I'm thinking of dropping out of college and starting an apprenticeship

ifeelabreeze · 12-04-2021 2:27pm #1

I've known for a long time college isn't for me.
But I've seriously tried sticking it out for the sake of the time and money I've spent on it up to now.

I can't see myself getting a degree and even if I was to it wouldn't be a very good one.
In terms of careers after the fact, I don't fancy a 9-5 desk job.

It's taken me nearly 5 years to pass 2 years of a business degree, I'm going to fail 3 year.
I have a repeat due that's a semester long software assignment and I can't do it, I've tried speaking with the lecturers and I'm none the wiser, I don't know what it is, how it works or how it's even graded.
I've tried starting/doing it numerous times and I can't do it, I'm going to fail again, there's no question about it.

I cannot study, I can't sit at a desk and do assignments let alone study additional material.
It's a joke, but it's the truth, I've tried and I can't make it happen.
Beyond that I actually just despise the work I'm doing, I don't enjoy accounting (but can do), finance, maths, stats, economics, I tolerate management, I'm good at marketing but I think it's morally dodgy.
IT/IS will be the death of me, there's nothing out of this degree that in any way shape or form interests me, it was a mistake.

I'm seriously considering going back and starting an apprenticeship.

I left my degree a few years back to start an apprenticeship, I rushed into an electrical apprenticeship with an industrial outfit and I hated it.
I liked parts of it, working with my hands, seeing a job through and what not.
But I really just didnt' enjoy the electrical work itself, pulling cables, chasing wires, cutting cable tray and unistrut.
I left after 4 months when they wanted me to sign up as an apprentice, partly because of the work itself but more so because the crowd I worked for were horrible.

I stupidly decided to try once again to get a degree, I wrote off apprenticeships as a whole after that and I was wrong to do so.
I went back because the grass is always greener, I thought if I changed out of that business degree, started back in as a second year in a degree that had less Maths/Stats components I'd manage it.
Studying seemed like a doddle when I was getting roared at by a middle aged man for not picking up the rubble as it was falling on top of me.

I don't know but I think maybe plumbing or HVAC/Refrigeration would more up my alley.
I wouldn't fancy industrial work but I'd manage.

I work part time in a supermarket and I've seen fellas come in fixing fridges and what not, that looks interesting.
I'm fine with dirty work, I've a strong stomach.
I hated being out in the p*ssing rain in the middle of winter but then again, who doesn't.

I've worked with an uncle who's a carpenter, he fits kitchens, wardrobes etc.
I liked going into people homes and doing jobs, more than going on site.
I'd consider going down the carpentry route but even he's told me I'd be better off with a more recession proof trade.

I just don't know if I'm making the same mistake again.
But then again I am certain college just aint it.

I think I left the original apprenticeship for a couple reasons.
- Didn't find the actual electrical work interesting, I picked the wrong trade based on 'prestige' and money.
- Hated the company I worked for, there was a lot of bullying, I guess that's almost to be expected, but I ended up blowing up at a guy who made a point of telling me how useless I was, I don't mind getting a bucket of sparks, but I have some respect for myself I won't get pinned to a wall by a fella.
- I missed the whole college life/experience, but at 23, that's behind me, I only got to experience a year of it, and it honestly did me no good.
All my mates were out during the week and working weekends, I was working 10+ hour days.

So I'm thinking of going back on the tools, I have been for some time now.
I just want to get out of this cycle of making mistakes.
Between going to college in the first place, sticking it out, going into the wrong apprenticeship, leaving (I hated it but I probably should have tried to make it work), and ultimately going back to college.. Whatever possessed me to do that I don't know.

I'm fine with hard work, I know I can apply myself to a physical task, and I can't do that with a laptop and an assignment.
I like working with my hands and fixing things.
I think an apprenticeship is my best way of not falling into being 30 and working in a supermarket.

I just need some advice.
How do I know if I'm making a mistake?
Am I doing the right thing?
I know the majority will probably say 'get your degree, it'll stand do ya', you're right, but what if I can't?
I honestly don't think I can get a degree, even then I don't want it, hate isn't a strong enough word, I hate college, I'm miserable where I'm at and I want to change that.
I know there's college elements to an apprenticeship and I'd manage that but a 4 year degree isn't for me.

I think an apprenticeship is my best bet, I just hope I'm not making another mistake

zoobizoo · 12-04-2021 2:50pm

Did you not pose the same question before but with a desire to become a entrepreneur?

CageWager · 12-04-2021 2:55pm

One of the worst things we do in this country is try to shoehorn young people into cubicle office jobs via the university system. Some people are much happier working with their hands or working outside - OP it sounds like you have given it plenty of thought and if you know in your heart of hearts that the office life isn’t for you, then go for the apprenticeship. Probably a smart move given the demand for housing over the next 20 years.

Trust your gut. Best of luck.

ifeelabreeze · 12-04-2021 3:02pm

zoobizoo wrote: »

Did you not pose the same question before but with a desire to become a entrepreneur?

I did indeed and that's still true.

I want to eventually start my own business.

I'm looking at learning a trade, and I'll start my own business down the road.

listermint · 12-04-2021 3:06pm

Unsure if your uncle thinks you might be flakey or not. But a good carpenter should always be in demand. Work can come from being a fitter first fixes etc to custom work and or floor fitting doors , garden construction and various other things. Plumbing is dirty work but again people always need heat and water it's recession proof. But like anything else if you don't have the business brain for it then you can easily not have work.

