Looking to advise grandson

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wyecrabber1

Recycles dryer sheets
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Our grandson lives in a suburb north of Dallas. He's 19, graduated HS in 2018. He's parents divorced when he was young and he lives with his mom who remarried. He changed high school every year due to the family moving. His stepdad [who was a good man] died unexpectedly during his junior year in HS.

He is a good, kind and caring young man. There are two younger step brothers at home, ages 5 & 7 and he feels a responsibility to his mom and brothers to be the man of the house.

He's bright, decent SAT scores but not disciplined enough to go the college route. He tried two semesters at junior college, but didn't apply himself. One of his talents is the ability to talk to anyone. Working at a local fast food joint, part time. He realizes this is not a career. I was characterize him as 'lost'

He has said he would like to work as a auto mechanic or find an apprenticeship for one of the trades. He's mechanically inclined, has an aptitude for electronics. He's briefly looked a Lincoln Tech and Universal Technical Institute; however, I'm a concerned about the reputation of these for profit schools -- tuition for a basic mechanic program is $35,000 and they used a hard sell for taking out school loans. He does not use drugs, is dependable and respectful.

I have no experience with trade/apprenticeship programs and would appreciate any info. I think the military would be a positive option -- but he does not want to leave his mom. I've talked to him about finding a entry level position with a large employer in the Dallas/Fort Worth area

Thanks!!!
 
Go to the union hall for the trade he likes, such as electrical workers. They all have apprenticeship programs, you earn while you learn. Also may want to check back with the junior college and get in touch with the tech program side. Most will have some type of certification programs that you learn the trade and some basic further education courses that are geared to aiding the trades work environment.
With the shortage of good skilled trade workers, and his aptitude for working with his hands, he could get on a very nice career path.
 
Agree on going to the CC and looking at the tech. You can walk through and chat with the instructor.Get a feel for how things will be. Another thing I might do is go directly to a trade company. I took my boy to a HVAC guy i know. Boy ended up not doing it. But they will train you. Start out as labor. Then start getting skilled up. They pay for the education. If he has the gift of gab he might work for a company in sales, or in production side. Maybe later he starts his own company
 
Agree. Stay away from those for profit schools. All they are are student loan mills. 38Chevy454 gave good advice. There’s no need to make a quick/rash decision. Get to know some people that can advise him on learning a skill. It make still take some college though. For example, an electrician has some math and physics to learn. But if it suits him, the learning will come easier. I worked in a electric motor repair shop and a few of those guys worked and went to school. Good friend of mine from those days is a journeyman electrician making a real good living. He went to community college and worked as an apprentice. It can be a good life.
 
My nephew is on the board of directors for an automobile technician school that's owned by the local automobile dealer association. Auto service technicians are in such demand that they took an unused dealership and turn it into a school. Where can a young man of 20 years old earn substantially more than most college graduates? It's just so difficult to find motivated individuals willing to work for a living. Working on the base rate labor manual, $100K technicians are not unheard of.

Contact the service manager of a really good car dealership and see what they would recommend for a young man wanting to get into the field.
 
I was in the same boat as far as academic discipline went. So I took the military aptitude tests and my lowest score was 90 out of 100. My highest score was in electronics at 98. I didn't know I even knew how to spell electronics! So I told the recruiter I wanted the longest school and off I went. I served 5 years, got out and worked a couple jobs before ending up at the local electric company. Retired 33 years later.

No better apprenticeship than the US military. A decent pay, travel, yada, yada, yada and as I was Air Force, little risk of armed conflict as most air bases are well guarded.


My brother, 2 years older than me, did the same thing and was accepted as an Air Traffic Controller. When he retired, went to work for the FAA and retired from there too.
 
Agree with Skip, I was not a good student, i went into military (Navy) became an electronics tech and the rest is history. I just did three years, came to PAX and have seen some cool things in USN Flight Test!!!! Join the military (Navy or AF) either for 4 or 6 years, decide if you like it mature up a bit and then see where it goes. You should be proud of the son for wanting to help mom with his brothers.
 
My youngest son went to a traditional 4 year school, but didn't have the discipline to complete it. He looked into the electrician union, and though that wasn't much help in getting a position, he has enrolled in a local CC for training, and he has a job this summer as an electrician helper (AKA a "stepandfetchit"). They want him next summer as well. They initially offered the position at "up to $10 per hour", and when they offered him the position this summer, it was at $12/hr :dance:. The trades are in high demand, and are life skills as well.
 
qt333 said:
Sales. Anything he believes in/enjoys.
Click to expand...


