Best Scientific Jobs That Require No Degree

[FayetheAspie]

My best friend we went to college together both same education. His special interest is trees He got hired by a steel manufacturing plant took care of the waste water and gases a lot of his position involved testing for bacteria in the waste water.

I think looking at lab positions at other types of companies may open some doors.
I used to think that I had to look at actual big laboratories for lab jobs but factories, construction companies, lumber companies, schools, greenhouses, ect. have small laboratories. If I can get a job, I still might take the laser and photonics degree program as it sounds interesting.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Now your thinking if you land a position, they may even help you upgrade your education My wife got two diplomas this way paid for by her employer boot strapping. I actually enjoyed night school. Your right every manufacturing plant has a Q.C. lab. and most of them like high school grads, I should know trained a lot of them, over the years.

 

[FayetheAspie]

Now your thinking if you land a position, they may even help you upgrade your education My wife got two diplomas this way paid for by her employer boot strapping. I actually enjoyed night school. Your right every manufacturing plant has a Q.C. lab. and most of them like high school grads, I should know trained a lot of them, over the years.

Will my age be a hinderence to getting hired if they prefer people straight out of high school. I didn't really have people to offer this kind of advice when I graduated. I had no idea that manufacturing plants even had labs and I used to think that a minimum of a bachelor's degree was necessary or I would have been applying years ago.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

A lot of places like older more mature workers if you have a good work history and references. your retail experience will not hurt you one lady I trained previous position was working at a coffee shop. she worked down the street saw some of our employees asked what the plant did put her name forward got hired ended up helping me after working on the process for a couple of years. I Must have trained 50 people over the years. some are now managers.

 

[FayetheAspie]

A lot of places like older more mature workers if you have a good work history and references.

Even if you are coming from a totally different line of work? A person who was supposed to be helping me get a job claimed I would most likely have to go to college or do volunteer work in order to get a foot in the door at something other than retail.

 

[FayetheAspie]

Would Biowork certificate help with employability?

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Even if you are coming from a totally different line of work? A person who was supposed to be helping me get a job claimed I would most likely have to go to college or do volunteer work in order to get a foot in the door at something other than retail.

Did not stop the lady in the coffee shop she was in her forties asked the workers on break what do you guys do they told her the plant was a seven day a Week operation always short of people she applied ended up as coater head operator Then she asked what would it take to get on staff Q.C. inspector job opened up I trained her worked for a couple of years as inspector had a bit of an accounting background, needed some one to review rejected coils day job got this. twenty years later still there.

Would Biowork certificate help with employability?

Certificates always help, On one of my previous positions hourly employers asked me what could they do to get ahead I recommended a certificate in Quality control, many took my recommendation got better jobs elsewhere.
One guy came back overlooking our quality for his new employer. We did custom painting for automotive.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

I Worked at a company that had a minor quality issue with a ball bearing because guy retired, supplier made two types of bearings case hardened and not case hardened They shipped us a box of not case hardened by mistake
we did not catch it one box had fifty thousand bearings On a washing machine this bearing is what the agitator sits on centre of machine, honouring the warranty wiped out a full year of profit for the company. I did not become a quality engineer until years later, my first certificate took a few months to get. Shouted this is the best thing for getting employment without degree, better than the computer courses, where the crowd was. Even got my son to take the courses just before he got hired by his current employer, His title is quality manager.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Would Biowork certificate help with employability?

Yes, quality is like spice adds to what's already their.

 

[FayetheAspie]

I am already signed up for the Biowork Certificate.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

I think your going to do well, once your get it start building, as your compensation goes up keep building worked for me. I have faith in you, just keep your anxiety at bay. I had a three year diploma added a two year diploma then a bunch of certificates. The more you get the more the compensation Either way it takes time be patient, enjoy the journey. I even took leadership courses got straight A's, then found out I am on the spectrum then every thing made sense.

 

[FayetheAspie]

@Ronald Zeeman Thanks.

 

[Judge]

I am already signed up for the Biowork Certificate.

Looks like a wise decision to pad your resume.

BioWork Process Technician | Wake Tech

 

[Boogs]

Sorry, I've not had time to read through all the posts here - but in case it's an option, maybe consider keeping your eyes open for technician jobs in higher colleges and universities. The best are places that do research as well as teaching. If tech is yer thang, avoid schools (imho) as the level of science is a bit low.
I left school with little in the way of qualification, but got a job in a university chemistry department and had a great time for about 12 years before I wanted something else.

Actually messing around with the stuff the students and post grads did, but getting more chance to get intimate with it was such an excellent learning process for someone who didn't handle traditional education well. It was varied and advanced enough to be pretty interesting. Also, many of the staff (academics and techs) tended to be nerd by nature, and generally it was a good atmosphere. To be fair, it was back in the 80's and in London UK, but I don't see why it shouldn't still be worth investigating if it sounds worth looking at?

