1. Cloak & Scythe. 2 ...? 3. Profit!

March 2, 2007 1:27 AM

Is there a big list (with general descriptions, optional) of jobs in the death industry?

I'm coming up on year 6 of my job intended to be interim, and Dead Like Me has me somewhat inspired. I'd like something not involved with scalpels/fluids, but a list of mostly everything would be spiffy, regardless. And not this list.

posted by vanoakenfold to Work & Money (9 answers total)

have you looked into viatical settlement brokerage? no scalpels or fluids, just peddling the life insurance policies of doomed wretches to investors for handsome commissions while the wretches are still alive!
posted by bruce at 2:15 AM on March 2, 2007 [1 favorite]

If he doesn't show up in this thread , email ColdChef.
posted by sourwookie at 4:33 AM on March 2, 2007

Florists make huge money on funerals.
posted by Thorzdad at 5:03 AM on March 2, 2007

Please don't go into an industry because of what you see on TV. The death industry and Hollywood fantasy TV are two completely different worlds.
posted by echolex at 6:35 AM on March 2, 2007

Response by poster: I would have to die first to do what is on Dead Like Me =P
posted by vanoakenfold at 6:42 AM on March 2, 2007

You could work/volunteer for an OPO (Organ Procurment Organization).
posted by carmen at 6:44 AM on March 2, 2007

One step removed from scalpels and fluids — a friend was recently offered pretty good money to work as a cosmetologist in a funeral home. No enbalming, no autopsy...ing, just hair and makeup work on the deceased. The offer fell through at the last minute, but apparently it would have paid much better than the spa and salon jobs she was pursuing.

The only catch is, you'd need the same training and licensure as a cosmetologist for living people — depending on the state you're in, that could mean a lot of classes or a hefty fee.

But yeah — please don't get a job based on what it looks like on TV.
posted by nebulawindphone at 8:20 AM on March 2, 2007

Maybe you could explain what it is about Dead Like Me that has you inspired? Picking up post-its from Mandy Patinkin and taking souls from people who are about to die doesn't exactly seem to indicate a certain career path.
posted by chrominance at 12:08 PM on March 2, 2007

Response by poster: It's the death industry in general for what I'm looking at, not a specific duty other than the noted skills notably absent. There are some people who "couldn't do that for a living" (no pun intended) in regard to being around dead people and the mourning, (but that applies to just about any career field I bet), but I think I could do something in that spectrum, minus the squishy mess.

I could totally be a repear like on the show and enjoy it, but there's really nothing like that at all, I wouldn't safely wager. I wondered if there was a giant list of things perhaps that suited my particular ease with being around such matters. It's like wanting to be a medical doctor of something when there's a thousand kinds to pick from yet having the general "doctor" hankering. I was moreso curious if there were perhaps also at least more than 10 or 20 different death-related jobs out there.
posted by vanoakenfold at 11:58 AM on March 3, 2007