Being good at boths sides of those trades would stand to you.

ifeelabreeze · 12-04-2021 3:06pm

CageWager wrote: »

One of the worst things we do in this country is try to shoehorn young people into cubicle office jobs via the university system. Some people are much happier working with their hands or working outside - OP it sounds like you have given it plenty of thought and if you know in your heart of hearts that the office life isn’t for you, then go for the apprenticeship. Probably a smart move given the demand for housing over the next 20 years.

Trust your gut. Best of luck.

I have, I've posted here and elsewhere before and I've gotten the same 'stick it out advice', that's well and good but I know college isn't for me.
I wish it was because I would have saved myself and my parents a lot of time money, and headaches.
I've been stressed beyond belief, I've spent a fortune on college.
I'd like to get a degree at the end of it but I honestly don't think that's going to happen.

I hate how people see my posts like this one and just assume that I'm lazy or that I'm simply looking for a way out.
I've tried, I've spent the last 5 years trying to do something (anything) right.
I don't need the stern talking to about how I need to cop on, I tell myself that daily.

I think an apprenticeship is the route for me, I just seriously hope I'm not making yet another mistake in a long line of f*ck ups.

ifeelabreeze · 12-04-2021 3:08pm

listermint wrote: »

Unsure if your uncle thinks you might be flakey or not. But a good carpenter should always be in demand. Work can come from being a fitter first fixes etc to custom work and or floor fitting doors , garden construction and various other things. Plumbing is dirty work but again people always need heat and water it's recession proof. But like anything else if you don't have the business brain for it then you can easily not have work.

Being good at boths sides of those trades would stand to you.

No he actually offered me an apprenticeship, he just said it's there if I want it but to look for something more recession proof.
I definitely think I have a business brain, despite my track record of hating my business degree!

Idle Passerby · 12-04-2021 4:09pm

You are far better doing an apprenticeship than sticking out a course you dislike and don't expect good results from. However, you've tried it before and gave up completely because you didn't like that particular trade and the people you worked with. Then went back to it again despite disliking it enough to leave previously. There seems to be a trend of flitting from one thing to the next and back again which if that's what your doing, it won't matter if it's a course or a trade, you need to pick something and stick with it to get anywhere.

It does sound like the course doesn't suit you after 5 years trying to complete it, your not happy and have lost interest so there's no point continuing with it. But why not do some proper research into what specific trade you'd enjoy. You sound a bit vague in what your looking for. You'd like to fix fridges but don't like electrical work. You want to do carpentry but not outdoors or on sites. Every job will have elements you dislike. You'll never be satisfied if you wait for something perfect to land in your lap. You need to work out what will engage your interest before leaping headfirst in only to give up when some element doesn't suit you.

ifeelabreeze · 12-04-2021 4:16pm

Idle Passerby wrote: »

You are far better doing an apprenticeship than sticking out a course you dislike and don't expect good results from. However, you've tried it before and gave up completely because you didn't like that particular trade and the people you worked with. Then went back to it again despite disliking it enough to leave previously. There seems to be a trend of flitting from one thing to the next and back again which if that's what your doing, it won't matter if it's a course or a trade, you need to pick something and stick with it to get anywhere.

It does sound like the course doesn't suit you after 5 years trying to complete it, your not happy and have lost interest so there's no point continuing with it. But why not do some proper research into what specific trade you'd enjoy. You sound a bit vague in what your looking for. You'd like to fix fridges but don't like electrical work. You want to do carpentry but not outdoors or on sites. Every job will have elements you dislike. You'll never be satisfied if you wait for something perfect to land in your lap. You need to work out what will engage your interest before leaping headfirst in only to give up when some element doesn't suit you.

You hit the nail on the head.
There's no point lying about it, I've made a habit of it.
I know I need to find something and stick with it, more over I want to.
I just want to find the right 'thing for me, I'm fairly certain that's going to be a trade of some description.

When I said I didn't like electrical work, it was the industrial electrical work I didn't/don't enjoy.
It was just pulling cables thicker than my arm every day of the week.
I did some short stents in the office buildings, chasing cables, wiring sockets and what not, I liked that.
I'd even go as far as to say I wouldn't mind fitting houses/offices etc.
I just did not like the industrial work, the higher voltage stuff wasn't for me.

I don't mind being outside, I just wouldn't fancy a trade that spends every day outside, like roofing..

Idle Passerby · 12-04-2021 4:33pm

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

You hit the nail on the head.
There's no point lying about it, I've made a habit of it.
I know I need to find something and stick with it, more over I want to.
I just want to find the right 'thing for me, I'm fairly certain that's going to be a trade of some description.

When I said I didn't like electrical work, it was the industrial electrical work I didn't/don't enjoy.
It was just pulling cables thicker than my arm every day of the week.
I did some short stents in the office buildings, chasing cables, wiring sockets and what not, I liked that.
I'd even go as far as to say I wouldn't mind fitting houses/offices etc.
I just did not like the industrial work, the higher voltage stuff wasn't for me.

I don't mind being outside, I just wouldn't fancy a trade that spends every day outside, like roofing..

Well your already on the way to narrowing down a field you'd enjoy working in. I don't know much about being an electrician but I'm guessing you'd have to learn all of it before deciding to specialise in the area you prefer. So you'd just have to knuckle down and get through the parts you aren't into in order to get qualified. Then presumably you could focus on the area you do like.

Emme · 12-04-2021 5:14pm

OP if you have a chance to do an apprenticeship you would like go for it. A college degree isn't the be all and end all. Someone on the radio was saying that a primary degree now will give you the same access to employment as a leaving certificate 30 years ago.

