I guess it was a combination of accident and dumb luck. Or simple bullheadedness!

When people ask me how my academic career has helped in launching my vocational career, I often say, "I learned a LOT in college, but I don't use any of it." While that is not entirely true, it is largely true.

At the time, I was a high school dropout. I assumed my career would be following in my father's footsteps and that I would eventually inherit the helm of his independent tire dealership. I further assumed I would learn everything I needed to know in due time. Besides, I still had dreams of being a rock star. School bored me because it didn't challenge me. So I quit.

I spent some time in technical school after getting my G.E.D. (earning it one week after my high school classmates graduated.) I also spent a year working in the Chequamegon National Forest as a laborer for the U.S. Forest Service. The tire store was not doing very well, and my father fell ill. I ran the tire shop for a few months, but ultimately it went under before my father recovered from his illness (which was never successfully diagnosed, despite all the tests.)

So I flailed, directionless. I knew I had to do something, but WHAT?? I had two children by that time and had to figure out a way to support them.

One day, my mother needed to move some boxes. It turned out that one of them contained my report cards from elementary and middle school. Mostly As and Bs. She told me about how much I loved school when I was younger. Eventually, seeing those grades and talking with my mother resulted in the decision to go to college. My college career was launched in January, 1986.

I declared a major in Physics and a minor in Chemistry. Those two disciplines had always fascinated me, but I struggled. In chemistry, I rocked lecture but failed lab -- twice. Then my academic advisor failed to inform me that a course for which I was eligible that was required for my major was only held every other year. Thinking I could take it the following semester, I chose a different course. By the time the confusion was discovered, the course was full. I did NOT want to have to wait another two years to graduate. So I completed the semester for which I had signed up, then chose to take a semester off. My academic career was in jeopardy. It was the spring of 1989.

I had divorced my children's mother, and during the semester off I would meet my next wife. She had something that she had gotten for her kids that I had seen before, but never had one myself. A personal computer. I was fascinated. Before the end of that semester off I would teach myself how to program in BASIC. I loved it. I knew what I had to do.

I returned to school and redeclared my major. Computer Information Systems. It was a major tailored for IT positions with insurance companies, the paper industry, and general business and government. I excelled and loved what I was doing. As graduation approached, I realized that I was close to meeting the requirements for a Mmathematics minor due to the stringent collateral Mathematics requirements for a Physics major. So I decided to do the extra work and declare a second major: Mathematics.

But, there was a problem. I flat refused to conform to the persona expected at that time for an IT professional. Recruiters told me, before even asking my qualifications, that I wouldn't be a "good fit." One of my instructors told me one day in her office, "You are never going to get a job in this business unless you cut your hair." My response: "Watch me."

I graduated with a double-major, Highest Honors, and a Dean's Distinguished Achievement Award in December 1992.

About two months after graduation, a job posting showed up in a local newspaper for a position as a "Computer Programmer." I applied, interviewed (hair and all,) and got the job. But it wasn't exactly for what I had studied in college. I wouldn't be building, running, and maintaining internal systems to support the business. No. I would be designing, building, and supporting the company's flagship product. NOT a Systems Analyst. A Software Engineer! It doesn't just sound cooler, it is cooler.

So that's what I have been doing ever since. In the last 25 years I have won patents, learned more than I thought there was to know about hackers, computer security, education, check sorters, automated phone attendants ("Press 1 for English," ) out dialers, audio and video streaming . . . and MYSELF. I now work for a company in Madison, WI, but work from home, and make more money than I could have ever dreamed about before college -- unless the rock star thing had worked out.

I've had one IT job during that time. B-O-R-I-N-G!! (No offense intended for ITers ... it's just rather dull after the adrenaline-rich, seat-of-the-pants world of being responsible for the value of a company's product!)

So I guess the best thing I can say by way of advice is:

• Believe in yourself, always
• Don't give up, ever
• Keep learning, forever
• Opportunity rarely knocks, but rather has a tendency to hide in the most unexpected of places -- so get out of the box and go find it
• Life rarely unfolds the way you expect or want it to, so be flexible
• Any opportunity to be productive is better than no opportunity -- even if you think you should be doing something else

So GO GET 'EM!! Make your own good luck!

I wanted to study physics, but after some research I found that optical engineering was the way to go in the city of Xerox, Kodak and Bausch&Lomb. And sseeing that I was a woman, I would have a good chance to get hired. Optics is very interesting. I could have had a job working for Perkin Elmer who were building the Hubble Space telescope but I was not a citizen at that time. I was hired right out of collgege.