I had the same thought! I wonder if he could work in auto part sales while putting himself through auto mechanic school. He'd get to know a lot about garages and mechanics from dealing with them all the time.
 
skipro33 said:
I was in the same boat as far as academic discipline went. So I took the military aptitude tests and my lowest score was 90 out of 100. My highest score was in electronics at 98. I didn't know I even knew how to spell electronics! So I told the recruiter I wanted the longest school and off I went. I served 5 years, got out and worked a couple jobs before ending up at the local electric company. Retired 33 years later.

No better apprenticeship than the US military. A decent pay, travel, yada, yada, yada and as I was Air Force, little risk of armed conflict as most air bases are well guarded.


My brother, 2 years older than me, did the same thing and was accepted as an Air Traffic Controller. When he retired, went to work for the FAA and retired from there too.
Click to expand...
I think this is a great way to go for a young person in this situation. He will get both training and on the job experience. Plus he might have a big leg up when he moves to civilian life, as many employers are pro-veteran when hiring.
 
I was a bit of a lost soul when I was late teens early 20s. I remember swearing there was no way in hell I would set foot inside another school after high school. Fast forward 5 years and half a dozen crappy jobs and I felt differently. Best thing I did was call up companies in jobs I thought I would be good at and interested in and asked if I could talk to somebody there. I was open and honest that I was trying to figure out what to do for a career. Never got turned down. They all talked to me. Was an eye opening experience and made me realize what a career really meant.
 
The perfect fit might be selling electrical equipment and services.
He needs to be motivated to do whatever is suggested to him though.
 
Starting out

The longtime master mechanic for my Dad’s four Mercedeses started out at the local dealership as the car-washer and floor-sweeper. His wonderful work ethic, reliability, willingness to take on more, great attitude was noticed and he was soon helping out with minor work and other duties. He gained on-the-job training and apprenticeship, and this led to the dealership sponsoring him for authorized Mercedes certifications, master qualifications and degrees.
He’s still loving his job with the same dealership......and I inherited my Dad’s 1968 280SL pagoda-top — the car I drove to college in 1972!
 
FWIW, my local independent electrician charges $85 an hour. While it's less per hour than the big companies that have an office and office staff to support, it's sure not chump change.
 
Last edited:
justlikebike said:
I was a bit of a lost soul when I was late teens early 20s. I remember swearing there was no way in hell I would set foot inside another school after high school. Fast forward 5 years and half a dozen crappy jobs and I felt differently.
Click to expand...

That was me too, except that it only took one semester of unloading trucks at Woodies (a now defunct dept. store) to decide that maybe college was perhaps not so bad. One of the things that attracted me to police work was that I hated the idea of working in an office. I wanted to be outside "in the thick of it". I got my wish!
 
wyecrabber1 said:
........He's bright, decent SAT scores but not disciplined enough to go the college route. He tried two semesters at junior college, but didn't apply himself. One of his talents is the ability to talk to anyone. Working at a local fast food joint, part time. He realizes this is not a career. I was characterize him as 'lost'.......
Click to expand...

My DM was a high school counselor. She indicated all kids are not mature enough to go to college at 18. They mature at different ages. You may just need to give him some time.

In the short term (or long term), the tech route may also be a good option. As a general comment, I would stay away from the for profit schools.
 
If he doesn't mind driving down to Love Field every day, check out Southwest Airlines. Lots more than just pilots & flight attendants. Mechanics for the planes, mechanics for the simulators, ramp agents, customer service agents, baggage handlers, provisioning, as well as lots of "office" jobs of course. Lots of the jobs are union so the pay may be better than you think, plus flight benefits.

If he'd rather drive to DFW, check out American.
 
I am not trying to defend the for profit schools, but I have a good friend that went to UTI in the mid 2000's and was hired on with a Porsche dealership before he graduated. He did that for a few years and now owns his own shop and has 10 employees. So, it can be useful for some.

Oh, and the comment about joining the Air Force and being able to stay out of harms way? Yeah, not these days...everyone gets to play dangerous games. You spend enough time in the AF, then odds are you will get to deploy and even get to be attached with the Army!
 
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