Having a trade will be invaluable in years to come. If you're good you will have no problem setting up your own business when you are qualified.

sadie1502 · 12-04-2021 5:16pm

Life is short. Don't be stuck doing something you detest. Go for it what have you got to lose!

sunshine2018 · 12-04-2021 5:30pm

Don’t be too hard on yourself - lots of people don’t know what they want to do and you have to try a few different things before you find out what your are good at and what you enjoy.
I think before you jump into something you need to do some more research and really consider your options
You are on the right track - keep thinking about your skill set and what you enjoy doing - environments you enjoy. You could consider a career guidance professional who can administer some testing to help you refine your focus (but try to get a recommendation as not all are equal !)
Don’t stay pursuing a degree you hate - life is too short! There are many many apprenticeships outside the traditional electrician / carpenter etc. Check them out here : https://apprenticeship.ie/
You need to look into this more and get a list of all the options - then do some further research on each of them to see if they be a fit
I had about 10 different jobs before I settled on my career including completing 2 out of a 3 year degree but I dropped out to go travelling.
It seems to be causing you a bit of anxiety - you want to think about it of course but don’t let it consume you
Best of luck

Blush_01 · 12-04-2021 6:44pm

Hey OP, I'm curious why you think you'll get different advice from the last time you posted this same issue?

ifeelabreeze · 12-04-2021 7:18pm

Blush_01 wrote: »

Hey OP, I'm curious why you think you'll get different advice from the last time you posted this same issue?

Because I have already?
I think I've put across my point a little better this time around, also by the fact that I've bothered to ask twice probably shows how much I hate my current situation.

Apologies if it's a nuisance, I can see how it could be.

qwerty13 · 12-04-2021 9:51pm

As I see it, there’s two major issues that you need to address:
1. You want immediate gratification - to jump straight to the end result/‘the glory’ without putting in the ground work. This is even true of the level of research that you’ve put into making major decisions.
2. Anything that is less than the idealised version in your head becomes somehow intolerable to you.

Unless you address these issues, I feel that you will be stuck in an endless cycle of highs when you jump life path, and lows because you find some imperfection and it ruins the glowing idea of your new life path that you had in your mind.

suicide_circus · 12-04-2021 10:48pm

Do it. We have a weird fetish in this country for for getting everyone into college no matter their suitability. The result? A huge amount of dropouts and a massive shortage of trades people. Everyone in starbucks has a degree. I wish i'd learned a trade.

ifeelabreeze · 13-04-2021 1:14am

qwerty13 wrote: »

As I see it, there’s two major issues that you need to address:
1. You want immediate gratification - to jump straight to the end result/‘the glory’ without putting in the ground work. This is even true of the level of research that you’ve put into making major decisions.
2. Anything that is less than the idealised version in your head becomes somehow intolerable to you.

Unless you address these issues, I feel that you will be stuck in an endless cycle of highs when you jump life path, and lows because you find some imperfection and it ruins the glowing idea of your new life path that you had in your mind.

Thanks for that, I'm not going to try and argue with you because as sad as it sounds you're right.

How do I go about changing/fixing this?

In regards to your second point, I think I definitely get hung up on the ideals..
If I'm out sitting on a roof in the middle of winter redoing 101 pieces of Unistrut because someone else made a mistake, I cannot get out of that train of thought - this is stupid, why am I even bothering my arse'
I still think the industrial electrical work was a bad choice for me, which probably proves your first point.

I rushed into it, I saw: pays better, more job security, more theory knowledge and what not.
I ended up doing the boring jobs for the health and safety office, stock taking, checking safety equipment etc.
I had no interest in the electrical work, I didn't take any pride in it..
Beyond when I fixed a broken light switch or managed to fish out a cable..
I just saw the times where I was getting roared at or where I was tacking down the same cable for 10 meters.

I still think a trade is my best bet, just get into something I can tolerate, learn a thing or to, put the head down and just graft and get through it.
I've spoken to other electricians and they all say how they hated their apprenticeships, maybe I jumped the gun too fast, maybe I should have tried sticking it out..

Or maybe I was just in the wrong trade and I'd be better off in carpentry, plumbing or hvac.. I don't know.

I want to get out of this cycle, it's soul crushing to realise I'm 4 years out of school with nothing to show for it.

So going forward...

I know I need to get started in an apprenticeship.
Something that I find interesting/enjoyable.. I know I won't love every minute of it.
I need to get in and just do the work.
But how do I know what to go into?
It's almost like I need to have my back against the wall, 'that's it you're going back to electrical work, you'll get through your apprenticeship, there's no question about leaving, swapping or changing, get through it and go from there'...

Tork · 13-04-2021 1:16am

Have you ever been assessed by anyone? ADHD etc?

Purple Mountain · 13-04-2021 1:22am

OP. With respect a few months ago you were looking to swop over to a scientific degree and two weeks ago you were musing about becoming a driving instructor.
With this confusion going on in your head, I don't think strangers online are your best outlet for advice.
Pay a proper career guidance counsellor and maybe a few sessions with a therapist too might help you reflect better on what you really want out of life.

eggy81 · 13-04-2021 1:41am

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

You hit the nail on the head.
There's no point lying about it, I've made a habit of it.
I know I need to find something and stick with it, more over I want to.
I just want to find the right 'thing for me, I'm fairly certain that's going to be a trade of some description.

When I said I didn't like electrical work, it was the industrial electrical work I didn't/don't enjoy.
It was just pulling cables thicker than my arm every day of the week.
I did some short stents in the office buildings, chasing cables, wiring sockets and what not, I liked that.
I'd even go as far as to say I wouldn't mind fitting houses/offices etc.
I just did not like the industrial work, the higher voltage stuff wasn't for me.

