Advice on studying further

[Hucklebury]

Hi everyone,

I'm 27 and I have been working in a sales capacity for around 6 years now. My problem is two fold :

1) I don't have a Matric -- I decided not to continue after Grade 8 for several reasons. I didn't feel it would be beneficial at the time. Looking back, l realize I made the wrong choice.

2) I don't have any real qualifications. After Grade 8, I decided I wanted to dabble in IT, got my A+ certificate and a course on general Information/Technology. Not much, I know. I worked in the IT field for a year then decided that it wasn't for me.

One thing I've always loved is my passion for audio. I've been working as a sales representative for boutique dealers for the past 4 years. I love setting up systems and understanding how they work. When I first started working I was earning a very decent salary all things considered. The problem I'm finding now is that my salary doesn't increase with time. It's just a dead end.

The common thread is sales and I've racked up several years of experience in that field. Six years of sales experience. But if I were to lose my job tomorrow, the only thing I would have is experience to fall back on. No qualifications. I'm very concerned about my future but if I don't act soon then things could get a lot worse for me.

Naturally, I also want to earn more. I don't get bonuses, increases to fight inflation. Since I haven't furthered my studies at all, I am understandably confused as to what would be the best direction for me to go in.

I don't want to change jobs and throw away the experience I've gained over the years since that is all I have. I don't think many companies are willing to pay more than what I earn without proper qualifications in addition to at least some experience.

Currently, I earn +- R5k per month after deductions but I've been earning the same salary for pretty much the last 2-3 years. Before I know it I'll be 30, and I can't live like that. It sucks but then I know I only have myself to blame. I just don't know where to begin and I need advice.

So I guess I have two questions really. I've been told for years that most colleges would not accept applicants without a Matric. Are there any colleges that would accept Grade 8 applications.

Second question is what path I should take to improve on my current experience which I've gained over the last several years. I need to study something that would benefit my experience. At the end of the day I just want a better quality of life. Any advice would be appreciated.

Sorry for the long post.

 

[Hucklebury]

Anyone ?

 

[FuNkEr]

Well, at this stage it doesn't help studying something you're not interested in like accounting of whatever. If you were still 18, then it would have been a different situation. I'm sure there must be some proper (part time) diplomas in "sound engineering" or something somewhere?

 

[Stefanmuller]

You say you have 6 years of sales experience? And how do you feel about sales? As far as I know there are reasonable amounts of money to be made in sales (definately more than R5K), because sales is generally commission driven so if you work hard and initiate a lot of sales, you earn more. If what is holding you back in getting a better job in sales, is your studies, maybe you should decide on what type of sales you are interested or that is more lucrative, and try and do some sort of short course on that.
Some employers will also train you. I have never worked in sales myself, but from my experience with friends and so on, is that the guy with the better sales skills, is usually the guy who makes the most money, the academical knowledge often comes second. I wanted to do medical rep work for instance, but when I got to the first class of my course, probably 80% of the class were ex sales reps from other industries, such as car sales, cellphone sales, insurance etc. They just wanted a crash course in Biology/Pharmacology when I had the knowledge to teach the class myself. That showed me that medical rep was probably not for me as I have zero sales skills and would probably be apologizing the whole day for bothering people trying to sell something to them.

Colleges like Damelin etc offer courses without you needing to have matric as far as I know. Don't know what they offer though.

 

[Cheri_N]

At some institutions you can qualify for age exemption (23+) I believe. Although I would assume the courses you may follow will be limited but it is worth a try. Best advise I can give you is to enrol for grade 12 through Damelin or the like and take it from there. You are not too old and it is a year out of your life. Then go and study something that you are genuinely interested in.

Good luck.

 

[Hucklebury]

Thanks everyone for the response. To be honest, I don't want to be in sales for the rest of my life. It's a high pressure job. Audio is something that I love and getting into audio engineering would be great. My problem then is that the experience I gained over the last six years won't count for anything. If I get a diploma in sound engineering then right off the bat there is no guarantee that I'll be earning more than I am now. I could be earning less for all I know. Of course, I'm speculating.

I have no idea how well audio engineers get paid in their line of work. I just don't want my existing work experience to be completely wasted. In this day and age you need work experience and decent qualifications to get a decent salary. If one has very little experience in their field then they will earn very little. I think I would be interested to know what the average paid salary is for an audio engineer. I just don't want to go backwards from where I am now.

The thought of having to find a new job without any qualifications is a frightening one. I'm just trying to advance my current position.

 

[krepunk]

Considering you don't want to be in sales earning R5k pm forever, you should be thinking long term, I don't really know what growth opportunities are available for sales people even with experience, I mean you can't really go and do a sales degree/diploma can you? If you can maybe you should look into that? If that requires a Matric/Grade 12, then start there. No matter how long it takes, eventually all the hard work/studying will pay off.

I think you'd struggle to find an audio engineering job fresh out of college because the entertainment industry is more about who you know.
Never say never though, I'm not sure what a starting salary as an audio engineer would be...you could really impress at college and get a job offer straight away and if you're good at what you do you should be earning more than R5k.

If it comes down to your 6 years work experience being "wasted" because you decide on a change in direction, then the money shouldn't hold you back, if the change in direction is going to open up more opportunities for you, especially in something you feel passionate about it should be a no-brainer. To be honest, it sounds like you enjoy the audio aspect of your current job more than the sales aspect.
Would you rather be earning R5k in a dead-end sales position or R5k in a position that offers you the potential to grow and earn more at a later stage?

If I could be a pilot (lame i know) I would drop all of my experience and degree and go to flight school straight away...unfortunately I'm colour blind and don't have 20/20 vision so being a pilot is out of the question

 

[Hucklebury]

Hi Krepunk,

Yes, I definitely enjoy the audio aspects of my job more than the sales side. You bring up a good point about being in a dead end position. The best I could do is perhaps join another boutique dealer who offers a better salary but the idea of having no qualification still bugs me to no end. When I got my first job as an audio consultant, I ran away with it. I enjoyed the job, and never even thought about studying further at the time. I was +- 22 at the time.

So I'm in a difficult position although I know it could be far worse. Due to circumstances and the way the company has shifted over time, making sales is extremely difficult at the moment. I'm 27 right now, so I'm not getting any younger, and if I start from scratch, changing jobs, it's going to take a long time until I gain enough experience to earn anything decent. At least that's the way I'm feeling. I could be wrong.

As you can probably tell, I'm a very indecisive about what I really want. I guess I just want to grow with what experience I have now. If that means giving up the audio component but growing further and earning more, then I'll have no choice but to take that opportunity. I'm not sure what sales courses are available though. If I become an audio engineer and start on a salary of R4k then it's obviously no good. : ) Thanks again for your responses, it's appreciated.

 

[Hucklebury]

Just want to say thanks again to all those who responded. I appreciate the feedback.