Leeds Ram

See, you're already a natural diplomat ?

Thanks for the advice david is much appreciated ? You are right the PhD doesn't grant me some of those things. I'm hoping my experience of teaching not just for the uni but outside organisations can help with convincing ppl i am reliable, punctual, and can get along well with others in a work environment. But yes, if i had not done any work and merely focused on the thesis this would obviously be a barrier especially given the solitary nature of PhD study. 

I do remember Joe. I believe he now works in an enrollment office at the Uni of Derby as we sometimes chat on twitter, if that is the same joe i am thinking of at least. 

I'll definitely look at career advice ? I do think university can be helpful, whether it was a wise choice made doing a PhD i guess time will tell. I made the decision to do my PhD right after my dad and grandad passed away, I basically finished my MA dissertation quickly post funeral and whacked in proposals within 2 months of that so it was perhaps a rushed decision to say the least.  It's been a tough 4 years (even if some aspects I have loved) and there is a large part of me that thinks i should have gotten onto the employment ladder as soon as i left my MA. My gf studies architecture at Edinburgh so she's very well placed for a good career at least so perhaps where a course specifically directs you into a field of work it is perhaps at its strongest for direction. Subjects such as politics or history leave you twisting in the wind somewhat post graduation. 
 
 

Had to feel sorry for the FGR fans to travel and see that. They didn't really put up any sort of fight and we won comfortably whilst being in 3rd gear. We looked like we stepped it up once we got the third, almost as if suddenly we found some freedom and confidence that had previously been lacking. We became hungry, maintained a good tempo on the ball whilst pressing well off it. When Knight came on he immediately showed why he doesn't belong in this division with a fantastic piece of play to set up McGoldrick. McGoldrick is another one who doesn't belong in this division... not just the goals but the nonchalance and skill that defines his play is a joy to watch. 
Whilst I'm still not convinced on Warne going 12 unbeaten is an excellent bit of form. We're sitting in the playoffs which is realistically the best we can hope for this season. In the playoffs I'd fancy our chances against anyone really as no-one except Plymouth have really stood out as outclassing us this season. But that's a long way off just yet. 

Thanks for the advice david is much appreciated ? You are right the PhD doesn't grant me some of those things. I'm hoping my experience of teaching not just for the uni but outside organisations can help with convincing ppl i am reliable, punctual, and can get along well with others in a work environment. But yes, if i had not done any work and merely focused on the thesis this would obviously be a barrier especially given the solitary nature of PhD study. 

I do remember Joe. I believe he now works in an enrollment office at the Uni of Derby as we sometimes chat on twitter, if that is the same joe i am thinking of at least. 

I'll definitely look at career advice ? I do think university can be helpful, whether it was a wise choice made doing a PhD i guess time will tell. I made the decision to do my PhD right after my dad and grandad passed away, I basically finished my MA dissertation quickly post funeral and whacked in proposals within 2 months of that so it was perhaps a rushed decision to say the least.  It's been a tough 4 years (even if some aspects I have loved) and there is a large part of me that thinks i should have gotten onto the employment ladder as soon as i left my MA. My gf studies architecture at Edinburgh so she's very well placed for a good career at least so perhaps where a course specifically directs you into a field of work it is perhaps at its strongest for direction. Subjects such as politics or history leave you twisting in the wind somewhat post graduation. 
 
 

Had to feel sorry for the FGR fans to travel and see that. They didn't really put up any sort of fight and we won comfortably whilst being in 3rd gear. We looked like we stepped it up once we got the third, almost as if suddenly we found some freedom and confidence that had previously been lacking. We became hungry, maintained a good tempo on the ball whilst pressing well off it. When Knight came on he immediately showed why he doesn't belong in this division with a fantastic piece of play to set up McGoldrick. McGoldrick is another one who doesn't belong in this division... not just the goals but the nonchalance and skill that defines his play is a joy to watch. 
Whilst I'm still not convinced on Warne going 12 unbeaten is an excellent bit of form. We're sitting in the playoffs which is realistically the best we can hope for this season. In the playoffs I'd fancy our chances against anyone really as no-one except Plymouth have really stood out as outclassing us this season. But that's a long way off just yet. 