I don't mind being outside, I just wouldn't fancy a trade that spends every day outside, like roofing..

I work on the industrial side of the electrical trade and in my opinion as an apprentice you shouldn’t go near the big sites until you’ve cut your teeth in domestic and commercial first. Yes the money and conditions on some of the bigger sites are great at the moment but the range of experience you get isn’t very broad because you end up on a particular crew dealing with a specific area of the overall installation and are stuck there. You could spend 18 months on a site continuously installing conduit or trunking and not ever get to even pull a wire through it if you were unlucky enough. The domestic scene is where it’s at for learning the trade IMO at least in the first 2 years.

ifeelabreeze · 13-04-2021 1:53am

Tork wrote: »

Have you ever been assessed by anyone? ADHD etc?

I've brought up ADHD with my GP (and other doctors) a number of times, they've always doubted it, mentioned getting assessed and it never went further than that.

ifeelabreeze · 13-04-2021 2:08am

Purple Mountain wrote: »

OP. With respect a few months ago you were looking to swop over to a scientific degree and two weeks ago you were musing about becoming a driving instructor.
With this confusion going on in your head, I don't think strangers online are your best outlet for advice.
Pay a proper career guidance counsellor and maybe a few sessions with a therapist too might help you reflect better on what you really want out of life.

Thank you for your concern.

Here's my thinking..

- Scientific degree, myself and most people who know me would say that's what I should have pursued in college, but I didn't..
I can now go back as a mature student which is appealing because I can get into the likes of biomed, which I'd find very interesting.
The issue is in part cost, I don't have the €7.5k for the first 3 years..
Beyond that I decided against it because I know deep down I'm not really cut out for college.
I find human biology fascinating, I'd have no problem studying that I know there's going to be parts of it that I don't like and I know that I won't study it..
I'll just waste that time and money going back.

Driving Instructor - My father is always onto me about it.
And it's certainly appealing.
I like driving, I feel I'd be a good teacher, it's in demand, it takes a relatively short time to get qualified.
And there's opportunity to work for yourself which has always appealed to me.

I'm still somewhat considering that, but I just think there's probably something else out there that I'd prefer, it sounds like an enjoyable career, but a very repetitive one..

I've spoken to a career guidance counsellor, they've always pushed college.
I think they suggested social care, I walked away from that appointment a few quid lighter thinking 'that was a waste of time', I don't want to go into social care, never have.

As for the counsellor, I spoke to one on a weekly basis around Christmas time, when I was stressed to the t*ts over exams, which I ultimately failed.
I was planning on dropping out at that point, which they were very against.
I found they were really trying to help, but not being very helpful.
It was a lot of 'well see you've so much going for ya', with me thinking and saying 'oh yeah I suppose, it just doesn't feel like it', or me saying how deeply unhappy college is making me and being told 'well, see it through anyway, wouldn't it be nice to say ya got through it?' - it would, but that's not happening.

I've honestly found writing this out, and the other similar posts, more cathartic than talking to professionals.
They say a lot of nice words, while on here I get told I'm being a gob****e - which I am.

In the end they deemed I was feeling 'a little bit anxious', over failing modules in my degree, and their suggestion was - I know you hate it, it makes you depressed, unhappy and resentful, but sure, stick it out why dontcha.

Every time I spoke up, it was basically dismissed in the nicest possible way, the overarching theme was 'don't drop out, beyond that I can't help ya', I'd say if I told them I was standing on a bridge they'd suggest maybe taking a week off, if I was to end up in a psych ward they'd suggest taking a semester off and then getting right back in the saddle..
Needless to say it wasn't very helpful, I felt they had a vested interest in the college and not me.

ifeelabreeze · 13-04-2021 2:11am

eggy81 wrote: »

I work on the industrial side of the electrical trade and in my opinion as an apprentice you shouldn’t go near the big sites until you’ve cut your teeth in domestic and commercial first. Yes the money and conditions on some of the bigger sites are great at the moment but the range of experience you get isn’t very broad because you end up on a particular crew dealing with a specific area of the overall installation and are stuck there. You could spend 18 months on a site continuously installing conduit or trunking and not ever get to even pull a wire through it if you were unlucky enough. The domestic scene is where it’s at for learning the trade IMO at least in the first 2 years.

We've got a local guy doing some jobs around the house and I've mentioned it to him in the past about going down the electrical route.
He said there's very few guys hiring, he suggested going industrial and that there'd be work on the weekend if I was looking..
Most apprentices I know/knew in that line of work were trying to get a year or two under their belt and then going into residential.

Our whole group spent 4 months just pulling cable and cutting unistrut.
I was the only apprentice who went into the offices, most of the guys hadn't even seen a cat5

eggy81 · 13-04-2021 2:18am

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

We've got a local guy doing some jobs around the house and I've mentioned it to him in the past about going down the electrical route.
He said there's very few guys hiring, he suggested going industrial and that there'd be work on the weekend if I was looking..
Most apprentices I know/knew in that line of work were trying to get a year or two under their belt and then going into residential.

Our whole group spent 4 months just pulling cable and cutting unistrut.
I was the only apprentice who went into the offices, most of the guys hadn't even seen a cat5

Maybe have a look into the instrumentation side of the trade. Automation is the big thing coming online now and a lot of lad upskill Ito that area after qualifying. Difficult area to get into though I’ll admit but there are instrumentation apprenticeships and automation engineering courses.

ifeelabreeze · 13-04-2021 2:20am

eggy81 wrote: »

Maybe have a look into the instrumentation side of the trade. Automation is the big thing coming online now and a lot of lad upskill Ito that area after qualifying. Difficult area to get into though I’ll admit but there are instrumentation apprenticeships and automation engineering courses.

