I would like some words of wisdom, please.

[thelmalu99]

WOW, therapeutic riding? Zippy, that sounds wonderful!

You know, you have something very important on your side--youth. This has already been said, but I have to repeat it-you're free as a bird right now. You can do whatever you want, and you should take advantage of that. Believe me, the older you get, the harder it becomes. I'm single and still fairly young, but I am in my thirties, and have been considering moving out of NY for some time. It may seem funny that at 31 I am more reluctant to make a move than when I was 22, but it's true.

I say definitely do it! Now is the time!

PS-I have friends in Shalotte, NC, so when I'm in the neighborhood, I'll give ya a buzz.

[RachelJ]

As one who has enjoyed the writings of Miss Sophie Buns I want to put my vote in for putting her to work authoring a few great works of literature. You will then be free to pursue other interests.

[aly]

Tonya - Follow your heart. It can't go wrong

[lizbud]

Hi Zippy-cat,

Just wanted to say, I believe you will make
the right choices for yourself when the time
comes.. My daughter was in a similar situation
after college graduation. She still was not quite
sure which direction to start out in.She went
first into Technical Writing for an engineering
firm did well, made friends(and good money), and
later went to work as a Paralegal(also pays well).
Not till several years after college did she settle on Law & although the work is demanding,
she clearly loves it. Point of my rambling on is;
don't be hesitant to try a field for awhile and
then move on to something else later if you
want. You clearly have a writing talent & that
is an asset in any field. Good Luck... Liz.

[purrley]

Follow that Dream Zippy - do it, do it, do it, - Don't let time pass you by without doing what you've always wanted - time passes so very fast - believe me I know and ya can't go back as we all know!!!

[zippy-kat]

I keep reading this post over and over and re-reading some of the emails sent to me... I'm so stressed, I'm in tears! lol

IBM is interviewing for Tech. writers this Thursday...I'm suppose to go to an info session on Wed.--if the recruiters 'like' me there, they'll sign me up to interview. Pro: Might get my foot in the door. Con:The position is in San Jose, CA. Was really wanting to go east--not west. Don't know if there are other positions (in other states) open...never hurts to ask though.

I guess if this doesn't work out, I'll interview with some communications/advertising companies--it's not really what I wanted to start out in but...? (However, I once wrote a 5 page paper centered around the 'oscar meyer baloney song'--lol--that got some great *LaUgHs* (and an A) from the prof! lol And I once wrote a science paper on cooties... Hey, the prof asked for a paper on childhood diseases...I gave him one...he gave me extra credit and a 'do-it-again' lol)

Man it's *ruff* when your heart screams one thing and your pocket book another...lol

(I know, I know...welcome to the *REAL* world...lol)

[Edwina's Secretary]

Never turn down an interview. You can always say "no" if offered the job. Interviews are great practice in "selling yourself." Let me know if you would like any tips.

[NoahsMommy]

Tonya!

Do it!! (both) Go to your interview and check it out. Going to school at night, working full time and being married, is wonderful, BUT is so, so tiring! I would have loved to gone to full-time and really focused on school, but, that's life. My hubby is really supportive and is willing to move to Berkeley so that I can go to school where I want, I am lucky/blessed for that...

Do what you feel is right, you want to use your time as wisely as possible. I think that is a really cool major/career. I have a lot of interest in that field too, it resquires a lot of psych classes (totally my thing). You should look at your transcript to see if any of your classes will transfer, I bet they will, then it can take you a shorter amount of time.

Re: money, are there any scholarship or grants you can apply for?

This is so cool! I'm going to go home and email you some more!!

[zippy-kat]

Originally posted by NoahsMommy
You should look at your transcript to see if any of your classes will transfer, I bet they will, then it can take you a shorter amount of time.

I have lots of pysch. classes as it was my major before english. But I always thought that once you finished one bach. degree, you were startin' from scratch if you started another Dunno...

[michelene]

Do you know, or can you find someone who actually does therapeutic riding for a living? Can you go and shadow them, and then interview them for information about what a typical day is like, how long it takes to get established, how they got there (education and experience), and what recommendations they would have? Can you work as an assistant while you study? Where are the jobs located? You said you think you would really love doing it, but it would be a good idea to talk to a current practitioner and see if you could shadow, intern, assist, before you had to commit to moving and coming up with tuition.

You may find out that you really don't need a four-year university degree in the subject area to start doing what you want to do. You may (or may not) learn that the specialized degree gets the holder more career mobility and quicker advancement. The point is, you will get the story from someone who is there doing it, and not just a college counselor or catalog. Information interviewing will save you much time, money, speculation, and, I hope, disappointment.

It sure would have saved me lots of what-ifs and pushed me to work harder in my profession.

By all means attend the information session about IBM. The job for which they are hiring may be in San Jose, but they are a multi-national (Fortune 500) corporation. Even if technical writing is not your dream, you can learn something about the company, and you can get some interviewing experience.

I hope something turns up for you that challenges your best talents, builds the skills your want, and rewards you beyond your dreams.