I've been thinking...

[collegepreloader]

What would you guys do in my situation. I have been working pre-load for almost a year now. I am going to graduate college here in May with a degree in business/finance, but I cant find a job. The few jobs that are out there don't pay good at all. I have seriously considered staying with UPS, I don't necessarily want to go into management because I see how things are first hand. At the same time I dont know if I want to drive beacuse I see how crazy things get and working loooong hours. The wait only seems to be about 2-21/2 years to start driving which is a perk as well as the money and job sercurity as I move up.

I really just dont know what to do- Ive talked to my friends and parents about it and I seriously think it would have been a better decision to start working at UPS or going to a trade school (electrician/caprenter) or something similar out of high school. Now I am looking at a 30k student loan that I am going to be paying off for a while with no job. But the way things seem is you HAVE to get a college degree to do anything.

 

[User Name]

Only you can make this decision for yourself. Asking friends and parents are good but you really need to talk to new drivers and management. They will be the only ones who can give you advice on that side of the fence. I have a friend who got me hired two years after he was hired. He couldn't wait it out and quit. I ran into him after I went driving and was sorry to hear that he wished he had stayed because he was unable to really find anything that matched ups Pay. Bennies and Pension. Now I also know some people who have quit and been very happy with that decision. So talk to people who know and have made the decision but in the end YOU make the decision for you and go all in or don't.

One more thing, you could go into pt supervision, use the company for the tuition reimbursement, (which would put your tuition re-payment on hold) and get another degree in something with a little more stability then leave the company. I have seen this done as well. Just my two cents (but now are only worth 1/2 that),,,

 

[pretzel_man]

College:

I think its time to step back and assess YOURSELF.

Why did you choose business / finance for a degree? I assume its a 4 year degree?

It sounds to me like you don't really know what you want to do? I would bet that you took that major because you thought it would lead to a job, not because you thought the discipline was interesting?

Look at the choices you posted here.... Supervisor, Driver, Electrician, Carpenter.

I'm betting none of them are what you want to do, they just seem like jobs you may be able to get?

I hope you don't feel I'm ragging on you. I'm responding because I have a son who is a junior in college and doesn't really know what he wants either. I'm concerned that he is not trying experiences to explore.

Pretty soon a job becomes a career. Don't pick one that you will regret.

Someone mentioned part-time supervisor. I really enjoyed that, but I'm different than you (and my son). If he were eligible, I would recommend that to him in a heartbeat.

Best of luck to you. Go back and think about where your interests lie.

P-Man

 

[collegepreloader]

College:

I think its time to step back and assess YOURSELF.

Why did you choose business / finance for a degree? I assume its a 4 year degree?

It sounds to me like you don't really know what you want to do? I would bet that you took that major because you thought it would lead to a job, not because you thought the discipline was interesting?

Look at the choices you posted here.... Supervisor, Driver, Electrician, Carpenter.

I'm betting none of them are what you want to do, they just seem like jobs you may be able to get?

I hope you don't feel I'm ragging on you. I'm responding because I have a son who is a junior in college and doesn't really know what he wants either. I'm concerned that he is not trying experiences to explore.

Pretty soon a job becomes a career. Don't pick one that you will regret.

Someone mentioned part-time supervisor. I really enjoyed that, but I'm different than you (and my son). If he were eligible, I would recommend that to him in a heartbeat.

Best of luck to you. Go back and think about where your interests lie.

P-Man

yes it is a 4-year degree. I choose it because I do have an interest in it. Ultimately I would love to have my own business. The risk and the expense are the things that would stop me from doing that.

I wasn't saying I wanted to be an electrician or carpenter I was saying that I sometimes think I would be better off doing that and going to a trade school and I would have already been working for 3 years or so. Instead I have a student loan to pay back and jobs that only pay 23k-26k a year.

I also don't want to pick a career that I would regret like you said. I also feel like if I am doing something that doesn't relate to my degree it will just make me less valuable.

Obviously this isn't the best of times, but I am very grateful that I have a job at UPS and I have benefits.