Funnily enough when I started my apprenticeship that's what I was aiming for.
I went in with the mindset of 'get qualified and get into instrumentation', it was even brought up in the interview.
I think I just sort of lost sight of that along the way.

Deeper Blue · 13-04-2021 4:05am

I'd be of the opinion that you should finish your degree OP but it's clear that your mind is made up on that which is fair enough.

Whatever you do next I think you need to put a lot of research into it, and I mean a lot. Talk to as many people as you can that work in the area, maybe try and shadow someone for a week or two to get a feel for what you'll be doing (obviously this will difficult due to covid).

At this stage of the game you should only start something new if you're certain that it's what you want. No offence intended here but having a load of unfinished courses/apprenticeships on a CV isn't a great look, particularly if your reasons for dropping out are as wishy-washy as you describe. People may tell you otherwise, but that's the reality in this day and age.

zoobizoo · 13-04-2021 8:03am

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

I've brought up btADHD with my GP (and other doctors) a number of times, they've always doubted it, mentioned getting assessed and it never went further than that.

Maybe look up ADD.... so without the H.

YellowLead · 13-04-2021 10:17am

OP, did you say you are only 4 years out of school? Lots of people don’t know what they want to do with their careers at that age. For most people it’s often a trajectory. My work now is totally different than my first job out of college. I ended up going down the technical route but studied sociology. You need help finding out what’s best for you in the here and now, then the future will work itself out once you get stuck into SOMETHING.
When starting off with little experience it is likely that no matter what trade you choose there will be large chunks of the actual work that might not float your boat, in time that reduces the more experienced you become.

I do think it’s worth investing in a few sessions with a career guidance professional to help you work out what type of job has the most kind of tasks that you are okay with doing. There is no easy route to having a job you like - most jobs have bits we like and don’t like, and plenty of people don’t love their jobs to absolute bits but needs must.

Tork · 13-04-2021 10:33am

I'd never heard of ADD so I've learned something new today. OP, I don't know what anybody here can do for you. None of us are qualified to help somebody like you. I've never seen such a track record of abandoned projects in my life and that's what makes me think that there is something in your psychological make-up that needs a closer look. This is something that some sort of therapist (not just a college counsellor) needs looking at. Nobody here really understands what you're going through. At a guess, we've all done courses and jobs we disliked but gritted our teeth and got through them. You seem to be incapable of that. I think you need to talk to your GP again and insist on being referred to a psychologist of some sort.

Oranage2 · 13-04-2021 1:05pm

Am I right by saying you're in semester 3 now and if you pass this software assignment you'll be in year 4?

You don't want the career you choose to get repetitive? Is working at the supermarket repetitive?

If you can't hack wiring for 4 months what makes you think you can stick out a 4 year apprenticeship?

You also want to start a business?

What are all your friends doing, and slightly personal question but how long do your relationships usually last?

I think you've to be realistic with yourself and also do a bit of growing up.

college isn't for everyone and it's not the end of the world if you drop out. As for your career, I think you need something with quite a considerable less training time. Bus/truck driver, Gardai/fire brigade, army, maybe buy a field and become a farmer. Plenty of options out there.

zoobizoo · 13-04-2021 2:54pm

5 years to get through 2 years of a business degree.

What subjects are you failing on?

ifeelabreeze · 14-04-2021 12:21am

zoobizoo wrote: »

5 years to get through 2 years of a business degree.

What subjects are you failing on?

Between dropping out taking a year out for the apprenticeship and ultimately going back at it again.
First year once, second year twice, year out in between and now third year once.
I'm failing a Business IT module, it's some SAP logistics software programme that I can't make heads or tails of, I can't even get it running on my laptop properly.
I've had to get Windows running on my Mac in order to do it, every time I log in I have to access a server, the page is in German, it never works.

I don't know what is actually is I'm doing, I know theres this programme and a spreadsheet at the end of it, beyond that I don't even know how it's marked.

I scrapped by in my other exams, Accounting, Finance, Marketing, Management and Law.
I haven't gotten through a single year of my degree without having a repeat, I managed to have a marketing repeat because I did the wrong bloody paper the time of remote exams.
I ended up getting 79% in that repeat.

There's nothing out of the business degree that even interests me enough to want a career in it.
Accounting, Econ, Finance - Nope.
Management, yes but I don't want to/wouldn't be on par for the highly competitive management graduate programmes, nor do I really want to do that.
Marketing - I went back to focus on Marketing, easily my best subject, but I now hate it.
I just see it as a shady practice that's morally bankrupt and full to the gills with ****.
It's also far more tedious than I originally thought, lots of surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, and the likes.

To answer your question, some stupid SAP logistics software program.
2nd year round two Marketing Thought, 2nd year first time round, Maths & Stats (different college more maths intensive degree), first year Maths, Stats, Macro economics and Business Information Systems.

ifeelabreeze · 14-04-2021 12:34am

Oranage2 wrote: »

Am I right by saying you're in semester 3 now and if you pass this software assignment you'll be in year 4?

You don't want the career you choose to get repetitive? Is working at the supermarket repetitive?

If you can't hack wiring for 4 months what makes you think you can stick out a 4 year apprenticeship?

You also want to start a business?

What are all your friends doing, and slightly personal question but how long do your relationships usually last?

