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Paul Albarracin

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Obsolete Jobs

Phasing out something takes time, whether society has found a better solution or it succumbed to age. I am at an adolescent point of my life (17 years of age) where I have plans to become this or that as my future career. But it never struck me if a certain occupation could be phased out completely in regards to technological advancement. I am oversensitive, and rather picky on my education. I strive to pursue a career in business. Now it looks like many positions in that particular sector won't be obsolete as long as I live. But let's have a debate on certain jobs being phased out as a result of automation or the like.

Discuss: Jobs/careers/occupations that will be gone in the long-term or even the next decade or so and back them up.

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    Robin Patin 10+

    • +2
    Sep 19 2012: The reality is that you often end up working in a field completely unrelated to what you studied in school. Other than fields that require credentials (engineering, medicine, law) you can study (almost) anything you want. Your career post graduation almost exclusively depends on your network.

    I graduated from graduate school ten years ago and no one gives a fig what I studied. The fact that I have a graduate degree is enough and my opportunities have been largely dictated by the power of my network.

    Just don't study anything like 'typewriter repair' or 'horse and buggy craftmanship', create a solid network and utilize that network to find jobs and you'll be fine.

    • John Smith 30+

      • 0
      Sep 19 2012: Many people don't have "a network", for those people studying something like art history will be a straight path to unemployment.
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      James Zhang 30+

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      Sep 19 2012: "The reality is that you often end up working in a field completely unrelated to what you studied in school."

      My dad had a PHD in Oceanography and he is now the Marketing Manager of Texas Instruments. Maybe he didn't didn't get a job at TI through networks of people, but nonetheless, his job is clearly the most related thing to Oceanography at all... >_>
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      Michael Roberts 10+

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      Sep 20 2012: I think the fact that you were able to complete a Graduate Degree is telling your potential employers about a more generic and therefore more widely applicable skill set, more than it tells him or her your degree-specific skills.

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