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Looks like a wise decision to pad your resume.

BioWork Process Technician | Wake Tech

Wow looks good, find your niche, build on it. Life is a maze mistakes cost dearly even for managers Boeing and John Deere are learning this. I just happen to be very good at working my way through mazes.

 

[FayetheAspie]

Sorry, I've not had time to read through all the posts here - but in case it's an option, maybe consider keeping your eyes open for technician jobs in higher colleges and universities. The best are places that do research as well as teaching. If tech is yer thang, avoid schools (imho) as the level of science is a bit low.
I left school with little in the way of qualification, but got a job in a university chemistry department and had a great time for about 12 years before I wanted something else.

Actually messing around with the stuff the students and post grads did, but getting more chance to get intimate with it was such an excellent learning process for someone who didn't handle traditional education well. It was varied and advanced enough to be pretty interesting. Also, many of the staff (academics and techs) tended to be nerd by nature, and generally it was a good atmosphere. To be fair, it was back in the 80's and in London UK, but I don't see why it shouldn't still be worth investigating if it sounds worth looking at?

I'm not really looking to study teaching. I was hoping to get on at an analytical lab of some kind.

 

[AuAL]

Sorry, I've not had time to read through all the posts here - but in case it's an option, maybe consider keeping your eyes open for technician jobs in higher colleges and universities. The best are places that do research as well as teaching. If tech is yer thang, avoid schools (imho) as the level of science is a bit low.
I left school with little in the way of qualification, but got a job in a university chemistry department and had a great time for about 12 years before I wanted something else.

Actually messing around with the stuff the students and post grads did, but getting more chance to get intimate with it was such an excellent learning process for someone who didn't handle traditional education well. It was varied and advanced enough to be pretty interesting. Also, many of the staff (academics and techs) tended to be nerd by nature, and generally it was a good atmosphere. To be fair, it was back in the 80's and in London UK, but I don't see why it shouldn't still be worth investigating if it sounds worth looking at?

Working as a Research Assistant is what paid for getting through the last years of my undergraduate degree. No qualifications necessary, beyond aptitude and ability. For me it was Australia in the 80’s, but definitely worth a look today. Most universities (and colleges?) should have an online jobs listing - every year there are new research grants starting up, with money for supporting staff roles.

 

[Boogs]

I'm not really looking to study teaching. I was hoping to get on at an analytical lab of some kind.

Well what I did wasn't actual formal teaching of course, but as well as having to prepare the experiments when helping undergrads which required becoming familiar with the theory and the practical techniques, also required knowing enough to ensure conditions were correct for the thing to work for others etc (i.e. more involving that being taught it as a student), I also unofficially assisting them during course practical's as the post-grads who officially oversaw these things were often little better than the undergrads! (i.e. they relied a lot on us techies).

The teaching side was more what gave the opportunity to do the other stuff. Also opportunities to work in research when undergrads were not in the labs was interesting.

What I don't know is how much this style of teaching still goes on these days. I know the environment of my day is not the same, and the level of teaching practical science is much diminished (over in UK at least). But I do know it was a fascinating and educational environment for me, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and found interacting with academics and students far easier and pleasurable in that nerds paradise, and they seemed to appreciate being able to come for help with pretty much anything and I'd work it out if I didn't know it.

There were also really interesting groups in the department doing all sorts of related work - in chemistry we had a large engineering workshop, and electronics team, spectrometer engineers, glass blowers, and so on and so on.
Endless happy hours chatting about these things with people who'd being doing it most of their lives was great! Took 12 years before boredom set it, which is pretty good going I thought!

 

[Boogs]

Working as a Research Assistant is what paid for getting through the last years of my undergraduate degree. No qualifications necessary, beyond aptitude and ability. For me it was Australia in the 80’s, but definitely worth a look today. Most universities (and colleges?) should have an online jobs listing - every year there are new research grants starting up, with money for supporting staff roles.

I think one of the great aspects (for anyone into sciences at least) was that being a teaching and research establishment it covered a very wide range of topics and ideas at a high level which a commercial concern is much less likely to do, not being very cost effective in most cases, and hence may get boring much quicker once you've sussed all the parts out. It was the learning part that really got me interested and I learned so much about how things work from it. If I'd had the ability, I've have done a degree and gone into research, but sadly I'm unable to pass the exams needed to do this, and eventually the wide but ultimately the limited range of things ran a little dry and got boring, but a decade of intense interest in matters cerebral in a vibrant atmosphere was a pretty good substitute. And learning by doing has always been my mode.