Opinions needed!

[adambchildress]

Hello all. Here is the deal. I am an automotive car designer making 45-55k here in metro detroit. I have been going to college to be a funeral director but the circumstances to work in that career would require significant financial difficulty based on my current income. So I have decided to change my degree.

 

This is where opinions come in. I have always wanted to learn mandarin to speak with my wife and her friends as well as watch tv programs together. So I can switch my BA to major in asian studies which covers 3 years of language courses, history, business, and other elective classes. If I choose to go this route I could minor in Business, Journalism, or Marketing.

 

We are not opposed to someday moving to a mandarin speaking country like China or Singapore. But I do not know what to minor in. I love writing, but think that with a minor in business i could do liaison work for American companies abroad.

 

If were based in the US I would like to make between 55 and 75k a year. If we live abroad I would take less but would like a above average standard of living.

 

What do you recommend? And do you know what jobs travel or living pay well enough to support my wife, daughter, and I for Americans that speak mandarin.

 

Thanks

[hakkamike]

Why dont you check the current job market, I think you will be hard pressed to make 30k a year starting out. I would stick with the funeral gig.

Edited March 6, 2010 by hakkamike (see edit history)

[adambchildress]

Why dont you check the current job market, I think you will be hard pressed to make 30k a year starting out. I would stick with the funeral gig.

 

I wanted to stay with the funeral gig except that in order to do so I would have less that 30k coming in for the 1st year of mortuary school and about 28k for my year of apprenticeship. Unless you own your own funeral home which is harder to do because most are now owned by corporations then my current salary of 50k is above the median range for an embalmer.

 

Now Singapore does perform Western style funerals but thats not easy to get into.

 

Thanks for the suggestion but their has to be some kind of high paying jobs for a mandarin speaker which is why I am trying to find a suitable minor such as supply chain management or marketing for US firms in Asia, things of that nature.

[Joanne]

Why do you want to quit being an automotive car designer? It seems to have already satisfied your income requirement. Is it because you are tired of that profession?

[dnoblett]

Why do you want to quit being an automotive car designer? It seems to have already satisfied your income requirement. Is it because you are tired of that profession?

Sounds more like a lay-off considering the beating the auto industry has been dealing with lately.

[Stepbrow]

My opinion is that you should do some research on trends for job growth. Then select some from that group, and do some more research on what they entail. Narrow you group, and then make a decision.

[2mike&jin]

Hello all. Here is the deal. I am an automotive car designer making 45-55k here in metro detroit. I have been going to college to be a funeral director but the circumstances to work in that career would require significant financial difficulty based on my current income. So I have decided to change my degree.

 

This is where opinions come in. I have always wanted to learn mandarin to speak with my wife and her friends as well as watch tv programs together. So I can switch my BA to major in asian studies which covers 3 years of language courses, history, business, and other elective classes. If I choose to go this route I could minor in Business, Journalism, or Marketing.

 

We are not opposed to someday moving to a mandarin speaking country like China or Singapore. But I do not know what to minor in. I love writing, but think that with a minor in business i could do liaison work for American companies abroad.

 

If were based in the US I would like to make between 55 and 75k a year. If we live abroad I would take less but would like a above average standard of living.

 

What do you recommend? And do you know what jobs travel or living pay well enough to support my wife, daughter, and I for Americans that speak mandarin.

 

Thanks

 

Well first I must apologize - because I'm old, and have spent considerable time both teaching at the college level and running a business in Washington D.C. Both of these jobs - required interfacing with and interviewing young college students as well as doing significant numbers of interviews. That mixed with my age - has left me somewhat inpatient when having these kind of discussions.

 

My new son - has hell to pay when selecting a major or a college when the time arrives.

 

Ok, as other have suggested, figure out what the trends, needs, and demands of various career fields are is a good starting point. But please do it with a touch of realism.

 

I notice the career field you are now gaining education in has a starting salary of @ $30K, and even though you are training for a new career field - you don't think it appropriate or sufficent salary for you. What has changed since you first started this line of education? Did they suddenly drop the starting salaries for workers in the field...I think not! What I'm saying here is when you look at a career field - and you look at the entry level pay scale - it all plays in the evaluation of whether or not you want to be in that career field.

 

Tempering expectations! Do you expect to start a new career field and make $55K a year? If you do - the advice others gave you - will let you know how you have to educate yourself to make that kind of money. Temper your expectations with reality.

 

One other thing I would say - is that you have a slightly unrealistic view of how "proficient" you might become if you study Mandarin for three years - in any Asian Studies course(s). First, after having studied Mandarin - in China for 18 months - at a University - I suspect you could be minimally proficient in speaking and reading - but not writing! I equate my 18 months of study - to learning to speak like a 2 or 3 year old native speaker. My writing ability is non-existent. Before you counter with how hard you will work and how clever you are - we had about 6000 foreigners at the school I went to - and after 3 or 4 years - none of them were at a level in which they could work in a strictly "Chinese" work environment. There are exceptions - and some of the folks on this site do work and interact quite well in China --- but it's usually not based on their ability to Read , Write (Simplified), and speak Mandarin. So again, I would investigate the efficacy of this "dream" with what is in fact, being done by other - clever people.

 

Ok, I will assume since you say you are an "Automotive Designer" - that you have an engineering degree. I also assume as others have suggested that lay-offs and the future is grim in this industry - at least in Detroit. If you have an engineering degree - why not re-engage that body of knowlege and move to an engineering industry that is not facing some of these hurdles - i.e. Environment, Energy, Electrical, Nuclear, Computer/Information. There may be some synergy in your past work experience and education to help move up the entry level pay scale as you re-enter the market.