Someone mentioned GCHQ already, thats a possible for sure.
Look at the Foreign Office. 
Have a look at global charities. Is there a cause you are passionate about? Doesn't need to be one of the traditional British Charities either. I know someone who works for a Lebanese charity in the UK for instance.
The United Nations. They have locations all across the globe. Once you are in it's a great way to travel and see the world. A friend of my wife's works for the UN in Kenya and they have a wonderful lifestyle.
Academia - don't know how feasible this is, but maybe an academia job is a possibility, but in a different country could the pay be better?
If all else fails, take some time out to travel with your GF. I know it feels like you don't have time and you need to sort something out, but really 29 is no age. If you take a year to figure it all out on a working holiday it will be worth it. And you'll probably never have a better opportunity to do it either.
 

All to common this is. 
Heading into your 30's loaded with debt for all the fancy letters a University can offer, yet no idea what path to take.
Meanwhile the competition sat alongside you waiting to be interviewed have 10+ years working experience, which can be more valuable than the fancy letters that hold no real weight in the direction you decide to take.
All you have proven is to be intelligent in an interest, doesn't show you can be on your feet all day, grinding away, work well with others, reliable, punctual, all the things employers look for.
Not many people have the luxury of knowing exactly what career path to take, completing the studies and then walking into employment that pays well and everything you want is very rare.
I'm sure you remember Joe on here from years ago, he did all the Uni stuff, history if I remember correctly, ended up in a Sky call centre. A job which with all due respect, many can walk into with minimal GCSE's.
If I was you, I'd look at career advice, passing on your story to school leavers and making sure Uni is right for them.

Looking forward to this as it's been a while since I've seen the rams play live. Got tickets for this, Bolton and Accrington ? It's weird playing Forest Green in a competitive fixture but I guess that's part of the beauty of league 1 football. Whilst they've won their last 2 you have to think this is a must win game for us today. 

On the standing vs sitting question as annoying as it is there is a culture in this country of standing for away games. I tend to think if you are going away then obviously you need to keep that in mind. It sucks for many people but that's the state of play for a lot of clubs nowadays and generally has been since I've been going. Given how difficult it is to get away tickets atm the argument that we cordon off sections for standing/sitting is most likely unworkable. For any 'big game' it would also be completely fruitless as an exercise thus limiting its effectiveness to matches where if you want to sit you likely can anyway. 
However, having said this I've got a ticket for Bolton on the front row of the bottom tier and am expecting to sit down for the match. Whilst I'd prefer to stand I view it as common courtesy to sit down if someone is older and would like to watch the match. I'd like to think that most people would accept that if you're very low down then you may have to sit down for the duration of the game even if your personal preference is to stand. We all want to go for as long as we can and some people are unfortunately not blessed with the health or stamina to stand for 2 hours. I'd hate to think that if one day as I got older I felt I couldn't enjoy the rams away because younger healthier folk couldn't stand the idea of sitting down near the front of the stand.  
So for me the name of the game is realism and consideration. It's not realistic to expect formal structures to be put in place on the standing vs sitting question and neither are they for my money likely to work. But people should be considerate of others. If you're wanting to stand then try to get a ticket closer to the back of the stand. If that's not possible you should accept it is the considerate and polite thing to sit down if you are asked to do so. 
 
 

On the standing vs sitting question as annoying as it is there is a culture in this country of standing for away games. I tend to think if you are going away then obviously you need to keep that in mind. It sucks for many people but that's the state of play for a lot of clubs nowadays and generally has been since I've been going. Given how difficult it is to get away tickets atm the argument that we cordon off sections for standing/sitting is most likely unworkable. For any 'big game' it would also be completely fruitless as an exercise thus limiting its effectiveness to matches where if you want to sit you likely can anyway. 
However, having said this I've got a ticket for Bolton on the front row of the bottom tier and am expecting to sit down for the match. Whilst I'd prefer to stand I view it as common courtesy to sit down if someone is older and would like to watch the match. I'd like to think that most people would accept that if you're very low down then you may have to sit down for the duration of the game even if your personal preference is to stand. We all want to go for as long as we can and some people are unfortunately not blessed with the health or stamina to stand for 2 hours. I'd hate to think that if one day as I got older I felt I couldn't enjoy the rams away because younger healthier folk couldn't stand the idea of sitting down near the front of the stand.  
So for me the name of the game is realism and consideration. It's not realistic to expect formal structures to be put in place on the standing vs sitting question and neither are they for my money likely to work. But people should be considerate of others. If you're wanting to stand then try to get a ticket closer to the back of the stand. If that's not possible you should accept it is the considerate and polite thing to sit down if you are asked to do so. 
 
