Help me decide about school

[Kida]

I have decided to go back to school and who better to help me make good choices than the incredibly smart women here?

My end goal is to work in an office setting, hopefully in a school environment. An administrative assistant or secretarial type job.

I have been looking into taking a course online through a local community college. It starts in September and I don't need to start applying until July. So! That gives me a generous amount of time to research as much as I can about job opportunities, experience and be fully sure this I what I want to do.

If you work in ANY office setting, please to share your experience with your job. Do you love it? What do you love most? What do you hate most? What did you go to school for, if you did, and how long did it take you to find work?

For those of you who work in a school setting, same questions but also, am I taking the right course of action to best guarantee a job at a school? Should I also take a 12 week early childhood development class or would that be a non issue since I would only be in the office?

TIA for all of your knowledge!

[brux]

Have you looked at job descriptions for positions you want, to see what type of work experience or education you need for those roles?

[Kida]

brux, I have. For the most part, I don't think it's absolutely necessary to go to school, but it seems like it will help in the long run in procuring the position I'm wanting.

[hufflepug]

I'm a teacher, and I would say you probably don't need any ed classes to work in the office. I would take a bunch of computer classes, especially something focusing on spreadsheets.

[food]

At the schools I've worked at the best foot in the door for those type of positions is to make yourself known by volunteering and/or substituting. Maybe check into the requirements for substitute teaching? That may be totally small town life/ regional though. Also, I think having certificates for computer programs like Quickbooks, Excel, etc. would be helpful.

[Kida]

May 31, 2017 10:33:21 GMT -6 food said:

At the schools I've worked at the best foot in the door for those type of positions is to make yourself known by volunteering and/or substituting. Maybe check into the requirements for substitute teaching? That may be totally small town life/ regional though. Also, I think having certificates for computer programs like Quickbooks, Excel, etc. would be helpful.

Definitely small town life here. I will look into volunteering, thank you!

[windwithfingers]

May 31, 2017 10:32:21 GMT -6 hufflepug said:

I'm a teacher, and I would say you probably don't need any ed classes to work in the office. I would take a bunch of computer classes, especially something focusing on spreadsheets.

I would second this. I have a friend who works in an office at an elementary school, and she needed to pass a test on Excel. So I would brush up on that. She doesn't have a degree, or any experience in education.

[sweetc129]

I'm an executive assistant and work for 4 partners at a medium sized firm with great benefits and pay for the last 10 years, and do not have a college degree. If somebody asked me how to get my job I'd tell them to take a windows course and get proficient in Excel, Word and brush up on your typing. Then take those skills to a staffing agency or headhunter. That is how I got this job.

Good Luck.

[chickenonsunday]

I would say that it is all about who you know. You can learn basic word skills on your own without going to school.

[kclause]

May 31, 2017 10:33:21 GMT -6 food said:

At the schools I've worked at the best foot in the door for those type of positions is to make yourself known by volunteering and/or substituting. Maybe check into the requirements for substitute teaching? That may be totally small town life/ regional though. Also, I think having certificates for computer programs like Quickbooks, Excel, etc. would be helpful.

I second this. Make your face known in the schools. Volunteering will show that you know what all is involved in the day-to-day. Substituting will get you known but volunteering shows that you know what goes on behind the scenes, which is what the office usually deals with. Knowledge of various computer programs would be a great asset also.

[jubilantsquirrel]

I work in an office. I like that it's Monday-Friday with normal-ish hours (I work 6am-2:30, but that's mostly by choice). I don't like all the gossip that goes on, but I feel like you'd run into that at any job.

I do not have a degree and I've never had an issue with finding jobs. I did have to pass an Excel and Word test as well as a typing test.

[happywhale]

Put together a resume with zero grammatical or spelling errors and start applying for jobs now. Volunteer if you don't get any bites The job market for employers is tight so that would be my first step.

[Deleted]

(Not school related, just general office related)

Assuming your skill set in Word and Excel are acceptable, you're probably better off running through a temp agency and working through your network to find openings. If you have any glaring skill flaws, identify them and take an appropriate course.

[helenahhandbasket]

I've only really worked in office settings. I like having a set / predictable schedule and sitting in a comfortable seat all day. There will always be personalities that you don't get along well with but I suppose that's anyplace you are going to work. I went to school for retail buying but I wound up on the wholesale distribution side of business.

Before you sign up for a course, I'd try to figure out if you aren't already qualified for an admin job. If you have basic computer/phone skills, are personable and can write reasonably well (for correspondence sake) I'd think you have a shot.

Re work your resume to highlight these skills and start applying. GL

[leahcar]

MS Office skills are probably all you need to refine. I got placed in several admin type jobs in the past through temp agencies. I would start there and that way you can find out if you really need any additional classes, etc.

[Deleted]

Do you have adult ed classes through boces? Our boces offer certificate programs for things like this and it's not nearly the cost of college.

[Lormor]

So it sounds like you can get the job you're hoping for without a degree, but your OP sounded to me like you're wanting to go back to school. So it's not just about the job, but also about school?

[orangepickle]

Depends on the size of the town you live in - when I lived in a small town education wasn't a requirement because the pool of candidates was tiny. Now I live in a bigger city and work for a global company, and we don't hire anyone without a degree. I think even if you can go back to school part-time and earn it over time, it's worth having it to fall back on. That being said, I also got my MBA and that was a huge waste of money... I should've stopped by my Bachelor's

[nevertoomanyshoes]

I'm not sure what admin systems US schools use, but here there is a specific database program created by the department of education that all public schools use. If there is a specific system like that where you are, there are training courses you can book in to (short course). Maybe contact your district (?) office and ask?