How best to help people, "officially", with no college.
May 1, 2013 12:03 PM Subscribe
So after spending a few years unemployed, and starting my own business, I'm exploring my options for creating my next chapter. Help me figure out a path. ObDifficulty: I have no undergrad degree.
One of the things that I'm generally known to be good at (and that excites me) is helping people delve into their lives, their habits and assumptions and what makes them tick (it is the cornerstone of my freelance business, which I won't link to here but is available from my profile). I've always been the shoulder-to-cry-on, the advice giver, the person who helps with new perspective. This is especially true when it comes to relationship and mindfulness issues.
A quick glance at my MeFi profile will find many response to relationship stuff. This is not to say that "i always give great advice and i'm always right", but that it is something that I have a knack for in my life and seems to energize me.
So now I'm maybe interested in turning it into something I can get paid to do.
I know there are many different paths when it comes to human behavior and working with clients and such. LCSW, Psychology, Psychiatry, Life Coach, and I'm trying to figure out what would be a useful path for me.
The challenge is, I never went to college, and it seems like many licensing programs assume or require an undergraduate education. If possible i'd like to avoid spending the next 8 years in school in order to practice a more well-informed and well-educated version of what I'm doing now for free (or getting paid to do).
So I guess my question is, what are my options, especially as someone without an undergraduate education, to be able to start to move into this field. I'm not particularly interested in the medical aspects (though neuroplasticity and how the brain works are also areas that fascinate me).
Obviously, there are more snowflakey details that I'm happy to add downthread or via MeMail. I'm in Atlanta if that makes a difference.
One of the things that I'm generally known to be good at (and that excites me) is helping people delve into their lives, their habits and assumptions and what makes them tick (it is the cornerstone of my freelance business, which I won't link to here but is available from my profile). I've always been the shoulder-to-cry-on, the advice giver, the person who helps with new perspective. This is especially true when it comes to relationship and mindfulness issues.
A quick glance at my MeFi profile will find many response to relationship stuff. This is not to say that "i always give great advice and i'm always right", but that it is something that I have a knack for in my life and seems to energize me.
So now I'm maybe interested in turning it into something I can get paid to do.
I know there are many different paths when it comes to human behavior and working with clients and such. LCSW, Psychology, Psychiatry, Life Coach, and I'm trying to figure out what would be a useful path for me.
The challenge is, I never went to college, and it seems like many licensing programs assume or require an undergraduate education. If possible i'd like to avoid spending the next 8 years in school in order to practice a more well-informed and well-educated version of what I'm doing now for free (or getting paid to do).
So I guess my question is, what are my options, especially as someone without an undergraduate education, to be able to start to move into this field. I'm not particularly interested in the medical aspects (though neuroplasticity and how the brain works are also areas that fascinate me).
Obviously, there are more snowflakey details that I'm happy to add downthread or via MeMail. I'm in Atlanta if that makes a difference.
There's absolutely nothing that says that you can't call yourself a counselor, if that's what you want to do. You just can't claim to have accreditation or certifications you don't have.
Really, all you need is a good webpage and place to practice. Get an office in Decatur, practice some Woo and you can attract clients and charge the earth.
How do you want to run it? Perhaps charge $40 per 50 min session for brainstorming? Do you want to just talk to people, or do you want to do concrete things to help them? (Resume writing, roleplaying job interviews, wardrobe counseling, organizing?)
Write up a menu of things you might be interested in doing, then attach pricing to each item. Then start marketing yourself.
Get in with the crowd at Phoenix and Dragon, offer to do workshops. Or see if you can do some work out of their space.
Roswell United Methodist Church has a Job Networking Ministry, perhaps you can do something with folks there.
There are tons of people out there with no credentials who have become Gurus of sorts. Perhaps you can write a book? Then self-publish and hawk it to potential clients.
My dad is an LCSW and one thing I'd caution is that you need to know if someone's problem is over your head. You can certainly help people with life's daily issues, but you wouldn't be qualified to help someone with real mental illness. How would you deal with that?
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:21 PM on May 1, 2013
Really, all you need is a good webpage and place to practice. Get an office in Decatur, practice some Woo and you can attract clients and charge the earth.
How do you want to run it? Perhaps charge $40 per 50 min session for brainstorming? Do you want to just talk to people, or do you want to do concrete things to help them? (Resume writing, roleplaying job interviews, wardrobe counseling, organizing?)
