Career change advice - A long term plan!

[Brocakat]

Must make the comment that Local Authorites with 'Human Resources' / 'Personnel' departments mainly composed of people in their 20's/30's place a larger credence on
people with a Degree rather than with experience. This is a natural consequence of many of them going to a Uni. - 'any' Uni. and getting a degree themselves, as opposed to starting at a low position & gaining knowledge in a more practical manner.

[APC]

Every ranger I know who works for a local authority is looking for related jobs in the private sector now. Conservation departments are currently depressing with all the looming cuts to people, resources etc. Noone in their right mind would want to join the fun at the moment. Best hope at the moment is finding any sort of finances to get through as many different CS etc units so can hopefully get into project-based work in the private sector.

[eeyore]

spot on - i've recently jumped from a NE funded volunteers scheme coordinator post with a local authority team to a head rangers post with the National Trust.

It'd be a cold day in hell before I went in the other direction

[Johnny Redgate]

Originally Posted by Brocakat

Must make the comment that Local Authorites with 'Human Resources' / 'Personnel' departments mainly composed of people in their 20's/30's place a larger credence on
people with a Degree rather than with experience. This is a natural consequence of many of them going to a Uni. - 'any' Uni. and getting a degree themselves, as opposed to starting at a low position & gaining knowledge in a more practical manner.

Whilst some of this may or may not be true we are talking about ecology/conservation as a profession. It therefore demands a professional qualification, currently provided by a relevant university degree of some kind. A glance at the eligibility criteria for full membership of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (the accepted professional body) will show you that the requirements are:
BSc + 4 years exp
BSc + MSc + 3 years exp
BSc + PhD + 2 years exp
MSc only + 6 years exp
Insufficient qualifications 8 years exp + detailed CV + written statement
No relevant qualifications 10 years exp + detailed CV + written statement

All qualifications need to be relevant. Any move away from this would be retrograde IMO.

[Matt Smith]

Originally Posted by Johnny Redgate

Whilst some of this may or may not be true we are talking about ecology/conservation as a profession. It therefore demands a professional qualification, currently provided by a relevant university degree of some kind. A glance at the eligibility criteria for full membership of the Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (the accepted professional body) will show you that the requirements are:
BSc + 4 years exp
BSc + MSc + 3 years exp
BSc + PhD + 2 years exp
MSc only + 6 years exp
Insufficient qualifications 8 years exp + detailed CV + written statement
No relevant qualifications 10 years exp + detailed CV + written statement

All qualifications need to be relevant. Any move away from this would be retrograde IMO.

The IEEM have only been going for about 12 years and seem to be more interested in "being the IEEM" than anything else as far as I can see. They have only become the "accepted professional body" because they say they are. Your real level of experience is not checked or assessed, you just fill in the form and tick the boxes.

The majority of ecologists I know give very little weight to any IEEM membership, most people seem to view it as just another "possibly useful" set of letters after their name, albeit at the cost of £120 per year.

Given the choice, I think most prospective employers would rate a candidate holding a GCN survey licence more hightly than an AIEEM membership.

Matt

IEEM Member.

[Johnny Redgate]

Originally Posted by Matt Smith

The IEEM have only been going for about 12 years and seem to be more interested in "being the IEEM" than anything else as far as I can see. They have only become the "accepted professional body" because they say they are. Your real level of experience is not checked or assessed, you just fill in the form and tick the boxes.

The majority of ecologists I know give very little weight to any IEEM membership, most people seem to view it as just another "possibly useful" set of letters after their name, albeit at the cost of £120 per year.

Given the choice, I think most prospective employers would rate a candidate holding a GCN survey licence more hightly than an AIEEM membership.

Matt

IEEM Member.

I am surprised at your views. The IEEM was established because no other professional body existed for ecologists. It has been going for at least 13 years because that's how long I've been a member and my membership number is over 1000. I would suggest that most professional ecologists, certainly those working in consultancy, think its worthwhile. Full membership of IEEM implies certain standards as a professional ecologist and, though you may not think it worthwhile, the majority of employers at least in local authorities and consultancies will list it as an essential requirement for any but the most 'entry level' jobs, and it is a starting point for someone seeking to employ a consultant. It may not suit all potential careers in ecology/conservation I guess so take a view on it depending on what you want to do