I think you've to be realistic with yourself and also do a bit of growing up.

college isn't for everyone and it's not the end of the world if you drop out. As for your career, I think you need something with quite a considerable less training time. Bus/truck driver, Gardai/fire brigade, army, maybe buy a field and become a farmer. Plenty of options out there.

I think more so your line about growing up rings through in regards to the amount of training, I just need to grow up and get on with it, whatever it may be.

I know I want to start a business, I always have that's not changing any time soon.

Repetitive - Stocking shelves is very repetitive but it's alright, I can zone out and just go through the motions, I'd hate it only for the people I work with.
I get on really well with my coworkers and it's what gets me through the repetitiveness.

I don't mind some repetition, that's to be expected.. I just couldn't work on a production line for the rest of my life, I spent a summer stacking milk onto pallets - wasn't fun.

I could hack wiring, I was asked to sign up as an apprentice.
I think I have a habit/made a habit of always looking at what I don't have.
So I'm always looking for that next big thing, rather than just going out my life one day at a time.
I need to get out of that stupidity.

I think my best bet is to just start into an apprenticeship, seriously consider what I'm going into up until I actually start - from then on it's just a matter of finishing it out.
I can't constantly look at what else is out there, that's all I've been doing.
I just need to start something and finish it, if I hate it or not at this point it's hardly even relevant.. I hate what I'm doing at the moment, at least that way I'd hate what I'm doing, but I'd be getting paid and trained to do it..
Hopefully it doesn't come to that, that I can find something enjoyable, but the be all and end all is I'm getting a qualification at then end of what ever I end up starting.

qwerty13 · 14-04-2021 12:42am

I genuinely think you’re focusing on the wrong things OP: you’re focusing on the details why you don’t like a course or apprenticeship, as opposed to why you change your mind so often, and don’t stick with anything. I think you also wanted to be an entrepreneur, a driving instructor, and a hairdresser.

I’m not saying any of that to berate you. Just that focussing on the specific career that short-term appeals to you is unlikely to solve what I view as the underlying issues, ie: insufficient research/details/staying power (the ‘immediate gratification’ stuff), and perfectionism (where if you decide you don’t like a couple of aspects, then that career path is dead to you).

I genuinely think you’d benefit from therapy about this. But perhaps approaching from the idea of WHY you are behaving like this, as opposed to focusing on why you don’t want to finish your degree. I feel that the degree v apprenticeship question is looking at the symptoms, and not the problem.

ifeelabreeze · 14-04-2021 1:29am

qwerty13 wrote: »

I genuinely think you’re focusing on the wrong things OP: you’re focusing on the details why you don’t like a course or apprenticeship, as opposed to why you change your mind so often, and don’t stick with anything. I think you also wanted to be an entrepreneur, a driving instructor, and a hairdresser.

I’m not saying any of that to berate you. Just that focussing on the specific career that short-term appeals to you is unlikely to solve what I view as the underlying issues, ie: insufficient research/details/staying power (the ‘immediate gratification’ stuff), and perfectionism (where if you decide you don’t like a couple of aspects, then that career path is dead to you).

I genuinely think you’d benefit from therapy about this. But perhaps approaching from the idea of WHY you are behaving like this, as opposed to focusing on why you don’t want to finish your degree. I feel that the degree v apprenticeship question is looking at the symptoms, and not the problem.

Good point, I can see where you're coming from..

I just want to say there is some sort of a thought process behind all of this.
Driving Instructor, already explained but long and short is it's a career I think I'd enjoy (working with others, helping/teaching, I enjoy driving) and there's a lot of scope for self employment/starting a business.

Hairdressing - Hands on work, rewards attention to detail, and there's scope for self employment/starting a business.
I also considered tattooing for the same reasons, still think that would be cool.

I find I'm always looking for something else, I look for a way out instead of a way forward, I'm doing that now but I truly believe I am doing the right thing by leaving college behind.

A 4 year Bachelors is not on the cards.
I remember half learning English quotes the day before my Leaving Cert that's the extent of my studying.
The routine of school suited me far better than the flexibility of college.
Also I'm just in the wrong degree, but there's nothing else that jumps out at me, certainly not when I'm paying out for the first three years if I'm starting over again.

So I guess in terms of what I'm doing, I haven't the faintest idea..
I just know that learning a trade would allow me to work with my hands, it's rewarding, I'd learn an invaluable and employable skill and that could lead to me starting my own business down the line.
It also wouldn't cost me a fortune, I'd learn something and it the ****test day on a building sites sounds far more appealing than a SAP Logistics software assignment.
It's also far more appealing than the possibility of turning 30 (or even 25) and stacking shelves with no end in sight.

qwerty13 · 14-04-2021 2:24am

I understand your reply. It’s not like I think you’ve put zero thought into it, I’m afraid I just think you’ve put the wrong thought processes into it - and until you deal with that, you’re just repeating a cycle of unhappiness.

There’s lots of people that I know who have ups and downs with their career path. Some of them have retrained and made very different moves. I can understand that. What I can’t understand with you is the complete diversity of careers you land on. It makes no sense to me. None of it is about a love of x type of work, it’s just random and bizarre. I think you need to talk to someone about why you keep doing this. I know a couple of diagnoses have been mentioned on this thread, but I’m reluctant to go there. But what I would say (again) is that you need to examine why you jump between wildly differing careers, don’t stick with any of them, and zone in on 1 aspect of the career that you’ve jumped to that isn’t perfect - and then you jump yet again.

It comes down to what the hell are you searching for OP.

