career opportunities out there?

An area worth exploring would be the construction/technical trades. I work for a company in the utility industry and there are a number of benefits to these career paths that women often overlook: 1. The entry-level requirements are often a high school diploma, driver's license and being 18 years of age or older. Most union opportunities do have some type of aptitude test that you will need to pass as part of the hiring process. I'd recommend using some GED test prep materials to help ease you back into taking a standardized test. 2. Through apprentice programs or employers in these fields, you often receive paid on-the-job training from the ground up 3. These jobs are connected to very defined career paths, so there is definitely opportunity for growth 4. The compensation is often well above what most high school graduates make in the market today. Starting hourly rate is often around $20/hour for an entry-level title and when you matriculate up to top title with top pay, you can make $50 or more/hour. Pay rates can go even higher when you take into account pay differentials for working overtime, nights, weekends, holidays, etc. It's not atypical for trade workers to make 6 figure salaries even early career. 5. These jobs are often unionized and so you get all of the benefits and protections that come with a union. 6. Many of the companies and even unions that employ trade workers on a permanent basis have tuition reimbursement programs if you want to go back to school some day. For example, the company I work for actually reimburses 100% of the tuition cost for our employees to earn a bachelors or masters degree. I recommend looking up the career pages for utility companies (electric, gas, steam, communications, water, etc.) in your region and also doing a search for apprenticeship programs as well. There might even be special pre-apprenticeship programs geared towards introducing women to careers in the trades.

I went back to college at 38, with grants and scholarships along with student loans and part time work on campus, I was able to get my degree at 42 and started my career within 4 months of graduation. I have never been sorry I sacrificed time with my 4 kids because all of our lives have been better since then. I put all 4 through college by myself. It is a sacrifice because they don’t get your best for a few years but they won’t mind knowing you are doing it for all of you. Vocational schools are also a quick way to get a career at a reasonable cost. Good luck, just remember whatever you do it’s worth it in the long run.