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Career Options
Hello!
I'm currently in my first year of university, taking general Arts and Science classes. I've changed my mind a couple times when trying to figure out a career path so I'm not on a direct path right now, but I am trying to figure it out.
I feel that there are career opportunities in the areas I am interested in but that I simply don't know what they are.
I know that I want to do something involving "health", but not anything like a doctor or nurse.
I'm not sure what programs are available for my interests, however.
I'd be interested in working with the human body/fitness/exercise, something like that.
I suppose an option would be a personal trainer, but what kind of program would one take for that? And what are some other ideas? Please throw anything out there that you can think of.
Another direction I could see myself pursuing is something to do with nutrition, but promoting a vegan (possibly/probably raw food) diet. What are some ways I could incorporate that into a career? I am aware of ideas such as websites that make money, but what are some others? Is there any type of schooling/program I could complete that would help me in this direction? I was considering taking nutrition, but I talked to some students who are in it and it seems like animal products are heavily emphasized. I feel that I would be exposed to a lot of information that didn't resonate with me.
I'm interested in alternative medicine as well, but I'm not exactly sure what the different terms mean, involve, and how credible they are, such as naturopathy and holistic healing. What programs can be taken for this that are credible? I've seen some "internet" programs, but I don't think that's quite what I'm looking for.
I'll continue to search, but any suggestions would be very much appreciated! Thank you!
I'm currently in my first year of university, taking general Arts and Science classes. I've changed my mind a couple times when trying to figure out a career path so I'm not on a direct path right now, but I am trying to figure it out.
I feel that there are career opportunities in the areas I am interested in but that I simply don't know what they are.
I know that I want to do something involving "health", but not anything like a doctor or nurse.
I'm not sure what programs are available for my interests, however.
I'd be interested in working with the human body/fitness/exercise, something like that.
I suppose an option would be a personal trainer, but what kind of program would one take for that? And what are some other ideas? Please throw anything out there that you can think of.
Another direction I could see myself pursuing is something to do with nutrition, but promoting a vegan (possibly/probably raw food) diet. What are some ways I could incorporate that into a career? I am aware of ideas such as websites that make money, but what are some others? Is there any type of schooling/program I could complete that would help me in this direction? I was considering taking nutrition, but I talked to some students who are in it and it seems like animal products are heavily emphasized. I feel that I would be exposed to a lot of information that didn't resonate with me.
I'm interested in alternative medicine as well, but I'm not exactly sure what the different terms mean, involve, and how credible they are, such as naturopathy and holistic healing. What programs can be taken for this that are credible? I've seen some "internet" programs, but I don't think that's quite what I'm looking for.
I'll continue to search, but any suggestions would be very much appreciated! Thank you!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Anne de Champlain on -
Hi Maria,
Just a few ideas for you. If you want to become a fitness trainer you can simply do a course which doesn't have to be very long ( I believe it's something ridiculously short like 5 or 10 weeks). If you are really interested in understanding the science behind the fitness programs or performance, then I'd recommend doing a degree in sport science or kinesiology which will also have courses like nutrition (probably very general at this stage) in it. Or you could do a major in sport science/kinesiology with a minor in Nutrition. You could also specialize in sports management if this was of interest to you for positions that are more concerned about management of sport facilities or even events (although event management would be best for that).
It really depends what you want to do with your degree. There is a ton of alternative therapies out there. Naturopathy is credible and recognized. Chinese medicine (and acupuncture) is fascinating (well I think so). Physiotherapy is another option for you if you wanted to explore healing active people. I know a few alternative physiotherapist in Vancouver who use acupuncture and energy healing which is probably going to expand in the years to come. Osteopathy is well recognize and gaining momentum in Canada (very popular in Europe). Chiroprators are very much in demand as well and most people at one time or more of their lives need back adjustments. If you did any of those you could work in a centre or have you own business.
You are probably right that a typical nutrition degree will show you the basics but sometimes knowing the basics is just the starting point for more investigation about what really is of interest to you. But again, it's really up to what you want to do with such a degree.
You could study business and start your own business like having your own gym/studio or healthy restaurant or sell products you believe in.
I hope my note my spur your imagination. I was also quite confused when I went to University.
Good luck
Anne
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Permalink Reply by Frances Worster on -
what about an occupational therapist? The educational requirements vary depending on where you live, but I don't think that they are extremely hard / time consuming. And it's a growing field:
Occupational therapists help patients improve their ability to perform tasks in living and working environments. They work with individuals who suffer from a mentally, physically, developmentally, or emotionally disabling condition. Occupational therapists use treatments to develop, recover, or maintain the daily living and work skills of their patients. The therapist helps clients not only to improve their basic motor functions and reasoning abilities, but also to compensate for permanent loss of function. The goal is to help clients have independent, productive, and satisfying lives.
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos078.htm
You'll need a masters I think
Or a massage therapist? Or physio?
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Permalink Reply by Vega Kelly on -
There are so many possibilities! Have you thought about doing a session for a career assessment so you can determine where your interests and options lie? I think you can work in the health industry in just about any role. For example, I have a marketing diploma which normally you wouldn't expect to lead to a career in the health industry but I was lucky enough to find a company that is inline with my health interests. Because I love fitness too, I also teach classes part-time. We have a staff member who is a licensed holistic nutrtionist but works on our sales team. There are really a lot of ways you can combine this. Good luck with your career search! And keep us posted on what you decide to do.
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Permalink Reply by David Bowden on -
*cracks knuckles*
Alright, best advice I can give you is to get a certificate in personal training to start with. You can either get one through a local YMCA or through Can-Fit-Pro. From here you can do workshops and other courses to increase your knowledge of health and fitness. Getting certified will open doors to you to explore where you would like to go in the fitness world or health world. Also, I need to ask, what are your interests? If you like yoga and running, I would look into getting educated in fields that you already have incorporated into your life. If you have no fitness or health related interests, I'd start exploring. As for university, getting your sciences out of the way would be a good idea if you haven't done so already.
Anyway, explore and dive into different things, best way to find what you are looking for.
Dave
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Permalink Reply by Lisa on -
Hi Maria,
I'll just tell you what I did, in case any of it might be something you're interested in...
I have a B.S. in exercise science (worked in air force fitness for a couple years, and realized its hard to do fitness without covering other health topics). I got a MPH, master's in public health, and a Ph.D. in public health. I ended up teaching wellness courses for two online universities, and also doing wellness coaching for Wellness Coaches USA, which is a company that contracts with businesses all over the country. The employer pays for hours of wellness coaching for their employees, and the wellness coach (me) comes in to the workplace and helps the employees work on whatever wellness issue they are interested in (the big ones are always diet, exercise, weight loss, and stress).
You would only need a bachelor's degree in some health or fitness related field to do wellness coaching.
Good luck!
Lisa
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Permalink Reply by Maria M on -
Hey everyone, sorry it took me so long to reply. I really appreciated all the suggestions though, and I ended up taking an intro kinesiology class in my second semester this past year. I really enjoyed it and applied to transfer into kin, and just found out yesterday that I was accepted! I am very excited to see where this will lead. Thanks again!
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