I'm an artist so it was probably drawing on the wallpaper when I was very young.

Liked food, fell into Catering. Simple

After I finished my internship, I traveled for a couple of weeks in a vacation/job search combination. You know, beach, disney and interviews. I accepted a job after a phone interview, submitted all my paperwork for licensing then waited for graduation. I got a short-tem job in a related setting for 2 weeks while making plans to move across the country. I was in that job until 3 years ago when I started my current position. I still get calls from companies with open positions asking if I'm looking for employment or know someone. Most of them offer me a referral bonus if I refer someone who accepts a position.

Career? Heck, I'm 62 and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. But seriously, I don't know what your major is in but I started my serious working life with the Air Force and never regreted my experience there. With a college degree, you can start as an officer 2nd Lt. You can even end up in Flight School because they are desperately looking for pilots. Good Luck and no I'm not a recruiter.

I worked and retired from the US Postal Service.. After college I tried a few jobs and I was not happy. My father worked for the Post Office and he always appeared to be happy and not stressed out. Incidentally my father lived to 97 years of age and did not experience any of the health problems associated with old age. I decided to try the Post Office, took the test, and got the job. It was one of my best decisions.

I started as a volunteer for a child welfare agency. I volunteered while I worked on my bachelor's degree. I took a temporary job working as a field interviewer 2 months after I graduated and I continued to volunteer, and was able to find a job working in child welfare about 6 months later.

I've been a Ham Rdio operator since I was 14, so I thought electrical engineering was going to be my career, and in some ways it was, I was working in a TV service shop from age 12, off the record due to child labor laws, now, in some states I couldn't hold that job until age 18 due to the "dangers of soldering"

But my real focus was when I visited WSRO in Marlborough, Massachsetts in 1961. One look at the transmitter and the directional antenna system and I knew what I was going to do for the rest of my life. Within a year I had my 1st Class Radiotelephone license and as soon as I got my car, at 17, I got a job at WKBR in Manchester, NH, and the long defunct WUPI in Lynn, Massachusetts, been in radio and TV ever since, both on the broacast side and the supply side.

My best years, the years I worked for Tektronix developing Test & Measurement equipment and participating in development of new TV standards.

Took me 8 years after graduation to get on my sales career path. First job after many working part-time for Hershey Chocolate as a Retail Merchandiser. Five years. Then full-time with Brachs Candy as territory manager.

I programmed computers as a hobby when I was teen, then got my foot in the door doing simple HTML work. The rest is history.

Trainee job, IT. Low wage, no responsibility, learn all the time. Took 2 years to land a better position, I cannot complain much after ~12 years

Which?

Volunteer if you possibly can. It gives you good experience, keeps your education relevant, and lets potential employers know you are serious. Otherwise, look to people you know. I got my first job through my now ex husband. He knew someone, who helped to pull me into the organization. Who you know can get you in the door, what you know will keep you there.

My degree was a ticket (RN, MD) so it was fairly defined for me. What was your degree? What do you love to do?

After a stint in the US Army (the draft was still in deffect), I started as a high school teacher.
From theere to graduate school on the GI bill and assistantships (and later 2 fellowships) I taught at the ollege leel,then the rest of my career in educational leadership positions focusing on school iumprovement.

LinkedIn and an aggressive recruiter.

I was 16 getting ready for school, my final exams had begun and my father told me I had to leave school eatly as I had a job interview that afternoon. Brief argument, end result was, either take the job or leave home and try and finish school living on the streets. I started the job 3 days later and was out of home 6 weeks later. I stayed in that industry for almost 20 years, 13 with the 1st company. Hated every minute of it.

Networking. People do business with people they know. Yes, I'm saying it's who you know.

I'm a salesperson and it's in my blood. I learned at a very young age how to get what people need/want to them and still make it worth my efforts.

I started my career as a clergy person, believe it or not. I did that for 23 years. During the course of my career I began asking a lot of hard questions of myself and my beliefs. That, and some very difficult and negative experiences with Christians made it necessary for me to start over. I entered grad school at age 48 and earned a second master's degree, and am now a licensed professional counselor. I work with substance abusers, trauma victims, and persons struggling with mental disorders. In the process of reinventing myself, my wife of 29 years who is a religious fundamentalist, did not like the changes I was making, so we chose to divorce. Here I am.

In 5 years after college I'll be looking for a career in computer engineering.