What to do next? NVQ level 3 or 4 in Biz & Admin

Pthree

makeyourdaddyproud wrote: »

The NVQ4 only earns you a ticket to the parking lot of a tech firm nowadays - sorry. It's just too easy to obtain one.

Thanks for this "tech firms" aren't really what I am aiming for, but can you suggest any alternative to the NVQ?

A lot of the jobs I have looked at seem to require NVQ level 3 as standard now, but these are not on a level to my posistion now and would probably be thought of as a step back, it seems, that is all that is availible in the area I am looking.

My background has been a mixture of shipping - 11yrs, hospitality - 3 yrs and now property development - 6 yrs+ (which I really enjoy most of the time, if I could pick my current job up and move it 400 miles north I would!)

I need something which looks good on a CV and inspires me.............. not difficult at all

P3

makeyourdaddyproud

Pthree wrote: »

Thanks for this "tech firms" aren't really what I am aiming for, but can you suggest any alternative to the NVQ?

A lot of the jobs I have looked at seem to require NVQ level 3 as standard now, but these are not on a level to my posistion now and would probably be thought of as a step back, it seems, that is all that is availible in the area I am looking.

My background has been a mixture of shipping - 11yrs, hospitality - 3 yrs and now property development - 6 yrs+ (which I really enjoy most of the time, if I could pick my current job up and move it 400 miles north I would!)

I need something which looks good on a CV and inspires me.............. not difficult at all

P3

This is why denigrated degrees as bronze. I think you're thinking about this the wrong way : your experience already earned surpasses a degree so the only way to do better is to show the employer you can make a real change to their outfit.

Sure, there is no harm in achieving higher qualifications but at the end of the day the economic circumstances are causing employers to look further than qualifications.

Save your money and time.

makeyourdaddyproud

Pthree,

Things you can do are : put up a private website evangelising your skills and experience. Work on handling interview objections. Networking. I would even go so far as picking up the dictionary and learning some "killer" words to bolster your articulacy.

The job situation up north is much less bouyant, so when interviews transpire, you need to be prepared and show that you can do better than the rest of the bunch.

By the tone of some of your posts you sound anxious. Relax a little, and you'll be fine.

Dan

Dunroamin

Pthree wrote: »

Thanks for this "tech firms" aren't really what I am aiming for, but can you suggest any alternative to the NVQ?

A lot of the jobs I have looked at seem to require NVQ level 3 as standard now, but these are not on a level to my posistion now and would probably be thought of as a step back, it seems, that is all that is availible in the area I am looking.

My background has been a mixture of shipping - 11yrs, hospitality - 3 yrs and now property development - 6 yrs+ (which I really enjoy most of the time, if I could pick my current job up and move it 400 miles north I would!)

I need something which looks good on a CV and inspires me.............. not difficult at all

P3

Why not aim higher and look at doing a Foundation Degree/DipHE/Degree in some aspect of business with the Open University?

http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/qualification/business-and-management/index.htm#product-degrees

Pthree

makeyourdaddyproud wrote: »

This is why denigrated degrees as bronze. I think you're thinking about this the wrong way : your experience already earned surpasses a degree so the only way to do better is to show the employer you can make a real change to their outfit.

Sure, there is no harm in achieving higher qualifications but at the end of the day the economic circumstances are causing employers to look further than qualifications.

Save your money and time.

I do understand your thinking on this, but I was under the impression, especially in the current enviroment, that employers can pretty much pick and choose what they want. With so many people applying for one job, that they have to have some way to sort it out before even getting to the interview stage and therefore, asking for certain qualifications helps with this - or maybe not and experience really does count....... I don't know

I am soooo confused at the moment

slenderkitten

As a few others have said its the skills and experience employers want, I have high level (non degree) qualifications in admin but could i get a job in my field NO! I hadn't done any admin work for a few years so my relevant "recent" experience was not there.

Again I would reiterate any software training, relevant skills and experience they want, forget qualifications.

Pthree

Dunroamin wrote: »

Why not aim higher and look at doing a Foundation Degree/DipHE/Degree in some aspect of business with the Open University?

http://www3.open.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/qualification/business-and-management/index.htm#product-degrees

I did think about doing something like that with the OU a year ago, but with the cost and time factor it seemed a little out of reach (still does especially the cost!) so that’s why I figured the NVQ would be better.

As for sounding anxious, it is how I'm feeling.

I had a birthday last week and it has really hit me that I am a little lost as to what I actually want to be doing.

I desperately want to move, but am scared that by losing my job security I will somehow manage to screw everything up and still be unhappy with my lot.


P3

nimbo

OK - you said 'oop north' which is kind of a broad area - look for some where like this to give you ideas

http://www.northern.ac.uk/


then my advice is what would you like to do job wise? Look on the NHS or council websites - not for the dream job necessarily, but for the person specification linked to the job (sorry they tend to be quite good and detailed)... (or as close as you can get)....

then see how you can tick each requirement for the job - where there are holes you need to plug them with a qualification - if appropriate.

When working for the NHS and council they are potentially likely to get on board with the level 4 qualification, and get you the assessor - people I know dd them at work. it may be worth going a little way backwards (the cost of living is cheaper up here than down south) if the employer may be supportive of paying for qualifications....

As for ECDL _ I wanted to do it when on a temp contract as permanent positions often mentioned it. I was asked to complie a list of others in the office who may want to do it, and one guys response was - 'I see no need to partake in a qualification that tells me how to turn on a PC'...

Enter day one, module one - what the power button looks like... Personally for me it ticked a box, and it was free. I would have thought twice about paying for it though....

When I moved to Yorkshire the whole world seemed to be RSA mad - try looking for what jobs are being mentioned in the area you will be moving to....

nimbo

Pthree wrote: »

As for sounding anxious, it is how I'm feeling.

I had a birthday last week and it has really hit me that I am a little lost as to what I actually want to be doing.

I desperately want to move, but am scared that by losing my job security I will somehow manage to screw everything up and still be unhappy with my lot.
P3

what would you LOVE to do???

it's never to late to retrain - i'm thirty, and am just finishing a degree in social work, and there are people on the course who are in their late 40's....

It's never too late.

My favorite quote of the week - It'll be alright in the end - if it's not alright, it's not the end....

Pthree

nimbo wrote: »

what would you LOVE to do???

I think that’s my problem, I don’t actually know! 38 and not a much of a clue.

Actually that’s not strictly true, just nothing realistic.

I love parts of my current role, I like dabbling with design, moving floor plans around (I refurbish houses (on paper and mentally) on rightmove.co.uk for fun!) I could quite happily do property development on a small scale. I do have quite a good eye for what will work and what wont, as well as I can be quite practical when it comes to architects and builders sticking things where they shouldn’t be and being all “artistic”, and doing this outweighs the dull bits of admin in-between. I lack the funds to get going; even if I could get some sort of start up loan I would need some cash behind me.


My dream would be to run B&B in The Lakes somewhere (by oop North, I mean Cumbria - all my family are there). I obviously don’t have the funds for this either!


I think what I really need is a small lottery win.