 

[trplnkl]

yes it is a 4-year degree. I choose it because I do have an interest in it. Ultimately I would love to have my own business. The risk and the expense are the things that would stop me from doing that.

I wasn't saying I wanted to be an electrician or carpenter I was saying that I sometimes think I would be better off doing that and going to a trade school and I would have already been working for 3 years or so. Instead I have a student loan to pay back and jobs that only pay 23k-26k a year.

I also don't want to pick a career that I would regret like you said. I also feel like if I am doing something that doesn't relate to my degree it will just make me less valuable.

Obviously this isn't the best of times, but I am very grateful that I have a job at UPS and I have benefits.

You've hit on a couple of things I have been thinking about for a few years now. In today's education and work environment why do so many people not take into consideration what an education will cost vs. what can be earned with that degree. I think a big part of that is that we, as a society, are not teaching our kids how to plan and look ahead at the ramifications of their decisions. When I was an early teen my Dad talked to me alot about responsible planning and thinking about what I wanted to do to earn a living for the rest of my life. I, in spite of that, made some decisions that didn't hold up in the long run but was still able to make a living. I passed along the same type of advice to my kids who are both doing what they love to do, to make a living. I worry that my kids are sharing that wisdom with their kids though.
You earlier decisions are made and fulfilled in regards to your degree, I am sorry they are working out as planned. Now, you (as P-Man said) have to take the bull by the horns and make new decisions that will better benifit you. Talk to as many people as you can to help you figure out what you WANT to do. IMHO, the last thing you want to do is start a driving career at UPS or go into management with UPS if that is not what you want to be doing when you are 60 years old.

 

[Channahon]

See if you can do some substitute teaching in your state. You can keep your job on the preload and teach afterwards. Some states only require a 4 year degree and not a teaching certificate. That may be an option you might want to explore.

 

[helenofcalifornia]

I have a different point of view. I have always preached to my kids that the 20's were a time for exploration. A career doesn't need to be locked in for sure until your late 20's. (At the age of 30, career doors start slamming in your face because of your age.) In your 20's you still are developing for the most part, things are still in flux, brain is still growing.

The difference being, I wouldn't let my kids go into the college debt thing. All college kids nowadays seem to have this looming debt in front of them that forces them to choose something quicker than they would like.

So you are in a conundrum. I would advise taking enough classes to forestall that college debt until you make up your mind. My UPS career started as just a Christmas job. Didn't take me long to figure out that even with a college diploma, I was blue collar and liked the physical hard work at UPS. Also, for the most part, the people are great.

Hard decision for you. Choose something you love to do. Good luck and I am sure you will get a lot of good advice here. I think Atatbl's advise to go into the soft porn business at Halloween is good for a while, but not a life time career. jk

 

[p190]

Hey, don't close the door to UPS management. I started out just like you, working to go to school and not really knowing where I wanted to go after getting the education. I stuck with UPS thinking to pass the time until I figured it out. As I made the transition to management my eyes were opened to the amazing variety of careers available to me. Management does not mean just operations...there are many different aspects of UPS available. UPS, at least in my neck of the world, is very good about channeling a person into what they are best at. Well, until they promote you past your capability and you either rise to the challenge or fall to pieces.

 

[helenofcalifornia]

Peter Principle.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

See if you can do some substitute teaching in your state. You can keep your job on the preload and teach afterwards. Some states only require a 4 year degree and not a teaching certificate. That may be an option you might want to explore.

My daughter had just graduated with her 4 yr degree in Biology and was visiting family in NC and went to a job fair out of curiosity and ended up being hired as a HS science teacher at a charter school. NC does not require the certificate upon hire but she has either 3 or 5 yrs (I forget which) to get her certificate. Teaching was the furthest thing from her mind but she absolutely loves it.

Keep your options open. It would be hard to preload and substitute teach as most schools are in session at 8am or earlier and you wouldn't normally get the call to substitute teach until 6am or so unless they call you ahead of time for a planned absence or maternity leave.

It is good that you are asking for advice but it will ultimately be your decision to make. You may be surprised to learn that there are many drivers who have either their 2 or 4 yr degrees and have chosen for whatever reason to work at UPS. In my case, I was unable to find suitable work in my career field (business) that even came close to what I am making now or offered a benefit and pension package anywhere near what I enjoy now.

