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So you think you could be an electrician?

456 points · 414 comments · zdw

  1. huijzer · · focus · HN ↗
    I recently switched to being an electrician in ship construction after a MSc in Computer Science and PhD in Data Science with heavy focus on writing software/services.

    So far, I like it a lot. The work is physically demanding but the colleagues are nice, down to earth and come up with good jokes (I also see this a lot when I watch trades videos on YouTube). Also nice is the feeling of having made something at the end of the day and the lack of office politics. I didn’t do any extra education, they say I’m picking it up fast so it seems I can go without. I think that would hold for most programmers since it’s a very similar mindset that you use especially when you start troubleshooting.

    1. dj_gitmo · · focus · HN ↗
      Would you say your decision to switch careers is based on your evolving interests, or economics?
      1. walrus01 · · focus · HN ↗
        I am not this person but in some segments of the market there is significant demand for people who can build ships. The US and Canada are both about to throw dozens of billions of dollars at new domestic military shipbuilding programs, for instance. Somebody with his educational qualifications who can do something electrical in large/complex ships might be able to command quite a high salary.
        1. huijzer · · focus · HN ↗
          Perhaps over time doing complex things yes but for now I’m definitely a rookie I can tell you making many rookie mistakes like loosing tools xD
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