 

On the standing vs sitting question as annoying as it is there is a culture in this country of standing for away games. I tend to think if you are going away then obviously you need to keep that in mind. It sucks for many people but that's the state of play for a lot of clubs nowadays and generally has been since I've been going. Given how difficult it is to get away tickets atm the argument that we cordon off sections for standing/sitting is most likely unworkable. For any 'big game' it would also be completely fruitless as an exercise thus limiting its effectiveness to matches where if you want to sit you likely can anyway. 
However, having said this I've got a ticket for Bolton on the front row of the bottom tier and am expecting to sit down for the match. Whilst I'd prefer to stand I view it as common courtesy to sit down if someone is older and would like to watch the match. I'd like to think that most people would accept that if you're very low down then you may have to sit down for the duration of the game even if your personal preference is to stand. We all want to go for as long as we can and some people are unfortunately not blessed with the health or stamina to stand for 2 hours. I'd hate to think that if one day as I got older I felt I couldn't enjoy the rams away because younger healthier folk couldn't stand the idea of sitting down near the front of the stand.  
So for me the name of the game is realism and consideration. It's not realistic to expect formal structures to be put in place on the standing vs sitting question and neither are they for my money likely to work. But people should be considerate of others. If you're wanting to stand then try to get a ticket closer to the back of the stand. If that's not possible you should accept it is the considerate and polite thing to sit down if you are asked to do so. 
 
 

Same but given it's only the 14th am not panicking just yet ? If worst comes to the worst email the ticket office like a week before the game and you should be able to pick yours up from the stadium ?

On the standing vs sitting question as annoying as it is there is a culture in this country of standing for away games. I tend to think if you are going away then obviously you need to keep that in mind. It sucks for many people but that's the state of play for a lot of clubs nowadays and generally has been since I've been going. Given how difficult it is to get away tickets atm the argument that we cordon off sections for standing/sitting is most likely unworkable. For any 'big game' it would also be completely fruitless as an exercise thus limiting its effectiveness to matches where if you want to sit you likely can anyway. 
However, having said this I've got a ticket for Bolton on the front row of the bottom tier and am expecting to sit down for the match. Whilst I'd prefer to stand I view it as common courtesy to sit down if someone is older and would like to watch the match. I'd like to think that most people would accept that if you're very low down then you may have to sit down for the duration of the game even if your personal preference is to stand. We all want to go for as long as we can and some people are unfortunately not blessed with the health or stamina to stand for 2 hours. I'd hate to think that if one day as I got older I felt I couldn't enjoy the rams away because younger healthier folk couldn't stand the idea of sitting down near the front of the stand.  
So for me the name of the game is realism and consideration. It's not realistic to expect formal structures to be put in place on the standing vs sitting question and neither are they for my money likely to work. But people should be considerate of others. If you're wanting to stand then try to get a ticket closer to the back of the stand. If that's not possible you should accept it is the considerate and polite thing to sit down if you are asked to do so. 
 
 

On the standing vs sitting question as annoying as it is there is a culture in this country of standing for away games. I tend to think if you are going away then obviously you need to keep that in mind. It sucks for many people but that's the state of play for a lot of clubs nowadays and generally has been since I've been going. Given how difficult it is to get away tickets atm the argument that we cordon off sections for standing/sitting is most likely unworkable. For any 'big game' it would also be completely fruitless as an exercise thus limiting its effectiveness to matches where if you want to sit you likely can anyway. 
However, having said this I've got a ticket for Bolton on the front row of the bottom tier and am expecting to sit down for the match. Whilst I'd prefer to stand I view it as common courtesy to sit down if someone is older and would like to watch the match. I'd like to think that most people would accept that if you're very low down then you may have to sit down for the duration of the game even if your personal preference is to stand. We all want to go for as long as we can and some people are unfortunately not blessed with the health or stamina to stand for 2 hours. I'd hate to think that if one day as I got older I felt I couldn't enjoy the rams away because younger healthier folk couldn't stand the idea of sitting down near the front of the stand.  
So for me the name of the game is realism and consideration. It's not realistic to expect formal structures to be put in place on the standing vs sitting question and neither are they for my money likely to work. But people should be considerate of others. If you're wanting to stand then try to get a ticket closer to the back of the stand. If that's not possible you should accept it is the considerate and polite thing to sit down if you are asked to do so. 
 