Write up a menu of things you might be interested in doing, then attach pricing to each item. Then start marketing yourself.
Get in with the crowd at Phoenix and Dragon, offer to do workshops. Or see if you can do some work out of their space.
Roswell United Methodist Church has a Job Networking Ministry, perhaps you can do something with folks there.
There are tons of people out there with no credentials who have become Gurus of sorts. Perhaps you can write a book? Then self-publish and hawk it to potential clients.
My dad is an LCSW and one thing I'd caution is that you need to know if someone's problem is over your head. You can certainly help people with life's daily issues, but you wouldn't be qualified to help someone with real mental illness. How would you deal with that?
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:21 PM on May 1, 2013
Response by poster: Er... To be clear before the thread starts rolling, I am interested in educating myself on 'proper procedure' and the history and ethical behavior and such.
And I have a good handle on marketing (it was my profession before this last few years). I'm more interested in going about this in a more 'official' manner, with integrity.
posted by softlord at 12:27 PM on May 1, 2013
And I have a good handle on marketing (it was my profession before this last few years). I'm more interested in going about this in a more 'official' manner, with integrity.
posted by softlord at 12:27 PM on May 1, 2013
Just to clarify-- you are asking for what kind of "official"/"licensed" jobs there are helping people, but without a college degree, right?
posted by deanc at 12:36 PM on May 1, 2013
posted by deanc at 12:36 PM on May 1, 2013
Response by poster: I guess what I'm asking is: What are my options to turn this interest and skill into a profession, especially from the perspective of someone who can't just jump into a graduate program because i don't have an undergratuate degree.
Not looking for shortcuts, just options.
posted by softlord at 12:42 PM on May 1, 2013
Not looking for shortcuts, just options.
posted by softlord at 12:42 PM on May 1, 2013
What are you doing for work now? Can you volunteer anywhere? If, say, you were working or volunteering at a homeless shelter or a community organization for new immigrants or something, they would provide you with a certain amount of training and they would be able to direct you when you get in over your head.
posted by mskyle at 12:58 PM on May 1, 2013
posted by mskyle at 12:58 PM on May 1, 2013
I suppose you can be a "life-coach". There appear to be all sorts of programs out there, but frankly, I think that if you possess good common sense, that you can skip paying all sorts of money for that.
Perhaps start off with an AA in Psychology? You can do this at Georgia Perimeter College. It's pretty inexpensive and you can do on campus or on-line courses. Another option would be to do an RN program, then transfer to do work as a Psychiatric RN.
To my knowledge a degree in Social Work, with a certification in Licensed Clinical Social Work or Marriage and Family Counseling, would answer. It wouldn't take 8 years, it may take 4 at a traditional university.
You can get a certification in Subtance Abuse Counseling in a weekend program at Mercer University and it will take 8 months.
The other route is just be a life coach, and take random seminars as your interests dictate.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:59 PM on May 1, 2013
Perhaps start off with an AA in Psychology? You can do this at Georgia Perimeter College. It's pretty inexpensive and you can do on campus or on-line courses. Another option would be to do an RN program, then transfer to do work as a Psychiatric RN.
To my knowledge a degree in Social Work, with a certification in Licensed Clinical Social Work or Marriage and Family Counseling, would answer. It wouldn't take 8 years, it may take 4 at a traditional university.
You can get a certification in Subtance Abuse Counseling in a weekend program at Mercer University and it will take 8 months.
The other route is just be a life coach, and take random seminars as your interests dictate.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:59 PM on May 1, 2013
How about becoming an ordained priest/priestess of some church group...you could do spiritual counseling or advising.
posted by cairnoflore at 1:04 PM on May 1, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by cairnoflore at 1:04 PM on May 1, 2013 [1 favorite]
If possible i'd like to avoid spending the next 8 years in school in order to practice a more well-informed and well-educated version of what I'm doing now for free (or getting paid to do).
There's a market question here. How much are people paying licensed professionals to get their educated, informed opinions? That would seem to be a relatively easy benchmark to begin with. Next, is there an amount, presumably less, that people would be willing to pay an amateur to get your uneducated, uninformed opinion? If so, is that an amount you can live on?
