encouraging newbies and cynics

[Troll]

I get calls from peeps out there that are teetering on the edge of applying for that dream job in Tescos. Sadly, a lot of these guys are young uns who already feel cheated and disillusioned. I`m running out of things to say to these guys to keep them in the job. A lot of the downside for them is that they seem to be going nowhere. It`s not that upwards seems to be their preferred direction-just that they don`t feel invested in. I know that some of the larger units/Uni`s/consultancies have training budgets for their staff, what about the other lot in small teams? Have the ideas of training courses discussed by Prospect/IFA come to any fruition yet?

[deepdigger]

Sorry Troll mate, can't even think of what to tell them, still angry after reading what destroyer said on the last post.GRRRRR!

deep

[eggbasket]

Why not just tell them to get that job in Tosscos? After all, to judge by the tenor of many posts on this forum, the profession is doomed anyway, so why bother?

Eggbasket
(teetering on the edge of an existential crisis)

Eggy by name, eggy by nature

[Venutius]

Change "doomed" to "ripe for change".

Save the Thornborough Henge Complex - http://www.timewatch.org

[mercenary]

[

[mercenary]

quote:Eggbasket
(teetering on the edge of an existential crisis)

Hope that's not down to my comments.

Merc.
Professional Miserablist

[eggbasket]

No, merc, it's a constant state due to overwork and attempting to do a part-time PhD as well as have a social life (or is playing hockey more of an anti-social life?).

Cheers,
Eggbasket

Eggy by name, eggy by nature

[mercenary]

Depends how you play.

[mercenary]

Troll,

Let them go I say. With respect, this is a hard field to progress in, and to do so you have to be extremely pro-active or extremely lucky. Sadly there are more potential archaeologists than even **** short-term jobs. They've just been filtered out in a sadly brutal way. We've all had periods of disillusionment, but must have come out the other side if we're still here.

Interestingly, I'm meeting more and more people coming back to the field after leaving and only then realizing some of the benefits. There are a lot of really crap jobs out there, and not many good ones that ex archaeologists can land.B)

As for training in small Units none of the initiatives you mention has filtered down to us. That's not to say that un-official training is not a constant and ongoing process.

[Curator Kid]

I too had decided to get out after a few years of digging. I was sick of the travelling to one crummy site after another, bad wages, living out of a suitcase, etc. Then I got a job digging abroard on a site with the most wicked archaeology imaginable - learned loads, met some great people, enjoyed myself again. Came back here, and suddenly the bad wages, travelling from one crummy site to another, and living out of a suitcase didn't matter so much, because I was an [u]Archaeologist</u>, and it was the best job ever. I'd tell anyone who's teetering to stick at it. There's not a quick fix or fast track route, but it's worth the effort to make a go of it.