Could you do a course in anything that you’re interested in that lasts for a year. And just commit to it and not be perfectionist about it. Just do it. I’m wondering if that would helpful to you, to do a relatively short term course with a sense of achievement when it’s done. This flipping and flopping is clearly hurting you mentally.

TylerRyan28 · 14-04-2021 1:55pm

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

Funnily enough when I started my apprenticeship.

You say you didnt like
electrical work itself, pulling cables, chasing wires, cutting cable tray and unistrut.

What makes you think you will like doing a much more physical apprenticeship?

That's part of the job especially when your only in the job 4 months when you have more experience and other apprentices come along they will be doing that for you.
Electrician apprenticeship can open alot of doors into different parts like Electrical instrumentation, but if you did a electrical installation apprenticeship you cant move into other parts you are stuck doing that.

Plumbing & HVAC / Refrigeration is alot harder then electrical work and you get paid less. Your body will be in bits later on down the road with those two apprenticeship.

Also I dont Think you understand how hard it is to start a business you seem to think work will fall into your lap and you will sit back while others do the work for you . I understand stand college doesnt seem for you but would you not feel better after actually finishing something before quitting, would seem like a waste of 5 years if just up and left . The business degree will only be better if you go ahead and start your own business as you will be doing alot of paper work if you run your own company.

Vital Transformation · 14-04-2021 7:18pm

I wrote in your last thread and still stick by that advice.

Email the lecturer of the Business IT module. You're struggling with it but that is a process that can help. Lecturers are paid to support and help you, make use of it and other additional supports provided by the college.

homer1982 · 16-04-2021 12:07pm

Hi OP

I was in the same boat as you just over 15 years ago. I was in college but dropped out to do an Electrical/instrumentation apprenticeship. I did mine in a big food plant factory setting, I am now in the Pharma sector which is interesting work and high pay. Even on site people will look down at us maintenance lads but why? Maybe they don't realize how technical and interesting our job is, or the absolute freedom we have on site and a big part is the pay.........generally we are the highest paid roles on site at a technician level.

If you are interested in the electrical route I would advise the instrumentation apprenticeship or the electrical/instrumentation apprenticeship if its still available. There is a huge shortage of instrumentation qualified techs in this country and most other countries and unlike the electrical trade there is no problem with instrumentation anywhere in the world as it is generally all the same.

If you want a trade that provides security I would recommend the plumbing route, its hard to get a good plumber and like it was said before its almost recession proof.

qwerty13 · 17-04-2021 6:27am

While I think you’ve got great practical advice re apprenticeships OP, I feel that my original point still stands, ie why do you flit from one extremely different choice to another (not just college v apprenticeship, there was also stuff about driving instructor, hairdresser, entrepreneur - and if I’m recalling correctly, you also wanted to be a consultant or surgeon).

To me, the degree v apprenticeship debate is just window dressing. The real issue is why you flip flop so wildly. I was reluctant to agree with others suggesting a medical diagnosis, but by now, it’s something that I really think you should push for. At least then you may gain clarity on why you behave how you do.

Wanderer78 · 17-04-2021 7:15am

....and some say our educational and training systems aren't too bad!

I've add, autism and dyslexia op, feel free to have a chat

Give yourself a break from all this what will I be when I grow up, you're torturing yourself, there's really no rush in figuring it out, but good guidance is essential

Brian? · 17-04-2021 7:23am

suicide_circus wrote: »

Do it. We have a weird fetish in this country for for getting everyone into college no matter their suitability. The result? A huge amount of dropouts and a massive shortage of trades people. Everyone in starbucks has a degree. I wish i'd learned a trade.

I doubt everyone in Starbucks has a degree, but that’s a digression.

It’s a very good thing that we encourage people towards 3rd level education. The Irish economy is fuelled by well educated graduates. We absolutely shouldn’t change this mentality.

As for the OP, give up on College and do a trade. Just be realistic about where it’s going to bring you. You say you want to start your own business and that you you have a business brain. That’s a bit of nonsense, there’s no such thing as a business brain. Success is a function of

1. Hard work
2. Ambition
3. Skills
4. Knowledge

If you do switch to a trade you need to work your balls off.

Wanderer78 · 17-04-2021 7:30am

Brian? wrote:

Itâ€™s a very good thing that we encourage people towards 3rd level education. The Irish economy is fuelled by well educated graduates. We absolutely shouldnâ€™t change this mentality.

Our educational system has become academically biased, yes it is good to encourage further education, but society requires many different types of people and different types of trained people, in order to function. Drop out rates are very high, and have been for a very long time, our educational system is failing. Ireland needs to diversify its educational and training systems to accommodate this essential, critical and urgent need, it is time to change, now

Wanderer78 · 17-04-2021 7:31am

Brian? wrote:

If you do switch to a trade you need to work your balls off.

Oh and the op has been working their balls off, and by the sounds of it, for a very long time

17-04-2021 7:35am

From what i know,the electrian trade is notrious for first 12 to 18 months just being lads hauling cables/chasing walls etc......if its not for yous,fair enough

But it would be most technical of trades earlist,your along way down line in other trades (such as mechanic) before specilaing/going as deep into particular areas....many lads dont ever even get that far,but you can work anywhere with a trade

I wouldnt feel bad for dropping out of it/college,but no point in hopping between jobs/courses and drifting along and being 30 before you know it either.....have you taught about joining army/navy,these do apprenticeships and have an insistance on exceptional standreds aswell.....the gaurds are likely recruiting heavily over next year or two aswell,as they emptied templemore for numbers at start of covid crisis

Theres plenty of good jobs about,without tieeing down onto a trade/college

Edit: aldi/lidl also recruit inhouse for managers and do a both hands on/college aspect to it aswell

ILoveYourVibes · 18-04-2021 4:36pm

OP if you really want it. Just do it.