You mention your AskMe participation. People pay five dollars for lifetime membership here. In exchange, they can ask one question per week on any subject and get responses that are somewhat screened (by membership fee and moderation), from other members of varying expertise. You might also look at the now-defunct Google Answers. And compare various community resources, including other websites but not limited to the Internet, where people can go for unscreened chit-chat advice that is probably coming, often, from people at least as smart as yourself. These are your (proposed) competition.
I have a bias about your question, which is that I'm an attorney. I'm trained and licensed to counsel people, and to represent them. I would probably have "liked" to skip a bunch of years of school, too. In fact, when I finally decided to buckle-down and get my law degree, I didn't yet have my undergraduate and I wasn't enrolled. Like you, I was "good at" giving people advice, helping to solve problems, etc. (It turns out that's not especially rare.) Back then I'd have loved to skip all the school and work and just go into business. What I learned over the next few years is that there's actually a lot of substance behind that education and training. It's not just hoop-jumping.
Except for "life coach," which is a phrase I have trouble typing without using quotation marks, you listed several occupations that require licensing. Think about why that might be. You do seem to be looking for a shortcut. I'm not trying to knock you down: You say you want to proceed with integrity, and I credit that. I believe you genuinely want to help people, and that you think you have a natural inclination in that regard. But I would look really, really closely at saying, "Here are some professions that would fit me well, but they require a lot of time and effort to get into. I don't really want to do all that." Is that somebody you'd buy life-coaching from?
posted by cribcage at 1:16 PM on May 1, 2013 [14 favorites]
There's a market question here. How much are people paying licensed professionals to get their educated, informed opinions? That would seem to be a relatively easy benchmark to begin with. Next, is there an amount, presumably less, that people would be willing to pay an amateur to get your uneducated, uninformed opinion? If so, is that an amount you can live on?
You mention your AskMe participation. People pay five dollars for lifetime membership here. In exchange, they can ask one question per week on any subject and get responses that are somewhat screened (by membership fee and moderation), from other members of varying expertise. You might also look at the now-defunct Google Answers. And compare various community resources, including other websites but not limited to the Internet, where people can go for unscreened chit-chat advice that is probably coming, often, from people at least as smart as yourself. These are your (proposed) competition.
I have a bias about your question, which is that I'm an attorney. I'm trained and licensed to counsel people, and to represent them. I would probably have "liked" to skip a bunch of years of school, too. In fact, when I finally decided to buckle-down and get my law degree, I didn't yet have my undergraduate and I wasn't enrolled. Like you, I was "good at" giving people advice, helping to solve problems, etc. (It turns out that's not especially rare.) Back then I'd have loved to skip all the school and work and just go into business. What I learned over the next few years is that there's actually a lot of substance behind that education and training. It's not just hoop-jumping.
Except for "life coach," which is a phrase I have trouble typing without using quotation marks, you listed several occupations that require licensing. Think about why that might be. You do seem to be looking for a shortcut. I'm not trying to knock you down: You say you want to proceed with integrity, and I credit that. I believe you genuinely want to help people, and that you think you have a natural inclination in that regard. But I would look really, really closely at saying, "Here are some professions that would fit me well, but they require a lot of time and effort to get into. I don't really want to do all that." Is that somebody you'd buy life-coaching from?
posted by cribcage at 1:16 PM on May 1, 2013 [14 favorites]
Best answer: You could try to get a bachelors degree from somewhere, anywhere, as fast as possible. Especially a place that allows you to use "life experience" and credits from 10 years ago toward the degree. You'd probably get out in about two years with a degree in *something*. Then you could find a Masters program in social work or counseling and do that in two years. So, four years until you're all official.
posted by carolinaherrera at 1:17 PM on May 1, 2013
posted by carolinaherrera at 1:17 PM on May 1, 2013
Best answer: The BSW at GSU looks like a great place to start. If you are nervous about going back to school, starting at Georgia Perimeter and transferring may be a better plan.
posted by hydropsyche at 1:50 PM on May 1, 2013
posted by hydropsyche at 1:50 PM on May 1, 2013
What you can do is look for entry level work in your local mental hospital, woman's shelter, or assisted living centers. There are many entry level jobs that involve supporting people in an empathetic way without advanced training but unfortunately the pay is very low. If you want to be paid well for supporting others you need to get the training to make sure you're doing it well, in a way that is truly beneficial for the people you assist. I personally think people should be paid WELL to work as support staff with struggling people but this is simply not how our culture values supportive people right now.