 

On the standing vs sitting question as annoying as it is there is a culture in this country of standing for away games. I tend to think if you are going away then obviously you need to keep that in mind. It sucks for many people but that's the state of play for a lot of clubs nowadays and generally has been since I've been going. Given how difficult it is to get away tickets atm the argument that we cordon off sections for standing/sitting is most likely unworkable. For any 'big game' it would also be completely fruitless as an exercise thus limiting its effectiveness to matches where if you want to sit you likely can anyway. 
However, having said this I've got a ticket for Bolton on the front row of the bottom tier and am expecting to sit down for the match. Whilst I'd prefer to stand I view it as common courtesy to sit down if someone is older and would like to watch the match. I'd like to think that most people would accept that if you're very low down then you may have to sit down for the duration of the game even if your personal preference is to stand. We all want to go for as long as we can and some people are unfortunately not blessed with the health or stamina to stand for 2 hours. I'd hate to think that if one day as I got older I felt I couldn't enjoy the rams away because younger healthier folk couldn't stand the idea of sitting down near the front of the stand.  
So for me the name of the game is realism and consideration. It's not realistic to expect formal structures to be put in place on the standing vs sitting question and neither are they for my money likely to work. But people should be considerate of others. If you're wanting to stand then try to get a ticket closer to the back of the stand. If that's not possible you should accept it is the considerate and polite thing to sit down if you are asked to do so. 
 
 

I’m waiting for the day football stadiums introduce first class sections of the ground so I can lie down and perhaps even have a 15 minute snooze in between halves. 

For many following a football club is an emotional bond entwined with duty simply saying 'don't go' doesn't really encapsulate what the club means to so many who follow it. I'm surprised it's a point that has to be made after last season. You can endure the lows but that doesn't mean people can't criticise what is happening on the field atm.

this strikes me as a slightly silly response. Of course people aren't going to stop supporting derby county because of the poor style of play and supporting teams is less of a choice than many imagine. But, I've not been overly impressed with how we've gone about games since Warne has come in. I think long term this appointment won't work out. He probably will get us out of this division but i just can't see him working in the championship with us. I tend to think we panicked in replacing Rosenior and for some reason decided to hire someone antithetical to our footballing philosophy not just under Rosenior but under most of our previous managers going back a decade. I'm stumped by the appointment and think we've been pretty underwhelming since he's taken over. 

For many following a football club is an emotional bond entwined with duty simply saying 'don't go' doesn't really encapsulate what the club means to so many who follow it. I'm surprised it's a point that has to be made after last season. You can endure the lows but that doesn't mean people can't criticise what is happening on the field atm.

this strikes me as a slightly silly response. Of course people aren't going to stop supporting derby county because of the poor style of play and supporting teams is less of a choice than many imagine. But, I've not been overly impressed with how we've gone about games since Warne has come in. I think long term this appointment won't work out. He probably will get us out of this division but i just can't see him working in the championship with us. I tend to think we panicked in replacing Rosenior and for some reason decided to hire someone antithetical to our footballing philosophy not just under Rosenior but under most of our previous managers going back a decade. I'm stumped by the appointment and think we've been pretty underwhelming since he's taken over. 

this strikes me as a slightly silly response. Of course people aren't going to stop supporting derby county because of the poor style of play and supporting teams is less of a choice than many imagine. But, I've not been overly impressed with how we've gone about games since Warne has come in. I think long term this appointment won't work out. He probably will get us out of this division but i just can't see him working in the championship with us. I tend to think we panicked in replacing Rosenior and for some reason decided to hire someone antithetical to our footballing philosophy not just under Rosenior but under most of our previous managers going back a decade. I'm stumped by the appointment and think we've been pretty underwhelming since he's taken over. 

Thanks Crewton for the kind words I'll definitely take that on board ?

Thanks Unlucky alf I'll definitely look into this ? I really appreciate it ? 

You’re not the only one who’s stayed in education as a kind of protection from the outside world of employment. But there’s a job out there for you and I wish you all the success in finding it mate.

I've nothing practical to add from my personal experience to the excellent advice already proffered, except to say good luck. Changing career direction is often daunting (I know I'd have struggled at it myself if it had been necessary) but seeking out those who have done it successfully may be beneficial - perhaps through special interest groups on the likes of LinkedIn and social media generally?