Help me brainstorm ideas for a part time, tech-ish job
February 9, 2015 12:54 PM Subscribe
Quick summary: I was an electrical engineer for a bunch of years, got burned out on the corporate world, and became a massage therapist. I really like it but after nine months of sussing out how it all works, what I'm good at, and what I'd like to do, it's going to be a multi-year task to get the job and income I am looking for. So -
I am looking for a part time job. My own brainstorming comes up with jobs that aren't quite applicable to me - IT person at the local school, solar panel installer, etc. When I do job searches online I really only come up with full time corporate jobs.
I was a test engineer for semiconductor companies. Stuff I know:
Lot of statistical knowledge - Skills needed in the context of manufacturing a bazillion computer ships and making sure they're all going to work.
Programming - I'm not a developer (so no programming gigs specifically) but the code for my test programs was done in C++, so I have basic familiarity. Learning new stuff would be fairly easy and would just take time.
Electrical stuff: Soldering, component sourcing, circuit board schematic capture, a little bit of circuit design.
I live in the bay area. Doesn't need to pay well (let's be realistic). Full time but temporary is also an option (I've looked into temporary contract work doing what I used to do but it's not a common setup in that industry, sadly). My skills don't have to be applicable either. Just looking for ideas.
I am looking for a part time job. My own brainstorming comes up with jobs that aren't quite applicable to me - IT person at the local school, solar panel installer, etc. When I do job searches online I really only come up with full time corporate jobs.
I was a test engineer for semiconductor companies. Stuff I know:
Lot of statistical knowledge - Skills needed in the context of manufacturing a bazillion computer ships and making sure they're all going to work.
Programming - I'm not a developer (so no programming gigs specifically) but the code for my test programs was done in C++, so I have basic familiarity. Learning new stuff would be fairly easy and would just take time.
Electrical stuff: Soldering, component sourcing, circuit board schematic capture, a little bit of circuit design.
I live in the bay area. Doesn't need to pay well (let's be realistic). Full time but temporary is also an option (I've looked into temporary contract work doing what I used to do but it's not a common setup in that industry, sadly). My skills don't have to be applicable either. Just looking for ideas.
It's below your level of schooling but can you look into getting ticketed as an electrician? Your high level knowledge would put you ahead of the pack. You can charge a decent hourly rate.
posted by saradarlin at 1:24 PM on February 9, 2015
posted by saradarlin at 1:24 PM on February 9, 2015
Also you could specialize in installing electric vehicle charging stations in homes. There's a big demand here (peninsula) and not many qualified contractors (ours friend's garage burned down do to a poor tesla charger install).
posted by saradarlin at 1:26 PM on February 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by saradarlin at 1:26 PM on February 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
You could probably get hired on as a tech for a custom electronics integrator doing installation and configuration of home automation systems. No special license required (though getting CEDIA certified would make you more marketable) and the companies are typically small operations that would be open to negotiation on hours.
posted by contraption at 1:27 PM on February 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by contraption at 1:27 PM on February 9, 2015 [1 favorite]
My own brainstorming comes up with jobs that aren't quite applicable to me - IT person at the local school
I was an embedded systems programmer. Now I'm the IT person at a local school, and loving it. Just sayin'.
posted by flabdablet at 10:54 AM on February 10, 2015
I was an embedded systems programmer. Now I'm the IT person at a local school, and loving it. Just sayin'.
posted by flabdablet at 10:54 AM on February 10, 2015
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High school/ community college math/ stats instructor?
posted by woodman at 1:17 PM on February 9, 2015