You could also get a two year degree in occupational or physical therapy which would allow you to do a lot of supportive work with people working on recovering from or coping with disability or illness and work as an assistant. The pay is much better than minimum wage support staff work.
Also, if you want to work as a fitness instructor there might be much shorter training programs and you could incorporate teaching healthy lifestyle into your practice. You could get certified as a yoga instructor and teach personal yoga classes designed to meet a persons life goals. I would suggest you get certified in something real, as in a service you are trained to provide accurately and well at- and use your life experience in your practice- rather than being a lifecoach that charges people money to assume you know more about their life than they do without the training to know if your advice is useful or not.
People tend to lean on me as well and think I have good advice simply because I'm the sort of person who will listen and say something... people frequently mistake someone caring about them and saying something that sounds like good advice for actual factually correct best course of action advice. Much of my advice is probably terrible and I will only offer it to people AS a peer- someone who may or may not know anything useful and just offering a suggestion for consideration. This is really the only thing you should do with your advice unless you get proper training to make a career out of a helping personality without making things worse for people. Life coaches can get away with being very dominating characters in other peoples lives, often to the detriment of those paying for the services. (Though the same can happen with trained professionals as well. The human ego is difficult to tame.)
posted by xarnop at 2:33 PM on May 1, 2013 [2 favorites]
You could also get a two year degree in occupational or physical therapy which would allow you to do a lot of supportive work with people working on recovering from or coping with disability or illness and work as an assistant. The pay is much better than minimum wage support staff work.
Also, if you want to work as a fitness instructor there might be much shorter training programs and you could incorporate teaching healthy lifestyle into your practice. You could get certified as a yoga instructor and teach personal yoga classes designed to meet a persons life goals. I would suggest you get certified in something real, as in a service you are trained to provide accurately and well at- and use your life experience in your practice- rather than being a lifecoach that charges people money to assume you know more about their life than they do without the training to know if your advice is useful or not.
People tend to lean on me as well and think I have good advice simply because I'm the sort of person who will listen and say something... people frequently mistake someone caring about them and saying something that sounds like good advice for actual factually correct best course of action advice. Much of my advice is probably terrible and I will only offer it to people AS a peer- someone who may or may not know anything useful and just offering a suggestion for consideration. This is really the only thing you should do with your advice unless you get proper training to make a career out of a helping personality without making things worse for people. Life coaches can get away with being very dominating characters in other peoples lives, often to the detriment of those paying for the services. (Though the same can happen with trained professionals as well. The human ego is difficult to tame.)
posted by xarnop at 2:33 PM on May 1, 2013 [2 favorites]
Put up dozens of signs all over your city with your telephone #, letting people know that they can call you to talk about anything on their mind - you are a life problem solver. Calls will come in. Start charging when you're at a certain threshold.
If you have cash to invest, put up a well placed billboard advertising the same message. Even more calls will come in. There are several ways to charge. A few people have already done this, with what news reports indicate, good results for some.
posted by Kruger5 at 5:29 PM on May 1, 2013
If you have cash to invest, put up a well placed billboard advertising the same message. Even more calls will come in. There are several ways to charge. A few people have already done this, with what news reports indicate, good results for some.
posted by Kruger5 at 5:29 PM on May 1, 2013
Best answer: A friend of mine without a college degree got a job some years ago as a caseworker in a community organization helping people with HIV or AIDS. She did well, she has a natural knack for helping people, and she worked her way up in the organization while slowly working on a bachelor's degree and raising two kids. She eventually got an MSW.
So, if were you, I would look for a community organization that helps people I think I'd be good with. If they don't have any openings, volunteer. For my friend, working with that population was pretty obvious, she was a recovering addict who had lost a lot of friends to AIDS.
Another friend worked her way up in a similar fashion; her clients are all adults with developmental disabilities, she loves them, they love her.
Neither of my friends has ever made a lot of money, but they live comfortably and enjoy the intrinsic rewards that come from helping people.
posted by mareli at 6:49 PM on May 1, 2013
So, if were you, I would look for a community organization that helps people I think I'd be good with. If they don't have any openings, volunteer. For my friend, working with that population was pretty obvious, she was a recovering addict who had lost a lot of friends to AIDS.
