re: Possible Career change to Mr Green Jeans

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I suppose I will need to begin investigating plan B and consider getting involved in the Coastal Restoration efforts. I find this fascinating on many levels and also have a personal passion due to living on the water while growing up and watching the erosion occur. I believe they have a building on the LSU campus that specializes in this. But for this one i would need to live in Baton Rouge, and this may or may not happen since we haven't ironed out our exodus from rural Arkansas.

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a friend of mine I graduated with in engineering took his degree and career path into coastal restoration efforts, he loves it. I think lsu now has a coastal engineering program also.

Go for it. If not, you may regret it. If it doesn't work out, you can always go back to doing what you do. Nothing hurts worse than regret.

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Yep, that is kind of what i was thinking. Originally I went the IT route and have no regret since it offered a career path with a lot of potential for financial success and jobs that were easily attainable in just about any city/company. Now it looks like life is offering me a opportunity to go back and possibly pursue a more rewarding career choice instead of just a 9-5 check.

Never thought I would be able to say I could possibly take a 20-30k pay cut and come out ok.

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Give it a whirl... If you are not worried about finances, do what you love doing. I know this isn't popular sentiment to a lot of people, but moving here opened my eyes to a whole different set of possibilities.

You can always fall back on that training. You can at least say you tried.

Here, W&F troopers are state troopers. Their jobs are awesome. Biologists here do a lot of cool things too.

You better be in great shape.

I applied and made it through the first round of interviews, but was cut at the PT test. I met all of the requirements for pushups/situps/1.5mi run, but our class of 15 was 13 former military guys. Needless to say they were in tip top shape and ran circles around me and the other guy. I would say we were in average shape, but comparatively we couldn't keep up. We were both cut.

We were told we'd be running 70 miles a week by the end of the program.

After the PT test is another round of interviews including a lie detector test. Then I believe you begin the academy, which is 6 months. You get to go home on weekends.

I believe the beginning pay bracket was like $1800-$2300 a month. When you first start out you're going to be placed somewhere shitty and must live within 30 miles of that location. No relocation assistance. On call most of the time. You get a LDWF truck with no personal use. Sometimes required to stay at a camp for a few days.



eta: looks like daylower already nailed it.

USFWS agents make more money, but no guarantee where you'll live....

a lot of LDWF agents I know have other jobs. One I know well watches over and helps manage a pretty nifty 4000 acre place for absent yankee owners....