find an answer without "seeing" the blocks or groups in one's mind. If I were to be taught that way, I'd fail fast.

Charles

Yes. Believe it or not, there are people on the spectrum who are successful social workers and teachers.

I've read (I think it might have been Temple Grandin?) that people with ASDs are not necessarily visual thinkers or mathematical thinkers, but specialized thinkers. Finding a successful career depends on figuring out how to apply your skills and interests to a job--your skills and interests don't have to lie in math or science.

I suck so bad at math.. and I never really had a good science class so I can't say if I would be any good at that either. But I have a great job as a technician in a shop. It's mostly working with my hands. It is also a job that pays pretty well and that I can advance in if I want. There is some measuring and stuff, but mostly it doesn't take any kind of precise calculation or anything like that.

Really the only special skill you need is a good eye for detail.

I think the biggest problem is being able to actually find jobs like this.. I got so super lucky to get mine. D: I went to one of those programs that help you.. DVR is what I used. Through them I tried out a few dud jobs before this one stuck.

Oh, those of you Aspies who are like me and are NOT computer 'geeks', let us swear eternal friendship. I struggle mightily with math, arithmetic, 'languages' used for writing in computerese, 'making' software programs instead of just using them... and, for too long of a time, was sure I'd never be accepted into the Aspie Country Club due to inadequacy! Ha! ...Ok. A bit more serious now for SadAspy and others who wanted to do more than bemoan our engineering-related idiocy. A general piece of advice is to focus on what you ARE good at. Many posters in this thread (including me) feel quite competent in some way as related to 'language' (i.e. doing well in school's English courses). I saw that for myself some time ago, but identifying what I could so/was competent at also had to be matched up to finding a field/position that would be conducive to my personal/Aspie-originated needs. After all, I'm 'good' at many things but become 'handicapped' when employers providing 'like-able' positions attached unrealistic (and unchallenged!) expectations to the main task(s) of the position(s).

I can't really contribute much to helping create a formula/algorithm to use as a job-choosing mechanism...In the end, every individual must look closely (scrutinize honestly and accurately) at their needs (understanding the distinctions between needs and preferences), what they could offer, what more they'd be willing to learn or flex on, and what they absolutely will not accept within their work environment/experience. After much introspection and periodic info-gathering forays, I decided for myself to become an American Sign Language Interpreter. I further narrowed that down (after some months of schooling and experiences with the local Deaf Center) to concentrating my efforts on gaining a position with one of the specialized telephone companies that're beginning to crop up throughout the U.S.

Taking on the role of a 'Video Relay Service' operator (in which I'd interpret 'online' conversations to Sign and English) seems to be a perfect answer for me. There'd be minimal co-worker interaction (so I'd worry much less about being misunderstood or about office 'politics'), I wouldn't be struggling to formulate verbal communications myself since I'd be interpreting/conveying other people's sentences, and I'd be utilizing a skill (re languages) that I'm proud of without feeling like I'm ignoring that skill (as I've often thought with my little-used Spanish language skill).

Part of what I think will be a successful work attempt (becoming an Interpreter) was based on me taking a hard look at what was truly reality for me ('for me' being key, here) and what were just wishes, wishful thinking. Figuring out what is really 'surpassing limitations' sometimes turns out to have actually been denying reality. For the long-run, acknowledging and acting on accurately-identified reality creates more likelihood of sustaining one's self. Once I got past the idea that not being a computer guru meant I couldn't even cut it as an Aspie, other choices/options started occurring in my mind. When I became more satisfied and, even, proud of my linguistic abilities (even with acknowledging that much of that ability was limited to written forms vs. verbalizing) I also then became more aware of work-related options that didn't center around engineering/technology fields.

Maybe the same could happen for others. Hoping for the best for us all...

Trying to find a job that fits your strengths is a good idea and all, but there's no guarantee that you can get the job. There may be far more people who want that job and are qualified for it than there are positions available. This isn't exactly a great job market right now. As I stated in previous posts, math and science skills are in such high demand that employers have no choice but to hire autistics...there's not enough NT's who can do those jobs.

Woah...they actually care about grades over there? Wish that were true here.



Okay....that's a start. I'd really like to know some others.



Sounds good to me I really think it's the media perpetuating the stereotype that we're all math and science savants. There's TONS of Aspies who aren't.

I feel so much better knowing that so many other people here are not marh or science geneusis. At school my favourite and best subjects were english and english literature.

I had a job in an Office doing data input. Customers would fax or phone in orders and I typed them into a computer. It sounds boring but I found it quite therapeutic. I started working there through a temping agency but my manager really liked me because I was the only one in the office who didn't b***h or gossip and just got on with my work, so he took me on full time. So my aspie traits really helped me out there. I was there a few years but took a voluntary redundancy package in the end because they made so many cuts due to the recession I couldn't cope with the workload anymore, mainly the angry customers on the phone as the service became really poor due to the lack if staff. I could cope with telephone orders but not with complaints.

I'm a full time mother now which is the hardest and lowest paid job I've ever done but also the most rewarding lol

In creating this thread, I was really looking for examples of people with decent non-technical jobs. Doesn't look like I'm getting many, which sadly proves my point

Sure, there's exceptions to the rule....there's always some exceptions to the rule, but in general, Aspies without technical skills are in for a rough life

I excel at math and science, but I made the mistake of getting an Economics degree . I can't even get a job as a bank teller. How sad is that? I think your point is pretty solid, SadAspy.

I said that I'm a full time mother but that's not entirely accurate. My husband owns his own garage and I help him out with some things there. Mainly tax returns but also selling second hand car parts on the Internet. Which got me thinking. Most people with aspergers have a specific area of interest which they are basically experts in, and I'm sure a lot of people could have some sort of Internet business in their area of interest. You shouldn't limit yourself to working for other people.

My psychiatrist told me about a severly autistic patient of hers that was obsessed with pottery, and was actually very good at making it. So she helped him sell some of his pottery and he actually now makes a bit of money from it, even though he's basically unemployable.

I hate math. I've never liked it, and never will.