Another friend worked her way up in a similar fashion; her clients are all adults with developmental disabilities, she loves them, they love her.
Neither of my friends has ever made a lot of money, but they live comfortably and enjoy the intrinsic rewards that come from helping people.
posted by mareli at 6:49 PM on May 1, 2013
Best answer: I am going to guess OP might not prefer to work with the populations typically served by caseworkers (or similar) with no or two-year qualifications, i.e., people with addictions or other mental illness; people without homes; people in prison; people who are not covered by insurance companies... many times, those are the same people. (But correct me if I'm wrong, OP.)
I agree with xarnop; do something practical that takes 2-3 years max. Remember that there are many ways of helping people. You can lend an ear while serving someone a beautiful dish you've prepared, or a killer bloody mary, or while finding them the perfect top, or rubbing the knots out of their back, or showing them how to do a sun salutation, or of course, while doing their hair, or their books. (Accountants and financial planners deal with very personal aspects of people's lives.)
In terms of helping people sort out their lives, there's a reason at least three (in most places) 'helping type' professional bodies trip over themselves to keep their respective scopes of practice and ethics very clear, and their members accountable (to the people not helped by caseworkers). Not saying there's no overlap, or that mistakes don't get made. But they're watched. It really is a huge responsibility. You're probably safe betting the friends who talk to you are ok. You have no idea what kind of vulnerability or pain strangers hide.
posted by nelljie at 7:06 PM on May 1, 2013 [3 favorites]
I agree with xarnop; do something practical that takes 2-3 years max. Remember that there are many ways of helping people. You can lend an ear while serving someone a beautiful dish you've prepared, or a killer bloody mary, or while finding them the perfect top, or rubbing the knots out of their back, or showing them how to do a sun salutation, or of course, while doing their hair, or their books. (Accountants and financial planners deal with very personal aspects of people's lives.)
In terms of helping people sort out their lives, there's a reason at least three (in most places) 'helping type' professional bodies trip over themselves to keep their respective scopes of practice and ethics very clear, and their members accountable (to the people not helped by caseworkers). Not saying there's no overlap, or that mistakes don't get made. But they're watched. It really is a huge responsibility. You're probably safe betting the friends who talk to you are ok. You have no idea what kind of vulnerability or pain strangers hide.
posted by nelljie at 7:06 PM on May 1, 2013 [3 favorites]
I've got an idea that may seem to come out of left field, but it's worth considering: hypnotist. In most states you can get certified pretty easily, and even if you're not certified you can still hang up a shingle. (It's not new-agey nonsense, either. I've tried it, and it's very real, useful stuff.) You could use your hypnosis to help people stop smoking, build confidence, etc., and use your other skills to talk them through their problems.
By contrast, becoming a psychiatrist or psychologist requires lots and lots of schooling, and from things she's said I know that my own (excellent) therapist sometimes struggles to make a living at it. That's something you should pursue if you have a real passion for it, but you should also know that it's not guaranteed that after you do all those years of schooling you're gonna be making the big bucks.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 7:55 PM on May 1, 2013
By contrast, becoming a psychiatrist or psychologist requires lots and lots of schooling, and from things she's said I know that my own (excellent) therapist sometimes struggles to make a living at it. That's something you should pursue if you have a real passion for it, but you should also know that it's not guaranteed that after you do all those years of schooling you're gonna be making the big bucks.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 7:55 PM on May 1, 2013
I just realized my previous link didn't work. Here is the GSU BSW.
I'll also recommend a place to volunteer that's just around the corner from GSU and might be up your alley: Central Outreach and Advocacy Center. Great people doing great things and always looking for volunteers. They also take social work interns from GSU.
posted by hydropsyche at 5:56 AM on May 2, 2013
I'll also recommend a place to volunteer that's just around the corner from GSU and might be up your alley: Central Outreach and Advocacy Center. Great people doing great things and always looking for volunteers. They also take social work interns from GSU.
posted by hydropsyche at 5:56 AM on May 2, 2013
This thread is closed to new comments.
Lastly, concentrate on a niche. Something that folks find painful enough to hire professional help on, such as relationships and/or career, so that you stand out from the crowd.
posted by ldthomps at 12:20 PM on May 1, 2013