Good luck ..everything will work itself out.

Find out where you need to be and put yourself there.

antix80 · 22-04-2021 1:51am

Hi op

You sound like a lad who's reasonably intelligent, easily bored, not good at desk work and not fussed on repetitiveness work.

There's no easy way out. It's called a poo sandwich.
You not stubborn enough to bull through menial tasks you're not good at, yet you're not good enough to sail through admin tasks that you should be good at.

9 am is one side, 5pm is the other. In between is poo. Eat that sandwich and you earn a living..

*alternatively, do physical work in construction handy €20-25 an hour....within a few years you may learn enough to call yourself skilled... Your college education may even kick in at some stage

qwerty13 · 22-04-2021 2:11am

ILoveYourVibes wrote: »

OP if you really want it. Just do it.

Good luck ..everything will work itself out.

Find out where you need to be and put yourself there.

I have to strenuously disagree. The OP has flitted between apprenticeships and degrees, assuming changing life path would make them happy - but it didn’t, and that’s why they’re asking for other posters opinions.

Everything doesn’t ‘work itself out’, unless you’ve a lot of supports and cash behind you, or at the very least a single minded laser focused vision that lets you spend years being low earning while you build up a history of consistent hard work and achievement towards attainment of a goal.

Real life means accepting the unpalatable sometimes, but it’s good to analyse that in terms of a balance between the reality of ideal outcome or job, versus rent and bills and surviving. Some people prefer to have a lower paid lower stress job, and get their fulfilment elsewhere - whereas for others their fulfilment involves being higher paid/status, and accepting the stress and downsides of that.

The OP appears to me to want all of the gain/glory/high earnings/status - but none of the unpalatable stuff like putting up with a certain percentage of boring work, or sticking with a plan. The OP is clearly unhappy with how things have turned out for them, so telling them to ‘just do it’ and ‘everything will work itself out’ just equals you advising them to keep repeating the pattern that has clearly made them unhappy to date.

LegacyUser · 22-04-2021 3:30pm

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

it's some SAP logistics software programme that I can't make heads or tails of, I can't even get it running on my laptop properly.
I've had to get Windows running on my Mac in order to do it, every time I log in I have to access a server, the page is in German, it never works.

I don't know what is actually is I'm doing, I know theres this programme and a spreadsheet at the end of it, beyond that I don't even know how it's marked.

There's nothing out of the business degree that even interests me enough to want a career in it.
Accounting, Econ, Finance - Nope.

Management, yes but I don't want to/wouldn't be on par for the highly competitive management graduate programmes, nor do I really want to do that.
Marketing - I went back to focus on Marketing, easily my best subject, but I now hate it.

I just see it as a shady practice that's morally bankrupt and full to the gills with ****.
It's also far more tedious than I originally thought, lots of surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, and the likes.

To answer your question, some stupid SAP logistics software program..

I'll break this out as I see it.

This isn't about whether you should drop out of an academic course and start a career working with your hands.... it's about your childish attitude/lack of ability to find solutions to what appear to me are relatively simple problems and how you deal with problems and failure.

Your SAP course:
You have a subject that you don't understand - that's fair enough. But the excuses regarding your computer and the software and no mention of 'I contacted my lecturer/tutor/class rep etc" and the fact that you've just given up, without seeking to understand or get concrete steps together as to how you will over come it

The way you put it yourself "some stupid software programme"... seriously, It's like a teenager refusing to learn Irish because 'no one speaks it' or a foreign language because 'I'll never go there'.

When I couldn't understand some of my course work I rang the director. When the course syllabus changed unexpectedly, I got voted in as class rep, called a class meeting, got an exemption from 1 subject and got the college to put on a more relevant subject.

If you don't know how it's marked - pick up your phone and call or email and enquire. If you haven't done that, why haven't you?

If you can't find anything interesting in a course - anything - then the problem is with you!

I have no interest in engineering but I'd say a lecture on bridge building, or aquaducts or whatever would hold some interest. Ie, how things and the world works. Gross Profit/Net Profit/Interest Rates/Supply & Demand - all become more interesting when you run your own business.

You don't want to do a management graduate programme that you wouldn't qualify for. That's fair enough. Management doesn't suit everyone.

You've discounted marketing (YOUR BEST SUBJECT) as shady and BS (parts can be but I'll tell you this - working in an advertising agency with lots of creative people, lots of smart and funny people and having the ability to influence others' behaviour is really enjoyable).

What's more telling is the "more tedious" comment. Those parts of marketing can be boring. But you need to study them to get the course - that's life.

And now you "hate" marketing.

The bigger picture here is how you deal (or don't deal) with adversity and your ability (or inability) to cope with stumbling blocks.

As an aside, might you have ADD? No ability to concentrate on things that don't interest you.... flitting from one job / course to the next? Look it up.

markmoto · 22-04-2021 6:06pm

ifeelabreeze wrote: »

I think an apprenticeship is my best bet, I just hope I'm not making another mistake

We never know what life would throw at us and where we end in 10-20 years time.

I knew some lads started as voice pickers 12 years ago. One work now as suppliers manager same company other lad day planner.
And both got number of trainings paid by the company.

You just have to find your own niche.

For successful business you would need in dept knowledge/experience or be very talented.

I'm thinking of dropping out of college and starting an apprenticeship

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