Colorado Nesties
RyanandManda
member
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
career change? please comment!
So I've worked as a counselor and case manager for years but I'm not able to find a job in social services right now. I've been looking for over a year so I'm thinking it's time to consider a career change because, let's be honest, i need a job! So, I'm trying to think of what I'd enjoy doing and be good at (and where i could get hired) and I'm coming up empty. I'm a people person, I learn quickly, I can get along with anybody. I'm great at taking direction and am really organized. So... where does that leave me? I worked in banking (both customer service and operations) for a while and used to be a C.N.A. but I don't particularly want to go back in either of those directions... I'm a licensed school counselor and a substitute teacher but schools aren't hiring at all right now. Knowing that I love to help people and have a hodgepodge of random skills, anyone have any suggestions or ideas for me? Any industries hurting for people that are just like me? 
If you have ANY thoughts on the matter, I'd so greatly appreciate anything you come up with!
Oh yeah, my BA is in Sociology. My MS is in Counseling. Neither is helping me right now...
Thanks so much ladies!
If you have ANY thoughts on the matter, I'd so greatly appreciate anything you come up with!
Oh yeah, my BA is in Sociology. My MS is in Counseling. Neither is helping me right now...
Thanks so much ladies! 
Re: career change? please comment!
Spirit of Power
Eat, Drink, and be Keri
You could easily make a jump to paralegal in a child welfare or family law practice with that back ground because you have the skills to work with people in crisis and make objective observations about what is likely to be in the best interest of children in different situations. That what my background was before law school and it has been a perfect mesh for my practice now. Victim advocacy in a prosecutors office would be a good match too. We have two Nesties here who do that.
ETA: And what is your license situation with your counseling degree? Have you logged enough superrvised hours that you able to practice on your own?
DD -- 5YO
DS -- 3YO
The problem is that I'm not licensed by the State, I'm licensed by the department of education so... I can't bill insurance : ( I also don't have an office or anything where I could practice. I tried to do private practice in people's homes (don't come to me, I come to you sort of thing) but it didn't catch on and I don't have the $ to get an office, my own insurance, or tools for marketing. I tried to do an apprenticeship type of thing with an old therapist of mine and she said she was already swamped with interns!
Hmmm... I wouldn't really know where to start with something like this. I suppose I'd need to do a lot of marketing and sell myself to companies. Does your friend have a website that I could see?
I'd LOVE to work with a realtor. I'm fascinated by real estate and the process of buying/selling homes. I'm not prepared to become an agent myself but I'd absolutely consider being an assistant right now. How would I get that kind of job without any real experience? Had you done it before you were hired? I'd love to pick your brain about it because DH and I were seriously JUST talking about me working in real estate last night!
I've sent my resume in for paralegal jobs and I can't get a call or e-mail back : ( I think there are just too many applicants (and people fresh out of paralegal programs in community colleges) for me to compete right now. I guess if I knew someone, that would help because I do think I'd have the skills to do that. I've also sent in applications for victim advocacy jobs and, again, my lack of experience doing EXACTLY THAT turns people off : ( SOMEBODY GIVE ME A CHANCE!!!!!
As far as my counseling license, I have one from the Colorado Dept of Education which basically means nothing to mental health agencies and insurance companies. They want an LPC/LCSW/LMFT. I'd need 2,000 supervised hours (of which I have none because the women who was supervising my last 500ish hours had let her own license lapse and didn't tell me so DORA says I can't count them). I can't get the hours unless someone will give me a FREAKIN JOB!!!
I've applied for a few jobs in HR and can't get a call/e-mail back. Again, I don't have that EXACT type of experience and other applicants do (I guess) so no one will even look at my resume to see that I have the skills to be successful. I guess I'd have to know someone? I'd enjoy working in HR and it was one of the first alternatives to counseling I considered when I started to panic about not working ; )
See, with a child welfare practice, I would much rather have the counseling and people skills experience, someone who can talk with the clients and the service providers and formulate treatment plans, but have to teach you how to write a Notice to Set and explain how what the procedure timeline is in a divorce/custody/D&N case. I wish the state would pay us hourly for the child welfare cases. I can't afford an assistant/case manager with the flat fee rate they pay us but they have an hourly billing rate for paralegals on hourly bill cases that would pay the person for me, if only that was how we were paid. :- ( I'll keep my ears open though.
Thanks. I'm pretty much willing to do anything that helps people. Working retail and banking jobs really solidified that I'm fulfilled by anything BUT work that "sells stuff" versus "providing service" if that makes sense. : )