 

[bubsdad]

I don't know how UPS management works, but it seems like a degree in business/finance would be an asset. I'm thinking they would be able to use your degree. After all, everyone's always saying "it's all about the numbers". Not only that but if you stay after you graduate it doesn't mean you have to stay until you retire. You can always change careers.

 

[collegepreloader]

Thanks for all the advice! I woke up in a bad mood and this has helped me think of many options.

P190- I feel that UPS is a very good company and that opens my eyes to the possibilities within.

As for teaching I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to do that.

helenofcalifornia- I know what you mean about the debt and rushing into a job, even though my parents have helped out and said they will pay it for me, I don't want them to. I am an adult and I choose to go to college. Now if they want to help out when I need it I'm cool with that, no one gets anywhere without a little help.

I guess I need to just keep my options- I have considered trying to get into saturday air to see how I like it and make a little extra money. In the meantime I could always pick up another part time job.

 

[UPSNewbie]

Ha. In the terrible state of OK, you only need a high school diploma to be a sub...

The union safety co-chair here is a full time elementary teacher. They don't start until 9:00am.

 

[exupser87]

preloader,

I think you are in a good position, even though it may not seem that way to you. There are thousands of UPS management and drivers that bailed out of school, and put all of their eggs in the UPS basket. That is a big reason that you see in these posts that others cannot find a job to replace their UPS job with - finacially, they don't measure up. Why ? These folks are not qualified for other openings in other companies.

Part time supervision would probably not work out for you unless you are going to grad. school. I don't know how things work these days at UPS, but I would think there are still provisions in the contracts now that limit the number of management that are allowed to go driving, as the union obviously doesn't want their members to be put on the back burner while they promote all of their favorite part time supervisors. That move could cost you in the future, as even if they were willing, the contract provision could force you to wait when the time comes.

Most folks don't realize how diverse UPS is, and I can promise you they have a need for finance folks. You need to put out some "feelers" and try to track down some finance folks within UPS and see if they can share a little time with you - if you decide that you can meld your finance education with UPS. You are thinking in terms of the jobs that you are familiar with. There are FAR MORE jobs at UPS that you are unfamiliar with, than ones you ARE familiar with. Be a pest. Nothing asked, nothing answered. UPS does a poor job of putting out information on nonpackage jobs, so you NEED to do some legwork to find these people. Don't forget - people love to talk with others about what they do if the requestor has an interest. You can find people you've never met that will warm up real quick when they realize you are considering their venue.

Not ALL, but in my experience, UPS operations managers are generally not too bright, and that's why I finally left. You have seen a small slice of UPS. I don't know about now, but they used to own Hotels and many other businesses.

 

[pickup]

What would you guys do in my situation. I have been working pre-load for almost a year now. I am going to graduate college here in May with a degree in business/finance, but I cant find a job. The few jobs that are out there don't pay good at all. I have seriously considered staying with UPS, I don't necessarily want to go into management because I see how things are first hand. At the same time I dont know if I want to drive beacuse I see how crazy things get and working loooong hours. The wait only seems to be about 2-21/2 years to start driving which is a perk as well as the money and job sercurity as I move up.

I really just dont know what to do- Ive talked to my friends and parents about it and I seriously think it would have been a better decision to start working at UPS or going to a trade school (electrician/caprenter) or something similar out of high school. Now I am looking at a 30k student loan that I am going to be paying off for a while with no job. But the way things seem is you HAVE to get a college degree to do anything.

Well, what is done is done. But things could be worse, you could be 30 grand in debt and have a heroin habit instead you are 30 grand in debt and have a college degree. You can't go back in time but only forwards and maybe one day, when the job market improves or your viewpoint on things clarifies, that degree might get you a desired job that requires a degree.

I also know in some cases depending on if it is a federal loan, that if you don't have a job (although preload might count as a job) that the payments schedule can be put in abeyance(on hold) until you get a job. Check it out, you know the details of your loan better than I do and if you don't, there is the internet to find out your options (maybe more that I don't know squat about)