 

If you don't separate yourself from the masses (those that took sociology, history, psych,education,language,marine biology etc etc - Apologies to all who took these as majors) you will have difficulties with entry level pay scales as well as the softer the job requirements the more the competition for the jobs. Engineering, Accounting, Science, Law, Medical, MBA's all seem to be doing better than average - especially if you can bring some past experience and adjunct language skills to the mix. The other thing - I would suggest to seperate yourself is to not stop the education process until you have at least a masters degree - preferrably a PHD. The salary will follow the achievements!

[GDBILL]

 

...

 

Thanks for the suggestion but their has to be some kind of high paying jobs for a mandarin speaker which is why I am trying to find a suitable minor such as supply chain management or marketing for US firms in Asia, things of that nature.

 

To be realistic, expats who speak Mandarin in China are getting to be a dime a dozen. While the language might be a plus, look for something in your core competency that is in demand here.

 

Also, you would need to take into consideration your standard of living while here and exactly how much you need to earn. The overwhelming majority of Fortune 500 companies will not hire an expat in country for a wide variety of legal and financial reasons. Virtually all of the really good paying jobs are for those who the company posts here (in China) to work after having had several years of experience with the company back home.

 

I'm not really sure about Chinese companies, but if your skill set is in high demand they might be a decent option.

[weiaijiayou]

This is where opinions come in. I have always wanted to learn mandarin to speak with my wife and her friends as well as watch tv programs together. So I can switch my BA to major in asian studies which covers 3 years of language courses, history, business, and other elective classes. If I choose to go this route I could minor in Business, Journalism, or Marketing.

I think this is where many people aspiring to learn mandarin go wrong: instead of speaking in order to learn it, they learn it in order to speak it. In this way ¡°speaking mandarin¡± is set up as an elusive goal or end-state instead of something you actually do. I feel like this is often the thought process engendered by learning language in a classroom. Unfortunately, most American people don't have ready access to a native mandarin speaker, so taking classes or listening to CDs are about the only options.

 

I'd suggest perhaps majoring in something potentially more lucrative (or going for your MBA) and minoring in Chinese. Since you¡¯re married to a Chinese person, you have the potential to turn your home into an interactive Chinese environment. In terms of speed of learning, comprehension, and expression, you'll leap and bound over people majoring in Chinese in school.

 

As for learning to read (and to write using a computer) -- do it. But learning to write with a pen or pencil? Beyond the basics I don¡¯t see this as much more than cultural enrichment. It¡¯s not going to help you function any better in 99.99% of situations, but it will absorb an unbelievable amount of your time. I¡¯d focus on (1) interaction in spoken language and (2) reading ¨C better returns on your investment of time.

[warpedbored]

IMO This is the best and most realistic advice in the whole thread. Well said Mike.

Well first I must apologize - because I'm old, and have spent considerable time both teaching at the college level and running a business in Washington D.C. Both of these jobs - required interfacing with and interviewing young college students as well as doing significant numbers of interviews. That mixed with my age - has left me somewhat inpatient when having these kind of discussions.

 

My new son - has hell to pay when selecting a major or a college when the time arrives.

 

Ok, as other have suggested, figure out what the trends, needs, and demands of various career fields are is a good starting point. But please do it with a touch of realism.

 

I notice the career field you are now gaining education in has a starting salary of @ $30K, and even though you are training for a new career field - you don't think it appropriate or sufficent salary for you. What has changed since you first started this line of education? Did they suddenly drop the starting salaries for workers in the field...I think not! What I'm saying here is when you look at a career field - and you look at the entry level pay scale - it all plays in the evaluation of whether or not you want to be in that career field.

 

Tempering expectations! Do you expect to start a new career field and make $55K a year? If you do - the advice others gave you - will let you know how you have to educate yourself to make that kind of money. Temper your expectations with reality.

 

One other thing I would say - is that you have a slightly unrealistic view of how "proficient" you might become if you study Mandarin for three years - in any Asian Studies course(s). First, after having studied Mandarin - in China for 18 months - at a University - I suspect you could be minimally proficient in speaking and reading - but not writing! I equate my 18 months of study - to learning to speak like a 2 or 3 year old native speaker. My writing ability is non-existent. Before you counter with how hard you will work and how clever you are - we had about 6000 foreigners at the school I went to - and after 3 or 4 years - none of them were at a level in which they could work in a strictly "Chinese" work environment. There are exceptions - and some of the folks on this site do work and interact quite well in China --- but it's usually not based on their ability to Read , Write (Simplified), and speak Mandarin. So again, I would investigate the efficacy of this "dream" with what is in fact, being done by other - clever people.

 

Ok, I will assume since you say you are an "Automotive Designer" - that you have an engineering degree. I also assume as others have suggested that lay-offs and the future is grim in this industry - at least in Detroit. If you have an engineering degree - why not re-engage that body of knowlege and move to an engineering industry that is not facing some of these hurdles - i.e. Environment, Energy, Electrical, Nuclear, Computer/Information. There may be some synergy in your past work experience and education to help move up the entry level pay scale as you re-enter the market.

 

If you don't separate yourself from the masses (those that took sociology, history, psych,education,language,marine biology etc etc - Apologies to all who took these as majors) you will have difficulties with entry level pay scales as well as the softer the job requirements the more the competition for the jobs. Engineering, Accounting, Science, Law, Medical, MBA's all seem to be doing better than average - especially if you can bring some past experience and adjunct language skills to the mix. The other thing - I would suggest to seperate yourself is to not stop the education process until you have at least a masters degree - preferrably a PHD. The salary will follow the achievements!